Generative AI and Cloud: Google, Salesforce, Bessemer, BCG Chime In
Plus non-AI news from OVHcloud and TD Synnex. Yeah, we’re breathing a sigh of relief, too.
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Google Cloud made two generative AI-related announcements on June 7.
The first ties to Vertex AI, the company’s unified AI platform. On Wednesday, Google Cloud made generative AI support generally available on Vertex AI.
“With this update, developers can access our text model powered by PaLM 2, Embeddings API for text, and other foundation models in Model Garden, as well as leverage user-friendly tools in Generative AI Studio for model tuning and deployment,” said June Yang, vice president of cloud AI and industry solutions at Google Cloud.
All this talk about generative AI has the tech industry agog. But what about actual end users, the organizations that may not fully understand generative AI’s implications or dangers?
Boston Consulting Group’s Steven Mills, chief AI ethics officer, put a fine point on the matter in April.
“To people in tech, the cat is out of the bag,” he wrote in an online Q&A. “Regardless of whether you think some of these tools went to market too quickly, the technology is out there, everyone’s going to build it, and there’s no going back at this point. … [W]e urge companies to clearly lay out the generative AI uses you are and aren’t comfortable with. Then convey these guardrails to all of your employees. Finally, set up a process through which people can get their questions answered and that can provide input on how to safely pursue use cases.”
With Boston Consulting Group’s thoughts in mind, we turn to Google Cloud’s other set of generative AI announcements on June 7.
The first speaks clearly to the issue around understanding generative AI. Google Cloud Consulting now offers “learning journeys” for different end users, and it’s doing so free of charge. (Recall that Google Cloud Consulting doesn’t just work with customers — it also teams with managed service providers, system integrators and other channel partners.)
“These high-touch trainings will help C-suite leaders of top global companies reap the full, transformative benefits of generative AI, while maintaining responsible development and deployment,” wrote Carrie Tharp, vice president of industries at Google Cloud, and Lee Moore, vice president of global Google Cloud consulting. “More widely, we will provide a number of on-demand learning paths and credential programs that will be open to Google Cloud customers and partners, as well as to technologists in the developer community.”
Google Cloud also debuted four generative AI consulting packages for activating AI deployments.
“The offerings help customers use AI to discover trends within their company data using AI-enhanced search engines and assistive experiences, summarize information from large volumes of content, automate time-consuming and expensive business processes, and assist in creating new content that’s more personalized,” wrote Tharp and Moore.
The goal is to deliver “hands-on experiences with production-ready AI solutions,” they added.
Finally, Google Cloud Consulting has introduced its first set of sample reference architectures and workflows for various business processes and use cases. The tools aim to improve developer efficiency, accelerate content creation in marketing, and deliver use cases in financial services, retail, automotive, healthcare and media, according to Google Cloud Consulting.
“In this age of AI, companies are inspired to think big, while balancing the need to act responsibly,” Tharp and Moore said. “…[A]ll of our work is driven by a commitment to doing AI safely and responsibly.”
Most partner readers know that Google Cloud and Salesforce have worked together since 2017. Now, the providers are expanding that partnership to include data and AI. (Because everything is data and AI these days, right?)
They intend to give businesses (and their channel partners) more tools in three main areas: more personalized customer experiences; the ability to better understand buyer behavior; and resources for running more effective, less expensive campaigns across marketing, sales, service and commerce.
To achieve these goals, the companies will integrate Salesforce Data Cloud with BigQuery, Vertex AI and Google Analytics.
“AI and data are revolutionizing the way businesses operate and innovate,” said David Schmaier, president and chief product officer at Salesforce. “This partnership paves the way for unprecedented innovation and business value for our customers.”
Thomas Kurian, CEO of Google Cloud, agreed. The augmented partnership “represents a significant leap forward in businesses’ ability to generate more value and insights from their customer data,” he said.
In terms of availability, here’s the timeline:
• Data Cloud and Google Vertex AI integration will go into pilot in mid-2023, slated for general availability late this year.
• Data Cloud and BigQuery will hit pilot mode late this year and are scheduled for general availability in early 2024.
• Marketing Cloud and Google Analytics integration will go live later this year.
Speaking of organizations using generative AI, Salesforce on June 7 unveiled its platform for marketing and commerce experts.
