The new-for-2023 collaboration has allowed Porsche to become the dominant force in the all-electric category, as it leads both the Drivers’ and Teams’ championships ahead of the next round in Monaco this weekend.
Integral to the brand’s ongoing success has been its technological collaboration with Cato Networks, a world-leader in cloud networking and security infrastructure.
The company was founded in 2015 by Gur Shatz and Shlomo Kramer, and has grown substantially during that period, increasing its revenue from $1 million to $100 million in the last five years alone.
It means the company is the “fastest growing network cyber security start-up on the planet” according to Andreas Bandel, Area Director DACH and EE.
“When Cato Networks chose the partnership with the TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team it was not only just a sponsorship partnership, what we are doing is also a technology partnership,” he said.
Cato Networks’ vision on sustainability meant it was a perfect fit for Formula E. With Cato, the network is so reliable and effective that organisations can reduce a remote location’s carbon footprint by running applications in the cloud.
“The ABB FIA Formula E World Championship is about sustainability, and this was another part of the decision to sponsor TAG Heuer Porsche,” added Bandel.
With the Formula E Championship visiting 11 different destinations across the globe during the 2023 season, ensuring Porsche has a fast, reliable and secure network is imperative for on-track success.
The German outfit sends streams of data from the circuit back to its research and development centre in order to make real-time decisions which can ultimately win or lose a race.
The partnership has proved successful in the new Gen3 era, with the team winning three races this year courtesy of its drivers Pascal Wehrlein and Antonio Felix da Costa.
Porsche’s Head of IT, Friedmann Kurz, states that the work done behind-the-scenes by Cato Networks has left himself and the German manufacturer impressed.
"Security for us requires reliability. Data loss could kill a race event which would be a worst-case situation - we wouldn’t be able to make the right decisions if data is missing,” he said.
“I was impressed with how quickly the solution was implemented. It was literally days and everything was up and running and we could start optimising our services based on the connection and that was mind-blowing almost.
“Many brilliant people in the background created a great product and helped us to deliver in no time, so we are really happy with how that works.”
Cato Networks is already taking on feedback to ensure Porsche remains at the cutting edge of the sport.
“We received extremely good feedback,” added Bandel. “The feedback is very good on how fast the implementation was, how fast they can get it up at the new race tracks every time."
