Cloud Wars Live with Bob Evans

Bob Evans

Cloud Wars analyzes the major cloud vendors from the perspective of business customers. In Cloud Wars Live, Bob Evans talks with both sides about these profoundly transformative technologies, and with monthly All-Star guests from across the business community about the trends impacting how the world lives, works, plays, and dreams. Visit https://cloudwars.com for more.

  1. 52 MIN AGO

    SAP CEO Klein Saves Europe from 'Sovereign' Disaster

    In today's Cloud Wars Minute, I examine how Christian Klein’s stance could shift the entire European tech economy away from imitation toward AI-driven transformation Highlights 00:20 — A few months ago a lot of countries within Europe were saying, “What we need to do is build hyperscalers to match the ones based in the U.S.” Now, SAP CEO Christian Klein stood up and said, “That’s nuts. Let’s not do that. There’s a very different way to go on this.” And over the past few weeks, we've seen some significant investments coming from SAP. 01:12 — The investments are great, and all those ideals about wanting to have data privacy, data security, all valid in the AI Revolution. What really stood out here, more than these investments, was: think about what might have happened had the European Union spent trillions of dollars to keep up with the hyperscalers. 02:10 — SAP has a whole new plan for the sovereign cloud. Its Executive Board Member Thomas Saueressig has been involved in this. He said, “We want to have a sovereign cloud that gives the greatest safeguards and compliance to customers, and also gives them a great deal of choice. We want to keep this open for lots of partners to work with us.” But that’s the direction it's taking.   03:13 — So, we've got SAP pledging to invest, over the next few years, $22 billion in its sovereign cloud. Just the other day, I noted something about how Oracle, Microsoft, and OpenAI—now it’s about a trillion dollars that they’re pumping into these AI data centers. That’s really not the place for the European economy to go. And I give Christian Klein credit:. 04:14 —SAP partner AWS has now pledged about $8.5 billion for the AWS European Sovereign Cloud. I also thought it was interesting that SAP Chief Technology Officer Philipp Herzig came said, “We’ve got cloud sovereignty, we’ve got data sovereignty—now we need to be sure that SAP is a leader in AI sovereignty.” 05:00 — So, fascinating time here on the technology front. I think SAP is going to continue to do very well with its sovereign cloud efforts. But I think even more than that, its CEO, Christian Klein, really stood out. He did a great service by getting them off of this idea of imitating what’s already been done. Visit Cloud Wars for more.

    6 min

  2. 1 DAY AGO

    Microsoft Teams Gets Smarter with New AI-Powered Meeting Assistant

    In today's Cloud Wars Minute, I explore Microsoft’s new Facilitator Agent in Teams and how it’s quietly revolutionizing meeting collaboration through agentic AI. Highlights 00:07 — Microsoft has added a Facilitator Agent to Teams. This new agent can create agendas, take notes, help keep discussions on track, create follow-ups, and even pressure-test discussion points. There's a difference between this agent and other note-taking and summarization tools already available. The Facilitator Agent participates in the discussion, as a silent partner. 00:41 — It can alert users when time is running out and ensure that participants don't stray too far from the core discussion points. It can even answer open-ended questions during a chat. Now, as someone who has a lot of online meetings, I can really see the benefits here — not only from a time management and efficiency perspective, but also from a collaborative standpoint.   01:22 — It's important to highlight innovations like these that, at first glance, don't seem particularly new or exciting — especially when we think we already have the capabilities that they are presenting at our fingertips. Instead, this demonstrates the incremental progress happening in the agentic AI space. It's encouraging to see refinement in core use cases. Visit Cloud Wars for more.

    2 min

  3. 2 DAYS AGO

    Microsoft, Oracle + OpenAI: $1 Trillion into AI Data Centers

    In today's Cloud Wars Minute, I explore how Microsoft and Oracle are battling for AI data center supremacy. Highlights 00:15 — I want to talk about a couple of high-disruption companies — actually, three: Microsoft, Oracle, and OpenAI. And I think right now, it's safe to say that those three companies, together with SoftBank, are pursuing investments upwards of a trillion dollars in what they're calling AI data centers. I think this is a great thing for them to do. 01:19 — Microsoft has become more vocal about its role and leadership in these areas. Oracle, OpenAI, and SoftBank are jointly building what is called Stargate, sort of the infrastructure brand for OpenAI. Now, Microsoft has introduced its own brand for its AI data centers, Fairwater. It's in the final stages of building what it is calling the world’s most powerful AI data center. 02:18 — And I have no doubt that fairly soon, we're going to hear from Google Cloud about some of its plans. I am less sanguine, in some ways, about what Amazon and AWS might do. I know that runs contrary to what a lot of people like to say — that AWS is still the king of the cloud. I haven’t — you know, I just haven’t taken that seriously in the last two or three years. 03:14 — So, Microsoft is doing very well with AI. Now, OpenAI, led by Sam Altman — they’re still doing some work with Microsoft on the cloud and AI. But it's putting — starting in a year or two — a $300 billion investment with Oracle to build a chain of just absolutely staggeringly big, powerful data centers under the Stargate name. 04:09 — It’ll work with Oracle very closely on that. They’re also — in concert in some places and separately in others — pursuing some new data center deals with SoftBank. So OpenAI is working with Microsoft, working with Oracle, working with SoftBank — all in different ways. Oracle also has its own data center network for its rapidly growing cloud and AI business. 05:01 — So lots of talk right now, lots of action, lots of investment going into this. But ultimately, the beneficiaries of all this incredible — what I think is unprecedented — competition, will be businesses and regular individuals like you and me. Visit Cloud Wars for more.

