Category Archives: Cloud Computing

RIYADH: As the world embraces the most tech-savvy era, Riyadh-based solutions by stc has managed to make digitalization more relevant in Saudi Arabia.

Worth over SR24 billion ($6.4 billion), the company leverages modern techniques to enrich its portfolio with innovative products and services, aimed at revolutionizing traditional businesses.

The company known as 'solutions by stc' took a leap last year when it struck a stellar initial public offering on Saudi Arabias main stock index TASI.

It has seen strong interest from investors regionally and globally, after raising SR3.6 billion in an IPO, which the companys CEO Omar Al-Noamani said would position the company as a top digital enabler in the region.

Investor bids in the IPO surpassed the offered shares by 130 times, attracting more orders than oil giant Saudi Aramcos offering, Bloomberg reported.

The dividend policy, which is yet to be announced, will depend on performance evaluation and growth rates, Al-Noamaniearlier told CNBC Arabia in an interview.

Since its stock market debut, solutions by stc has closed in on major milestones.

Shares have soared 22 percent since then, to reach SR202 on Jan. 27, 2022.

It posted more than a 14 percent increase in profits in the first nine months of 2021, compared to a year earlier, up to SR718 million, and revenues hit SR5.76 billion in the same period.

The company has also secured several contracts worth millions of riyals. One of many is a SR201 million deal with Saudi Telecom Co. to build a data center inNEOMs Telco Parks digital platform.

On a broader scale, Saudi Arabias information and communications technology sector has a strong prospect for growth. It hit a volume of SR33.8 billion in 2018 and is forecasted to reach SR53.1 billion by 2025, according to stc.

Amid a sectoral boom, the Kingdom was ranked first among 140 nations for its digital competitiveness in 2020.

It beat France, China, and Indonesia to claim the top spot among the G20 member states, after being named Top Digital Riser, a statement by Saudi Press Agency revealed.

The local ICT industry represents a key driver of Vision 2030 blueprint for economic and social reform, as it helps Saudi diversify away from oil and brings it closer to becoming the future digital hub.

The Riyadh-basedsolutions by stc, formally known as Arabian Internet and Communications Services Co., represents the internet services arm of the Kingdoms largest telecom operator, Saudi Telecom Co.

It is 79 percent owned by stc and holds a market share of 13 percent in the local ICT sector, according to its website.

Saudi Telecom Co. owns and manages a tech venture capital fund that empowers entrepreneurs across the GCC, wider MENA region, and Turkey to set up technology businesses.

Headquartered in Riyadh, STC Ventures, or STV, marked the Middle Easts largest venture capital fund when it was established with a size of $500 million.

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Saudi Arabia attracts $2bn investments in cloud computing in the past two years - Arab News

31/01/2022 EU Automation

The cloud-native approach is often conceptualised using thePets vs. CattleDevOps concept, which compares traditional server systems, which are unique and cared for, to pets and cloud systems to cattle. Cattle are identical, assigned, scalable systems where if one of the systems were to be unavailable or fail, the whole network would not be affected. In this piece, Neil Bellinger, head of EMEA atglobal automation parts supplierEU Automation, delves into the native cloud and why it is the future of manufacturing.

Given the value of the cloud, one wonders why the manufacturing industry is resisting the move to cloud-native systems, especially with companies already using various cloud-based applications.

Until recently, manufacturing industries have been up to date with the latest innovations, from production tracking systems to artificial intelligence. Although financial and retail sectors have followed business giants like Netflix and Spotify, many still resist the switch to cloud-native. While83 per cent have a strategy for cloud implementationestablished, many still struggle to visualise the business value and cost savings of the cloud-native approach. However, forward-looking businesses are making the first steps in this direction. For example, one company currently implementing cloud-native applications is Volkswagen, training more than 200 specialists for its cloud-innovation centre.

Cloud-native is the term used to describe software and services that run on the internet instead of a local computer system, allowing businesses to be faster and more agile.Cloud-based applications, however, are not created in the cloud but instead transferred from an in-house web application to a cloud server. This cloud-based system allows for the availability and scalability of cloud-native applications without redesigning current applications.Cloud-enabled is similar to cloud-based, with the migration of the traditional application to the cloud. However, it does not have easy availability and scalability of cloud-based or cloud-native.

Some examples of cloud computing in the manufacturing industry are cloud-based marketing, product development, production and stock tracking, and productivity management.

The responsiveness, innovative features and zero downtime deployment of the cloud-native model provide businesses with a database needed to succeed in modern times. Successful examples of this implementation are Netflix and Uber. Netflix currently operates using over 600 services, with an update rate of around 100 times per day. The structural design of the cloud-native enables the rapid response, scalability, and selective deployment observed in companies such as Uber, Netflix and Spotify.

