How to invest in Verkada stock pre-IPO

In today's security landscape, cyber risks often dominate the conversation. Yet for many businesses, some of the most significant vulnerabilities are still physical ones, such as trespassing, unauthorized entry or environmental hazards like air quality or temperature issues. These can overlap with cybersecurity concerns too, such as when rogue employees steal devices or access restricted areas.

While human security teams remain important, technology has long played an assisting role, such as through video cameras and alarms. Yet many of these systems are arguably outdated and clunky, relying on local storage and manual footage reviews.

However, some new companies like Verkada have emerged, bringing modern technology to make physical security more proactive rather than just reactive.

Verkada offers security solutions such as video cameras, access control systems, air quality sensors and alarms that can be integrated within a cloud-based management platform. Verkada's products incorporate many AI features, such as scanning video logs with natural language search and automatically broadcasting deterrent messages to suspicious subjects. The company announced an agreement with Nvidia in July 2026, which includes investment from Nvidia and a technical partnership to accelerate the use of AI across Verkada's products.⁴

While it hasn't had quite the same meteoric rise as some pure-play AI companies, Verkada has still quickly grown from its $12.7 million seed funding in 2017 to its most recent late-stage funding round in December 2025, which brought its valuation to $5.8 billion.¹

Verkada's leadership has also signaled the company will eventually go public, but the timing of an IPO remains unclear at this point.⁵

In the meantime, interested accredited investors may be able to invest in Verkada stock pre-IPO through a private marketplace such as Forge, subject to availability and eligibility requirements. Retail investors may also be able to gain indirect exposure through other assets, as this guide examines.

Verkada: company background

Verkada, based in Silicon Valley, was founded in 2016 by Filip Kaliszan, James Ren, Benjamin Bercovitz and Hans Robertson. Kaliszan, Ren and Bercovitz went to Stanford together as undergrads, where they built a class selection tool called CourseRank, which was later acquired by Chegg.⁶

As the trio worked on figuring out a new business together, toying with smart device ideas, they teamed up with Robertson, the former COO and co-founder of Meraki (acquired by Cisco).⁷ Together, they landed on the idea of bringing the modernization and efficiency of home security cameras to enterprises.⁶

Initially, Verkada started by offering video security cameras, and now its product lines span access control (e.g., door access), intercom, alarms, air quality and workplace (e.g., visitor management).⁸

Verkada stock history and funding history

Forge Data as of 09/21/2026

Verkada's funding history started with a seed round in 2017, when it raised $3.81 million at a $12.7 million valuation, with a stock price of $0.06.¹ This round was led by First Round Capital.⁹

In 2018, the Verkada Series A raised $14.94 million, bringing its valuation to $77.16 million, with a $0.26 stock price.¹ This round was led by Siemens' venture fund, Next47, along with investment such as from First Round Capital, co-founder Hans Robertson and Stanford professor Héctor García-Molina.¹⁰

In 2019, Verkada raised its Series B, bringing in $51.79 million at a $520.91 million valuation, with a stock price of $1.55.¹ This round was co-led by Meritech Capital and Sequoia Capital, while also including investment again from First Round Capital and Next47.¹¹

In 2020, Verkada raised $80 million for a Series C, bringing the company into unicorn status with a $1.59 billion valuation and a stock price of $4.33. This round brought in Felicis Ventures, alongside existing investors such as Meritech Capital, Next47 and Sequoia Capital.¹

Toward the end of 2023, Verkada's valuation grew to $3.47 billion following the close of its Series D, which raised a combined $305 million across two phases, with Verkada's stock price reaching as high as $7.45. Some of the many investors here included Alkeon Capital, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Linse Capital and MSD Partners.¹

In February 2025, the company raised $200 million for the Verkada Series E, bringing its stock price to $8.62 and valuation to $4.5 billion.¹ This round was led by General Catalyst, with Eclipse Ventures also participating, among others.¹²

Most recently, in December 2025, a Late Stage Venture round led by CapitalG brought the valuation to $5.8 billion.¹ While the amount raised was not officially disclosed, CNBC reported that funding totaled $100 million.¹³ In July 2026, Verkada also reported that Nvidia came on as a strategic investor, although the terms have not been disclosed.¹⁴

However, Verkada's Forge Price has dropped slightly since its last primary-round valuation. Verkada's Forge Price is $10.50 per share as of September 14, 2026, with a valuation of $5.66 billion.²

Forge Data as of 09/21/2026

Forge Price is a derived data point that reflects the up-to-date price performance of venture-backed, late-stage companies, and is calculated based on a proprietary model incorporating pricing inputs from primary funding round information, secondary market transactions and indications of interest (IOIs) on Forge.

Verkada IPO outlook

Verkada remains privately held and has not filed for or announced an IPO. Its leadership has, however, signaled that a public listing is a long-term goal. Shortly after Verkada's December 2025 funding round, CEO Filip Kaliszan told Axios Pro that the company will "definitely" become public eventually.⁵

The Information reported at the start of 2026 that Verkada had recently been talking with investment banks about a possible IPO in late 2026, although the timing could change.³

As with any private company, IPO timing remains uncertain and subject to market conditions. Investors should treat any timeline as speculative until Verkada makes a formal announcement. You can keep up with developments on the Verkada IPO on Forge.

