Peter Baker: Duo Security Becomes Michigan’s 1st “Unicorn”

After a recent Series D financing round, Ann Arbor company Duo Security has been valued at $1.17b dollar — making them the state of Michigan’s first billion dollar startup. 

Stamps alumnus Peter Baker (BFA 2000, BA 2000), who, as Duo’s first designer, named and branded the company, is Duo’s Senior Creative Director. Baker’s work at Duo was recently praised by Information Security magazine: ​“I was with a UK startup this afternoon who named Duo as one of the companies it is most influenced by for marketing — that Duo is the brand to follow in terms of marketing image.”

Duo Security today announced its Series D funding that puts the company in unicorn territory. The company raised $70 million led by Meritech Capital Partners and Lead Edge Capital at a valuation of $1.17 billion. This funding round brings the company’s total amount raised to $119 million.

This round included new investors, Index Ventures and Workday, that latter of which joins as a strategic partner, as well as existing investors Redpoint Ventures and True Ventures.

The Michigan-based SaaS company was founded in 2010 in Ann Arbor, Michigan, which it still calls home though it has since opened offices in Austin; San Mateo, Calif.; and London and now employs more than 500 globally. The company says it now works with more than 10,000 companies and has more than doubled its annual recurring revenue for the past four years.

Duo Security raises $70 million at a valuation north of $1 billion | TechCrunch