The cloud-native revolution

Cloud-native is the clear future of all businesses, including manufacturing. As seen in the last two years, implementing changes to aid when mass disruption like the pandemic occurs is extremely important for business survival. With accessibility possible from across the globe via the internet, the cloud-native approach is the best change companies could make.

The restriction of large on-premise systems has held back the manufacturing industry for years, but cloud-native applications enable companies to use small, reusable and independently deployable microservices. It can also allow the automation infrastructure, application delivery, recovery and scaling to increase, providing a more resilient and high performing system. The cloud-native model can also aid in lessening the strain of managing back-end software and infrastructure.

Cloud-native apps also enable the sharing and analysing of data across the organisation by being the central repository for data flowing fromsensors, machines, programmable logic controllers (PLCs),and more. At EU Automation, we value the importance of keeping with the times and understanding the cost of downtime. Cloud-native is the next step in lessening the impact of failures in company systems.

If you wish to stay informed about the developments of the cloud-native approach and how to unlock success in an industry 4.0, visit EU AutomationsKnowledge Hub.

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Pets versus cattle: cloud computing in manufacturing: The benefits of cloud-native applications in manufacturing - Process & Control Today

New York, USA, Jan. 31, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Market Overview: According to a comprehensive research report by Market Research Future (MRFR), Cloud Based Contact Center Market information by Solution, by Vertical, by Application and Region forecast to 2030 market size to reach USD 45.5 billion, growing at a compound annual growth rate of 24.8% by 2030.

Market Scope: The increased use of cloud-based contact center by different industrial verticals like healthcare and life sciences, government and public sector, consumer goods and retail, BFSI, and others will offer robust opportunities for the market over the forecast period.

Besides, other factors adding market growth include cloud based contact centers help in tracking real-time administration metrics through a customizable control panel, growing awareness about the alluring features of cloud based contact centers such as auto dialer real time monitoring, ACD, call center reports, IVR, Omni-channel support, and call center integration, as well as the growing need for cross-channel communication solutions, among others.

Dominant Key Players on Cloud Based Contact Center Market Covered are:

NICE Ltd. (Israel)

Five9 (US)

8x8 Inc. (US)

Cisco Systems (US)

Oracle Corporation (US)

Genesys (US)

NewVoiceMedia (UK)

Aspect Software (US)

Connect First (US)

Extreme Networks

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Market USP Exclusively Encompassed:Market DriversGrowing Need for Cloud Computing to Boost Market Growth The growing need for cloud computing will boost market growth over the forecast period for its convenience features, flexibility, affordability, and robust scalability. Thus organizations are widely looking in migrating their contact center operations to the cloud from the traditional on-premise model.

Cyber-attacks impacting Business Operations to act as Market Restraint In the current digital world, the access to vital information has resulted to several challenges, of which one of these include enterprises storing their sensitive data that turns into a key target for the cybercriminals. Contact centers, unfortunately that generally handle surplus customer information are no exception. On a regular basis, contact centers collect as well as store enough customer information which attracts cybercriminals for targeting such contact centers.

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High Initial Investment to act as Market Challenge The high initial investment and the dearth of trained expertise/skilled professionals may act as market challenges over the forecast period.

Browse In-depth Market Research Report (100 Pages) on Cloud Based Contact Center Market: https://www.marketresearchfuture.com/reports/cloud-based-contact-center-market-6358

Segmentation of Market Covered in the Research:The global cloud based contact center market has been bifurcated based on vertical, deployment model, organization size, services, and solution.

By solution, interactive voice response and automatic call distribution will lead the market over the forecast period as organizations focus to streamline and automate the massive volume of calls cost effectively and efficiently.

By services, the global cloud-based contact center market has been segmented into managed services and professional services.

By organization size, large enterprises will spearhead the market over the forecast period.

By deployment model, the public cloud segment will have the lions share in the market over the forecast period for the low cost associated with public deployment.

By industry, the IT and telecommunication segment will command the market over the forecast period. This will be followed by the BFSI sector as most financial institutions are using cloud-based solutions for making the facilities convenient. The banking sector has turned digital with the growing adoption of cloud platforms.

Regional AnalysisNorth America to Reign Cloud Based Contact Center Market North America will reign the cloud based contact center market over the forecast period. The presence of several key vendors in the region, the adoption of associated services, increasing recognition of cloud-based solutions, the growing adoption of favorable technologies like the IoT, the availability of cloud-based contact centers at a lower price by key vendors, large-scale digitization initiatives, growing number of startups, the presence of influential and innovative vendors like Cisco Systems Inc., Microsoft Corporation, and Oracle Corporation, and increasing investments of such key vendors in R&D activities are adding to the global cloud based contact center market growth in the region. Besides, organizations increasingly migrating their business operations to the cloud, rising trend of remote working that fuels the adoption of cloud based contact centers, the existence of major vendors, increasing acceptance of related services, and the growing acceptance of cloud-based solutions are adding to the global cloud based contact center market growth in the region.

