In the three years since reporting financial metrics Google’s cloud business has announced they have turned a profit. Their offerings under this umbrella include Google Cloud Platform and Google Workspace. These two products now account for 10 percent of parent company Alphabet’s total revenue. Buried in an SEC filing is news that Google will extend the estimated useful life of its servers and networking equipment to 6 years. While this is phrased as financial engineering, it also reflects a change in how Google, and other hyperscalers, will purchase and buy servers. What are the ramifications of this change? Does this mean the cloud business will remain a priority for Google going forward?
1:09 – CrowdStrike’s CloudStream aims to Simplify XDR Adoption
CrowdStrike has announced CrowdStream, powered by Cribl. This offering is meant to simplify how customers get data from many different sources into the CrowdStrike ecosystem to do detection and response. How important unique data aggregated into a single platform?
Read More: CrowdStrike Introduces CrowdStream to Accelerate and Simplify XDR Adoption
2:49 – Ubuntu 23.04 Lunar Lobster released by Canonical
Canonical has released Ubuntu 23.04, codenamed “Lunar Lobster”, which includes a new installer that enables enterprise deployment and customization at scale, as well as native user authentication with Azure Active Directory for Ubuntu Desktops. Ubuntu 23.04 also includes improved workflows for cross-platform development, more controls for apps and snaps, and enhancements to the Ubuntu gaming experience, among other features. Is this new release more about desktop or is there much for the server and cloud to get excited about?
Read More: Canonical releases Ubuntu 23.04 Lunar Lobster
7:19 – DHS to create a task force to determine how AI can be used to protect the country
The US Department of Homeland Security has announced the creation of a new task force to determine how the federal government can leverage artificial intelligence to protect the country. With the announcement, two examples were given on how AI could be used for this purpose. One is to screen cargo for goods made by forced labor and the other is to better find and identify fentanyl in shipments into the US. In a related story, last week, U.S. Central Command announced it hired former Google AI Cloud Director Ander Moore to be its first advisor on subjects such as AI, robotics, and cloud computing. Tim, was it just a matter of time that government agencies took an official stance on AI?
Read More: DHS task force will examine how to use A.I. to protect homeland security
9:52 – BMC Expands Mainframe Business with Model9
BMC has acquired Israeli mainframe VTL and data export startup Model9 and plans to combine their Cloud Data Management for Mainframe solutions with its own mainframe and hybrid cloud software and services. This is BMC’s sixth acquisition in three years, with the previous ones being RSM Partners, Compuware, Alderstone, ComAround and StreamWeaver. What does this tell us about the mainframe software and solutions space?
Read More: BMC buys virtual tape library biz Model9
13:58 – Cisco releases cloud-based XDR offering
At RSA 2023, Cisco announced its new, cloud-first, Extended Detection and Response (XDR) offering. The goal with this offering is to simplify security operations by prioritizing and automatically remediating security incidents. The solution is now in Beta, hitting General Availability in July of this year. Along with leveraging native telemetry within Cisco’s own ecosystem, Cisco XDR can integrate third party products in the spaces of Endpoint Detection and Response, Email Threat Defense, Next-Generation Firewall, and Security Information and Event Managment. Tim, what does it mean for Cisco to enter the XDR space and how achievable is automated incident response when it comes to security events?
Read More: Cisco Unveils New Solution to Rapidly Detect Advanced Cyber Threats and Automate Response
16:39 – Rubrik Working with ZScaler to Stop Data Exfiltration
Rubrik is teaming up with Zscaler to automate sensitive data file detection and classification, aiming to prevent data leaks outside an organization’s IT boundaries. Rubrik brings their Sensitive Data Monitoring & Management technology to discover and classify sensitive data, while Zscaler provides cloud security tools to detect known file exfiltration. What should customers make of this combination?
Read More: Rubrik, Zscaler double down on data protection
19:39 – Google Cloud Turns a Profit and Extends the Life of Servers
In the three years since reporting financial metrics Google’s cloud business has announced they have turned a profit. Their offerings under this umbrella include Google Cloud Platform and Google Workspace. These two products now account for 10 percent of parent company Alphabet’s total revenue. Buried in an SEC filing is news that Google will extend the estimated useful life of its servers and networking equipment to 6 years. While this is phrased as financial engineering, it also reflects a change in how Google, and other hyperscalers, will purchase and buy servers. What are the ramifications of this change? Does this mean the cloud business will remain a priority for Google going forward?
Read More: Google’s cloud business turns profitable for the first time on record
Read More: An update on certain reporting and disclosure topics in our Q1 2023 earnings
29:50 – The Weeks Ahead
Networking Field Day Experience at Aruba Atmosphere 2023 – April 25-26
Mobility Field Day 9 – May 17-19, 2023
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