Here are four cloud related predictions for 2021 from OVHCloud that might interest you:
Data sovereignty becomes central to secure innovation
Data localization – and data sovereignty – is a major strategic factor, as there is an increasing demand for a European, trusted, and sovereign cloud. More and more companies question where their data is localized, and under which jurisdiction? The European DNA is very strong on data protection and individual rights. GDPR, invalidation of the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield, or the GAIA-X initiative for example, send out a strong signal that in Europe we want to have an open IT ecosystem, where we control the location of data but also its portability and interoperability. At a European scale, there is strong push towards local innovation to avoid being dependent on external actors for the most sensitive data.
A growing need for data storage
As worldwide data usage is expected to reach 175 zettabytes by 2025 (according to IDC), data storage has become critical for companies mostly with regard to business imperatives, costs, and compliance related risks. Data is the new goldmine, as it allows organizations to improve operations with predictive analytics, to build new added value services or products, etc. and this is why standard – yet comprehensive, affordable and reliable – cloud storage solutions are key to cloud adoption and to answer business needs.
Major growth in AI and Machine Learning
The constant flow of data represents enormous value from which to extract insights with AI and Machine Learning. However, despite the huge investments made by corporations, it’s still very challenging to utilize this value, as data science resources are limited and finding the right data system engineering skills is often difficult. Costs can also easily spiral out of control and are very unpredictable. Companies will have to turn to cloud providers who provide complete portfolios of easy-to-use and powerful AI solutions, with full control over budget.
A growing need for edge or hybrid technology
Alongside the development of the conversations on data sovereignty, is a need for the cloud industry to develop a multi-local approach. The recent partnership between OVHcloud and German operator T-systems is a good example of this: OVHcloud brings its own infrastructure and technological stack within the T-Sytems datacentre. This partnership responds to various legal issues: compliance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) first of all, but also to prevent exposure to the U.S. Cloud Act.