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APAC to Have Significant Growth in Cloud Based Contact Center Market The APAC region will have significant growth in the cloud based contact center market over the forecast period. Dramatic growth of data center business, the rising number of startups, customers willingness to adopt new technologies, significant adoption of cloud-based solutions, ongoing digitalization, new entrants in the cloud contact center market particularly in Australia that are driving more established traditional on-premises players to aggressively roll out cloud-based solutions, the accessibility of cloud-based contact centers at an affordable cost by the regions leading vendors, and large-scale digitalization initiatives are adding to the global cloud based contact center market growth in the region.

COVID-19 Impact on the Global Cloud Based Contact Center MarketOrganizations are choosing cloud-based contract center solutions for managing contract center operations at the time of the COVID-19 outbreak for executing daily operations remotely. The need for cloud-based contact center solutions surged in 2020 for the different perks that it offers like low setup cost, scalability, and flexibility. Most of the organizations across industries have switched to work from home or remote working for safeguarding the well-being of employees and maintaining operational efficiency thus boosting the need for cloud-based solutions. Organizations which have already shifted their contact center operations to the cloud have survived easily with the continuity of their business during the pandemic. Cloud based contact centers are being preferred increasingly by enterprises for handling outbound and inbound customer communications effectively and delivering flexibility to manage customer service operations through remote workforce.

Competitive LandscapeThe cloud based contact center market is both competitive along with being fragmented on account of the presence of several international and also domestic industry players. Such industry players have utilized an assorted innovative strategies for being at the top along with sufficing to the burgeoning requirement of the esteemed clients including geographic expansions, collaborations, joint ventures, new product launches, partnerships, contracts, and much more. Besides, the players are also investing in different research & development activities.

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Data Center Cooling Market, By Components (Chillers, Economizer, Server Cooling), Cooling Type (liquid, air), Service (Professional Service, Managed Service), Organization Size (SMEs, Large Enterprises) Vertical (BFSI, Energy ) - Forecast till 2027

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About Market Research Future:Market Research Future (MRFR) is a global market research company that takes pride in its services, offering a complete and accurate analysis regarding diverse markets and consumers worldwide. Market Research Future has the distinguished objective of providing the optimal quality research and granular research to clients. Our market research studies by products, services, technologies, applications, end users, and market players for global, regional, and country level market segments, enable our clients to see more, know more, and do more, which help answer your most important questions.

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Cloud Based Contact Center Market Projected to Surpass USD 45.5 Billion by 2030 with a CAGR of 24.8% - Report by Market Research Future (MRFR) - Yahoo...

Against the backdrop of multiple challenges faced by the industry in recent years, the industrial internet of things (IoT) may provide needed hybrid cloud and fog computing to analyze huge amounts of sensitive data from sensors and actuators to monitor oil rigs and wells closely, thereby better managing global oil production. Improved quality of service is possible with the fog computing because it can alleviate challenges that a standard isolated cloud cannot handle.

Recently, the petroleum industry has faced critical challenges including oil price volatility, dramatically increased environmental regulations, the COVID-19 outbreak, and digital solutions to cybersecurity challenges. Oil and gas deals with a huge amount of data requiring an immediate response, with the flow of data generated by the IoT in all domains: upstream, midstream, and downstream. The vast amount of data and different types of IoT will create a barrier to holistic evaluation that does not depend on machine learning and artificial intelligence. Currently, the cloud solves that problem by processing data and applying artificial intelligence and machine learning, along with other applications. However, the cloud cannot work efficiently with such enormous sets of data and produce actions in a limited time because of the physical distance between the IoT and a centralized cloud will increase latency. In addition, cyberattack challenges to the IoTs and the degree of damage to the environment and equipment can halt operations, which can be circumvented using the fog and cloud. These challenges demonstrate that the current architecture cannot handle the large number of endpoint devices and data in a way that effectively provides significant protection to the system.

The fog model has several advantages over the cloud model, including close proximity to endpoints. The fog connects cyberphysical social systems to cloud computing centers and has the potential to lower the bandwidth and strain of industrial clouds. Cloud computing is a critical paradigm for managing all types of calculations, including those that were previously considered insignificant. However, when the task must be completed in real time with a very low latency, the cloud can become ineffective. As a result, fog computing was created to supplement the cloud. Traditional and fog computing are employed to increase the performance of industrial IoT-based applications. When the fog is unable to complete an operation independently because of capacity constraints, heavy computations must be offloaded to the cloud.

