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In this digital age, cloud computing has become a driving force, reshaping industries and revolutionizing the way organizations operate. India’s start-up ecosystem has emerged as a powerful player, with cloud-native approaches adopted by 85 percent of Indian tech start-ups. This cover story explores how these start-ups are transforming the cloud market and propelling India’s position on the global stage
Amit Singh
Cloud computing has emerged as a transformative force, revolutionizing the way organizations operate and interact with their customers. It is reshaping industries, driving innovation, and enabling businesses to achieve unprecedented levels of efficiency and agility.
According to a recent report by Gartner, worldwide end-user spending on public cloud services is projected to reach a staggering $600 billion by the end of 2023. This growth is a testament to the widespread adoption of cloud technologies across industries, as organizations recognize the immense value it brings to their operations.
India’s remarkable shift
Closer to home, India has been witnessing a remarkable shift towards cloud computing. A study conducted by IDC predicts that the Indian public cloud market is expected to reach $17.8 billion by 2027, growing at a CAGR of 23.4 percent for 2022-27. This rapid growth can be attributed to several factors, including the increasing demand for digital transformation, the rise of remote work models, and the need for scalable and cost-effective solutions.
In fact, cloud computing has come a long way since its inception, evolving from a novel concept to a critical component of modern business operations. Many recent cloud investments were made in a rush during the onset of the Covid pandemic to cater to remote working or a short-sighted goal of cost savings.
Hence, the current global economic landscape necessitates a reevaluation of cloud strategies, placing emphasis on the true value derived from these investments. Businesses are now seeking to fine-tune their cloud-value evaluation models and explore avenues to support customers and diversify revenue sources. This paradigm shift highlights the cloud as a fundamental pillar of modern business strategy, playing a vital role in driving growth, transformation, and continuous innovation.
Unleashing the entrepreneurial revolution
The Indian start-up ecosystem is playing a significant role in shaping the cloud market in India, with 85 percent of Indian tech start-ups adopting cloud-native approaches. In 2020, cloud-focused start-ups in India raised a staggering US$3.5 billion in funding, and investments in the SaaS sector accounted for 85 percent-90 percent of the total investments. As a result, Indian SaaS start-ups are projected to capture a substantial share of the global SaaS market, ranging from 7 percent to 9 percent, which represents a market value of US$20-25 billion.
Acknowledging the key players in the startup ecosystem, including founders, venture capitalists, angel investors, family officers, and most importantly, CXOs, Dr. Apoorva Ranjan Sharma, Founder & MD, 9Unicorns & President-Elect, TiE Mumbai, highlights the unprecedented transformation happening in India’s startup landscape, with startups contributing $500 billion to the country’s GDP. Drawing a parallel with the US, Dr. Sharma envisions a future where startups would contribute 30-40 percent to India’s GDP.
Reflecting on his experience, he highlights the remarkable growth of the Indian startup ecosystem. “From 8,000-10,000 startups seven to eight years ago, India now boasts over 100,000 startups and approximately 115 unicorns. Globally, there are 948 unicorns, with 96 of them founded by Indians in the US.”
Dr. Sharma emphasizes the changing dynamics, noting that India’s reputation for producing top IT professionals has evolved into Indian entrepreneurs holding an unprecedented 20 percent market share. He expresses confidence that this share will continue to grow and contribute to the country’s future unicorn status.
Highlighting the global venture capital presence in India, Dr. Sharma notes that there are approximately 2,500 global VCs investing in the country, while India has around 1,006 VC funds. “Although the community size is smaller compared to the US and China, India’s hit ratio is exceptional, with 115 unicorns out of just 1,000 startups. This high success rate positions Indian entrepreneurs for tremendous growth in the next 30 years.”
He further underscores the significance of CXOs in fostering the growth of the entire startup ecosystem. Dr. Sharma urges CXOs to become part of the Indian entrepreneurship revolution. He emphasizes the importance of their involvement in investing, mentoring, and guiding budding entrepreneurs, particularly those from smaller cities. “With their collective support, India’s startup ecosystem will continue to flourish, paving the way for a brighter future.”
Harnessing the power of cloud
Dr. Ravinder Singal, Additional Director General & Controller of Legal Metrology, Maharashtra Police, highlights the adoption of cloud technology within the police force. “Utilizing the vast amount of information gathered over time, the police are now leveraging cloud-based systems, such as the Crime and Criminal Tracking Network and Systems (CCTNS), to enable predictive policing.”
He acknowledges personal challenges faced during large-scale events like the Kumbh Mela, where estimating and managing crowd size was difficult. However, by leveraging cloud-based information, future events can be better planned and executed.
Singal discusses the role of cloud information in traffic management. “By analyzing data and formulating policies based on the insights gained, authorities can make informed decisions, divert traffic, and address congestion issues.” He acknowledges the importance of the work being done by participants at different levels and expressed confidence that their contributions, insights, and analyses would benefit everyone.
