Looking back on 2021, we reflect on another year of extraordinary challenges as we continue to navigate the new normal. Despite the challenges, 2021 also represented a year of great resilience.
2021 was one of Cisco's most active years in acquisitions and investments in a virtual world. The Corporate Development and Cisco Investments organization is unique in that we combine Mergers & Acquisitions and venture investment into a single cohesive team that consistently leads with strategy and thought leadership.
In 2021, we closed 11 global acquisitions across six countries, including Acacia Communications, one of Cisco's most significant deals in recent years. We made investments in 31 startups and venture funds worldwide. Each acquisition and investment aligns with and helps accelerate Cisco's strategic innovation pillars – Secure Agile Networks, Optimized Application Experiences, Future of Work, Internet of the Future, End-to-End Security, and Capabilities at the Edge.
Over the past year, we increased our efforts to engage and strengthen relationships with startups, customers, and venture capital partners. Our goal is to create connections and value between these groups to further growth and innovation. In 2021, our team made over 200 introductions to customers for our portfolio companies and collaborated with dozens of venture capital partners to source hundreds of startups. Our team hosted a series of roundtable discussions with Cisco's top enterprise customers to understand and help resolve their pain points through innovative solutions from our portfolio companies. Furthermore, we hosted several successful virtual events, each shining a light on Cisco's innovation and growth strategy across our business, including Magnetic Security, Magnetic Cloud, and Magnetic IoT. Our team also produced our annual CISO Survival Guide, a comprehensive report on emerging cybersecurity trends and the startups that are transforming the industry.
Over the past year, I was continually amazed by our team's resilience and the empathy they have shown to our founders, partners, and fellow Cisco colleagues.
Investments that work toward building an inclusive future have been a critical component of our approach for many years. But we needed to do more. In late 2020, we launched the Aspire Fund, an initial commitment of $50 million over five years to fund diverse-led enterprise technology startups and venture funds. In the year since we have launched the Aspire Fund, our team has made investments in several venture funds and startups, including Acrew Capital, Work-Bench Capital, L'ATTITUDE VENTURES, Wabbi, and Corellium. I am immensely proud of our team's efforts to create significant, positive changes in the technology and venture capital ecosystem. There is more on the horizon.
As I reflect on 2021, I am proud of our team's ability to adapt to ongoing and new challenges. We have made great strides to level the playing field in the technology startup and venture capital ecosystems. We invested in and acquired innovative companies that will accelerate digital transformation at a global scale and help build an inclusive future for everyone.
While the future may seem uncertain, our resilience and strength as a team will continue to carry us through any challenges that lie ahead.
