CrowdStrike vs Okta: Founders, CEOs and History
CrowdStrike was founded in 2011 by George Kurtz, Dmitri Alperovitch, Gregg Marston and is led by George Kurtz. Okta was founded in 2009 by Todd McKinnon, Frederic Kerrest and is led by Todd McKinnon.
Company facts
CrowdStrike
- Founded
- 2011
- Headquarters
- Austin, Texas
- Current CEO
- George Kurtz
- Employees
- 10,698
Okta
- Founded
- 2009
- Headquarters
- San Francisco, California, United States
- Current CEO
- Todd McKinnon
- Employees
- 6,366
Founders
CrowdStrike
George Kurtz
George Kurtz co-founded CrowdStrike in 2011 and has served as CEO since then, later also taking the title of president. He pushed the company to replace signature-based antivirus with a cloud-native, behavior-based platform.
Dmitri Alperovitch
Dmitri Alperovitch co-founded CrowdStrike and served as its chief technology officer, building its threat intelligence practice and adversary-naming approach (for example "Fancy Bear" and "Cozy Bear").
Gregg Marston
Gregg Marston co-founded CrowdStrike in 2011 alongside George Kurtz and Dmitri Alperovitch.
Okta
Todd McKinnon
Todd McKinnon co-founded Okta in 2009 and has been its CEO since the start. At Salesforce he ran engineering during its early growth, which shaped his view that SaaS adoption would make identity, not the network perimeter, the core of enterprise security.
Frederic Kerrest
Frederic Kerrest co-founded Okta with Todd McKinnon in 2009 and led its early sales, partnerships and operations as chief operating officer, later serving as executive vice chairman.
CEOs and their tenures
CrowdStrike
- George Kurtz2011–present
Co-Founder, President, and Chief Executive Officer
As Co-Founder and CEO, he pioneered the massive shift from legacy, signature-based antivirus (like his former company McAfee) to highly advanced, AI-driven cloud endpoint protection.
Source - Dmitri Alperovitch2011–2020
Co-Founder
Dmitri Alperovitch co-founded CrowdStrike in 2011 and served as its Chief Technology Officer until 2020. He was fundamental in designing the Falcon platform's cloud-native architecture and establishing the company's renowned threat intelligence capabilities.
Source - Burt Podbere2015–present
Chief Financial Officer
As CFO, he attempts to minimize the severe financial liabilities and potential massive customer churn resulting from the catastrophic 2024 global IT outage.
Source
Okta
- Todd McKinnon2009–present
Co-Founder & Chief Executive Officer
Has led Okta since founding, through its 2017 IPO, the 2021 Auth0 deal and its turn to GAAP profitability in fiscal 2025.
Source - Frederic Kerrest2009–2023
Co-Founder; former COO and Executive Vice Chairman
As Co-Founder and Vice Chairman, he provided the absolutely essential business and sales acumen required to scale the company, perfectly complementing Todd McKinnon's technical expertise.
Source - Brett Tighe2022–present
Chief Financial Officer
Oversaw margin expansion to a 30% free cash flow margin in fiscal 2026, the cash settlement of the 2026 convertible notes and the share buyback.
Source
Timeline: CrowdStrike and Okta side by side
2009Okta
Founded as Saasure in San Francisco
Todd McKinnon and Frederic Kerrest start the company; it is soon renamed Okta.
2011CrowdStrike
Company Founded
George Kurtz, Dmitri Alperovitch, and Gregg Marston founded CrowdStrike to build a cloud-native alternative to signature-based antivirus.
2013CrowdStrike
Falcon Platform Launches
CrowdStrike launched its Falcon endpoint platform, built around a lightweight sensor that streams behavioral data to the cloud.
2015Okta
$1.2 Billion Valuation
Okta raised $75 million in September 2015 at a valuation of about $1.2 billion.
2016CrowdStrike
DNC Breach Investigation
CrowdStrike investigated the Democratic National Committee breach and attributed it to Russian state-linked groups it calls Fancy Bear and Cozy Bear.
2017CrowdStrike
Series D at $1 Billion Valuation
CrowdStrike raised $100 million in May 2017 at a valuation of more than $1 billion.
2017Okta
Nasdaq IPO (OKTA)
Okta lists in April 2017 at $17 per share, raising about $187 million.
2019CrowdStrike
Nasdaq IPO
CrowdStrike listed on Nasdaq under ticker CRWD in June 2019, pricing shares at $34 and raising about $612 million.
