SUSE buys Losant to boost open source industrial IoT

SUSE has acquired Industrial Internet of Things platform Losant, adding application and workflow software to its edge computing business and signalling a bigger push into industrial automation.

The deal brings Losant into the SUSE Edge portfolio and business unit. SUSE now says it covers deployments from the near and far edge down to the "tiny edge", where industrial devices and sensors operate.

Financial terms were not disclosed. SUSE plans to open source Losant's technology and work with open source communities on interface standardisation, interoperability and process automation.

Edge focus

Edge computing has become a battleground for infrastructure suppliers and industrial software firms. Manufacturers and operators are pushing more compute and analytics closer to equipment to reduce latency and improve resilience where connectivity to central data centres can be constrained.

SUSE has historically been known for Linux and open source infrastructure, including container management through Kubernetes. In recent years, it has expanded its edge offering, positioning it as a foundation for running modern applications outside traditional data centres.

Losant adds an industrial IoT application platform, with functions including device orchestration, data management and tools for building applications. SUSE says the combination will connect operational systems with enterprise workflows and analytics. It also says Losant's visual workflow and dashboarding features will let operational technology teams design and deploy logic with less custom development.

SUSE described the acquisition as a move beyond edge infrastructure and into operational execution. One example was collecting production sensor data, processing it at the edge, and automatically triggering maintenance workflows or quality checks.

Industry shift

Industrial IoT has been shaped by long equipment lifecycles and the need to integrate with legacy control systems. At the same time, companies are managing large numbers of endpoints and increasingly expect analytics and AI to run closer to where data is generated.

Research firm 451 Research, part of S&P Global Energy, said IoT endpoints are evolving into AI endpoints, driven by new, lower-cost connectivity and a significant device refresh cycle.

"This evolution is driving the maturation of hybrid AI architectures, integrating the edge as an indispensable execution layer that ensures performance and scalability. The result is a decisive leap in operational maturity, moving industrial control from digital oversight to semi-autonomous, AI-orchestrated systems."

SUSE is linking the Losant purchase to that shift, arguing that industrial organisations will increasingly need consistent tooling across devices, edge sites and central IT environments.

Product plans

SUSE intends to open source Losant's technology and work with aligned open source communities to assess where it can accelerate interface standardisation, interoperability and process automation.

Open sourcing could change how industrial developers and system integrators adopt and extend Losant. It could also affect how SUSE competes with proprietary industrial IoT platforms, where vendors have sought to lock customers into end-to-end stacks.

SUSE says customers will gain more freedom from vendor lock-in through what it describes as a standards-aligned architecture. It also says the combined portfolio targets organisations in manufacturing, healthcare and smart infrastructure.

Losant was recognised in the 2025 Gartner Magic Quadrant for Global Industrial IoT Platforms, SUSE said.

Executive views

Keith Basil, general manager of SUSE Edge, framed the acquisition as a shift in SUSE's market position.

"The acquisition of Losant transforms SUSE from an edge infrastructure provider to a full-stack Industrial IoT leader. It allows us to deliver to customers the part of the edge where the digital world directly meets the physical one, where machines, environments, and people interact in real time, and where AI can be meaningfully deployed to gain better insight into real-world processes."

"With Losant, we will move faster from infrastructure to operational outcomes, combining our Edge portfolio and products like SUSE AI. This will enable deeper collaboration with industrial partners, equipment manufacturers and industrial open source communities as the ecosystem continues to evolve."

Losant CEO Charlie Key said the combination pairs Losant's software with SUSE's long history in enterprise technology.

"Joining forces with SUSE is the natural next step for Losant. Combining our low-code Industrial Internet of Things platform with SUSE's 30 plus years of experience in enterprise software will provide customers with stability and interoperability, allowing us to accelerate our mission to help IT leaders turn complex data into immediate operational value."

"We are excited to bring our Tiny Edge capabilities to a much larger stage."

Partner reaction

Barry-Wehmiller Design Group, which works with manufacturing and processing clients, called the deal part of a wider trend to connect plant-floor systems to enterprise IT.

Keith Gamble, Director of Software Engineering, Barry-Wehmiller Design Group, said, "As a leader in manufacturing-centric industrial OT and software engineering, we view this acquisition as a significant step forward for the industrial technology sector. Our clients-across manufacturing, processing, and other asset-intensive industries-are working to connect real-world operational technology, including sensors, controllers, and production equipment, with modern IT systems that enable analytics, governance, and enterprise decision-making."

"By bringing Losant's Industrial IoT application platform under the SUSE umbrella alongside its secure, scalable edge infrastructure, SUSE is delivering a unified foundation purpose-built for industrial environments-linking physical operations on the plant floor to enterprise systems. We're excited about the direction this sets for manufacturing and industrial technology, and the potential it creates for a more cohesive, open toolkit that helps organizations turn machine data into actionable intelligence."

European cloud company evroc linked the move to data centre operations and sustainability.

Mattias Åström, CEO of evro, said, "We are excited to see SUSE grow into the IIoT space. For evroc, building the world's most sustainable hyperscale cloud requires significant innovation in IIoT. Bringing Losant's tech into the open source fold could be a massive catalyst for greener, smarter datacenters across the continent. Sovereignty and cutting-edge tech are finally converging."

Margo, an industrial interoperability initiative, said SUSE's role in its governance will increase.

Bart Nieuwborg, Chair, Margo, commented, "Margo was created to advance open interoperability in industrial automation and to ensure that innovation at the edge remains collaborative and standards-driven."

"With SUSE's elevated contribution to Margo as a Steering committee member, we look forward to working together closely to evaluate how the Losant platform, along with elements of SUSE's core edge and orchestration technologies, can accelerate interface standardization and strengthen the broader Margo ecosystem across industries. SUSE's deeper engagement at the governance level reflects their continued commitment to the Margo vision on open industrial automation and long-term collaboration."