History of Confluent in Timeline

Share: FB Share X Share Reddit Share Reddit Share
By Popular Timelines Editorial Team  · Updated:
Confluent

Confluent, Inc., founded in 2014 by the creators of Apache Kafka (Jay Kreps, Jun Rao, and Neha Narkhede), is a B2B infrastructure company that commercializes the open-source Kafka streaming platform. Born out of LinkedIn in 2008, Confluent provides a suite of products, including Confluent Cloud, Confluent Platform, Connectors, Apache Flink, Stream Governance, and Confluent Hub, aimed at enabling businesses to leverage real-time data streams.

2008: Apache Kafka Created at LinkedIn

In 2008, Apache Kafka, an open-source streaming platform, was created by Jay Kreps, Jun Rao, and Neha Narkhede while they were working at LinkedIn.

September 23, 2014: Confluent Founded

On September 23, 2014, Confluent, Inc. was founded by Jay Kreps, Jun Rao, and Neha Narkhede to commercialize Apache Kafka.

June 1, 2021: Confluent Files for IPO

On June 1, 2021, Confluent filed for an Initial Public Offering (IPO) with a valuation of $4.5 billion.

December 8, 2025: IBM Announces Acquisition of Confluent

On December 8, 2025, IBM announced its acquisition of Confluent at a valuation of $11 billion.

2026: IBM Acquisition of Confluent Completed

In 2026, specifically on March 17, the acquisition deal between IBM and Confluent was completed.