At the 2024 Google Cloud Summit, Tara Brady, president of Google Cloud EMEA, kicked off the event by showcasing Google Cloud’s growth trajectory over the past few years, stating it is now the fourth largest enterprise software company globally.
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“More than 60% of the world’s largest 1000 companies are Google Cloud customers,” Brady shared, emphasising the platform's core pillars of security, openness, and AI leadership. “We are the fastest-growing, most secure, open AI-powered platform available.”
One of the core drivers of this growth is, Brady said, is security. He highlighted the company’s unwavering focus on providing the most comprehensive security features on the market, with a track record of unparalleled uptime.
“Security is top of mind with every customer I speak to,” Brady said, citing Revolut as a prime example of a company choosing Google Workspace for its simplicity and robust security measures.
The openness and flexibility of Google Cloud’s ecosystem were also central themes at the opening keynote. Google’s approach to cloud solutions allows businesses the freedom to innovate without being locked into restrictive contracts.
“We’ve always supported a thriving cloud ecosystem that is open, secure, and interoperable,” Brady emphasised, pointing to partnerships with industry giants like Vodafone, who recently announced a multi-billion dollar strategic partnership with Google Cloud.
AI, however, was unsurprisingly the main focus of the summit, with Brady stating: “Google invented generative AI.”
He elaborated on the immense capabilities of Google’s AI model, Gemini, which is now outperforming current benchmarks.
“The quality of a model is based on the quality of data, and our AI is grounded in Google Search, the most trusted search engine,” Brady said.
Vodafone’s use of Google Cloud’s AI capabilities to enhance cybersecurity and customer experience was highlighted, along with other success stories from companies like Lloyds Banking Group, Bupa, and Kingfisher.
During a panel discussion, Ranil Boteju, chief data and analytics officer at Lloyds Bank highlighted how Google Cloud is helping Lloyds transform its operations with AI. Boteju shared how Lloyds is using AI in verticals such as engineering, cybersecurity, and customer service.
“We’ve built a code translation capability that delivers 30-40% efficiency gains in application migrations,” Boteju said. He also noted the bank’s use of generative AI for threat intelligence and document categorization, with expected cost savings of £50 million this year alone.
Boteju went on to praise Google Cloud’s collaborative approach: “We actually created a joint team of Lloyds and Google engineers to co-create solutions. It’s this partnership that makes a real difference.”
Anne-Marie Lamb from Google Cloud, took to the stage next, emphasising the pace of AI adoption across industries. “It’s no longer about if you’re using generative AI, but how,” she said, pointing to the 1000 product enhancements Google Cloud has rolled out over the past year.
Lamb also highlighted how Gemini 1.5, Google’s next-generation AI model, was a “game-changer for UK organisations”.
As the keynote drew to a close, Google made it clear that they are leading the way in AI innovation, with security, flexibility, and real-world impact at the core of their mission.
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