Fog computing is thought to be more cost-effective than cloud computing in time-critical applications such as health care because of its decreased latency, and, in some situations, the spare capacity of locally accessible resources.

Fog computing is a novel paradigm for computation that can be represented as the link between the cloud and the networks edge, where it provides computing, communication, control, and storage. The decentralized platform differs from previous traditional, architectural computational methods because the fog computing environment connects resources, including people, to improve the quality of life by running cyberphysical social applications on network edge processing resources.

Fog Nodes or Microdata Centers (MDCs). Such applications can gather and analyze data from local microdata centers by fog computing. Local data processing and analysis are carried out by the MDC to limit the amount of data transferred to a centralized cloud, reduce network latency, and enhance overall performance, especially for time-sensitive services such as connected cars and health monitoring. In order to reduce network congestion, bandwidth consumption, and delay for user requests, MDCs typically are placed between data sources and the cloud data center. The MDC handles most user requests instead of forwarding them to centralized and remote cloud data centers.

Smart Gateway. Because it permits communication between the network layer and the ubiquitous sensor network layer, a smart gateway is an important component of industrial IoT applications. IoT gateways are communication points that connect lower-end users who operate in influential data centers, connect the many devices in use, and perform a variety of functions to complete the computing purpose. The gate is solely used to receive sensor data, incorporate it, and then send it to the cloud for processing.

Virtual Servers. Fog computing has developed as a response to the massive amounts of data being transmitted to cloud servers and the severe latency and bandwidth limits that come with it. As an intermediary computing layer between cloud servers and IoT devices, it distributes numerous heterogeneous fog servers. Fog servers contain fewer resources than cloud servers, but, because they can be accessible over a local area network, they offer better bandwidth and reduced latency for industrial IoT devices.

Management Subsystem. Fog computing optimizes task execution and management system by achieving a balance of attention between resources and tasks. Load balancing is an important resource-management method that can be used in conjunction with task management to produce a reliable system.

Storage Subsystem. The fundamental objective of the industrial IoT is to acquire correct data in real time and then respond quickly and appropriately to provide desired results. Fog and edge computing have been used to help solve these problems and enhance service quality and user experience by effectively distributing data storage and processing across multiple locations physically close to the data source.

Fog computing architectures are built on fog clusters that combine the processing of several fog devices. Data centers, on the other hand, are the clouds primary physical components, with high operational costs and energy usage. The fog-computing paradigm consumes less energy and has lower operating expenses. Because the fog is closer to the user, the distance between users and fog devices could be one or a few hops.

The clouds communication latency is always higher than the fogs because of distance. The fog relies upon a more-distributed strategy based on geographical orchestration, whereas the cloud represents a more-centralized approach. Because of its high latency, the cloud does not allow for real-time contact; however, fog computing can alleviate this problem easily. On the other hand, the fog has a high failure rate because of its dependence upon wireless connectivity, decentralized management, and power outages. When the software is not managed properly, these devices can fail.

Drawbacks of the cloud-based model include the following:

The fogs dispersed design safeguards linked systems from the cloud to the device by placing computing, storage, networking, and communications closer to the services and data sources, offering an extra layer of security. Fog nodes protect cloud-based industrial IoT and fog-based services by executing a variety of security tasks on any number of networked devices, even the tiniest and most resource-constrained ones. For managing and upgrading security credentials, malware detection, and timely software patch distribution at scale, the fog provides a trusted distributed platform and execution environment for applications and services, as shown in Fig. 1.

By detecting, verifying, and reporting assaults, the fog provides reliable communication and enhanced security. If a security breach is discovered, the fog can detect and isolate risks quickly by monitoring the security status of surrounding devices. Blockchain deployments to low-cost IoT endpoints are possible using the fog. If multiple power generators are attacked using malware, the fogs node-based root-of-trust capabilities allows operations managers to remotely isolate and shut down affected generators. This ensures that service interruptions are minimized. If hackers attempt to take control of a smart factory by exploiting a vulnerability in assembly-line equipment, the domains are protected by fog nodes. Traffic is monitored from the internet into the distributed fog network and uses machine learning in the local environment to detect a potential assault once it has been recognized.

Based on a literature review of the use of the fog paradigm in health-care, smart cities, industrial automation, and smart-connected vehicles, great potential for fog computing exists in the petroleum industry. It is an open-architecture methodology that allows industrial IoT 5G and artificial-intelligence advancement. Fog nodes protect cloud-based IoT and fog-based services by executing a variety of security tasks on any number of networked devices. The benefits of using fog computing in the petroleum industry are latency reduction, improved response time, enhanced compliance, increased security, greater data privacy, reduced cost of bandwidth, overall increase in speed and efficiency, less reliance on wide-area-network services, greater up-time of critical systems, and enhanced services for remote locations.

