This week’s Red Hat Summit featured insights into Red Hat Inc.’s future direction and continued commitment to open-source software.

During a final breakdown of the event, theCUBE analysts shared perspectives on emerging trends, Red Hat’s growing confidence and its potential role as a cloud broker in an increasingly multicloud environment. The discussion revealed the potential of the open-source software giant in a world where artificial intelligence and automation are becoming increasingly pervasive. The analysts also assessed Red Hat’s potential to pave the way for a transparent, trust-based relationship with its customers.

“Red Hat is an open-source company,” said industry analyst John Furrier (pictured, left). “They’re about transparency. They want to be out in the open. Anything that looks or perceives as hiding the ball, they’re against.”

In fact, Red Hat’s success stems from its commitment to open-source principles, transparency and simplicity. These elements form a community that no other industry player currently replicates, according to Furrier’s co-analyst Rob Strechay.

Furrier, Strechay (right) and analyst Paul Gillin (middle) shed light on open collaboration, AI, edge computing and more at Red Hat Summit, during an exclusive broadcast on theCUBE, SiliconANGLE Media’s livestreaming studio. (* Disclosure below.)

The surge of AI and edge computing; Ansible’s rising dominance

The AI theme was everywhere during the conference, according to Furrier, who noted its significant presence in discussions and presentations throughout the event. There was also considerable attention given to edge computing.

“You got the blocking and tackling, day-to-day stuff that’s got to happen with Red Hat. Then you got the AI surge over the top,” he said. “AI’s … simplifying the user experience and developer productivity, all in the open-source way.”

The acceptance of open-source software has grown significantly in recent years throughout the enterprise computing industry. As a result, Red Hat’s confidence in its business model is increasing. The company’s faith in its organizational structure, which is geared toward active and effective customer feedback, also continues to grow.

“Red Hat feels vindicated by that, and they’re moving forward with confidence, believing they have a good structure in place for listening to their customers,” Gillin stated. “Red Hat seems to be in a groove and knows what its customers want — and it is responding.”

On the first day of the summit, the emphasis was primarily on Ansible, a tool that facilitates automation and cloud scalability. The feedback from users was notable during the conference, with enthusiastic testimonials demonstrating Ansible’s impact on operations. The platform is an integral part of the broader Red Hat ecosystem, and its potential to become a key driver of future technological transformations was on display at the summit.

“Customers are crazy about what Ansible is doing for them,” Gillin said.

Red Hat’s potential game-changer role in the multicloud space

Another key topic of conversation was IBM Corp.’s landmark $34 billion acquisition in 2019 of Red Hat and how Red Hat is meeting its expectations in the hybrid cloud domain.

“They’re confident. They’re putting the results out there,” Furrier said. “Customers, products, partnerships. Open-source has exploded, and AI was a nice tailwind.”

Will Red Hat become a game-changer in the multicloud space? If the company can provide an open, compatible, distributed layer, it might extract considerable value from its ecosystem, according to Strechay.

Furrier concurred, saying, “IBM could be that glue layer in the hybrid that strings it together with Red Hat at the edge.”

Here’s the complete video interview, part of SiliconANGLE’s and theCUBE’s coverage of Red Hat Summit:

(* Disclosure: This is an unsponsored editorial segment. However, theCUBE is a paid media partner for the Red Hat Summit event. Red Hat Inc. and other sponsors of theCUBE’s event coverage have no editorial control over content on theCUBE or SiliconANGLE.)

Photo: SiliconANGLE