6 Cloud-related Trends to Watch in 2024

The first commercial cloud to launch was Amazon’s Elastic Computer Cloud (EC2) back in 2006. Google Cloud launched shortly after in 2008 followed by Microsoft’s Azure cloud in 2010. Since then, all three platforms have evolved significantly, and cloud computing is more relevant than ever.

The research and consulting firm Acumen put the size of the cloud computing market at nearly $500B back in 2022. The organization predicts the industry will grow close to $2.5T over the next 8 years at an 18% CAGR. Additionally, nine in ten large enterprises have adopted some sort of multi-cloud infrastructure, and 60% of all corporate data across the world is stored in a cloud environment today.

What these data points allude to is a growing dependence on cloud computing infrastructure to power how we live, work, and operate. Organizations in every industry rely on the cloud to store data, host applications, train AI/ML models, manage IoT devices, and much more. Plus, today’s leading cloud platforms continue to invest in their services, making it easier for companies to transition away from on-premises IT. These investments will pay off for those who take full advantage sooner rather than later.

In this post, we highlight six cloud trends we’ll likely see in 2024. Understanding these cloud trends will be invaluable for those currently thinking through both their short and long-term IT strategies.

AI-as-a-Service Proliferation

AI-as-a-Service (AaaS) went mainstream in 2023. OpenAI’s release of ChatGPT in November 2022 sparked a new wave of innovation that is disrupting and transforming industries forever.  Organizations can now leverage sophisticated AI built and trained on huge datasets by some of the most talented AI/ML engineers in the world. Leaders no longer have to invest their own resources to get use case-specific AI off the ground.

We’re now seeing AaaS products hit the market at an incredible rate. A big reason for this rapid innovation is that the cloud makes AaaS more accessible. With services like Amazon Bedrock, teams can build and scale powerful Generative AI applications based on high-quality foundational models. In 2024, AaaS will continue to proliferate because the cloud puts AI within reach for millions of builders and users as AI and machine learning continue to advance in the future.

High Tech Advancement

Several other high-tech sectors will push forward in 2024 thanks to the cloud. We’ll see more edge computing with IoT applications, as remote devices and the algorithms they depend on become more efficient. Organizations will then be able to free up cloud resources for other tasks outside of data processing for IoT devices that consume significant compute and memory.

The cloud will also help push the blockchain industry forward. The attractiveness of blockchains lies primarily in their decentralized and immutable nature. On the cloud, blockchains can achieve elasticity and scalability, allowing developers to grow enormous user bases and ledgers without adding too much IT complexity.

Additionally, quantum computing will be even more accessible in 2024 thanks to the cloud. Quantum computing requires specialized hardware and software that is difficult for smaller teams to manage on their own. Services like Amazon Braket provide on-demand quantum computing resources through a fully managed offering. In the same way that AWS abstracts away the pain of training AI/ML models, the platform is doing the same for quantum.

Continued Focus on Security and Privacy

Cybersecurity will be a major topic next year again, as companies struggle to keep their data and IP safe from malicious groups. In the same way that modern technology empowers good actors, it also gives bad actors more tools and wider planes of attack. Data security and privacy will be center stage in 2024, and more companies are turning to cloud platforms to help.

Furthermore, we’re still in the early stages of Generative AI, and many organizations haven’t put proper safeguards in place to ensure sensitive information is protected. Leaders have to train their employees on how to use Generative AI appropriately, as well as only use solutions that were built with security and privacy in mind. Fortunately, AWS is answering the call with its announcement of Amazon Q. This service will be a game-changer for organizations everywhere.

Further Hybrid and Multi-cloud Adoption

In 2024, we’ll see more hybrid and multi-cloud setups as well. These approaches to IT infrastructure allow organizations to retain control over key areas, like security, and customize architecture as needed for their unique use cases.

Hybrid and multi-cloud setups can be complex to maintain and optimize, so they aren’t the right fit for every business. However, they can address nuanced pain points and make certain types of enterprises more comfortable about adopting cloud infrastructure, like those with highly sensitive data.

Simplified Cloud Operations

Cloud service providers like AWS are trying to make managing cloud environments as easy as possible. Many are leaning into the low-code / no-code movement and building tools so that non-technical audiences can do technical work. We’ll see more drag-and-drop interfaces and applications that enable coding through natural language prompting.

On top of that, AI copilots, like Amazon CodeWhisperer, will make software engineers even more productive at work. These solutions can catch errors, make recommendations, and provide additional context to engineers about how their code will interact with the existing codebase. In 2024 cloud trends to look for, expect AI copilots to get even better.

More Serverless Computing

Finally, serverless computing will draw more attention in 2024, as organizations look to strike the balance between performance and cost. Pay-as-you-go computing is a compelling offer that many teams have yet to fully utilize.

With more GenAI experimentation and cloud adoption will come more people looking to test, build, and deploy applications that don’t require around-the-clock servers. Going serverless on a platform like AWS is easier than ever, and it’s still not too late to go down this path.

Elevate Your Organization in 2024 with ClearScale

As an AWS Premier Tier Services Partner, we couldn’t be more excited about what 2024 has in store. We can help you think through these cloud trends and their implications for your business. Whether you need migration support, GenAI development, serverless refactoring, or some other cloud support, we have you covered.

Get in touch today to speak with a cloud expert and discuss how we can help:

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