Box was famous for two things when it filed to go public in 2014: heavy spending on sales and growing losses. The offering was delayed into 2015. The product moved company files to the cloud. It offered storage and sharing like consumer services, plus the security, permissions and audit trails that large firms needed. Its customers included banks, drug makers and government agencies.

College Kids and Mark Cuban

Aaron Levie and Dylan Smith started Box in 2005 while in college, with help from friends Jeff Queisser and Sam Ghods. Dallas billionaire Mark Cuban was an early investor. The company first targeted consumers, then shifted to businesses. Its bet was that companies would trust the cloud with sensitive files if a vendor made it safe and simple. Levie became chief executive.

Surviving an Activist

Box priced at $14 a share in January 2015 and jumped on its first day. Then it worked for years to cut losses and turn a profit. In 2021 it survived a challenge from an activist investor, and it later added AI features. Its customers include many of the largest companies in the world. Box remains a public company led by Aaron Levie.

Cover: Black Lion Wharf, James McNeill Whistler. Art Institute of Chicago, public domain. Chosen for a busy wharf (crates and shipping).