New Relic, the Intelligent Observability company, announced the appointment of Michael Frendo to Chief Technology Officer (CTO). Frendo is responsible for bridging product vision with technical execution to deliver maximum value to the company’s base of more than 85,000 global customers. 

Frendo brings more than 25 years of experience as both a technical and business leader of global teams, spanning software and hardware development, with deep knowledge across technologies such as SaaS, cloud and embedded systems. He is a seasoned “disruptor,” and notably delivered the world’s first DOCSIS cable modem, pioneered Cisco’s initial VoIP products, and developed a mobile firewall for Juniper that captured a 42% market share. 

Prior to joining New Relic, Frendo was CTO, Engineering at Proofpoint, an industry-leading security and compliance platform. While at Proofpoint, Frendo leveraged his expertise and experience in product architecture and development to further develop the company’s vision and ongoing work around AI. Prior to joining Proofpoint in 2023, Michael led global teams at multinational companies including Cisco, Polycom, and Juniper.

“Michael is a seasoned technology visionary who has spent his career at the forefront of every major technological shift, from the early days of VoIP to the AI era of today,” said New Relic Chief Executive Officer Ashan Willy. “As we pioneer the next phase of intelligent observability, his track record as a disruptor makes him the ideal leader to bridge our product vision with world-class technical execution. I am thrilled to have Michael working alongside our team to help our customers scale their AI initiatives with confidence.”

In his role, Frendo reports into Willy and will work in lockstep with Chief Product Officer Brian Emerson to execute on the next phase of New Relic’s Intelligent Observability Platform innovation. This includes optimizing the global rollout of new platform capabilities recently announced at New Relic Advance, empowering customers to scale their AI initiatives with confidence and operational stability. 

“New Relic is the architect of modern observability, but what drew me here is the company’s bold vision for the AI era,” said New Relic Chief Technology Officer Michael Frendo. “I am thrilled to be part of Ashan and Brian’s world-class engineering leadership team, together delivering the AI-strengthened platform capabilities that will help our customers move from reactive firefighting to true innovation at scale.”