Fig. 1Securing industrial IoT through fog computing.

This article, written by JPT Technology Editor Chris Carpenter, contains highlights of paper SPE 206067, The Role of Hybrid IoT With Cloud Computing and Fog Computing in Helping the Oil and Gas Industry Recover From COVID-19 and Face Future Challenges, by Ethar H.K. Alkamil, SPE, University of Basrah; Ammar A. Mutlag, Universiti Teknikal Malaysia Melaka; and Haider W. Alsaffar, SPE, Halliburton, et al. The paper has not been peer reviewed.

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IoT With Cloud and Fog Computing Can Help Industry Recovery, Advancement

Fouling-Prediction Model Uses Machine Learning

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IoT With Cloud and Fog Computing Can Help Industry Recovery, Advancement - Journal of Petroleum Technology

Startup Sync Computing emerged from stealth mode today with $6.1 million in seed funding in a bid to help enable distributed cloud infrastructure for artificial intelligence, machine learning and big data workloads. The company also announced the launch of Sync Autotuner and Sync Orchestrator.

Based in Boston, Sync Computing is a spinout from MIT Lincoln Laboratory, where Suraj Bramhavar and Jeff Chou co-founded the company. The core premise that underlies Sync is that modern cloud infrastructure isn't properly optimized to run distributed workloads across different cloud services.

As part of Sync's launch, the company is also launched Sync Autotuner, a service that helps automatically tune and optimize cloud infrastructure for a given AI, ML or big data workload running the Apache Spark query engine.

In addition, the startup announced Sync Orchestrator, a compute resource orchestration tool for enabling different workloads to run across a distributed cloud infrastructure.

"The larger vision of what we're building is a globally optimized resource allocation and scheduler that is custom-designed for the cloud," Chou, Syncs CEO, told ITPro Today.

Typically, users with a big data job must manually determine what resources are needed on a given cloud platform, which can be a complex process, according to Chou.

Amazon Web Services (AWS) has all manner of virtual instance types, with different configurations offered at various on-demand, reserve and spot pricing. Different resource types can impact performance as well as cost.

Another challenge is the orchestration of jobs. With certain AI, ML and big data workloads there are dependencies, such that one particular operation needs to run after another. Manually scheduling the timing and sequence of events is also a complex task, Chou said.

Sync Computing is aiming to enable its users to define their own business goals for a particular workload, whether the goal is better performance or cost optimization, Chou said. He noted that Sync provides an abstraction on top of compute resources, figuring out the details to help users reach business goals.

Chou said the optimization approach that Sync Computing uses is not based on machine learning. Rather, Sync Autotuner uses what he referred to as a mathematical model.

"There are companies that help tune various applications, but they require running the application for a week to train a model," Chou said. "For us, there is no training. We basically mathematically model Amazon's hardware and cost model, as well as Apache Spark."

As such, Chou claimed that a user could just direct the workload to Sync Computing, which will automatically calculate the right place and time to run a job.

While Sync Computing is starting off by helping optimize Apache Spark workloads across distributed cloud infrastructure, Chou said the plan is to enable various types of distributed computing workloads as the platform and the business continue to grow.

"When we first started, we were fundamentally just research scientists, so we had to find the right product andmarket," he said. "We do want to be a horizontal platform company, so that includes anything that benefits from distributed computing, like TensorFlow, PyTorch and other frameworks."

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Sync Computing Launches with Distributed Cloud Infrastructure Tech - ITPro Today

Were seeing tremendous growth of multicloud approaches as organizations look for the best provider fit to solve their specific challenges. This trend will only continue to gain momentum as multicloud becomes the prevailing cloud strategy for businesses.

PHILADELPHIA (PRWEB) January 31, 2022

Developers increasingly rely on multiple cloud providers for their infrastructure needs. Thats the finding from research conducted by SlashData. The 21st edition of the global Developer Nation survey, which asked nearly 3,500 backend services developers which providers they turn to for their cloud infrastructure, found that one out of every four respondents (27%) uses an alternative cloud provider like Linode, DigitalOcean, or OVHcloud. The survey results also found that usage of alternative cloud providers has nearly doubled over the past four years, a period in which usage of the three largest hyperscalers, AWS, Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud Platform (GCP), only grew by 18%.

As the cloud market continues to boom Gartner predicts global cloud revenue to total $474 billion in 2022 more organizations are seeking out cloud providers that cater to their specific needs, beyond the complex and costly offerings of the big three hyperscalers. In fact, SlashDatas latest research found that while half (51%) of developers stated that AWS, Microsoft Azure, and GCP served as their primary service provider, the majority (78%) of respondents use more than one provider for cloud services.

