Accelerating Application Delivery from Code to Customer with NGINX

François Locoh-DonouChairman, President, & CEO | F5

For over 20 years, F5 has provided solutions that help organizations deliver their applications with higher performance and stronger security.

We came of age when the data center was the core of the IT universe and we became the expert for our customers’ enterprise-grade on-premises applications. As our customers’ infrastructure evolved over the last decade, we have followed suit. Today, our customers’ application deployment choices have multiplied from classic data centers to virtualized private clouds to multiple public clouds to container and microservices environments.

No matter where our customers deploy their apps, our goal remains the same: more agile application deployment and management, without giving up security or performance. We intend to reach every app, anywhere with services that span from the inception of code to the delivery of the application to customers. That has been the through line of our recent launch of SaaS-based F5 Cloud Services, to solutions that help organizations automate and manage container-based applications, to one of our biggest bets yet: the acquisition of NGINX.

From the very first discussion we had with NGINX, we knew how critical they could be to accelerating app delivery from code to customer. As a trusted open source leader, NGINX’s full-service proxy software built on top of the world’s most widely used web server, and their lightweight, scalable services like API management, combined with our best in class security services begin to complete a full suite of app services. Our thesis for the acquisition was that the combination of NGINX innovation with our reach and scale would create value far beyond what either of us could do on our own.

And today we take a significant step forward, together, with the launch of NGINX Controller 3.0, our most significant new product introduction as a combined company. Shortly after we closed the acquisition, we moved nearly 130 people from teams within F5 to the newly created NGINX group. We did this for two reasons: first, to ensure we made good on our commitment to continue significant open source investments and innovation. And second, to accelerate efforts to deliver a new NGINX Controller that would begin to bridge the classic data center and modern application worlds.

The new NGINX Controller 3.0 brings enhanced enterprise features that go beyond what both traditional and cloud-native solutions can offer. By giving customers (that span DevOps to NetOps) the ability to automate functions across deployment models and locations, we are opening up a new set of self-service capabilities that will increase agility, mitigate risk, and enhance the experiences organizations are able to deliver to their customers.

I’m proud of what the teams have accomplished together, and so quickly. But most importantly, what NGINX Controller can offer to your business.

About the Author

François Locoh-DonouChairman, President, & CEO | F5

François Locoh-Donou is F5’s Chairman, President, and Chief Executive Officer. He joined F5 in April 2017 as President, CEO, and director. He was appointed Chairman of the Board in March 2026. Since joining F5 as CEO in April 2017, he has spearheaded the company’s business transformation from a networking hardware maker to a software- and SaaS-first leader in hybrid, multicloud application delivery and security. He has also been instrumental in the company’s cultural transformation to a high-performance, human-first organization energized by F5’s purpose to build a better digital world. Prior to joining F5, Locoh-Donou served as Chief Operating Officer at Ciena, a global networking solutions provider to the telecom industry; his leadership positions there also included executive roles in the Product, Sales, and Marketing organizations. He also held research and development roles at Photonetics, a French opto-electronics company. Raised in Togo and France, Locoh-Donou holds engineering degrees from École Centrale de Marseille and Télécom ParisTech in France, as well as an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business. He is the co-founder and chairman of Cajou Espoir, a cashew processing business employing several hundred people, mostly women, in rural Togo. Locoh-Donou also serves on the Board of Directors of Capital One, one of the most recognized brands in banking serving the U.S., U.K., and Canada.

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