He reiterates the need for collaboration and assistance in addressing challenges related to traffic management, crowd management, and public safety. By joining forces and leveraging technological advancements, Singal believes that significant improvements can be made, ultimately enhancing the quality of service provided to the community.
Power of cloud transformation
KK Bhagchandani, Chief Business Officer, Axcess.io, highlights the immense potential in transitioning to the cloud while emphasizing key driving forces behind this shift. “The cloud has become a top priority due to factors like faster decision-making, unification of departments, process modernization, monitoring, and the integration of artificial intelligence. However, the challenges lie in determining how much we need to change and what should be carried forward from legacy systems. It is not simply a matter of lift and shift; it requires strategic decisions on optimization, platform selection, and retirement of obsolete elements,” he explains.
To demonstrate the power of cloud technology, Bhagchandani shares three success stories. The first story features a global professional services company with customers in 150 countries. “Their goal was to seamlessly transition their on-premises OLTP infrastructure to the cloud while reducing operational costs. Axcess.IO provided a comprehensive assessment, modernized the database and application, standardized and templatized the process, and ensured smooth integration with other systems. The result was improved speed and performance, a 70 percent reduction in total cost of ownership (TCO), and a highly flexible and available system.”
The second story highlights a company that assists legal professionals in managing their cases and aimed to enhance performance, speed, and cost-efficiency. Axcess.IO strategized a lift and optimize approach, leveraging various AWS services, implementing environment templatization and configuration, and ensuring high availability. The outcome included increased IOPS, a 75 percent reduction in TCO, and the reutilization of existing licenses.
Lastly, Bhagchandani discusses a manufacturing company’s success story, focusing on infrastructure modernization, scalability improvement, and cost reduction. “Axcess.IO implemented a lift and shift strategy, leveraging AWS services, incorporating existing licenses, and establishing high availability. The company achieved significant cost savings, improved scalability, and a future-ready infrastructure.”
“To navigate your cloud journey effectively, I recommend conducting a thorough assessment to understand your current state and future needs,” shares Bhagchandani.
True value of Cloud
Neha Sharma Varshney, India Migration Lead – ISVs, AWS shares her insights on the misconceptions about cloud computing that she has come across while working with multiple enterprises across various verticals and segments.
The first misconception that Varshney highlights is that people think cloud computing is a CIO issue and only IT and technology teams are responsible for it. “Cloud computing goes beyond that. Let’s consider the example of retailers entering the fresh produce segment. They can leverage forecasting algorithms and Amazon Vision to predict inventory, reduce waste, and ensure better quality control. Cloud adoption extends beyond IT and technology; it’s about utilizing cloud services as a business enabler,” she explains.
The second misconception that Neha talks about is that people think moving to the cloud will help reduce IT costs. “While it can lead to cost reduction if designed correctly, it’s essential to view it as a complete pillar of cloud value realization. This involves looking beyond the total cost of ownership (TCO) and considering the overall business case. Will the cloud help improve agility, staff productivity, developer experience, and talent retention, and position your organization as a digitally native company? These factors contribute to the true value of cloud adoption,” she explains.
The third misconception that Neha addresses is that people think cloud computing has limited value for regulated industries like healthcare, pharma, and finance. “Numerous examples and case studies demonstrate the wide range of use cases that can be leveraged in every industry. It’s important to note that top Fortune 500 companies have realized over one trillion dollars of cloud value, not just through cost reduction but also through innovation and growth.”
Finally, she encourages businesses to leverage AWS’s partners’ deep contextual knowledge and cross-pollination of industry use cases to explore a multitude of cloud computing areas.
Next generation of data protection and cyber resiliency
Sharing his invaluable insights into the evolving landscape of data protection and cyber resiliency, Balaji Rao, Area Vice President, Commvault, highlights the interconnectedness of data protection and cybersecurity. “I have noticed an interesting trend as someone who has spent over seven to eight years working in data protection. Data protection has become increasingly intertwined with cybersecurity, to the point where I sometimes question whether I am in data protection or cybersecurity. Although we are not a security company, the current landscape suggests that data protection is now more challenging than ever, particularly in the last two to three years following the COVID-19 pandemic,” he explains.
Rao emphasizes the shift from traditional business continuity and disaster recovery (BCP/DR) approaches to cyber resiliency, considering the potential scenario where both primary and DR data centers are compromised. “Recovery time becomes a critical factor that varies from business to business. For example, banks may require a recovery time within a few hours, while other organizations may have a more extended timeframe. This paradigm shift has led us to focus on cyber resiliency, considering scenarios where primary and secondary data centers are both locked during a ransomware attack. To ensure business continuity, it is crucial to have an acceptable recovery time objective (RTO) and the ability to get your business back online promptly. Achieving this requires careful architectural considerations in a multi-cloud environment.”
He highlights the challenges faced during the recovery process, particularly in determining the cleanliness of restored data. “This practical challenge prompted Commvault to automate these processes. We provide insights into the last known good copy of your data, helping you make informed decisions and avoid restoring infected copies. This automation reduces the recovery time and streamlines the entire recovery process.”
