As the tug of war between humans and machines escalates, we’ve become witnesses on nearly a daily basis to events that suggest there won’t be an ultimate winner or loser in this existential battle for survival and supremacy.

Two little human mistakes at the Academy Awards ceremony and within Amazon Web Services (AWS) recently received worldwide attention because of the power of today’s technology to magnify their impacts on a global scale. These events added more fuel to the argument that automation is a good thing that can eliminate human error and make our daily lives better and less susceptible to costly mistakes. However, there have been a series of snafus involving artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML) and automated system deployment that are calling into question whether the accelerated innovations in these areas are going to outpace the usefulness of mere mortals.

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As increasing digitization overtakes commerce (and virtually all industries), companies need to adjust with new technologies and new approaches.

Customers want to be able to research and make purchases on various devices and platforms (from online to in store). Companies are enlisting mobile devices, social platforms, live chat capabilities, communities, location-based technologies and e-commerce applications to create new capabilities in this digital commerce era. Creating an anytime, anywhere, omnichannel strategy has become critical for the e-commerce market.

Cloud-based customer relationship management (CRM) and the e-commerce market have been converging for some time. Although Amazon hasn’t explicitly stated that it intends to use its new Amazon Go retail service as the vehicle to offer its own CRM solution, it doesn’t take a lot of imagination to envision the company finally entering the market.

Click here to read why THINKstrategies believes Amazon may be getting ready to move into … Read More »

Anyone who attended the recent Amazon Web Services (AWS) re:Invent conference — or watched many sessions online, as I did — probably is still trying to absorb the full implications of all of the company’s initiatives unveiled at the event. Although AWS already has redefined the computing and software development industries fundamentally, with its groundbreaking Infrastructure as a Service offerings, it isn’t resting on its laurels.

In fact, AWS’s parent company appears to have in mind far broader ambitions to significantly reshape the competitive landscape in more than just the IT industry in the coming years. Click here to read THINKstrategies’ views in E-Commerce Times about how Amazon is positioning itself to disrupt more industries in the coming year and beyond.

The rapid rise of Microsoft Azure, aggressive moves by Google and an assortment of other developments in the cloud marketplace have raised questions about whether Amazon Web Services (AWS) can maintain its dominant advantage over its competitors.

Some industry observers are suggesting that AWS’s slowing growth rates are an indication that its days of cloud market domination may be coming to an end. They point to the recent success of AWS competitors. Microsoft Azure and the company’s other cloud services, including Office 365, for instance now represent a third of Microsoft’s total revenue.

Click here to read THINKstrategies’ perspectives in SearchAWS.

The latest Amazon Web Services (AWS) outage has generated a new round of debate regarding the reliability of cloud services.

Yet, AWS’s growth hasn’t slowed. Instead, a growing number of large and small organizations are using AWS offerings because of the measurable business benefits they can attain.

Read THINKstrategies’ views in SearchAWS about why enterprises will continue to rely on AWS despite the occasional disruption.

The widespread availability and adoption of cloud-based services has accelerated the development and acceptance of the Internet of Things (IoT). The IoT takes advantage of cloud infrastructure-as-a-service (IaaS).

And, because Amazon Web Services (AWS) is the undisputed leader in the IaaS segment of the cloud marketplace, it is a significant player in the evolution of the Internet of Things (IoT).

Click here to read THINKstrategies’ latest commentary in SearchAWS regarding AWS’ role in the IoT market.

Technology moves quickly, but often it moves too quickly for IT teams to keep pace. One of the fundamental dilemmas of technological innovation is a lack of skilled IT pros available to capitalize on new opportunities.

Overcoming the shortage of trained tech professionals is critical to the success of a new technological wave such as cloud computing.

And as public cloud use rises, AWS is ensuring there are legions of trained technicians ready to capitalize on its services.

Click here to read THINKstrategies’ views in SearchAWS about the impact of Amazon Web Services’ (AWS) new Educate program on the Cloud marketplace and how the new program follows the model for success created during past technology waves.

The recent detailed Amazon earnings report finally put to rest many debates about whether Amazon Web Services, in particular, and the public Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) market in general, are economically viable businesses.

Now that AWS’ revenues and profits have become public knowledge, you can expect the cloud computing market to grow at a faster pace.

Click here to read THINKstrategies’ views regarding the industry implications of AWS’ financial results on the Cloud marketplace in SearchAWS.

The unprecedented power of today’s cloud services is making the futuristic idea of a connected world more tangible and economically feasible. Technology companies and other businesses are promoting the potential benefits of the Internet of Things (IoT), hailing a new generation of connected devices and remote sensors. Indeed, the cloud enables organizations of all sizes across nearly every industry to launch IoT initiatives and fulfill their IoT vision. Click here to read THINKstrategies’ perspective about Amazon Web Services’ (AWS) impact on the growth of the IoT marketplace in SearchAWS.

Brian Matsubara, Head of Global Technology Alliances at Amazon Web Services (AWS), and Mike Desai, Senior Director of Global Business Development & Strategy at Ping Identity have joined the growing number of leading industry executives participating in the third annual Cloud Channel Summit on Monday, November 4 at the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, CA. Ping Identity has also become the latest sponsor of this year’s executive forum.

Click here and save $100 by registering now for the Summit!

Brian Matsubara is returning to the peer-to-peer networking event after participating in the first Summit in 2011, and will participate in an industry roundtable session focused on Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) partnering opportunities being chaired by Andy Schroepfer, Founder & CEO, Big Cloud Sales.

Mike Desai will join Rory Cameron, SVP, Corporate Development & Emerging Platforms at CallidusCloud and Jonathan Sass, Category Manager – Cloud Services and Software at Spiceworks in a roundtable session examining partnering opportunities in … Read More »