This decade saw cloud computing becoming one of the most critical tech advancements. While the breakthroughs continue, the future appears pretty clear on one front: cloud computing is here to stay.

Experts estimate businesses will spend $1 trillion this year alone on cloud computing.

Given its popularity, it would be a shame not to observe the current cloud computing trends and how they unfold in the future.

So, let’s have a look.

Edge Computing

Traditional cloud computing frameworks involve data traveling from the device to the data center and back. This causes latency as the device waits for results. Edge computing is the newest trend that eliminates the latency period. It’s a framework that stores and processes data as near to the device as possible. As a result, it removes excessive bandwidth usage and handles data flow effectively.

One example of edge computing use can be seen in a real-time heart monitor designed to detect arrhythmias. With this framework, any anomalous data can be quickly recorded, and the patient is alerted immediately.

Pay-as-You-Go Cloud

The pay-as-you-go model enables businesses to pay only for the resources they want to use. Also known as serverless cloud computing, it’s rising as a recent trend, freeing businesses from maintaining their own servers. Instead, companies can outsource their cloud computing needs to control costs.

Multi- & Hybrid Cloud

They say ‘never put all eggs in one basket.” Staying true to this phrase, businesses, especially large organizations, have adopted a multi-cloud strategy. This strategy revolves around buying cloud services from multiple providers.

Some businesses also mix on-premises and cloud infrastructure, hence the name ‘hybrid cloud.’ Doing this gives businesses control as they balance flexibility with security.

Sustainable Cloud Computing

Sustainability is not new, with businesses reworking their strategy to reduce their carbon footprints. However, sustainable cloud computing is currently being promoted by brands like Amazon, which has set the target of achieving zero emissions by 2040. Companies like Microsoft and Google hope to accomplish this target sooner.

Whether they do it or not remains to be seen, but sustainability is definitely at the forefront in 2024.

Cloud Security

Data breaches, threats, and cyberattacks are nothing new as hackers continue attacking with full force. To counter these threats, businesses are leveraging cloud computing services, including encryption, authentication, and disaster recovery.

Moreover, since more than 98% of businesses experienced at least one data breach in the past 18 months, budget allocation on cloud security is forecasted to be higher. This makes cloud security a top trend in 2024.

Real-Time Cloud Infrastructure

Real-time data consumption will be the next big thing for businesses and consumers. On the one hand, businesses will hunt for real-time data insights instead of relying on stale, outdated information to form decisions.

On the other hand, consumers will leverage streamed data from platforms like Netflix, Spotify, Zoom, and Teams for entertainment, videos, and more. This will put cloud computing at the center stage as it makes data storage easy and instantly accessible.

AI-as-a-Service

Generative AI like ChatGPT consumes high amounts of computing power. Not every business can afford the resources to train AI models themselves. It’s one of the reasons AI-as-a-service has surfaced. This service-based model runs on cloud platforms, helping businesses utilize the transformative power of artificial intelligence. Suffice it to say that the trend will extend beyond 2024 as more and more businesses progress toward digital transformation.

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