The customer relationship management behemoth is holding its Connections event this week in San Francisco. And with all the excitement around generative AI, Salesforce has joined the fray with Marketing GPT and Commerce GPT. Both work on Salesforce’s Data Cloud.
The former will allow users to automatically generate personalized emails, smarter audience segments, and marketing journeys, Salesforce said.
The latter will enable personalized shopping experiences and customized offers that adapt to customers’ needs.
“Businesses are looking to harness new AI advances and tap into vast troves of data to deliver personalized customer experiences across every interaction,” said Salesforce’s Schmaier. “Marketing GPT and Commerce GPT … will revolutionize how businesses interact with customers and at the same time dramatically improve employee productivity.”
Most of the new capabilities will hit general availability starting this summer and running through next February.
The thing about generative AI is that it requires cloud computing. And luckily for the sector, Bessemer Venture Partners sees AI as defining “the next generation of cloud giants.”
That observation comes as part of the private investor’s 2023 State of the Cloud Report. As such, the company predicts AI also will “multiply software and human capabilities, and expand the private and public cloud markets.”
Here are some additional observations from the report’s multiple authors:
“We estimate that AI-native companies will reach $1 billion ARR 50% faster than their cloud counterparts. The businesses that endure and succeed 10 years from now will be the ones that have already become AI-focused or will in the next few months.”
Something to think about…
Up next, a look at an independent cloud provider’s new startup program.
OVHcloud US, which sells through MSPs, SIs, VARs and consultants, has kicked off its Startup Program for organizations.
It’s a 12-month program with up to $120,000 in free credits and 20 hours of technical consultations. Members in the early-development stage can design a minimum viable product or even build the infrastructure to reach new markets.
The indie cloud provider launched its Startup Program in 2015 and now it’s bringing the offering to the United States.
“OVHcloud’s open ecosystem allows us to help startups build their environment in a cost-efficient way,” said Francois Giraud, startup program lead for the U.S. “Startups can create and develop their environment and applications in OVHcloud at a lower cost with full reversibility.”
In other words, members don’t have to fear vendor lock-in, OVHcloud US says, or inconsistent pricing after graduating from the program. In addition, OVHcloud US lets businesses develop their applications in an open-source approach for multicloud environments.
The startup program is open to organizations across all vertical markets.
TD Synnex, a longtime Amazon Web Services partner, this week took the wraps off its Accelerate program.
The initiative, led by the mega-distributor’s UK and Ireland divisions, gives cloud channel partners access to resources for developing competency on AWS solutions. AWS, as partners know, is big on certifications and education. With that ethos in mind, the TD Synnex has put together a program with three stages: Discover, Develop and Specialize. Partners join the level most applicable to their skill level and business model.
Discover comes with minimal requirements. Develop and Specialize each have requirements attached for business growth, investment and continued engagement. Accelerate features support and resources from both AWS and TD Synnex.
TD Synnex, a longtime Amazon Web Services partner, this week took the wraps off its Accelerate program.
The initiative, led by the mega-distributor’s UK and Ireland divisions, gives cloud channel partners access to resources for developing competency on AWS solutions. AWS, as partners know, is big on certifications and education. With that ethos in mind, the TD Synnex has put together a program with three stages: Discover, Develop and Specialize. Partners join the level most applicable to their skill level and business model.
Discover comes with minimal requirements. Develop and Specialize each have requirements attached for business growth, investment and continued engagement. Accelerate features support and resources from both AWS and TD Synnex.
We know, we know. Generative AI and cloud seem to be about all anyone’s talking about these days. They’re interesting subjects, to be sure — and still, the onslaught can be enough to make you want to find a different topic.
That is not this article, however. If you’re gaga over generative AI and cloud, you’re going to love the first handful of stories covered here.
Want a hint?
We start (and keep going) with generative AI announcements from Google Cloud. In between that and Salesforce, we give you some food for thought on generative AI and cloud courtesy of Boston Consulting Group. After that, look for analysis from Bessemer Venture Partners on how generative AI and cloud will grow as a result of their symbiotic relationship. (And if all this doesn’t give you enough of a generative AI and cloud fix, don’t miss Christine Horton’s piece on what Amazon Web Services is talking up this week at its event in London.
Finally, though, we step away from generative AI and give you some cloud-only tidbits. The first comes from OVHcloud, a hyperscaler competitor, the second from mega-distributor TD Synnex.
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