    6 min

  4. 3 DAYS AGO

    Oracle Growth Equation: AI + OCI + Industries = New Customer Ecosystems

    In today's Cloud Wars Minute, I look at how Oracle’s new co-CEOs plan to blend AI, OCI, and industry expertise into a powerful growth equation. Highlights 00:13 — Big things happening at Oracle. Safra Catz has stepped over and up to the role of Executive Vice Chairman, opening the door for two new CEOs at Oracle: Clay Magouyrk, the leader of their Oracle Cloud Infrastructure business, and Mike Sicilia, the leader of their industries business. I thought it was fascinating. 01:00 — Mike Sicilia, co-CEO, said in this discussion with financial analysts that AI enables new opportunities across industries, not just within an industry. With AI and better sets of data and being able to use OCI's computational power of OCI, new operating models and relationships can be created across industries like banking and healthcare and many other combinations. 02:25 — And so he said the foundation on the technology side — which Clay Magouyrk has been leading so much — is to enable all the leading large language models to work with enterprise-level data in a highly private and secure, fully compliant way. That's why the Oracle Database 23AI was specifically designed for that. 03:22 — Now I think this is one of those cases where we see companies pushing a vision. In this AI revolution, it's important for that vision not just to be a slightly better version of what we've done in the past, but something completely different. I think big vision, big imagination, and big risk-taking are called for here. 04:34 — Then, closing out the call, we had comments from Magouyrk and Sicilia, and in a longer article today on Cloud Wars, I go into some detail on that. I allow Sicilia to explain with a lot more color how these cross-industry ecosystems will work, and Magouyrk also offers some perspective on that. Visit Cloud Wars for more.

    6 min

  5. 6 DAYS AGO

    Microsoft Copilot Gains Government Trust in Major AI Endorsement

    In today's Cloud Wars Minute, I dive into how the U.S. House of Representatives is reversing its ban on Microsoft Copilot, signaling a major shift in government AI adoption and a strong endorsement for Microsoft’s AI capabilities. Highlights 00:07 — Last year, staffers at the U.S. House of Representatives were prohibited from using Microsoft Copilot with official documents. This was due to concerns about House data security. Now that decision has been overturned. Mike Johnson, Speaker of the House of Representatives, said that technology could unlock extraordinary savings for the government, "if we do it right." 01:10 — This news has two key takeaways. First, as Speaker Johnson stated, the U.S. government wants to win the AI race. To achieve this, it must lead by example. This approach not only helps to instill public confidence in the technology, but also demonstrates direct support for the companies it hopes will drive U.S. dominance in AI. 01:39 — Secondly, this serves as an excellent advertisement for Microsoft — in particular, for Microsoft Copilot. With the House of Representatives selecting Microsoft Copilot as the first widely implemented AI technology to be rolled out to staffers — I say first because more initiatives are in the pipeline — they couldn't provide a more authoritative endorsement.  Visit Cloud Wars for more.

    2 min

  6. 25 SEPT

    Oracle's New CEOs: Uniquely Qualified to Fulfill Larry Ellison's Vision for AI Revolution

