Cloud computing - can it be the key to the future of our society?

By



Cloud computing is far from being a novelty technology, but it’s only recently that we’ve started to really use it to its full potential. The global cloud computing market was worth $293,938 by the end of 2019. Now, it is expected to more than double in value, with experts predicting it will grow to $657,755 by the end of 2025.

We live in a world driven by technology, and recent events have taught us how important it is to have the means to stay connected, even though we are not physically in the same place. Cloud computing has the potential to help change our lives for the better, streamlining a wide variety of everyday tasks.

Thanks to cloud computing, businesses can now deliver products to the market faster, we get to enjoy a range of services that were not available before, such as multimedia, gaming and video streaming. But there is so much more cloud computing can do for the future of our society.  

Building the digital infrastructure of tomorrow’s cities

Smart cities used to be a distant dream, often perceived as fantasy seen in movies and book. But what if I told you we are closer to achieving it than you imagine? It is estimated that, by 2050, 66% of the global population will live in urban areas, with much of the urban growth concentrating on developing regions, particularly Africa.

The cities of tomorrow will be founded on digital infrastructures and is estimated that 6 billion people will inhabit them by 2045. But what does cloud computing have to do with it?

If we want to have smart elevators, autonomous cars, drone deliveries and smart farms, then we need a virtual place to store all this data – enter, the cloud. All of these devices and many more will be better managed, safer and easier to use, all thanks to the cloud and its ability to not only store massive amounts of data, but also analyze it.

Many companies, including Huawei, are working to create something called Industry Cloud, which involves multiple separate clouds that work together inside a digital ecosystem. This means each industry gets its own designated cloud, which governments and businesses can use to deliver better services to citizens.

Managing an ever-growing volume of data

We know everything around us is made of atoms, but what we don’t realize is the whole world is made of data as well. Our online habits, purchase decisions, what we choose to eat for lunch today – everything can be turned into data and analyzed to learn a bit more about the needs and wants of humanity.

But there is no point in gathering vast amounts of data if we don’t have the capability to store and make use of it. Cloud computing as the ability to help find a place for all this lose data, where it can be gathered and made available for those who need it. No more piles of external hard drives holding mountains of files. All these files could be available on the cloud, at any point and from any device.

Helping Artificial Intelligence learn and adapt

Artificial Intelligence has been another groundbreaking technology that has now become close to mainstream. Chatbots, streaming services, translators, grammar checkers, they are all driven by AI. And while the evolution of AI was rapid, a computer is still a computer, and we can’t help but giggle at the silly mistakes it makes sometimes. Just like a toddler, AI is continuously learning and bettering itself. But in order to do so, it needs to have access to data, both structured and unstructured.

The most notable example is AI’s involvement in smartphones. Besides structured data, smartphones also capture a massive amount of unstructured data, such as text messages and photos. Unstructured data takes a lot to process, and no matter how powerful smartphones have become, they don’t have that kind of power yet. This is why they need to send such data to cloud servers. But doing so will slow down AI’s learning process, so they needed to come up with a different solution.

Instead of AI using the smartphone’s processing power to learn, its training was moved to the cloud. Google’s AI, for example, learned how to beat humans on a game of Go, and it did so in the cloud, where it had all the power it needed to develop faster and better. But when AI applies what it learned into real life, it does so on the device you’ve been using.

Giving businesses a competitive edge

For businesses, cloud computing is probably the best thing that could have happened since the invention of the computer itself. Who better to understand how difficult it is to gather, store, manage and analyze large volumes of data?

Through cloud computing, businesses can now forget about investing large sums of money in hardware and software that helps them deal with sensitives customer and employee data. Choosing to migrate to the cloud through the help of a managed cloud service can help them save money, space and resources, as well as improve data security, ensuring sensitive information is stored in a place where only designated people can access it.

What’s more, cloud computing can help improve mobility and flexibility, as all the information is available for employees to use anytime, anywhere, as long as they have an internet connection and access to the cloud.

Entertainment moves to the cloud

In the past decade, a range of cloud-based multimedia services have emerged and transformed our lives. Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, and recently Apple TV+ have gathered millions of subscribers, ready to search for their next binge-worthy TV series.

Spotify and Apple Music use the cloud to store gigantic music libraries that you can access, without sacrificing one megabyte of storage.

But when Sony Interactive announced their cloud-based gaming subscription service, PlayStation Now, back in 2014, we knew it was time for a new type of accessible entertainment. Now, you didn’t need a powerful computer to play all these games. All you needed was a reliable internet connection and some free time on your hands.

In the future, we can only expect to see more of these cloud-based entertainment platforms, on any niche you can imagine.



Get stories like this delivered straight to your inbox. [Free eNews Subscription]
SHARE THIS ARTICLE
Related Articles

Can Science Outsmart Deepfake Deceivers? Klick Labs Proposes an Emerging Solution

By: Alex Passett    3/25/2024

Researchers at Klick Labs were able to identify audio deepfakes from authentic audio recordings via new vocal biomarker technology (alongside AI model…

Read More

Top 5 Best Ways to Integrate Technology for Successful Project-Based Learning

By: Contributing Writer    3/19/2024

Project-based learning, also popularly known as the PBL curriculum, emphasizes using and integrating technology with classroom teaching. This approach…

Read More

How to Protect Your Website From LDAP Injection Attacks

By: Contributing Writer    3/12/2024

Prevent LDAP injection attacks with regular testing, limiting access privileges, sanitizing user input, and applying the proper encoding functions.

Read More

Azure Cost Optimization: 5 Things You Can Do to Save on Azure

By: Contributing Writer    3/7/2024

Azure cost optimization is the process of managing and reducing the overall cost of using Azure. It involves understanding the resources you're using,…

Read More

Massive Meta Apps and Services Outage Impacts Users Worldwide

By: Alex Passett    3/5/2024

Meta's suite of apps and services are experiencing major global outages on Super Tuesday 2024.

Read More