Developers and businesses are craving simpler, more affordable, and more reliable cloud services, said Blair Lyon, vice president of cloud experience at Linode. Were seeing tremendous growth of multicloud approaches as organizations look for the best provider fit to solve their specific challenges. This trend will only continue to gain momentum as multicloud becomes the prevailing cloud strategy for businesses.

A recent report from 451 Research found that large hyperscale providers are not always ideal for all cloud use cases and that alternative cloud providers are increasingly bridging the gap for use cases that previously went overlooked or underserviced, including for small businesses and independent developers. In addition, a 2021 survey of devops professionals by Techstrong Group (formerly Accelerated Strategies Group) found alternative cloud providers were used by one-third of those survey respondents.

"Since we began tracking this category over the past few years, developers have increasingly turned to alternative cloud providers for their infrastructure needs, said Konstantinos Korakitis, Director of Research at SlashData.

The 22nd edition of the Developer Nation survey is currently live, so if you are a developer anywhere in the world, you can share your input here.

*About Linode*Linode accelerates innovation by making cloud computing simple, accessible, and affordable to all. Founded in 2003, Linode helped pioneer the cloud computing industry and is today the largest independent open cloud provider in the world. Linode empowers more than a million developers, startups, and businesses across its global network of 11 data centers.

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Nearly One-Third of Developers are Turning to Alternative Cloud Providers, New Research from SlashData Finds - PR Web

When Craig McLellan, the CEO of ThinkOn, founded the company in 2013, he had three core principles in mind. First: All of the companys cloud computing services would be easy to understand and simple to deliver. Second: They would be transparently priced, with no hidden charges. Third: They would be secure and well supported.

Today its clear that the company, based in Etobicoke, Ontario, has delivered on McLellans vision. A cloud services provider delivering IaaS solutions and data management services through a global channel network, ThinkOn works with more than 150 resellers; oversees and manages more than 100 petabytes of data (the exact volume cannot be disclosed); and provides the compute, network, and storage capabilities more than 1,500 organizations rely on.

Among these are the Canadian Federal Government, provincial and local agencies. The company also works with customers in highly regulated industries such as healthcare that must not only ensure their data remains in Canada, but that it complies with numerous requirements, including the sovereignty of all employees and networks.

We recently caught up with McLellan to learn why he feels its important to offer sovereign cloud services and to achieve the VMware Cloud Verified Sovereign Cloud distinction. We also took the opportunity to get his thoughts on how he sees the market for sovereign cloud services evolving.

Our tagline at ThinkOn is Where Data Thrives, but its more than a marketing message. Its what we aspire to every day, says McLellan. In no area of our business is this more important than in our Canadian service delivery infrastructure. Its entirely sovereign. We dont rely on employees or organizations that reside outside of Canada to support it, and weve taken a number of steps because of our commitment to the Canadian Federal Government to ensure enhanced reliability and security. I would say that all Canadians are being served with our sovereign cloud.

The role sovereignty plays

McLellan notes that organizations often fall for the misconception that the data they are trusting cloud providers with is managed and secured in a sovereign way; however, many hyperscale clouds rely on offshore resources for tasks even when the data remains at a domestic location. For that reason, he says, they are not sovereign.

Organizations based in Canada must adhere to the laws of Canada, he says. True sovereignty is important because even our closest neighbors have regulations that completely contradict the privacy and data security laws we have in place in Canada and believe are important. If you look at the U.S., for example, data is monetized in ways we consider abhorrent. So why would you put your data at risk and not rely on the laws and regulations established in our own country to protect our people and their data?

VMware plays an important role in this.

We are very committed to the entire VMware stack, and as the company comes out with interesting and innovative technologies, we look for ways to complement our VMware-powered service data infrastructure, adds McLellan. VMware does not pass its designations around lightly and being VMware Cloud Verified and VMware Sovereign Cloud certified is valued by our customers.

Not surprisingly, McLellan believes more organizations will look for sovereign cloud solutions as they see their data abused or even stolen. He notes that this not only includes organizations in highly regulated industries like energy, financial services, healthcare, and telecommunications, but organizations across all industries.

This extends to any businesses in which customers want to be assured that their personally identifiable data is stored and safeguarded by organizations that must comply with the most stringent, local, regional, and national data protection regulations. Notably, this includes those that utilize or process individuals payment information such as retailers and e-commerce companies.

Some people equate data as an asset to oil, but I disagree with that comparison, because if someone steals your oil, you know it, he says. As the headlines reveal, most organizations dont know when their data was taken or compromised until its too late. As more organizations face that reality, more will understand that if there are laws in place to protect their data, it behooves them to leverage infrastructure that aligns with them. At ThinkOn, weve made the commitment to align our offerings with the regulatory frameworks imposed on us by the people of Canada.

Learn more about ThinkOn and its partnership with VMware here.