He further adds, “We recently acquired a security company that specializes in creating decoys to deceive cybercriminals. This technology allows you to deploy multiple decoys quickly, providing telemetry and alerts when unauthorized access is detected. By integrating this technology with our data protection solutions, we empower administrators to create decoys of databases and applications. These decoys trigger alerts in your security systems, enabling proactive action to prevent attacks. We aim to provide intelligence and prevent attacks rather than solely relying on data restoration after an incident.”
Furthermore, with the impending Personal Information Protection Act, Commvault is introducing sensitive data governance into everyday backup processes. “Compliance modules often go unnoticed in a corner, but we strive to bring them to the forefront. During daily backups, our solutions identify and differentiate files containing patent information, intellectual property, trade secrets, and other forms of sensitive data. This ensures that you have visibility into your data landscape, allowing you to make informed decisions regarding storage and security measures to adhere to legal requirements.”
Simplifying and securing infrastructure
Addressing security concerns, Manoj Dhanda, Founder and CTO of UTHO emphasizes the need for awareness and vigilance. He highlighted misconfigurations, insider threats, and phishing attacks as common vulnerabilities that organizations must address. “Misconfigurations, insider threats, and phishing attacks are common sources of vulnerabilities. It’s crucial to raise awareness among your teams about security concerns and provide them with a checklist that outlines best practices.”
Dhanda emphasizes the trust bestowed upon UTHO by industry leaders across sectors such as banking, insurance, education, and manufacturing. He highlights the transformation UTHO facilitated in the healthcare industry during the COVID-19 pandemic, enabling providers to move from hosting their own servers to the cloud. This transition drastically reduced the time required to launch new customer platforms, from seven days to as little as four hours. “UTHO’s cloud telephony services handled 80 percent of calls in India, solidifying its position as a reliable infrastructure provider,” he adds.
He concludes by emphasizing the simplicity, affordability, and reliability of UTHO’s cloud platform. “What sets us apart from other cloud providers is our simplicity and affordability. By migrating to our platform, you can reduce costs by up to 70 percent compared to your current cloud expenses. In the cloud telephony industry, eight out of ten leaders choose to host with us, benefiting from cost savings, increased market share, and the security and reliability our platform offers.”
The next generation of cloud
In the current scenario, Cloud 2.0 represents the next generation of cloud computing, offering a more advanced, sophisticated, and secure platform that fuels innovation and supports organizations in their digital transformation (DX) strategies.
The introduction of Cloud Computing 2.0 marks an era of unparalleled innovation and transformation. The true transformative power of the cloud is being realized today as it enters a higher stage of evolution, propelled by artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), edge computing, quantum computing, and other next-generation advancements. This on-demand innovation capability presents exponential growth potential.
Multi-Cloud and Hybrid Cloud Adoption are among the prominent trends shaping the cloud landscape. A study by Flexera highlights that 93 percent of enterprises have adopted a multi-cloud strategy, leveraging the strengths of different cloud providers to optimize their infrastructure and mitigate risks. Moreover, the hybrid cloud approach, combining public and private clouds, offers organizations the flexibility to choose the most suitable environment for their workloads while maintaining data security and compliance.
At the same time, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) on the Cloud have become indispensable tools for organizations seeking to unlock the power of data-driven insights. According to a report by Mordor Intelligence, the Cloud AI Market is expected to reach USD 51.04 billion in 2023 and grow at a CAGR of 32.37 percent to reach USD 207.40 billion by 2028, driven by the need for advanced analytics, intelligent automation, and personalized customer experiences.
In addition, Cloud Native Architectures have gained immense popularity due to their ability to support rapid application development and deployment. By leveraging cloud-native technologies, organizations can build scalable, resilient, and agile applications that can adapt to changing business demands. A survey conducted by the Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF) found that 92 percent of respondents reported using containers, a fundamental building block of cloud-native architectures, in their production environments.
We cannot overlook the significance of serverless computing, a paradigm that has revolutionized the way applications are developed and managed. By eliminating the need for infrastructure management, serverless computing allows organizations to focus on building and delivering value-added services. According to McKinsey, this capability enables organizations to test innovations and respond to client demands 20-40 percent faster. In fact, a study by MarketsandMarkets predicts that the serverless architecture market will reach $21.1 billion by 2025, driven by the growing demand for scalability, cost optimization, and faster time-to-market.
Unlocking new possibilities
Looking ahead, the cloud computing industry is experiencing a transformative shift with the advent of Cloud Computing 2.0. With the adoption of multi-cloud and hybrid cloud strategies, the integration of AI and ML, and the advancements in cloud-native architectures and serverless computing, organizations are harnessing the power of the cloud to drive innovation, enhance agility, and unlock their true potential. As the future unfolds, emerging technologies such as Quantum Computing, Edge Computing, and Distributed Ledger hold the promise of further advancements and innovation, paving the way for a brighter and more transformative future in the cloud computing space.
