Google’s AI Move Gives Devs Another Reason to Upskill on GCP

C. Dunlap Research Director

Summary Bullets:

• Google pads its AI arsenal via ML and app platforms.

• Generative AI/ML is now at the heart of the cloud wars.

Google is targeting a broad array of developers with its new roll out of AI-enabled APIs, tools, and capabilities, including a new generative AI model being made available to this community for the first time. Foundational to these services are Google’s growing AI portfolio including:

• PaLM API, which accesses Google’s large language learning model;
• Vertex AI, a machine learning platform;
• Generative AI App Builder, a new app development platform for creating bots, chat apps, digital assistants, and custom search engines;
• Workspace, a simplified app development/management toolset (including Cloud Code); and
• MakerSuite, a simple browser-based tool for building apps with Google’s Foundation Model.

The New Age of Developers—Written by ChatGPT

C. Dunlap
Research Director

Summary Bullets:

• ChatGPT makes its case for how it helps developers write better apps

• Despite its staggering AI chatbot innovation of its most recent version, ChatGPT lacks the human connection—and perspective

I took my boss’s advice and instructed ChatGPT to write a blog for me on how the prototype AI chatbot will significantly improve developers’ careers. It provided an adequate description of how the technology enhances the app development process based primarily on customer service use cases. I also learned a little more about natural language understanding (NLU).

2023 Predictions in DevOps Include Integrated Serverless Deployment Options

C. Dunlap
Research Director

Summary Bullets:

• Increased AI/automation advancements and developer accessibility will escalate in the new year

• The industry will experience a newfound prioritization of DevOps based on technologies which remove obstructions hindering modern app deployments.

• Developers will have access to integrated serverless app deployment options via key platform services

GlobalData’s 2023 cloud predictions revolve around DevOps breakthroughs, providing unprecedented developer access to advanced platforms. The new year will present a technology era which enables high-speed application development and delivery, based on breakthrough innovations which eliminate obstructions hindering deployment of modern apps. GlobalData’s cloud predictions include:

AWS re:Invent 2022 – AWS Attaches Serverless Option to Popular Services

C. Dunlap Research Director

Summary Bullets:

• Lambda advancements further Amazon Web Services’ (AWS) DevOps agenda.

• AWS couples serverless computing with popular data management and app development tools.

During AWS re:Invent 2022, company executives emphasized how customers can leverage its high-productivity DevOps platforms and data management tools to move into the next phase of digitization and app modernization. This challenging phase of moving mission-critical applications into production is one that demands infrastructure configuration abstraction, greater participation of non-coders and data scientists, and data management, which includes automation and security.

KubeCon 2022: Key Trends Include WebAssembly, FinOps, and Security

C. Dunlap Research Director

Summary Bullets:

• WebAssembly is the industry’s latest buzzword, but with some substance for its ability to disrupt coding in modern web browsers.

• Not surprisingly, important themes including security, observability, and FinOps continued to dominate the conference and digitization initiatives in general.

The rising use of Kubernetes as enterprises strive for app modernization continues to drive advancements in emerging DevOps technologies. During the 2022 Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF) conference, KubeCon, key technology themes included observability, application security, and FinOps (not surprisingly). Newer technologies such as WebAssembly caused a stir among show attendees.

Following is a recap of these themes. For a deeper dive into the technologies and participants, please see: “KubeCon 2022: Rise of Kubernetes Drives New Cost Management, Monitoring, and Security Methods,” November 4, 2022.

Intelligent Automation Updates Address FinOps, Consolidated Data Platforms

C. Dunlap Research Director

Summary Bullets:

• Resource management/FinOps to enhance automation solutions

• Emerging data platforms consolidate app platforms to improve digitization opportunity, CX, and worker efficiency

Intelligent automation innovations continue to demonstrate to enterprises the benefits of the cloud’s value-chain. This is most recently being addressed via improved insights and management of cloud resources, increased worker efficiency by shifting to digital documentation and driving workflow automation and enhancing the CX through more meaningful and real-time data access.

Now Robotics is Getting Interesting via Siri-like NLP Capabilities

C. Dunlap
Research Director

Summary Bullets:

• Natural language processing (NLP) market heats up under robotic process automation (RPA) integrations

• UiPath steps up its NLP play via acquisition

RPA vendors are adopting NLP technology at a rapid pace in response to enterprises’ stepped-up transformation efforts.

This week RPA vendor UiPath acquired AI pureplay Re:infer to help bolster UiPath’s native NLP capabilities. The start-up’s strengths are in transforming unstructured information from documents and communications into structured data, to be analyzed and integrated into broader automated workflows.

DevSecOps is Now Ops’ Greatest Digitization Challenge

C. Dunlap

Summary Bullets:

• DevSecOps’ barriers to adoption include culture clashes between teams and technical challenges.
• Emerging tools are beginning to appear among traditional platform providers and startups.

The move to microservices-based apps has unleashed a flood of new DevOps and GitOps platforms in recent months aimed at helping enterprise operations and developer teams create continuous integration and continuous development pipelines for streamlining the deployment of advanced apps within complex processes. Efforts to spin off new app architectures, including Kubernetes clusters, require configurations between networking, security, and provisioning of computing. This need involves the developer as part of a ‘shift left and GitOps’ movement taking place over the past 18 months, spurred by the need to automate continuous delivery and operations of apps and infrastructure. However, progress toward this effort has been slow.

MuleSoft Conference Touted Integration but Downplayed API Security

C. Dunlap

Summary Bullets:

• MuleSoft Connect delivered on Dreamforce promises made in late-2021.
• MuleSoft executives missed the opportunity to provide thought leadership on API security and DevSecOps.

Salesforce’s notable integration business, MuleSoft, used its annual conference this week to deliver on the general availability of its Dreamforce announcements made in late-2021. While this week’s recap around intelligent automation, robotic process automation (RPA), pre-built connectors/accelerators, low-code, and collaboration was short on new technical updates, the company achieved its purpose of highlighting the importance of MuleSoft’s highly coveted integration and application programming interface (API) management technology for helping global companies, big and small, accomplish digitization.

Cisco DevOps Tools Tackle Ops’ Pain Points

C. Dunlap

Summary Bullets:

• New Cisco DevOps tools build on initial API management innovations.
• Installing a qualified head of ET&I indicates a serious DevOps strategy.

Cisco used last week’s KubeCon as the stage to build out its DevOps portfolio, stemming from its Emerging Technology and Incubation (ET&I) business unit.  The three product announcements address customers’ ongoing digitization challenges around service mesh, security, and modern monitoring.