Key learnings and insights from CloudFest 2024! 

Celebrating its 20th year, CloudFest 2024 sure did bring the party! Uniting almost twelve thousand cloud experts, the event was a true celebration of the past, present and future of internet infrastructure.

Team UpCloud was blown away by the depth of knowledge, expertise, and passion for cloud technology. Thank you to all who came to our stand and chatted about all things infrastructure! 

Now that the dust has settled and our vertigo eased (too many roller coasters!), we wanted to share just some of the many key learnings and industry insights from CloudFest 2024!

Security is not a check-box

In today’s world of global connectivity, much discussion over the week centred around what must be done to ensure borderless security for the future.  

With vast streams of personal data stored on the cloud, ensuring compliance and the highest standards of security has never been more important for many industries, especially those operating in Europe.

What’s more, with the rise of artificial intelligence (AI), concerns regarding the handling of personal data were brought to the forefront of debate, with experts suggesting that, although AI is here to stay, there still remains a need for regulation within industries. 

Although certain solutions, such as Confidential AI, may be a step in the right direction to manage this issue, selecting a European cloud provider remains the safest option for small and medium-sized businesses. 

Understanding the alternatives

 In the past, hyper scalers have set the standards for cloud technology, boasting seemingly endless resources in terms of finance, expertise, and tools. Despite their dominance, alternative solutions shone at CloudFest 2024, reflecting the fact that nowadays a notable 25% of MSP customers do not want to purchase from the industry giants. 

Although panel discussions touched on the surface level security and “I can’t go wrong” mentality which selection of the big 3 offered, when delving deeper into debate cost, compliance, service and support were key arguments in selecting an alternative provider. 

With greater budget brings earlier adoption of new technologies, however, when looking to the cloud, most cloud provider technology stack is essentially the same. Therefore, it was highlighted that alternatives must bring value beyond the tech stack – competitive pricing, unmatched service and unparalleled customer support. 

Furthermore, in light of recent news regarding the Broadcom acquisition of VMware, the growing demand for an alternative offering was very much felt with concerns over the creeping costs of VMware’s solutions at the forefront of discussion across the 4 days. With many turning to open-source software infrastructure, a clear need for greater flexibility over hardware and software licences was evident. 

The future of cloud technology

With generative AI here to stay, discussion suggests that the true fruits of AI will not be seen for years to come. With AI relatively new for everyone, the sky’s the limit, with demand set to increase as the industry adapts and builds confidence and trust in its capabilities.

With the potential to make data smart again, AI will enable businesses to restructure data in such a way as to enable better data-informed decisions to drive growth and generate greater revenue opportunities. Yet, as previously mentioned, with AI comes responsibility and therefore regulation must adapt to the future of cloud technology also for a safer tomorrow.

As a European cloud provider, we were pleased to see compliance at the forefront of discussion throughout the week. With 8 data centres located in Europe, we understand the importance and peace of mind provided by knowing data is stored and handled in compliance with EU regulations on servers close to end-users. 

With demand for alternative cloud providers, UpCloud sets itself apart from hyper scalers through competitive pricing, unparalleled performance, and a deep commitment to customer support. 

No longer the best cloud you’ve never heard of – Welcome to UpCloud!  

Let’s not leave the great conversations in Rust. For further details on our modern cloud-native product portfolio, reach out to a member of our team today!