Cloud Architecture Class Project – Cloud Topics
Two topics that were not covered in MIS 3406 that are intriguing to me are green cloud computing and artificial intelligence as a service.
Green cloud computing, or green cloud, is an approach to cloud computing that aims to reduce the environmental impact of cloud services and data centers. Although cloud computing already aims to be as efficient and sustainable as possible, green cloud is an even greater approach to sustainable cloud computing. As the need for cloud services grows, so does the need for truly sustainable cloud computing power. Green cloud typically utilizes different physical components than regular cloud computing, like using energy efficient hardware, utilizing better cooling and airflow management, and running on renewable energy. Cloud computing is already very efficient to begin with; In the course, we learned about AWS and its “Well-Architected Framework” that strives for operational excellence, performance efficiency, security, cost optimization, and reliability. Green Cloud would do all these things under a sustainable mindset, with an emphasis on performance efficiency (Dent & Sherr, 2014). By utilizing servers efficiently and auto-scaling, cloud is already cutting down energy consumption and reducing idle servers. Updating the physical warehouses where servers are housed with energy-efficient lighting, heating and cooling, and decreasing their size by scale is also a goal of green cloud.
Artificial Intelligence as a service or AIAAS is a cloud-based service that allows businesses to utilize pre-built AI functionality and tools to build better business applications and solutions without the need (and costs) to manually create, develop, service, and employ the AI in-house. AIAAS providers typically have pre-built models that are helpful to businesses like image recognition, language processing and sentiment analysis, but can also provide services and tools to create custom AI models for unique cases. AIAAS is typically easily integrated into existing applications using APIs – which we covered heavily in MIS 3406. Because of this, AIAAS is cost-effective, easily implemented, and easily scalable. AI is very powerful, but incredibly difficult to master. By utilizing AIAAS with a reputable provider, businesses increase competitiveness in their respective markets at a much lower cost than building an AI system in-house, from scratch.
Green cloud and artificial intelligence as a service are very different aspects of cloud computing, but are closely related, because they both encapsulate the needs of the near future. Green cloud is an initiative or an approach for cloud providers to use more efficient physical hardware and practices, AIAAS is a service that utilizes cloud computing to operate and deliver Artificial Intelligence to businesses. Cloud computing and AI are both relatively newer, yet rapidly growing fields. Because of its newer nature, cloud computing is already very sustainable in the grand scheme of technology. Cloud was developed to have efficient, cost-optimizing, auto-scaling, systems. The warehouses and physical servers that run cloud services are the not-so-sustainable aspect of cloud computing, which can be improved as highlighted above. Artificial intelligence is the future of technology and business, and in my opinion, the future of the world. The capabilities and functionalities of AI are incredible as well as boundless. Being able to utilize this power in business functions will soon be necessary. Many businesses are now familiar with cloud computing, but many more will flock to the cloud to utilize AI’s power. As the demand for AI increases, so does the need for sustainable cloud infrastructure. If providers continue operating without green cloud computing initiatives, our environment will continue to be negatively impacted by cloud computing’s emissions and energy usage. Hopefully in the future, “green cloud” will just be an outdated term for what simply will be the cloud, and all cloud computing will be performed in a sustainable fashion. We also hope that all businesses that choose to utilize AIAAS will do so using sustainable computing providers.
An example of green cloud is Google announcing in 2017 that they have achieved 100% renewable energy for their global operations, including its cloud services and data centers. Google also has a great example of AIAAS in their “Cloud Natural Language” program that allows users to analyze, generate, and interpret language. (Google) This is useful in a wide range of industries and can help interpret sentiment, text summarization, translation, and chatbots.
References:
Dent, A., & Sherr, L. H. (2014). AWS Well-Architechted Framework. Amazon. Retrieved April 27, 2023, from https://aws.amazon.com/architecture/well-architected/?wa-lens-whitepapers.sort-by=item.additionalFields.sortDate&wa-lens-whitepapers.sort-order=desc&wa-guidance-whitepapers.sort-by=item.additionalFields.sortDate&wa-guidance-whitepapers.sort-order=desc
Google. (n.d.). AI & Machine Learning Products | google cloud. Google. Retrieved April 27, 2023, from https://cloud.google.com/products/ai