Welcome to above the clouds
GCP – Immutable, Air-Gapped, and Integrated: Data Protection for your Cloud SQL instances just got better
In a world where data is your most valuable asset, protecting it isn’t just a nice-to-have — it’s a necessity. That’s why we are thrilled to announce a significant leap forward in protecting the data in your Cloud SQL instances, with Enhanced Backups for Cloud SQL. This powerful new capability integrates Google Cloud Backup and […]
GCP – BigQuery under the hood: Short query optimizations in the advanced runtime
In a prior blog post, we introduced BigQuery’s advanced runtime, where we detailed enhanced vectorization and discussed techniques like dictionary and run-length encoded data, vectorized filter evaluation and compute pushdown, and parallelizable execution. This blog post dives into short query optimizations, a key component of BigQuery’s advanced runtime. These optimizations can significantly speed up the […]
GCP – Accelerating FedRAMP 20x: How Google Cloud is automating compliance
Google is committed to helping federal agencies meet their mission, more securely and more efficiently, with innovative cloud technologies. Today, we’re reinforcing our commitment to FedRAMP 20x, an innovative pilot program that marks a paradigm shift in federal cloud authorization. FedRAMP 20x is a new assessment process designed to move away from traditional narrative-based requirements […]
AWS – Amazon OpenSearch Serverless introduces automatic semantic enrichment
Amazon OpenSearch Serverless now offers automatic semantic enrichment, a breakthrough feature that simplifies semantic search implementation. You can now boost your search relevance with minimal effort, eliminating complex manual configurations through an automated setup process. Semantic search goes beyond keyword matching by understanding the context and meaning of search queries. For example, when searching for […]
AWS – AWS Private CA expands AWS PrivateLink support to FIPS endpoints
AWS Private Certificate Authority (AWS Private CA) now supports AWS PrivateLink with all AWS Private CA Federal Information Processing Standard (FIPS) endpoints that are available in commercial AWS Regions and the AWS GovCloud (US) Regions. With this launch, you can establish a private connection between your virtual private cloud (VPC) and AWS Private CA FIPS […]
AWS – Automated Reasoning checks is now available in Amazon Bedrock Guardrails
AWS announces the general availability of Automated Reasoning checks, a safeguard within Amazon Bedrock Guardrails that uses formal verification techniques to validate the accuracy and policy compliance of outputs from generative AI models. Automated Reasoning checks deliver up to 99% accuracy at detecting correct responses from LLMs – giving you provable assurance in detecting AI […]
GCP – Wayfair Transforms Contact Center Operations with ChromeOS and ChromeOS Flex
Editor’s note: Today’s post is by Asad Rahman, Director of IT for Wayfair, a leading e-commerce company specializing in furniture and home goods. Wayfair chose ChromeOS and ChromeOS Flex devices to support contact center staff, improve productivity, and streamline security tasks. “ChromeOS is a natural fit for how Wayfair operates today. We’ve embraced Google Workspace […]
GCP – Announcing AI-first Colab notebook experience for Google Cloud
At Google I/O 2025, we announced a new, reimagined AI-first Colab with agentic capabilities, making it a true coding partner that understands your current code, actions, intentions, and goals. Today, we are excited to bring these capabilities to Google Cloud BigQuery and Vertex AI via the Colab Enterprise notebook. Designed to simplify and transform data […]
GCP – Spanner columnar engine: Powering next-generation analytics on operational data
For years, organizations have struggled with the workload conflict between online transaction processing (OLTP) and analytical query processing. OLTP systems such as Spanner are optimized for high-volume, low-latency transactions, and use row-oriented storage that’s efficient for individual record access. Analytical workloads, conversely, require rapid aggregations and scans across large datasets. These tasks are traditionally handled […]
GCP – Redefining enterprise data with agents and AI-native foundations
The world is not just changing; it’s being re-engineered in real-time by data and AI. The way we interact with data is undergoing a fundamental transformation, moving beyond human-led analysis to a collaborative partnership with intelligent agents. This is the agentic shift, a new era where specialized AI agents work autonomously and cooperatively to unlock […]