The latest industry trends in data infrastructure emphasize the integration of artificial intelligence, data unification and cybersecurity. As businesses increasingly rely on data-driven strategies, the importance of a strong and intelligent data infrastructure becomes paramount.

This infrastructure not only enhances employee productivity and customer experiences, but also offers competitive advantages. Innovative technologies and strategic partnerships are essential for maintaining momentum and achieving business success, according to George Kurian (pictured), chief executive officer of NetApp Inc.

CEO George Kurian talks with theCUBE about NetApp’s future strategies and intelligent data infrastructure.

“We believe that data is the secret to unlocking employee productivity, engaging customer experiences and accelerating the pace of customer success in businesses around the world,” he said. “ And data is already driving competitive advantage for data-driven companies as opposed to those that cannot harness their data.”

Kurian spoke with theCUBE’s Rebecca Knight and Rob Strechay at the NetApp Unveils Unified Data Storage Built for the AI Era event, during an exclusive broadcast on theCUBE, SiliconANGLE Media’s livestreaming studio. They discussed the importance of a unified and intelligent data infrastructure in enhancing business productivity, customer experiences and competitive advantage through AI integration, cybersecurity and strategic partnerships. (* Disclosure below.)

Intelligent data infrastructure: Strategic priorities and initiatives

NetApp has several strategic priorities and initiatives for FY25, focusing on modernizing data center environments, enhancing security capabilities and advancing AI integration. The company aims to modernize customer data centers with a powerful suite of high-performing flash storage solutions.

“We introduced today a robust suite of the world’s highest performing flash storage that has a broad range of values to our clients across file, block and object storage,” Kurian said.

This modernization effort is designed to offer organizations improved performance and efficiency. It ensures that their data infrastructure is equipped to handle the demands of modern applications.

NetApp is also focusing on the integration of advanced security capabilities across all platforms, providing comprehensive protection against emerging threats.

“We do that with the industry’s most secure storage environments, where we can detect malicious threats, protect against them and recover very quickly,” Kurian explained. “We are underwriting our confidence with the industry’s only storage ransomware protection guarantee.”

This approach aims to provide comprehensive protection, ensuring that data remains secure across various environments, including cloud and on-premises.

NetApp is also working closely with hyperscalers, such as Amazon, Microsoft and Google, to enhance storage and data management offerings. These collaborations aim to deliver seamless hybrid and multicloud experiences, ensuring that organizations can efficiently manage and secure their data across diverse environments.

“Part of our DNA is to work with partners and to approach the market with partners,” Kurian said.

By integrating NetApp’s technology with the leading cloud platforms, they are enabling customers to leverage advanced data services and achieve greater operational flexibility.

“We are doing a lot more with the cloud providers. We are integrating our data management technology with their cloud AI platforms,” Kurian added. “For example, we showed integrations with Vertex and with Bedrock, and you’ll see it with others so that clients can have a hybrid experience. They can use those cloud platforms but protect and secure their data.”

Driving innovation and AI integration

Innovation is at the heart of NetApp’s strategy, with a significant focus on AI and its applications in data management. Bringing AI to data, rather than the other way around, to maximize efficiency and effectiveness is a big part of the company’s strategy.

“NetApp has strong offerings for gen AI for model training, for inferencing,” Kurian said. “We are bringing AI to the data, allowing our clients to be able to use their data very simply and effectively for AI.”

Building an AI center of excellence within organizations is crucial, Kurian added. This center should bring together all relevant roles and teams, including data science, data engineering, IT infrastructure and security architects, to work collaboratively.

“We talk about three or four things there. The first is understanding where in your organization you can get the most impact and value from AI,” Kurian said. “The second is to organize for success, which is to build an AI center of excellence, where you can bring together all of the different roles and teams to work together.”

This collaborative approach ensures that all aspects of AI implementation, from data science to IT infrastructure, are aligned and integrated.

NetApp’s unified data platform supports a wide range of applications and environments, providing a consistent and efficient operational experience. The platform allows companies to deploy workloads and applications wherever needed while ensuring a unified operational, security and performance experience across all environments.

“We have been the driver of having a single unified data platform that can support any data, any application, anywhere,” Kurian said. “I think most of the other players in the industry are now beginning to recognize the wisdom of that approach.”

NetApp’s platform not only enhances operational efficiency, but also provides a solid foundation for building AI capabilities and data services, Kurian added.

Looking ahead, NetApp aims to build its momentum by continuing to innovate and expand its capabilities. The company plans to enhance its data services and operational capabilities, ensuring clients can effectively manage and secure their data across all environments, according to Kurian.

Here’s the complete video interview, part of SiliconANGLE’s and theCUBE Research’s coverage of the NetApp Unveils Unified Data Storage Built for the AI Era event:

(* Disclosure: TheCUBE is a paid media partner for the NetApp Unveils Unified Data Storage Built for the AI Era event. Neither NetApp, the sponsor of theCUBE’s event coverage, nor other sponsors have editorial control over content on theCUBE or SiliconANGLE.)

Photo: SiliconANGLE