Why There Are Only 400 FedRAMP Authorized Services—and How Knox Is Opening the Gate for 1,000s More

Let’s talk about the number that defines a broken system:

How many cloud service providers currently hold an active FedRAMP authorization in the United States?
About 400.

Out of tens of thousands of innovative SaaS vendors in the U.S., only a sliver are cleared to serve the federal government.

Why?

Because the system wasn’t built to scale.
But at Knox Systems, we’re here to fix that.

Why FedRAMP Has Been So Hard to Access

It’s not that vendors aren’t secure.
It’s that the path to proving it is wildly inefficient.

Here’s what the traditional FedRAMP journey looks like:

• Secure a government sponsor (takes 6–18 months—if you’re lucky)
  
  
• Hire a consultant to interpret NIST 800-53 line by line
  
  
• Re-architect your infrastructure to fit FedRAMP templates
  
  
• Spend $2–4M+ before you’re even eligible for a contract
  
  
• Wait another 12–24 months for ATO
  
  

That’s 2–3 years of sunk time and millions of dollars—just to get to the starting line.
And worse: the vendors who can afford this process aren’t always the most innovative or secure.

How Knox Is Opening the Gate for Many, Many More

At Knox, we believe FedRAMP should be accessible, scalable, and developer-friendly.

So we built a new model—one designed to make security infrastructure as composable as cloud compute.

Here’s how we’re unlocking the market:

1. Pre-Authorized FedRAMP Boundary

SaaS vendors inherit our fully compliant infrastructure, eliminating the need to build FedRAMP from scratch.

You get 80%+ of the Moderate baseline covered on Day 1.

2. CMX: AI-Native Compliance Engine

CMX maps your infrastructure to FedRAMP (and other frameworks) in real time.

• No spreadsheets
  
  
• No consultants
  
  
• No lag
  
  
• Just real-time posture, evidence, and auto-generated SSPs

3. 90-Day Go-to-Market Timeline

We replace years of red tape with weeks of alignment.

CMX + shared infrastructure = “FedRAMP In Process” in as little as 90 days—no agency sponsor required.

4. Built for Scale, Not Scarcity

Everything we’ve built—from inheritance models to continuous monitoring—is designed to support thousands of SaaS vendors, not a select few.

That’s the difference between a certification path and a compliance platform.

This Is About More Than FedRAMP

It’s about equity in federal innovation.

If only the well-funded, well-connected vendors can get through the gate, the government loses access to:

• Startup innovation
  
  
• Niche expertise
  
  
• ‍Sector-specific tools (EdTech, HealthTech, AI, CivicTech)
  
  
• Next-gen security platforms
  
  

The public sector deserves access to the full spectrum of cloud innovation—not just the ones who can afford 36 months of consultants.

Knox is here to make that possible.

Key Highlights

• Only about 400 cloud providers hold FedRAMP authorization, leaving most innovative SaaS vendors locked out of the federal market.
• Traditional FedRAMP approval takes years and millions of dollars, favoring large, well-funded vendors over agile innovators.
• Knox offers a pre-authorized FedRAMP boundary that lets SaaS companies inherit 80% of controls and reach compliance from day one.
• The Knox CMX platform automates documentation, evidence, and SSP generation, cutting timelines to as little as 90 days.
• By making compliance scalable and accessible, Knox is opening the door for thousands of startups to serve the public sector.

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Frequently Asked Questions

1. Why are there so few FedRAMP authorized services today?
Only about 400 cloud service providers hold FedRAMP authorization because the traditional process is slow, costly, and difficult to scale, often taking years and millions of dollars.

2. What makes the traditional FedRAMP process so challenging?
Vendors must secure a government sponsor, hire consultants, re-architect their infrastructure, and complete lengthy documentation before being eligible for authorization.

3. How does Knox make FedRAMP more accessible to SaaS vendors?
Knox offers a pre-authorized boundary and AI-driven compliance automation through CMX, allowing vendors to inherit 80% of controls and achieve readiness in as little as 90 days.

4. What is the role of CMX in accelerating compliance?
CMX automatically maps infrastructure to FedRAMP controls, generates SSPs, and provides real-time posture monitoring, eliminating spreadsheets and manual reporting.

5. Why is Knox’s approach important for federal innovation?
By reducing cost and complexity, Knox enables thousands of startups and SaaS vendors to enter the federal market, expanding access to new technologies and innovation.

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TL;DR

There are only about 400 FedRAMP authorized vendors today because the system wasn’t designed to scale.

Knox changes that—with AI-native compliance, shared security infrastructure, and 90-day readiness
We’re building for 1,000s of vendors to go federal—faster, cheaper, smarter
The gate is open. The future is distributed. Let’s build it together.

Exclusivity is out.
Access is in.

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