As with any private company, IPO timing remains uncertain and subject to market conditions. Investors should treat any timeline as speculative until Verkada makes a formal announcement. You can keep up with developments on the Verkada IPO on Forge.

How to invest in Verkada stock

Verkada has not gone public, and as such, its shares are not available to trade via traditional brokerages.

Instead, accredited investors may be able to access shares of some pre-IPO companies like Verkada through secondary market transactions on private marketplaces like Forge, through which existing shareholders such as employees or early investors may sell their holdings. An accredited investor is a person or entity that meets income or net-worth thresholds, or professional criteria, as set by the SEC.¹⁵

However, private market access can come with constraints. Share availability is not guaranteed, and companies often impose transfer restrictions, including a Right of First Refusal (ROFR) that lets the company or existing investors buy shares before an outside buyer can when an existing shareholder tries to sell. Verkada in particular may have more company-imposed trading restrictions than most venture-backed companies trading on Forge.²

Private company shares are also typically illiquid, especially compared to public market securities, and valuations can be uncertain.

To learn more about pre-IPO opportunities, explore our buyer's guide to investing in private market shares or our comprehensive pre-IPO investing guide. Eligible investors can also create a free account on Forge to explore available private market investment opportunities.

Potential indirect exposure to Verkada for non-accredited investors

While retail investors may be able to invest in Verkada if it eventually goes public, for now direct pre-IPO investment in Verkada is generally limited to accredited investors. However, there are publicly available investment options that may provide exposure to broader trends around security, AI and other areas of tech, which could in turn affect companies like Verkada.

Some examples include publicly traded enterprise security companies that are similarly building or acquiring smart technologies and enabling cloud-based security management, although the degree of overlap may vary. Some of these companies have a much broader product and services portfolio across IT and industrial applications, so enterprise security sector exposure may be limited.

Another option could be to invest in AI companies, some of which may be investors or partners with Verkada, or they might provide similar exposure to developments in areas like computer vision. Here too, though, overlap with Verkada can vary widely, as some AI companies may have much broader focus than just enterprise security.

To that point, investors might also consider diversified tech ETFs or mutual funds, which could provide some thematic exposure to the areas Verkada focuses on, while also providing exposure to other aspects of AI, cloud computing, robotics, etc. Within this category, investors might choose thematic funds that focus on one of these subsectors, or they might invest in a broadly diversified tech fund.

How to analyze Verkada stock

Private companies generally do not face the same disclosure requirements as public companies, which can make analyzing Verkada stock challenging.

However, you can look at the financial data that has been publicly reported. For example, in December 2025 Verkada announced that it surpassed $1 billion in annualized bookings. The company also said that over 2 million Verkada devices are deployed across 171 countries at over 30,000 organizations.¹⁶ The Information also reported in January 2026 that Verkada told investors that it expects about $700 million in 2026 revenue, up about 28% year over year, although it wouldn't be free-cash-flow positive for the full year until 2027.³

Investors might then compare what has been reported about Verkada against similar disclosed data from private market tech companies. That, combined with reviewing Verkada's valuation data across its funding rounds and its current Forge Price, could help investors determine how Verkada's stock compares to similar private companies listed on Forge's private stock marketplace.

Seeing how other tech companies are trading on Forge could help determine what seems like a fair valuation for Verkada. There also might be some parallels to draw with public market enterprise security and tech companies.

Still, even when looking at what Verkada has disclosed and the real-time pricing insights on Forge, private market stocks are generally more opaque than public market ones. So there can be more subjectivity involved in analyzing Verkada stock, along with the valuations of other private market companies.

Potential risks of investing in pre-IPO Verkada stock

Investing in a private, pre-IPO company such as Verkada involves assuming risks around company performance, valuation, liquidity and potential investment outcomes. The factors below provide context for those risks and are not exhaustive. Investors should conduct their own independent due diligence before making any decision:

• Company-specific and technology risk: Verkada has demonstrated growth and commercial viability for its products, but as technology changes, there are risks that Verkada's hardware and software will no longer serve market demand in the same way. Or, even if Verkada's technology does keep up with changes, company-specific sales and overall operational execution remains a risk.
• Competitive pressure: Large competitors such as Cisco and Honeywell, as well as more niche ones like Rhombus Systems and Coram AI, could potentially take market share from Verkada or cause the company to have to devote more resources toward sales and marketing, thereby affecting its profitability and long-term valuation.
• Regulatory challenges: The AI and surveillance industries could face more or at least evolving regulation, which could affect how Verkada's products operate or create additional operational challenges for the company.
• Valuation considerations: Private-round valuations are negotiated with limited disclosure and may not reflect a value achievable in a future financing or public listing.
• Private market investing risks: Private market shares are often illiquid, information is limited compared with public companies and transfer restrictions can constrain when and whether an investor can sell.
• Potential loss of capital: As with any investment, and especially with speculative pre-IPO holdings, investors could lose some or all of their capital.

Learn more about investing in Verkada on Forge

If you're interested in investing in Verkada before a potential IPO if/when shares become available, eligible investors can open a free Forge account to explore one of the most established marketplaces for private company securities.

Once your account is active and your accreditation is verified, you may gain access to real-time private market data, context-rich insights and a marketplace built for self-directed investors.

Not sure where to begin? You can read our buyer's guide to investing in private market shares. And if questions come up along the way, Forge's experienced specialists are available to support you.