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ThinkOn: Providing Sovereign Cloud Solutions and Services That Meet the Needs of Canadas Data - CIO UK

AI storage is needed as the boundaries of traditional computing and analytics shift to a new era

Data or AI storage is necessary to solve the emerging data challenges caused by the move away from traditional computing and analytics.

The universe of supercomputing has expanded rapidly to incorporate AI, advanced data analytics and cloud computing. The era of serial data is ending, with parallel data management replacing network file systems (NFS).

This shift has corresponded to the rise of AI, with investments in the technology hitting a new record in 2021. As an example, Microsoft invested $1 billion in an artificial intelligence project, co-founded by Elon Musk.

This shift in the boundaries of traditional computing and analytics has caused several data challenges that need to be resolved:

Data talent there is need to source new data science talent, maintain currency and up to date skills sets in a rapidly changing software environment.

Data sources there is a need to ingest high volume data from broad sources through a variety of ingest methods at rates well beyond traditional computing requirements.

Data processing there is a need for a different type of data processing to implement large scale GPU environments to bring the parallelism needed for training and inference in real-time.

Data governance there is a need to label, track and manage that data (forever) and share that data across organisations with the right security policies. Explainable AI on an application level and available data on a platform level.

During The IT Press Tour in San Francisco, James Coomer, Sr. Vice President Products Data at DDN, explained that data is the source code of AI, data is imperative for AI and storage is imperative for AI.

Storage cant be an afterthought, as its key for data ingestion, sourcing, management, labelling and longevity, which is critical for AI.

Data or AI storage is necessary to solve the emerging data challenges caused by the move away from traditional computing and analytics:

>Read here: To find out more about the other companies in the latest edition of The IT Press Tour in San Francisco and Silicon Valley

Traditionally, DDN Storage has focused on traditional data storage for unstructured data and big data in enterprise, government and academic sectors.

Now, it is redefining the imperatives that are driving it as a company, focusing on AI storage, with its solution, AI, which is at the heart of its growth strategy.

In action, over the last two years DDN has acted as the core backend storage system for NVIDIA to increase performance & scale and flexibility to drive innovation.

NVIDIA commands nearly 100% of the market for training AI algorithms and has multiple AI clusters, according to Karl Freund, analyst at Cambrian AI Research.

Following this success, DDN is powering the UKs most powerful supercomputer, Cambridge 1, which went live in 2021 and is focused on transforming AI-based healthcare research.

The AI storage vendor is also working with Recursion, the drug discovery company.

Our at-scale data needs require fast ingest, optimised processing and reduced application run times, said Kris Howard, Systems Engineer at Recursion.

Working with DDN, the drug discovery company achieved up to 20x less costs and raised the possibilities for accelerating the drug discovery pipeline with new levels of AI capability.

It previously ran on the cloud, but now operates more efficiently, with greater value for money on-premise.

DDN pioneered accelerated data-at-scale to tackle what ordinary storage cannot. We make data environments for innovators to create the future. Were the largest AI storage provider in the world, proven in an array of different industries and customers, from financial services to life sciences, added Coomer.

1. Transforming cancer care with managed services: DDN as a service for precision Oncology

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DDN solution:

2. Simplifying data management for a global financial services and venture firm

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The DDN Solution:

3. Transforming research data storage: from management and maintenance to universal resources

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See also: Mining the metadata and more Tips for good AI data storage practices

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AI storage: a new requirement for the shift in computing and analytics - Information Age

Mentions of cloud computing within the filings of companies in the mining industry rose 111% between the second and third quarters of 2021.

In total, the frequency of sentences related to cloud computing between October 2020 and September 2021 was 162% higher than in 2016 when GlobalData, from whom our data for this article is taken, first began to track the key issues referred to in company filings.

When companies in the mining industry publish annual and quarterly reports, ESG reports and other filings, GlobalData analyses the text and identifies individual sentences that relate to disruptive forces facing companies in the coming years. Cloud computing is one of these topics companies that excel and invest in these areas are thought to be better prepared for the future business landscape and better equipped to survive unforeseen challenges.

To assess whether cloud computing is featuring more in the summaries and strategies of companies in the mining industry, two measures were calculated. Firstly, we looked at the percentage of companies which have mentioned cloud computing at least once in filings during the past 12 months this was 31% compared to 11% in 2016. Secondly, we calculated the percentage of total analysed sentences that referred to cloud computing.

Of the 50 biggest employers in the mining industry, Honeywell International Inc was the company that referred to cloud computing the most between October 2020 and September 2021. GlobalData identified 37 cloud-related sentences in the US-based company's filings 0.4% of all sentences. China Steel Corp mentioned cloud computing the second most the issue was referred to in 0.15% of sentences in the company's filings. Other top employers with high cloud mentions included Tata Steel Ltd, Metalurgica Gerdau SA, and Nippon Steel Corp.

