The true essence of a multicloud environment reflects in its ability to seamlessly access infrastructure, applications, or services from multiple clouds, regardless of the primary cloud provider. According to Avasant Research, about 89% of cloud adopters use the hybrid cloud, whereas 76% deploy multicloud.
Oracle continues to uphold its commitment to compatibility across infrastructures and applications. Once known as OpenWorld, the Oracle CloudWorld 2024 event addressed the significant challenges today’s enterprise customers face. Although customers can purchase technology from any provider in a multicloud environment, they often struggle to take advantage of multiple infrastructures and applications. The struggle is caused by cost disadvantages, ingress and egress charges, and migration and integration challenges, among other factors.
Larry Elison, chairman of the board and chief technology officer at Oracle, announced in his keynote that the Oracle Exadata database would be moved to AWS. This includes embedding the Oracle Cloud data center inside AWS, enabling customers to take advantage of both worlds. Not only can they provision the Oracle database from the AWS console, but they can also achieve higher bandwidth and lower latency. It also makes it fault-tolerant and provides the required scalability to the user. Additionally, clients can cross-leverage Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI) and AWS credits, offsetting costs and optimizing their cloud investments. The enhanced flexibility also supports migration to other cloud platforms and facilitates access to AI-driven advancements made by AWS, further future-proofing customer environments.
It is already witnessing significant interest and value among its marquee customers, including JPMorgan Chase, which has substantial commitments with AWS; Vodafone, which operates infrastructure across multiple cloud environments; and ExxonMobil, which runs highly regulated workloads.
Oracle database at AWS will be live and generally available to enterprise customers in December 2024. Initially, it will be launched in the AWS availability zones in Virginia, with subsequent rollouts in other zones based on demand. Eventually, Oracle will integrate the Oracle database and Oracle data centers with Google Cloud and Microsoft Azure. In addition to integration with the three major cloud platform providers, it has similar plans for Fujitsu, NTT, and NRI.
There is no additional cost associated. The cost of running the Oracle database in the private cloud is equivalent to operating it in the public cloud, regardless of whether it is on OCI or elsewhere.
This is a welcome move and much needed in today’s hybrid and multicloud setup. According to the Avasant Hybrid Enterprise Cloud Services RadarView Survey, in August–September 2020, many enterprises moved their enterprise applications to the cloud to manage financials, supply chain, procurement, and planning and budgeting.
Figure 1: Cloud application ecosystem transformation with cloud platform providers
Notably, SAP also made its services available on AWS in 2008 and has been reaping the benefits ever since. This move allowed enterprise customers to deploy SAP workloads on a flexible, scalable infrastructure without the need to invest heavily in on-premises hardware. The integration has been extended to SAP HANA. SAP has similar arrangements with Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud.
Extending the Frontier: AI-powered Autonomous Work
Building upon its commitment to addressing enterprise challenges, Oracle is expanding beyond multicloud solutions to pioneer the integration of AI within its enterprise applications. At Oracle CloudWorld 2024 in Las Vegas, the company announced that the Oracle Fusion Cloud Applications Suite would now come embedded with over 50 role-based AI agents. These AI agents aim to automate frequent, repetitive tasks, enabling employees and managers to allocate more time to strategic initiatives.
These AI agents are designed to power autonomous work across various enterprise functions:
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- Talent review: AI agents can autonomously assess employee performance, identify skill gaps, and recommend personalized development plans.
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- Customer sales assistance: Sales teams can leverage AI agents to analyze customer data, predict purchasing behaviors, and tailor sales strategies accordingly.
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- Compensation management: AI agents assist in designing competitive compensation packages by analyzing market trends and internal data.
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- Maintenance support: Predictive maintenance becomes more efficient as AI agents analyze equipment data to foresee issues and schedule repairs proactively.
Unlike traditional rule-based automation frameworks that require predefined instructions and frequent updates, Oracle’s AI agents utilize large language models (LLMs) to learn and adapt over time. This allows them to identify patterns, respond to changes, and communicate with other agents to achieve business outcomes. This evolution represents a significant advancement in process automation, where AI agents can assume roles within the organization, set and achieve objectives, and continually improve through learning.
According to Avasant’s Cloud ERP Suites 2024 Market Insights™ report, over 80% of organizations implementing ERP systems prioritize automating repetitive tasks and manual workflows. This underscores the growing demand for intelligent automation solutions that can enhance operational efficiency.
Figure 2: Top enterprise use cases for adopting cloud ERP solutions
This strategic move into AI-powered autonomous work aligns with Oracle’s broader vision of enabling enterprises to operate more efficiently and intelligently in an increasingly complex technological landscape. By combining multicloud accessibility with advanced AI capabilities, Oracle empowers organizations to overcome traditional barriers, reduce manual workloads, and drive innovation.
Oracle’s initiatives reflect a broader industry trend toward integrating AI agents within ERP systems. Competitors are also making significant strides in this area:
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- Microsoft is enhancing its ERP capabilities by introducing generative AI-driven autonomous agents to Dynamics 365 via Copilot Studio. These agents streamline sales, service, finance, and supply chain management functions, operating autonomously to support workflows and minimize manual intervention.
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- SAP has launched Joule, an AI copilot designed to revolutionize business processes through collaborative agents. Joule’s agents operate collectively across finance, supply chain, HR, and other domains, enabling multifunctional workflows that address complex tasks holistically.
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- Workday introduced Workday Illuminate, incorporating generative AI agents focused on automating HR and finance processes. Agents such as the Recruiter Agent and Expenses Agent automate talent acquisition and expense reporting, respectively, integrating seamlessly with platforms such as Salesforce and Microsoft for cohesive cross-platform functionality.
Conclusion
Oracle’s twin announcements—embedding its Exadata database within AWS and introducing AI-powered autonomous agents—represent significant developments in the enterprise technology sector. By facilitating seamless multicloud operations and harnessing the power of AI for autonomous work, Oracle is positioning itself to address key enterprise challenges.
These initiatives have the potential to enhance operational efficiency and productivity. However, organizations must carefully consider the implications, including integration challenges, data security, and reliance on specific ecosystems. By adopting a strategic approach and addressing potential hurdles, enterprises can leverage these advancements to effectively navigate the complexities of modern business environments.
As AI continues to reshape the enterprise landscape, Oracle’s initiatives contribute to the evolving discourse on how technology can drive business transformation. Organizations that proactively engage with these developments may gain a competitive edge in today’s dynamic and competitive marketplace.
By Gaurav Dewan, Research Director, and Premal Shah, Lead Analyst, Avasant