2019Okta
Azuqua Acquired
Okta bought the workflow-automation company Azuqua in 2019 for about $52.5 million.
2020CrowdStrike
Preempt Security Acquired
CrowdStrike bought the identity-security company Preempt Security in 2020 for about $96 million.
2021CrowdStrike
Humio Acquisition and Move to Austin
CrowdStrike bought log-management company Humio for about $400 million (later Falcon LogScale) and moved its headquarters from Sunnyvale, California to Austin, Texas.
2021Okta
Auth0 acquisition closes
Okta completes its roughly $6.5 billion all-stock purchase of Auth0 in May 2021, adding customer identity.
2022Okta
Lapsus$ Breach
Okta disclosed in March 2022 that the Lapsus$ group had accessed a support engineer's laptop at a contractor.
2023CrowdStrike
Charlotte AI Introduced
CrowdStrike introduced Charlotte AI, a generative AI security assistant built into the Falcon platform.
2023CrowdStrike
Acquired Bionic
CrowdStrike Holdings acquired Bionic.
2023Okta
Support system breach
An October 2023 compromise of Okta's customer support system exposed customer data and hurt trust.
2023Okta
Acquired Spera Security
Okta acquired Spera Security.
2024CrowdStrike
S&P 500 Inclusion and July Outage
CrowdStrike joined the S&P 500 in June 2024. On July 19, 2024 a faulty Channel File 291 content update crashed about 8.5 million Windows devices worldwide.
2025CrowdStrike
Acquired Pangea
CrowdStrike Holdings acquired Pangea.
2025Okta
First full year of GAAP profit
Fiscal 2025 revenue reaches $2.610 billion with $28 million of GAAP net income.
2025Okta
Acquired Axiom Security
Okta acquired Axiom Security.
2026CrowdStrike
$5 Billion ARR, Acquisitions, and Stock Split
CrowdStrike ended fiscal 2026 with $5.25 billion of ARR, agreed to buy SGNL ($740 million) and Seraphic in January 2026, and completed a 4-for-1 stock split on July 2, 2026.
2026Okta
Fiscal 2026: $2.919B revenue, $235M net income
Revenue grows 12% and free cash flow reaches $863 million.
2026Okta
Permiso deal and Okta for AI Agents
Okta agrees to buy Permiso Security in July 2026 and launches AI agent identity products at Oktane in September 2026.
Acquisitions
CrowdStrike
- SGNL2026$740M
- Seraphic Security2026Undisclosed
- Pangea2025Undisclosed
- Flow Security2024Undisclosed
- Bionic2023Undisclosed
- Humio (Falcon LogScale)2021$400M
Okta
- Permiso Security2026Undisclosed
- Axiom Security2025Undisclosed
- Spera Security2023Undisclosed
- Auth02021$6.5B
Questions about CrowdStrike vs Okta
Who is the CEO of CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. and Okta, Inc.?
CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. is led by George Kurtz and Okta, Inc. is led by Todd McKinnon. Both serve as the top executive responsible for the company's strategy, operations, and financial performance.
When was CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. founded vs Okta, Inc.?
Okta, Inc. was founded in 2009 — 2 years before CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc., which was founded in 2011. Okta, Inc.'s longer operating history gives it a deeper track record but also potentially more institutional inertia compared to the younger CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc..
How many employees does CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. have compared to Okta, Inc.?
CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. employs approximately 10,698 people, while Okta, Inc. employs approximately 6,366. CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. has the larger workforce at 10,698 employees, compared to Okta, Inc.'s 6,366. A higher headcount does not necessarily imply greater efficiency — it often reflects differences in business model (e.g., manufacturing vs. software).
Where are CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. and Okta, Inc. headquartered?
Both CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. and Okta, Inc. are headquartered in United States. Their local rules and tax obligations may still differ.
Who founded CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. and Okta, Inc.?
CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. was founded by George Kurtz, Dmitri Alperovitch, Gregg Marston. Okta, Inc. was founded by Todd McKinnon, Frederic Kerrest.
Which company has a longer operating history — CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. or Okta, Inc.?
Okta, Inc. has been operating for approximately 17 years, making it the more established of the two companies. CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. has been in operation for around 15 years. A longer operating history often signals greater institutional resilience and brand recognition, though it can also mean slower adaptation to new market conditions.
Figures come from each company's filings and the sources linked beside them. Amounts reported in another currency are shown in US dollars at an approximate rate and marked with ~. Back to the CrowdStrike vs Okta overview