This analysis provides an approximate indication of which companies are focusing on cloud computing and how important the issue is considered within the mining industry, but it also has limitations and should be interpreted carefully. For example, a company mentioning cloud computing more regularly is not necessarily proof that they are utilising new techniques or prioritising the issue, nor does it indicate whether the company's ventures into cloud computing have been successes or failures.

GlobalData also categorises cloud computing mentions by a series of subthemes. Of these subthemes, the most commonly referred to topic in the third quarter of 2021 was "software as a service", which made up 68% of all cloud subtheme mentions by companies in the mining industry.

Leading the Way in Enterprise Risk Management across Mining Development & Operations and Corporate Functions

Bulk Material Handling Solutions for the Mining Sector

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Filings buzz in the mining industry: 111% increase in cloud computing mentions in Q3 of 2021 - Mining Technology

SANTA CLARA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Veritas Technologies, the leader in enterprise data management from edge to core to cloud, today announced that CRN, a brand of The Channel Company, has named Veritas Technologies to its annual Cloud 100 list. This list honors the 100 Coolest Cloud Companies for 2022 across five key categories: infrastructure, monitoring and management, storage, software and security.

CRNs Cloud 100 list spotlights technology suppliers for their commitment to channel partners as well as their demonstrated innovation in cloud-based technology development. This list is the trusted resource for solution providers looking for technology vendors best positioned to support their cloud product and service needs.

Todays recognition is a further acknowledgment of Veritas leadership in enterprise data management and its continued innovation in its Partner Force Program to support partners as they transition customers to the cloud and help them achieve their digital transformation goals.

Veritas has also continued to showcase innovation in its cloud-based offerings as evidenced by its acquisition of the technology behind NetBackup SaaS Protection, and its deep integration into the NetBackup platform helping businesses protect their SaaS data in a secure, flexible and scalable way as they increasingly embrace hybrid multi-cloud strategies.

Veritas also recently introduced NetBackup Recovery Vault. Recovery Vault provides mission critical ransomware resiliency as a purpose-built, air-gapped storage tier for backups, while reducing the cost and complexity of using cloud storage from a selection of leading providers for long term retention and reliable recovery of backup data. With this solution, Veritas customers can be confident that their data is secure in the cloud and protected from ransomware, is disaster recovery ready, and able to meet compliance and governance requirements.

We are honored to be recognized by CRN for our commitment to empowering our partners to provide a seamless customer journey across all clouds, said Mike Walkey, senior vice president, Global Channels and Alliances at Veritas. Todays recognition further validates Veritas continued innovation across our product portfolio to help customers manage and protect their multi-cloud environments at scale.

In todays remote-facing enterprise environment, cloud services have become the critical component needed to build comprehensive and secure IT solutions, said Blaine Raddon, CEO, The Channel Company. The companies selected for this years Cloud 100 list have shown time and again that they support partners in the ever-evolving cloud computing business with state-of-the-art products and services. Our team commends those on this years list and looks forward to watching them drive positive change in the cloud domain throughout the year.

CRNs Cloud 100 list will be featured in the February 2022 issue of CRN magazine and online at http://www.crn.com/cloud100.

About Veritas Technologies

Veritas Technologies is the leader in enterprise data management from edge to core to cloud. Over 80,000 customersincluding 87% of the Fortune Global 500rely on us to abstract IT complexity and simplify data management. The Veritas Enterprise Data Services Platform automates the protection and orchestrates the recovery of data everywhere it lives, ensures 24/7 availability of business-critical applications, and provides enterprises with the insights they need to comply with evolving data regulations. With a reputation for reliability at scale and a deployment model to fit any need, the Veritas Enterprise Data Services Platform supports more than 800 different data sources, over 100 different operating systems, more than 1,400 storage targets, and more than 60 different cloud platforms. Learn more at http://www.veritas.com. Follow us on Twitter at @veritastechllc.

Veritas, the Veritas Logo and NetBackup are trademarks or registered trademarks of Veritas Technologies LLC or its affiliates in the US and other countries.

About The Channel Company

The Channel Company enables breakthrough IT channel performance with our dominant media, engaging events, expert consulting and education and innovative marketing services and platforms. As the channel catalyst, we connect and empower technology suppliers, solution providers and end users. Backed by more than 30 years of unequalled channel experience, we draw from our deep knowledge to envision innovative new solutions for ever-evolving challenges in the technology marketplace. http://www.thechannelco.com

Follow The Channel Company: Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook

2022 The Channel Company, LLC. CRN is a registered trademark of The Channel Company, LLC. All rights reserved.

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CRN Recognizes Veritas Technologies as a Cloud 100 Company for 2022 - Business Wire