A Liberty Lake-based cloud automation and optimization company has started collaborating with California-based technology company HP Inc. to develop secure remote workstations. 

Kris Bliesner, co-founder and CEO of Liberty Lake Cloud Inc., which does business as Vega Cloud, says through HP’s Anyware secure remote access software and the remote display protocol originally developed by Teradici, Vega Cloud will offer two digital workstation services. The Secure WorkRemote station is targeted to regulated industries, such as health care and banking, while the Vega Atelier remote studio will cater to companies in media and entertainment. 

Bliesner says secure remote work has become of greater concern since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

“With the plethora of folks working remotely, one of the big challenges companies had was that there was a huge influx of security issues,” Bliesner says. “Cyberattacks grew at an exponential pace.”

Through Secure WorkRemote and Vega Atelier, he says, people are expected to be able to work securely from any Internet-connected device in any location. 

Secure WorkRemote and Vega Atelier will use built-in optimization functions that automatically scale memory, graphics, and central processing so that a device can handle data-intensive applications, such as digital animation and machine learning. 

“I could edit a 4k video on my Chromebook,” Bliesner claims of Vega Atelier’s capabilities. 

The services will be secure through a remote display protocol that converts data into pixels, which are then compressed, encrypted, and transmitted to a secure cloud server.  

“We assume you’re working from a compromised machine,” Bliesner says. “There’s no data that sits on that machine, and there’s no data that gets transported.”

Bliesner says Vega Atelier will save companies the trouble of letting employees borrow expensive equipment. A graphics workstation can cost as much as $50,000, he says. 

“You’re not going to want to loan that out to your employee to take home,” Bliesner says. 

The cost of Secure WorkRemote and Vega Atelier depends on the number of users, ranging between $25 and $50 per user per month. 

Vega Atelier could also create equitable opportunities for students, he says. 

“We’ve talked to universities about using it for their design and art students,” Bliesner says. “If you charge them a $100 lab fee, they can do it on a Chromebook (through Vega Atelier).”

Bliesner says Vega Cloud approached Teradici before the company was acquired by HP.

The company had an existing relationship with Teradici, the Canadian company behind the technology HP uses to create the remote workstation platforms. HP bought Teradici in October.

Paul Austin, worldwide head of Teradici channel sales at HP, says Secure WorkRemote and Vega Atelier will be able to handle high-data projects securely due to HP’s security measures. 

“Vega Cloud’s capabilities align with our focus on delivering secure digital workspace solutions, and we’re proud to work with them on enabling the industries we serve together to realize the benefits of hybrid work,” Austin says. 

Bliesner says Vega Cloud has 24 employees, half of whom work at the company’s offices in the Liberty Lake Portal building at 23403 E. Mission, on the northwest corner of Mission Avenue and Molter Road. The remainder work remotely. 

Bliesner, along with five other former co-workers from cloud computing company 2nd Watch Inc., of Liberty Lake, launched Vega Cloud in April 2020.

In September 2020, the Journal reported that Vega Cloud had completed a $2.3 million round of investment funding from sources including the Kick Start angel investment fund, Mind to Market LLC, the Morning Star Foundation, and the high-profile Seattle-based venture capital firm fund Voyager Capital. Vega Cloud also secured $250,000 in debt financing from Ignite Northwest.