Vendor news
Amazon Web Services
AWS Control Tower customers can now choose from different versions when updating, resetting, or upgrading their landing zone, offering more flexibility and control over their environment. This update also marks the end of AWS support for Internet Explorer, with recommended browsers being Chrome, Firefox, Edge, and Safari.
Karpenter version 1.0.0 offers greater control over disrupting Kubernetes applications and compatibility with Amazon EKS or any conformant Kubernetes cluster. The release introduces three new features, including the ability to specify disruption reasons, a forceful disruption mode, and an expanded ‘consolidate after’ feature to enhance cost-efficiency and application availability.
AWS has launched the Agreements data feed for the Seller Delivery Data Feed Service, allowing sellers to programmatically track subscriptions, revenue, and renewals. The data feed provides AWS Marketplace Sellers with detailed information previously obtained through email notifications or the AWS Marketplace Agreements API.
AWS Control Tower now offers APIs to programmatically retrieve descriptions for managed controls, enabling automation for easier control deployment. Customers can extend AWS Control Tower governance into regions where certain controls are not available and enable controls in additional regions, even if not supported in all governed regions.
AWS Resilience Hub's improved resource grouping simplifies and accelerates the onboarding of applications by intelligently grouping resources into Application Components. Customers can now more efficiently manage and improve the resilience posture of their AWS applications with the new feature, especially for complex, cross-Region applications.
AWS has opened a new Direct Connect location in Malaysia, offering private, direct access to all public AWS Regions, GovCloud Regions, and Local Zones. Direct Connect enables the establishment of private, physical network connections between AWS and data centres, offices, or colocation environments, providing a more consistent network experience than public internet connections.
AWS is launching a self-guided experience to help partners reach the Advanced tier, offering personalised tasks and resources for progression. Managed services partners will receive personalised tasks, including the new AWS MSP Practice Building Guide, to empower their advancement.
Availability updates:
- AWS announces the general availability of the digital twin feature for AWS Ground Station, which provides virtualized ground station infrastructure.
-
AWS CodeBuild now integrates with GitHub Apps as the authentication method to access your repositories, and supports configuring multiple access tokens for each source provider.
-
AWS HealthOmics now supports the ability to specify Domain Specific Language (DSL) and Nextflow version when creating private workflows.
-
AWS Resource Access Manager is now available in the AWS Asia Pacific (Malaysia) region.
-
AWS announces the general availability of support for Cost Allocation tags for the AWS Transit Gateway.
-
AWS Wickr is now available in the Europe (Zurich) region.
-
AWS announced an integrated mobile experience for AWS services in the AWS Console Mobile App.
- AWS Config expands support for 124 resource types across 29 AWS regions.
-
AWS Glue announces general availability of a new AWS Glue Data Quality (Glue DQ) capability that uses ML-powered anomaly detection algorithms to detect hard-to-find data quality issues and anomalies.
- AWS Backup announces the general availability of logically air-gapped vault, a new type of AWS Backup vault that allows secure sharing of backups across accounts and organisations.
- AWS Payment Cryptography is now available in four new regions: Frankfurt, Ireland, Singapore and Tokyo.
-
AWS announced that DMS homogeneous data migrations feature is now made generally available in 29 AWS regions.
-
Llama 3 is now available in the AWS GovCloud (US-West) region.
- AWS announces the general availability of AWS IoT SiteWise Edge on Siemens Industrial Edge, offering customers a seamless way to bridge the gap between Operational Technology and Information Technology to solve industrial operational challenges.
-
AWS IAM Identity Center is now available in the Canada West (Calgary) AWS region.
-
AWS Clean Rooms launches new capabilities for entity resolution, ML modelling, privacy, and analysis controls.
Microsoft
Mandatory multifactor authentication (MFA) will be required for all azure sign-ins to enhance security and reduce the risk of unauthorised access and data breaches. The rollout of mandatory MFA will occur in phases, starting with Azure portal, Microsoft Entra admin center, and Intune admin center, followed by other Azure clients.
New Outlook for Windows is now generally available for commercial customers and will now receive full support from Microsoft's support channels, including Assisted Support. The new Outlook for Windows combines rich productivity features and the latest innovations.
The unified Teams app is now available on Windows 11, Windows 10, and Mac, allowing users to access work, personal, and education accounts in one place. Users can easily switch between multiple Teams accounts and join meetings with their preferred account, simplifying the collaboration process.
