MariaDB to acquire GridGain to power low-latency AI

MariaDB has agreed to buy GridGain, a developer of in-memory computing technology and the original creator of the open source project Apache Ignite. The deal brings together MariaDB's relational database products and GridGain's in-memory data grid software as MariaDB positions itself around lower-latency infrastructure for AI and real-time applications.

The companies have signed a definitive agreement, with the transaction subject to customary closing conditions.

MariaDB, which has roots in the MySQL ecosystem, markets its database as an alternative to proprietary platforms. GridGain is best known for its work on Apache Ignite, which is used for distributed in-memory processing and data storage, and has been adopted by organisations that need fast access to data across clusters of servers.

AI latency focus

The acquisition aims to reduce delays in data access for emerging AI use cases that need fresh data and quick responses. MariaDB described a shift from chatbot-style applications to "agentic" AI systems that can execute multi-step tasks and make repeated calls to data stores during a single workflow.

MariaDB's core offering is a transactional relational database, which it describes as ACID-compliant and suitable for sensitive workloads. It also says the product includes native vector functionality and AI support.

GridGain's software operates closer to memory than disk, aiming to reduce the time it takes to fetch and process data. This can matter for applications that need high throughput and fast response times, including fraud detection, pricing, personalisation and telecoms network operations.

Rohit De Souza, Chief Executive Officer of MariaDB, framed the deal as a response to changing infrastructure requirements.

"The rise of agentic workloads has placed unprecedented demands on enterprise infrastructure, causing requirements to explode and requiring a level of scale and sub-millisecond latency that traditional systems simply weren't built to handle."

He also set the acquisition in the context of competition with large database vendors and cloud platforms.

"By uniting our platform with GridGain's in-memory data grid, we are entering a new weight class. This enables us to provide a high-performance, scalable, open alternative to the rigid lock-in of Oracle and the fragmented complexity of hyperscalers," De Souza said.

Customer overlap

MariaDB says it is used by thousands of enterprises and millions of developers. It positions itself as an option for organisations upgrading from Oracle MySQL, and points to migration demand from customers looking to move away from Oracle database products.

GridGain's customer base includes companies in financial services, telecoms and other data-intensive sectors. MariaDB listed brands it said it will support after the acquisition, including American Express, Barclays, BNP Paribas, Citi, DBS, Deutsche Bank, RBC and State Street Corporation. It also cited HPE, Motorola Solutions and Red Hat, plus Nokia, Verizon and Virgin Media O2.

In logistics and services, MariaDB listed American Airlines, UPS, XPO Logistics and 24 Hour Fitness. The companies did not disclose financial terms.

Hybrid platform pitch

MariaDB said the combined offering will provide a unified platform across hybrid environments. It contrasted that approach with hyperscale cloud providers, which often split transactional databases, analytics services and caching layers into separate products that customers must integrate.

Under the plan outlined by the companies, the combined MariaDB-GridGain stack will cover transactional, analytical and AI-related workloads, with deployments across on-premises infrastructure and cloud environments. MariaDB said customers will receive support from a single supplier for the combined stack.

Lalit Ahuja, Chief Technology Officer of GridGain, said enterprises face performance limits from siloed data architectures.

"Enterprises today cannot afford the latency introduced by siloed data architectures. With MariaDB and GridGain, enterprise customers will get a unified platform that provides them the best of both worlds, performance and scale without having to give up on durability."

"The combined technology stack will unlock one of the key enablers for agentic enterprises: high-performance and reliable data processing that powers the next generation of AI applications," Ahuja added.

GridGain describes its platform as providing security, high availability, distributed operation, management controls and integrations. It positions Ignite and its commercial offerings for workloads that need real-time processing of large datasets.

MariaDB said the agreement advances its broader strategy for AI-ready data infrastructure, combining in-memory processing with transactional durability as the companies work to integrate their products after the deal closes.