Its budget time for many enterprises, and the question that I get most this time of year is: What should we work on in 2024 to improve our cloud computing deployments?

I came up with my top three, with the understanding that these are general concepts and you need to consider your own state of cloud within your enterprise. Lets get started.

As the volume and sensitivity of data being stored and processed in the cloud increase, security and compliance remain critical concerns. In 2024, this means evaluating and enhancing cloud security in both obvious and non-obvious ways.

Most of you dont have solid access controls for your cloud deployments. This is usually neglected since getting a directory service in place to identify people, machines, applications, data, etc., is expensive and time-consuming, but there is no way to avoid it. Lets get that fixed in 2024.

Of course, compliance requirements must be addressed effectively with the evolving regulatory landscape. Chances are you have some things that need to be compliant and arent. Businesses must ensure their cloud deployments align with industry-specific regulations, such as GDPR or HIPAA.

You can handle this by implementing appropriate data management processes, privacy controls, and audit trails. Typically this means governance systems need to be in place. Finding compliance governance systems designed for your specific industry is a good place to start.

There are two things to work on here. First, is tactical cost management. Are you regularly reviewing cloud usage, identifying unused or underutilized resources, and implementing cost-management measures? This includes rightsizing instances and adopting reserved or other cost-saving plans.

Second, and more important, are the strategic cost optimization efforts. Heres an automotive analogy: By doing tactical things such as reducing your speed, tuning your engine, and removing weight from the car, you can lower costs. Much more significant investments will become much more considerable cost savings.

In the cloud computing space, this means rethinking some of the systems that you lifted and shifted and are now costing much more than they ever did in your data center. Many need to be redesigned and modernized to take full advantage of cloud platforms and burn less cash.

In some cases, workloads may need to be put back on premises if the cost of modernizing the systems is well outside the range of generating a business benefit. Some workloads should have been kept off the cloud in the first place, plain and simple.

These are complicated and expensive projects. However, the benefits of strategic cost-saving efforts typically exceed any cost and risk. Of the three concepts Im talking about here, these should be first on your list for 2024.

Weve beaten the idea of multicloud complexityto death, so I wont rehash it here. You need to take care of this at some point, and 2024 could be the year.

This will be different from deployment to deployment, but usually, it means dealing with the heterogeneity of cloud platforms and the resulting complexity through abstraction and automation mechanisms.

What does that mean? It means finding a layer of technology that can automate how different cloud systems interact. Also, it means finding cloud management abstraction layers that can provide a single interface and API layer to access multiple specific cloud resources.

Dealing with a single layer and not all the native layers were working with now means you wont need as many humans to manage a multicloud. Youll be able to manage the clouds on your terms, not theirs. Having many different clouds offers the ability to leverage best-of-breed cloud services. However, with a single layer, you no longer have the cost of the resulting complexity. Good to take care of this in 2024.

I hope this helps with your budgeting. Youll notice that generative AI isnt on my list. Its important, but most enterprises have larger issues to solve before they begin playing around with generative AI. Good luck in 2024.

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3 things for your 2024 cloud to-do list - InfoWorld

Businesses value the availability, scalability, and reliability of the cloud. They recognize that cloud computing can enable data to flow freely to where it needs to be accessed and processed, providing a huge advantage for organizations that operate on a global scale.

However, the rise of cloud computing, coupled with the broader movement toward the "internationalization" of data, has led to a corresponding increase in scrutiny of data governance and how to ensure relevant digital sovereignty requirements are met.

When considering whether to expand your business to a new country or to offer services to a new customer base, it's critical to assess the impact of digital sovereignty requirements. Those requirements vary based on which regulatory regimes apply, but broadly fall into three pillars: data sovereignty, operational sovereignty, and software sovereignty. Compliance may be achieved using multiple mechanisms, including sovereign cloud solutions powered through local partners or sovereign controls.

Consider Europe's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and Brazil's General Personal Data Protection Law (LGPD) as two examples of specific regional privacy regulations that give individuals more control over how their data can be used, accessed, and stored. Similarly, legislation in Germany goes a step further, by regulating the public sector's use of cloud and requiring cloud providers to attain specific local certifications. And the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has also promoted a data protection law that regulates, and in certain cases prohibits, cross-border data transfers.

Organizations may find themselves challenged both to pursue digital transformation initiatives and to meet different customer data privacy and protection requirements. For instance, companies may want to enable certain features or functionalities that impact the manner in which customer data is processed or stored, but find that their technical partners are unable to provide the assurances they need to operate in compliance with local laws and regulations.

Cloud providers can take a leading role in helping organizations navigate questions that arise from digital sovereignty challenges by providing products and services designed with digital sovereignty in mind, for instance by enabling visibility into where, how, and by whom customer data is accessed and stored.