Azure AI introduces serverless fine-tuning for Phi-3 models, offering developers more flexibility and choice in creating customized AI solutions for cloud and edge scenarios. The Azure AI model catalogue now includes over 1600 models from various providers, empowering businesses with a comprehensive selection of open and frontier models to meet their unique needs.
Adobe
Adobe has launched the Adobe Journey Optimizer (AJO) B2B Edition, which uses generative AI to identify and personalise experiences for B2B "buying groups" responsible for major purchasing decisions. The tool aims to help marketing and sales teams engage decision makers with precision, providing a single view of buying group interactions and performance dashboards.
Adobe announced the latest update for Adobe Express for Education to help the next generation succeed. Adobe Express for Education offers powerful AI and multimedia features, including real-time feedback for teachers and students, to enhance creativity and engagement in the classroom. The platform is designed with responsible AI and privacy protections, including governance controls for administrators, to ensure a safe and ethical learning environment.
IBM
IBM and the USTA are introducing AI-generated match report summaries and enhanced AI commentary to provide detailed analysis and insights for all 254 US Open main draw singles matches. The collaboration between IBM and the USTA Foundation will offer free career readiness training through IBM SkillsBuild to under-resourced youth, teaching professionals, and the public, aligning with their mission to help individuals become more engaged in school and learning.
IBM Cloudability has been recognised as a leader in cloud cost management and optimisation by Forrester Research, obtaining the highest scores in 20 out of 25 criteria.
The strategic strength of IBM Cloudability lies in its integration of the Cloudability and Turbonomic solutions, positioning it as the most complete full-stack CCMO solution.
Oracle
Oracle has opened a new public cloud region in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, as part of a $1.5 billion investment to boost the country’s cloud capacity in line with Saudi Vision 2030.
Saudi organisations can benefit from Oracle Cloud Infrastructure’s high performance, built-in security, and disaster recovery capabilities to accelerate AI innovation and enhance business resilience.
Oracle's Redwood Design System updates to Oracle Cloud SCM aim to enhance user experience, streamline processes, and boost productivity for supply chain professionals.
The new UX enhancements include features such as smart search, business rules, and guided journeys to improve efficiency and reduce costs.
Oracle's risk and finance solutions have been deployed by a major life insurer in the Australasian region to drive efficiency, collaboration, and compliance with IFRS 17. The deployment includes applications for data integration, expense reporting granularity, and end-to-end data lineage to meet regulatory requirements and improve transparency.
Oracle announced the launch of Oracle Cloud Infrastructure's second-generation Ampere Arm-based compute instances, OCI Ampere A2. These instances offer higher performance, scalability, and cost-efficiency for various cloud workloads.
Salesforce
Salesforce has launched Pulse for Salesforce, a specialised version of Tableau Pulse that integrates AI-powered insights and metrics directly into Salesforce CRM, starting with Sales Cloud. Built on Salesforce’s Einstein Platform, Pulse for Salesforce enables users to access personalised metrics and AI-powered insights within their daily workflow, eliminating the need for ad hoc requests or active search for information.
Salesforce's acquisition of PredictSpring will enable a unified omnichannel platform, combining digital and physical shopping experiences. PredictSpring's Cloud POS solutions empower store associates to personalise the shopping experience across physical and digital touchpoints. The acquisition aligns with consumer demand for seamless blending of physical and digital shopping experiences, driving frictionless and personalised engagement.
Salesforce introduced two new fully autonomous AI sales agents, Einstein SDR Agent and Einstein Sales Coach Agent, to help sales teams accelerate growth and improve deal team effectiveness. These AI agents autonomously engage with inbound leads in natural language.
Box and Slack have expanded their partnership to bring AI-powered content insights directly to Slack, enabling users to ask critical questions and uncover timely insights from Box files within the Slack platform. The integration of Box and Slack allows for dynamic and secure file previews, improved workflow automation, and deepened collaboration to streamline business processes.
Salesforce has introduced new tools and capabilities for Service Cloud customers to help agents solve customer cases faster and more efficiently. The new features include out-of-the-box service components, an automation tool called Business Rules Engine, and an app called My Service Journey.
SAP
SAP has launched new cloud capabilities for its Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) solutions, aimed at connecting business data to engineering and research and development departments to enhance efficiency and cost savings. The new capabilities include native connectivity with SAP cloud ERP solutions and supply chain management, providing end-to-end visibility and control across the entire value chain.
SAP has been positioned in the leaders category of the IDC MarketScape: Worldwide SaaS and cloud-enabled medium-sized business ERP Applications 2024 vendor assessment and Gartner has also named SAP a Leader in its inaugural 2024 Magic Quadrant for Recurring Billing Applications.