    In today's Cloud Wars Minute, I analyze Larry Ellison’s decision to appoint Clay Magouyrk and Mike Sicilia as the company’s new co‑CEOs. Highlights 00:21 — Oracle's entering a new era now with two new co-CEOs being named to replace Safra Catz. On Monday, Oracle announced that Safra Catz, is going to be stepping out of the CEO role and becoming executive vice chairman. She clarified in a follow-up call that she's still an Oracle employee. 01:10 — She'll still be there, eager to work with the two new CEOs along with Larry Ellison, as they've done, but that it's time for her, she said, to hand over the reins of CEO. Both Catz and Ellison appear to be extremely confident and bullish on the capabilities of the two new CEOs, Clay Magouyrk and Mike Sicilia. Why these two? Why now? 02:15 — Magouyrk has been the leader of OCI, Oracle Cloud Infrastructure. He's been the one behind a lot of the plans that has made OCI one of the fastest-growing businesses the tech industry has ever seen. The other executive, Mike Sicilia, came in as part of Oracle's industry solutions unit through the Primavera acquisition, focused on project management. 03:07 — Sicilia has gotten deeply into the business models of various industries: the way they use technologies, the way they want to use technologies, and how AI can be a true game-changer for their revenue models. They've been picked because Ellison believes that they can pull off his ultimate vision: hardware and software engineered together to drive incredible performance. 04:10 — They become indistinguishable, so their performance gets much greater, and that is going to be so important here in the AI Revolution. Also, Oracle wants to build this notion of fully integrated, end-to-end industry suites — not just, you know, complementary suites for HR or finance or ERP, but rather industry-specific solutions. 04:46 — Why is the co-CEO model appropriate here? I have not been a fan for a long time of the co-CEO model, but here's why I think it makes sense. Somebody had to come in and replace the legendary Safra Catz. That's huge shoes to fill. I think it's good for the two of them, Sicilia and Magouyrk, to know that neither of them is going to be expected to be a one-for-one replacement for Safra Catz. 05:24 — Larry Ellison, as always, has set a wildly ambitious technology agenda for the company. So, in addition to running the technology parts of their business, they're going to have to handle all the other things that a CEO has to handle — from finances and Wall Street investors to more. They've also got to fill what is rapidly approaching a half-trillion-dollar pipeline. 06:01 — I think Larry Ellison said in the press release announcing this, “I look forward to spending the coming years working side by side with Magouyrk and Sicilia.” Ellison is signaling he's not going anywhere. And Catz said again, she's not disappearing. We'll be talking lots more about this and related issues in the weeks to come, leading up to Oracle AI World, October 13. Visit Cloud Wars for more.

    7 min

  7. 24 SEPT

    Prime Minister Keir Starmer Welcomes Microsoft’s Biggest Ever UK Tech Bet

    In today's Cloud Wars Minute, I break down Microsoft's historic $30 billion investment in UK AI infrastructure — and what it really means for the balance of power between global tech giants and national innovation. Highlights 00:05 — Microsoft has announced plans to invest $30 billion in AI infrastructure and ongoing operations in the UK. The investment includes $15 billion for capital expenditure to expand Microsoft’s data center footprint in the UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Microsoft's landmark investment is a powerful vote of confidence in UK leadership in AI and cutting-edge technology. 01:07 — This announcement was made during Donald Trump's second state visit to the UK. Accompanying him during this journey were Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang, Apple CEO Tim Cook, and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. The U.S. tech industry holds significant bargaining power. A collaboration like this is incredibly important for a country like the UK. 01:35 — However, I'm also reminded of comments made by Siemens CEO Roland Busch and SAP CEO Christian Klein, who urged the EU to reconsider its AI legislation, arguing that current laws were causing Europe to fall behind. There's a risk that countries like the UK, despite financially benefiting from AI investment, will ultimately serve as a conduit for U.S companies. Visit Cloud Wars for more.

    2 min

  8. 23 SEPT

    'Oracle Killers': Fantasy Fizzles, Oracle DB Business Booms

    In today's Cloud Wars Minute, I explore how the long-dismissed "legacy" giant Oracle continues to defy the odds and outperform expectations — particularly in the cloud database space. Highlights 00:14 — It's interesting what a little bit of time reveals to us. I was looking over Oracle's numbers last week. It made me think back not too long ago, 10–12 years, we heard about all the Oracle Database killers, these startups with different companies that were going to knock Oracle off. So that whole fantasy fizzled. 01:42 — There were some wild fantasies that some high-level executives were willing to attach their names to publicly. So here's a good one: The Oracle killer, was supposedly a new project by AWS — a database service 10 years ago, a database migration service brought out by AWS. It had been out for one week, and Business Insider called it the Oracle killer. 02:26 — The former MongoDB CEO, in multiple articles, prophesied Oracle's doom. He said they’d lost the heart and soul of the developers, that they were legacy, that they couldn't keep up. I wonder what this guy's doing now — see if he's got his storyline a little bit more tightly fastened to what reality is doing. 03:02 — We see that Oracle's cloud database services for Q1, which ended August 31, were up 32% to almost $700 million — so getting close to a $3 billion annualized run rate. And its multi-cloud business — where they've got the Oracle Database that wasn't killed, now being sold by Microsoft, AWS, and Google Cloud — that revenue was up over 1,500%. 05:10 — I love these startup tech companies — they’re creating lots of new value. It’s when one, two, three, or four of those startups start chirping about how they’re going to rule the world soon, and they’re going to be the “so-and-so killers.” That, to me, is a good sign that you should look elsewhere to give your business. Visit Cloud Wars for more.

    6 min
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Cloud Wars analyzes the major cloud vendors from the perspective of business customers. In Cloud Wars Live, Bob Evans talks with both sides about these profoundly transformative technologies, and with monthly All-Star guests from across the business community about the trends impacting how the world lives, works, plays, and dreams. Visit https://cloudwars.com for more.

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