Tailscale

Tailscale Inc.
Company typePrivate
Industry
Founded2019
FounderAvery Pennarun
David Carney
Brad Fitzpatrick 
HeadquartersToronto, Ontario
Key people
Websitetailscale.com
Tailscale
DeveloperTailscale Inc.
Stable release
1.96.2 / March 18, 2026 (2026-03-18)[1]
Operating systemMicrosoft Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS, tvOS, Plan9
TypeSD-WAN, P2P, VPN, ZTNA
LicenseBSD
Websitetailscale.com
Repositorygithub.com/tailscale/tailscale

Tailscale Inc. is a software company based in Toronto, Ontario. Tailscale develops a partially open-source software-defined mesh virtual private network (VPN) and a web-based management service.[a][3][4] The company provides a zero config VPN as a service under the same name.[5]

The company's name was inspired by a 2021 Google research paper, The Tail at Scale.[6][7]

History

In 2019, Google engineers Avery Pennarun, David Crawshaw, David Carney, and Brad Fitzpatrick founded Tailscale.[8]

In November 2020, Tailscale secured funding of US$12 million in a Series A round, led by Accel, with seed investors Heavybit and Uncork Capital participating.[9]

In May 2022, the company secured a US$100 million Series B round, led by CRV and Insight Partners, with participation from existing investors.[8][10]

In April 2025, the company secured a US$160 million Series C round, led by Accel, with participation from CRV, Insight Partners, Heavybit, and Uncork Capital.[11]

Software

The open-source software acts in combination with the management service to establish peer-to-peer or relayed VPN communication with other clients using the WireGuard protocol.[12][13]

Tailscale can open direct connection to the peer using NAT traversal techniques such as STUN or request port forwarding via UPnP IGD, NAT-PMP or PCP.[14] If the software fails to establish direct communication, it falls back to using DERP (Designated Encrypted Relay for Packets) protocol relays provided by the company.[15]

The IPv4 addresses given to clients are in the carrier-grade NAT reserved space. This was chosen to avoid interference with existing networks.[16]

The Linux client can also send traffic to networks behind itself by disabling SNAT and routing directly to the source IPs. [17]

Supported platforms

The Tailscale client software supports a number of operating systems and embedded software systems:[18]

The software also provides support for a Kubernetes operator[21] and Docker images.[22]

Features

Taildrop

Taildrop is an encrypted Peer-to-peer file sharing service that has entered a public alpha.[23] It is available to all users on all plans, once enabled from the admin console.[24] Its user facing functionality is similar to AirDrop on iOS or Quick Share on Android (operating system).[25][26][27]

Exit Nodes

Exit Nodes, in a setup similar to Tor (network), is a node where Tailscale connects to the rest of the internet. These can be configured on most devices with Tailscale installed, and when this is done they act as the decryption point for your traffic.[28] Tailscale also started a public beta (a paid add-on),[29] partnering with Mullvad to allow users exit via Mullvad servers.[30][31][32]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Although Tailscale provides VPN software and services, it should not be misconstrued to be what is commonly referred to as a VPN service, but note that Tailscale's software can be integrated with the Mullvad VPN service.[2]

