GitKraken, a Scottsdale company that makes tools for software developers, announced on Tuesday that it had acquired BigBrassBand, a Virginia-based maker of development tools.
More than 2.5 million people working at 75,000 companies already use GitKraken software and with the addition of BigBrassBand, the combined entity will boost productivity for 6 million developers using GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket and Azure DevOps.
GitKraken declined to disclose the financial terms of the BigBrassBand acquisition.
GitKraken is a product made by Axosoft, a Scottsdale company founded in 2002. Axosoft is in the process of rebranding so the entire company shares a name with its best-known product.
GitKraken is a so-called GitClient, or a tool that works in concert with Git, which is an open source software that developers use for version control of their projects. Specifically, GitKraken is a graphical interface that aims to make working with Git more organized.
Similarly, BigBrasBand makes a tool called Git Integration for Jira that helps bridge the software worlds of Git and Jira, which is software built by Australia-based Atlassian.
As part of today’s announcement, both GitKraken and Git Integration for Jira released software updates that showcase the new integration.
“Developers love GitKraken because it makes Git simpler, faster, and more powerful for their development teams,” GitKraken CEO Wayne Williams said in a statement. “The acquisition of Git Integration for Jira enables us to further enhance Git productivity for millions of companies that leverage both Git and Jira. We look forward to continuing to extend and enhance the capabilities of both products.”
In addition to serving as GitKraken’s CEO, Williams is also an operating partner at Atlanta-based private equity firm Resurgens Technology Partners. Last year, Axosoft took on a ‘strategic investment’ from Resurgens, the amount of which was not publicly disclosed.
Hiring
Axosoft is hiring, with 15 open positions listed on its website. Most of these positions are based in Scottsdale, but some are set in Alicante, Spain, the company’s European outpost.
GitKraken declined to share the number of employees it has and declined to share the number of people employed at BigBrassBand. About 17 people list GitKraken as their employer on LinkedIn and 65 people list Axosoft, though some people have listed both.
Axosoft was founded by Hamid Shojaee in 2002. He led the company, alongside his wife Lawdan, until last September around the time of the Resurgens investment.
Shojaee is still on the Axosoft board, but earlier this year he shifted his attention to running the AZ Disruptors fund, which focuses on investing in early-stage Arizona startups. He also runs AZ Tech Beat, a news website and podcast that features innovators from across the Valley.
