HPE plans to invest $4 billion to develop edge computing
Hewlett Packard Enterprise said it will invest $4 billion over the next four years to develop what it calls intelligent edge devices.
Edge computing is far from a mature market. The general idea is that as the Internet of things takes off, more devices will need to be able to enable analytics at the outposts of a network. In other words, what takes place in the cloud or a data center will increasingly occur at the edge of a network to reduce latency.
In addition, 5G services will also enable more edge devices. See:
- Where's the 'edge' in edge computing? Why it matters, and how we use it
- What is the IoT? Everything you need to know
- What is 5G? Everything you need to know about the new wireless revolution
HPE has been one of the front runners on the edge concept and is apparently putting its dollars behind the effort. Antonio Neri, HPE CEO, said at the company's Discover conference that the company will invest in research and development, products, services and models to enable artificial intelligence, machine learning and automation at the edge of the network.
Read also: From cloud to edge: The next IT transformation (ZDNet special report) | Download the report as a PDF (TechRepublic)
Neri said enterprises will have to build out edge to cloud architectures to deliver real-time experiences.
In many respects, HPE's focus on the edge aligns with its portfolio. HPE's Aruba unit has wireless campus networks covered and Pointnext is in a bevy of projects designed to make endpoints more intelligent.
For instance, HPE's Aruba unit outlined a software-defined branch effort to bolster wireless network performance and prep them for cloud, IoT and mobile technologies.