References

  1. ^ "Changelog". Tailscale. Retrieved 2026-03-19.
  2. ^ Chiara Castro (2023-09-08). "Mullvad and Tailscale join forces in the name of online security". TechRadar. Retrieved 2024-12-03.
  3. ^ Rogers, Sarah (2021-09-09). "Tailscale VPN review". TechRadar. Archived from the original on 2021-09-09. Retrieved 2022-04-13.
  4. ^ Vaughan-Nichols, Steven. "Tailscale launches Wireguard-secured mesh network". ZDNet. Archived from the original on 2022-04-13. Retrieved 2022-04-13.
  5. ^ Hanselman, Scott (2021-01-22). "Using Tailscale on Windows to network more easily with WSL2 and Visual Studio Code". www.hanselman.com. Archived from the original on 2021-01-22. Retrieved 2021-02-01.
  6. ^ Dean, Jeffrey; Barroso, Luiz André. "The Tail at Scale". Google. Archived from the original on 2020-02-21. Retrieved 2021-03-09.
  7. ^ Pennarun, Avery; Fitzpatrick, Brad (2022-01-15). Tailscale with Avery Pennarun and Brad Fitzpatrick. Security Cryptography Whatever. Event occurs at 45m53s. Archived from the original on 2023-02-23. Retrieved 2023-02-23 – via archive.org.
  8. ^ a b Wiggers, Kyle (2022-05-05). "Tailscale lands $100 million to 'transform' enterprise VPNs with mesh technology". TechCrunch. Archived from the original on 2022-05-05.
  9. ^ Dillet, Romain (2020-11-10). "Tailscale raises $12 million for its WireGuard-based corporate VPN". TechCrunch. Archived from the original on 2026-02-20. Retrieved 2021-02-01.
  10. ^ Tailscale (2022-05-04). "Tailscale raises $100M… to fix the Internet". Tailscale. Archived from the original on 2022-05-04. Retrieved 2022-05-05.
  11. ^ Tailscale (2025-04-08). "Building the New Internet, together — our Series C and what's next". Tailscale. Archived from the original on 2025-04-08. Retrieved 2025-11-28.
  12. ^ Morgan, Ethel. "Tailscale". ethulhu.co.uk. Archived from the original on 2021-02-05. Retrieved 2021-02-01.
  13. ^ "What is Tailscale? · Tailscale Docs". Tailscale. Retrieved 2024-08-17.
  14. ^ "Troubleshooting device connectivity · Tailscale Docs". Tailscale. Retrieved 2024-08-17.
  15. ^ "Terminology and concepts · Tailscale Docs". Tailscale. Retrieved 2024-08-17.
  16. ^ "IP pool · Tailscale Docs". Tailscale. Retrieved 2024-08-17.
  17. ^ "Disable SNAT · Tailscale Docs". Tailscale. Retrieved 2025-03-15.
  18. ^ "Download · Tailscale". tailscale.com. Retrieved 2024-03-07.
  19. ^ Tailscale. "Access Synology NAS from anywhere". Tailscale. Retrieved 2024-03-07.
  20. ^ "QNAP". tailscale.com. Retrieved 2024-03-07.
  21. ^ Tailscale. "Kubernetes operator". Tailscale. Retrieved 2024-03-07.
  22. ^ "Contain your excitement: A deep dive into using Tailscale with Docker". tailscale.com. Retrieved 2024-03-07.
  23. ^ "Taildrop · Tailscale Docs". Tailscale. Retrieved 2026-01-09.
  24. ^ "Advanced Tailscale Applications: Taildrop, Exit Nodes, and Subnet Routing Configuration". WellWells. 2025-02-18. Retrieved 2026-01-09.
  25. ^ Leroux, Faith (2020-07-05). "How to use Quick Share, Android's AirDrop alternative". Android Police. Retrieved 2026-01-09.
  26. ^ "Use AirDrop on your iPhone or iPad - Apple Support (CA)". Apple Support. Retrieved 2026-01-09.
  27. ^ Gopal, Kaushik. "Taildrop - transfer files between Android and MacOS - Kaushik Gopal's Website". kau.sh. Retrieved 2026-01-09.
  28. ^ Henderson, Marty. "Feb. 4th, 2022". Tailscale Exit Nodes.
  29. ^ "Surf the Web Privately with Mullvad's Global Network + Tailscale". tailscale.com. Retrieved 2026-01-09.
  30. ^ "Tailscale has partnered with Mullvad". Mullvad VPN. 2023-09-07. Retrieved 2026-01-09.
  31. ^ "Mullvad exit nodes · Tailscale Docs". Tailscale. Retrieved 2026-01-09.
  32. ^ "Tailscale, Mullvad, and More". Server As Code Dot Com. 2024-11-23. Retrieved 2026-01-09.

Bibliography

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