As 2017 comes to a rapid close, the last 12 months have been a time of rapid maturity for the cloud. Instead of focusing on how best to deliver software and other services to businesses, the cloud grew into a multi-faceted technology that is changing the way business is done, paving the way for digital transformation.
At Enterprise Cloud News, we have tried to chronicle how the cloud has changed over the past year, while trying to explain why these shifts in computing -- large and small -- are happening now and what readers can expect in the future.
Technology has a funny way of shifting throughout the course of a year, with something that seems vitally important in January rendered obsolete by December as the next shinny object captures the imagination.
Cloud is no different.
However, there are several episodes that happen during a 12-month period that stand out and show how far the industry has come and where it's likely to go. These events not only affect the cloud, but those technologies that draw on the cloud: artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things, analytics, containers, virtualization and security.
With that as the backdrop, ECN took a look back at the year that was 2017 to list the ten cloud computing stories that not only shaped our understanding of the technology, but also point to how the cloud is poised to change in 2018.
As no list is ever definitive, let us know in the comments section if there's a story we missed, or a trend that's coming in 2018 that we should keep an eye on.
Re: AI and more Yes. At the end, cloud services have worked very well for them. It would bde crazy to try to store the huge amounts of data on premises. Can you imagine? And how that would slow everything down?
Re: AI and more Even those businesses that were hesitant in moving to the cloud, primarily financial services and healthcare, have found that keeping data on premises doesn't make it any safer. And these businesses can't keep up with the security changes and growth of data if they rely just on themselves.
Re: AI and more Maryam, the same things bother me. Do you remember when some people used to only talk about the downside of getting your business data into the cloud and why you should be concern about it? I wonder what they think today.
Re: AI and more Joe I absolutely agree there are threats with AI as there is with any technology I think we will learn to manage them and use AI for the benefits it can realize. It bothers me when technology enhancements are part of the fear mongering you discuss--remember not too long ago when everyone was afraid Alexa was listening to their entire life and sharing it?
Re: AI and more @maryam: In some respects, I think the AI fearmongering is too much -- in others, not enough. (I've opined on this subject before: link)
Ultimately, is does present a very strong existential threat -- especially when combined with social and political efforts to move certain AI efforts, like autonomous vehicles, forward. (See my doomsaying on this topic for a Light Reading/ECN sister site here: link) In fact, a developer created a web game to demonstrate this very idea: Universal Paperclips.
AI and more I personally don't think that AI will be the end of our existence, after all, we have heard that before. Like any new technology, there is always fear that will dissipate when the reality is made available. I am looking forward to these enhancements maturing I can only imagine where we will be in 5 years!
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10 Cloud Stories That Mattered in 2017
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