Summary Bullets:

• Synthetic DNA is seen as a solution to the challenge of how to store rising volumes of digital data generated by smartphones, tablets, and Internet-connected sensors.
• Innovations by U.S.-based startup Catalog promise to speed up and reduce the cost of encoding digital data for DNA storage, potentially benefitting commercial adoption.

U.S.-based startup Catalog recently revealed that it had successfully stored all 16 gigabytes of Wikipedia’s English-language text on tiny DNA strands within a laboratory vial, in the latest demonstration of the power and potential of synthetic DNA as a medium for storing digital data. The accomplishment marks a new record for the amount of digital information to be stored on DNA. Catalog used prefabricated synthetic DNA strands to store the Wikipedia data, along with a DNA writing machine, which currently writes data at a rate of 4 megabits per second, but which Catalog wants to make at least a thousand times faster. Continue reading “Catalog Pushes Synthetic DNA Data Storage to New Heights, Promising to Aid Commercial Adoption” →

Summary Bullets:

• NVIDIA’s new edge computing solution uses built-in AI capabilities to analyze and process data generated by IoT sensors close to the points of data collection.

• Leveraging a range of infrastructure partners and integrating with the leading public cloud providers should help to establish NVIDIA as a leading player in the growing edge computing subsector.

In recent weeks it feels as though every major technology company has become intent on capturing what they see as the emerging opportunities associated with edge computing, a burgeoning technology subsector that is being driven partly by rising enterprise innovation with the Internet of Things (IoT). Companies with notably strong strategies towards edge computing include telecoms network operators like Deutsche Telekom and AT&T, public cloud service providers such as Amazon Web Services and Microsoft, and IT infrastructure vendors like Dell EMC and Hewlett Packard Enterprise. Continue reading “NVIDIA Is Leveraging Its AI Strengths and a Broad Partnership Approach to Target Emerging Edge Computing Opportunities” →

Summary Bullets:

• Amazon plans to apply its cloud computing business model to the provision of satellite communications infrastructure, while separately unveiling plans for a new satellite broadband Internet offering.

• Potential hurdles to Amazon’s new satellite business include the need to secure regulatory approval and intensifying competition from rival ventures such as Elon Musk’s SpaceX initiative.

Having established itself as a global e-commerce and cloud computing giant, Amazon is now looking to extend its technological prowess into space. A couple of projects, one of which is already underway, will see Amazon harness the power of satellite communications to unlock new commercial opportunities. Continue reading “Amazon’s Cloud and E-Commerce Businesses Could Both Benefit from New Moves to Harness Satellite Communications” →

Summary Bullets:

• A new blockchain-based Data Monetization Platform from HPE and Continental promises to provide car manufacturers and drivers with a more secure and transparent way of sharing vehicle-generated data.

• Potential users should explore the operational, cost, and integration aspects of the new platform, while also investigating opportunities to productize the platform in ways that could benefit all platform participants.

HPE and German automotive manufacturing firm, Continental AG, recently announced a new Data Monetization Platform (DMP), which is based on blockchain technology, and which is designed to help car manufacturers and other partners share and trade data with one other. Data sharing and trading will be used to improve digital services for customers, or to monetize vehicle data (e.g., by helping manufacturers develop and differentiate their brands). By leveraging blockchain, the new DMP aims to address concerns about data sovereignty, security, and transparency, which currently act as barriers to data sharing among competitive automotive manufacturers. The new platform, which is expected to be available later in 2019, was jointly designed by HPE Pointnext and Continental’s Interior division. Continue reading “HPE and Continental Target Vehicle Data Sharing with New Blockchain Offering” →

Summary Bullets:

• Initiatives by mobile network operators illustrate the importance attributed to edge computing as an essential component for unlocking the benefits of 5G mobile networks.
• However, plenty of challenges lie ahead for 5G and edge computing, including security concerns and the need to develop viable business models and use cases based on the new technologies.

Immersive virtual reality (VR), self-driving cars, and remote-controlled robots are just some of the things telecommunications service providers expect future 5G mobile networks to make possible. However, most large service providers are in agreement that higher-bandwidth 5G networks will, by themselves, be insufficient to support these emerging applications. Recent initiatives by large service providers, including Verizon, AT&T, and Deutsche Telekom, illustrate the importance being attributed to edge computing as an essential component for unlocking the benefits of 5G. Continue reading “Network Operators Experiment with Edge Computing – Seen as Essential to 5G’s Success” →

Summary Bullets:

• Data center portfolios will become more distributed and decentralized in 2019, thanks to the growing use of hybrid and multi-cloud environments and edge computing deployments.
• 2019 will see an emphasis on enhancing the performance, security, and scalability of compute, storage, and networking resources in order to support new workloads, including AI.

GlobalData’s top predictions for data center technologies in 2019 include the expectation of increased competition in the provision of hybrid cloud, multi-cloud, and Kubernetes solutions; this will be partly driven by a growing interest in on-premises workloads from leading public cloud providers. We also anticipate increased innovation around edge computing, as well as the evolution and enhancement of data center platforms and architectures with technologies that improve their ability to support AI and other advanced workloads: Continue reading “GlobalData’s Top Predictions for Data Center Technologies in 2019” →

Summary Bullets:

• In 2019, Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft, and other leading cloud providers will accelerate their efforts to target emerging hybrid cloud opportunities among enterprise customers.

• AWS, Microsoft, and the other hyperscale clouds will face growing competition from China’s Alibaba, which in August announced the availability of its Aspara Stack on-premises offering outside China.

Hybrid cloud environments have rapidly evolved to support a range of IT and application requirements, and in 2019 a growing number of organizations will make use of them. Hybrid clouds combine dedicated private cloud infrastructure (often maintained on-premises within an organization’s own data center) with public cloud services provided by companies like AWS, Microsoft, and Google. Recognizing this, AWS, Microsoft, and other leading cloud providers will accelerate their efforts in 2019 to target emerging hybrid cloud opportunities among enterprise customers.

Although AWS is the largest provider of public cloud services globally, this does not guarantee its success in the hybrid cloud space. AWS already has several options for organizations that require a hybrid cloud solution and, in 2019 it plans to launch a new managed on-premises version of its cloud platform called AWS Outposts. Once available, Outposts will allow customers to deploy configurable compute and storage racks based on AWS hardware and software in their own data centers, and integrate their on-premises AWS environment with the AWS public cloud. However, information on features, services, pricing, and availability has yet to be provided. Continue reading “Hyperscale Cloud Firms Will Fiercely Target On-Premises Workloads in 2019” →