In certain cases, the way to achieve compliance with digital sovereignty requirements may be to partner with a local company to meet data storage or access requirements, such as via encryption key management or air-gapping. Cloud providers can make establishing such relationships easier by serving as enablers for impacted companies in fulfilling their requirement to engage directly with such a local entity.

So what steps can leaders take to proactively support compliance with digital sovereignty requirements?

First, identify whether the jurisdiction you're looking to operate in has a digital sovereignty requirement. Your legal, compliance, privacy, and data governance teams can advise on whether such a requirement applies and, if so, what it entails. Next, work with your IT and data governance teams to ensure there's a clear understanding of where and how customer data is stored, which workflows impact customer data access, and whether any revisions may be needed to comply with applicable local rules. You'll also need to engage with critical partners such as cloud service providers to determine whether there are capabilities available that can support your compliance requirements.

Take digital sovereignty considerations into account before establishing operations in a new territory or expanding services to a new customer base. Mergers and acquisitions, new business relationships, or even the hiring of a remote employee in a new location can trigger the need for compliance with new local regulations. Ensure you're asking the right questions before making these decisions, including:

The legal and regulatory environment is a dynamic and often challenging space to manage, given the local nuances that can result in a patchwork of overlapping yet inconsistent requirements. The companies that succeed in the years to come will be those that best position themselves to effectively navigate the myriad local rules and requirements of the jurisdictions in which they operate.

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Considerations for Managing Digital Sovereignty: The Executive ... - Dark Reading

YES BANK has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Accelerated Computing Enterprise Pvt. Ltd. (trading as "Cloud Ace India"), a leading provider of cloud solutions.

The agreement signifies a pivotal step in YES BANK's commitment at facilitating tech innovation and global digital transformation. It also emphasizes the Bank's endeavour of using advanced cloud tech and financial expertise to assist businesses, startups, and entrepreneurs. The goal is to improve customer convenience and security through cloud tech and provide tailored support to startups via YES Connect. YES Connect is a groundbreaking platform that serves as a one-stop solution for both existing and potential YES Bank customers. It empowers users to access basic banking services, and also discover a wide array of solutions offered by the Bank and its esteemed partners. A fundamental element of this partnership revolves around the dedication to promote innovation through the delivery of state-of-the-art cloud solutions and financial services.

Speaking about the collaboration, Sanjiv Roy, Country Head - Fee Based Products & Service Experience, YES BANK said, "Through relentless efforts and collaborations with burgeoning fintech players, YES BANK has been taking ahead its mantle of being the banker of choice for the startup community. Through this tie up with Cloud Ace India, we intend to offer cloud computing solutions to our customers, along with our suite of cutting edge banking solutions. This partnership aligns with the vision statement of our YES HeadStartup programme. YES HeadStartup is a programme curated for the flourishing startup ecosystem of the country. YES BANK aims to provide best-in class solutions for business and personal banking needs of the startups, founders and their employees."

The partnership between YES BANK and Cloud Ace India is anticipated to bring about numerous substantial advantages for the corporate and startup community. These benefits include access to state-of-the-art technology, improved financial service efficiency, expedited digital transformation support for startups, and enhanced data security and cost savings. YES BANK and Cloud Ace India are committed to strengthening their partnership through teamwork, knowledge exchange, and ongoing innovation. Together, they aim to create a thriving business environment for all sizes of enterprises.

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YES BANK and Cloud Ace India team up for digital transformation - ETCIO

Amazon (AMZN 0.38%) is a top player in the two high-growth markets of e-commerce and cloud computing, and they've helped the company generate billions of dollars in annual earnings. They've also attracted investors, pushing Amazon's market value beyond $1 trillion. Considering the company's dominance in the e-commerce and cloud areas, you can expect them to be central to the next chapters of the Amazon story.

And now, Amazon is using a tool that could boost its performance in both businesses: artificial intelligence (AI). The company has applied AI across businesses, to make operations easier and cost efficient -- and is offering the advantages of AI to its customers, too. Could this exciting technology become Amazon's next growth driver? Seven words from CEO officer Andy Jassy answer the question.

Image source: Getty Images.

First, a little background on Amazon and its relationship with AI. The company isn't new to the technology, and if you're an Amazon customer, you might have even benefited from it when you've shopped on the platform. Through AI, Amazon is able to offer you ideas of what to buy tailored to your tastes, for example. The company also uses AI to power its virtual assistant, Alexa. And the technology helps Amazon more efficiently manage inventory and transport packages.

Now, let's get to the seven words pronounced by Jassy in last week's earnings call. Jassy spoke specifically about generative AI, which involves training models so they actually can go on to create new content. The generative AI opportunity for Amazon Web Services (AWS) will equal "tens of billions of dollars of revenue," Jassy predicted.

AWS is Amazon's cloud computing business -- and the unit that generally has driven profit at the company, making up about 60% of operating income in recent years. The business also represents a huge chunk of sales, last year generating more than $80 billion. Amazon reported $514 billion in total sales.

Jassy said AWS is investing in AI at three levels with the idea of serving all of its clients' AI needs. First, the company is working on the Trainium and Inferentia chips, which power the training and inference abilities of large language models.

Second, AWS offers companies the opportunity to use existing large language models and customize them for their own purposes -- without having to manage infrastructure. This is through the Amazon Bedrock service.

Finally, AWS also is involved in the applications that run large language models through its creation of CodeWhisperer. The AI coding companion offers code recommendations based on a company's existing code -- so using it is like taking recommendations from a senior engineer who knows the company's code base very well.

For the full year, Amazon's capital investments are set to total about $50 billion, down from $59 billion last year. But, within that total, the company is increasing its investment in AI and general AWS infrastructure.

So, now, a reasonable question is: When will this investment start paying off for Amazon and for investors? The company has offered us a few clues. The billions of dollars in revenue Jassy refers to should roll in over "the next several years."

Amazon also says its leadership in cloud should help it dominate in AI -- because companies want to bring models to their data, and since this data is stored with AWS, it's easy to use the AI services that are so readily available.

It's also important to remember AWS margins are much higher than Amazon's e-commerce margins, so the company could greatly profit from developing AI services within its cloud business. In the most recent quarter, AWS operating margin as a percentage of AWS net sales was more than 30%. That's compared to an operating margin of 4.9% for the North American e-commerce business.

So, you can deduce this from Jassy's comment: AI could indeed become Amazon's next growth driver. Of course, since AI still is in its early days, results may not happen overnight -- but there could be a lot to gain down the road. Amazon's investments and progress so far mean it could become an AI winner over time, and that's great news for investors in this trillion-dollar stock.

John Mackey, former CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. Adria Cimino has positions in Amazon. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Amazon. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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Will Artificial Intelligence Be Amazon's Next Growth Driver? These 7 ... - The Motley Fool

In a market environment marked by uncertainty and debates whether S&P 500 is in correction or bear territory, investors are eyeing attractive opportunities in growth stocks trading at discounts compared to their historical valuations.

Cloudflare (NET) and Amazon (AMZN) are two such stocks that present compelling investment cases.

Cloudflare stands out with its impressive cloud services, offering enhanced speed and security for corporate applications and infrastructure.

The companys scale and engineering expertise have led to the creation of one of the fastest cloud networks globally, powering around 20% of the internet.

Cloudflares unique position equips it with deep insights into performance and cybersecurity issues across the web, further improving its ability to route traffic efficiently and prevent cyber threats.

Despite economic challenges, the company displayed robust financial performance, with a 15% increase in customer count and a 32% rise in revenue to $308 million in the second quarter.

This momentum is expected to continue, as Cloudflare integrates with both public and private IT environments, offering a unified view.

The company saw a 15% increase in its customer count, which reached 174,129, and these customers were spending an average of 15% more. As a result of these positive trends, Cloudflares revenue surged by 32%, reaching $308 million for the quarter.

Notably, the company reported a non-GAAP net income of $34 million, a significant improvement from the previous year when it was at breakeven. These strong results give investors confidence that Cloudflares momentum is likely to persist, reflecting its ability to navigate economic headwinds and continue to grow.

Amazon, known as the e-commerce leader in North America and Western Europe, continues to expand its market share.

The Amazon brands synonymous association with digital retail, combined with its extensive logistics network, has been driving its upward trajectory.

The company excels in engaging consumers and leveraging shopper data, leading to remarkable growth in its advertising business.

Amazon has become a dominant player, with 75% of US retail ad spend under its purview, positioning it as the third-largest adtech company globally.

Additionally, Amazon is a key player in cloud computing through Amazon Web Services (AWS), which holds substantial market share. The company recently reported robust Q3 results, surpassing expectations in revenue and net income.

With a presence in growing markets such as online retail, cloud computing, and advertising technology, Amazon is poised for low-double-digit revenue growth.

Considering its current valuation of 2.5 times sales, which compares favorably to its three-year average of 3.1 times sales, Amazon appears to be a strong growth stock investment opportunity.

Both Cloudflare and Amazon offer compelling investment cases, presenting investors with the potential for substantial returns while trading at discounts relative to their historical valuations.

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Disclaimer: The content on this site should not be considered investment advice. Investing is speculative. When investing, your capital is at risk.

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