The data management landscape is rapidly evolving, with significant advancements aimed at simplifying operations, reducing costs and enhancing performance.

This trend was evident in recent discussions highlighting innovations such as hybrid cloud solutions, multi-protocol support and intelligent data infrastructure. These developments are crucial for organizations, particularly in the public sector, seeking to optimize data management practices while maintaining high levels of security and efficiency.

“If you look at our announcements today, it’s really taking us into this new age of the intelligent data infrastructure,” said Michelle Rudnicki (pictured), president of U.S. Public Sector at NetApp Inc. “If we look at what’s going on in the government, they’re looking for that simplification. How do they start to simplify their environment? I will say also all the way across public sector states and everything, they need to save money.”

Rudnicki spoke with theCUBE analyst Rob Strechay and Rebecca Knight at the NetApp Unveils Unified Data Storage Built for the AI Era event, during an exclusive broadcast on theCUBE, SiliconANGLE Media’s livestreaming studio. They discussed NetApp’s latest technological advancements in data management, which is focused on simplifying operations, reducing costs, enhancing performance and improving security, particularly for public sector organizations. (* Disclosure below.)

Michelle Rudnicki, president of U.S. Public Sector at NetApp, talks about the future of data management with theCUBE.

Simplification and cost savings in public sector data management

In the public sector, organizations face unique challenges related to data management. Simplification and cost savings are critical, as budgets are often tight and the need for efficient, streamlined operations is paramount. NetApp’s latest enhancements address these needs directly.

“The federal government was one of our first customers,” Rudnicki said. “They’ve been with us for a long time, and the features that they loved about NetApp over the years are really great. NetApp’s been on the front of innovation, adding in hybrid cloud and multi-protocol. If we look at what’s going on in the government, they’re looking for that simplification.”

The new performance enhancements mean NetApp can do twice as much within the same cost, according to Rudnicki. In essence, NetApp can reduce a company’s costs in half.

“We’ve increased the throughput up to 40 million IOPS,” she said. “So, now for those comp customers that are performance sensitive, they can do a lot more for up to 55% less.”

The importance of cybersecurity in public sector data management is crucial. NetApp’s built-in security features, such as anti-ransomware protection with AI-powered accuracy, are game-changers.

“We’re able to get up to 99% accuracy in terms of anti-ransomware protection, and we’ll give customers a ransomware recovery guarantee, which is a unique in the industry,” Rudnicki said.

Advancing AI strategies for government agencies

Artificial intelligence is becoming increasingly important across various sectors, and the public sector is no exception. NetApp’s approach to AI involves leveraging its extensive experience in data management to support government agencies in AI initiatives.

“I feel a little bit like AI today is like cloud was maybe 10 years ago,” Rudnicki said. “Think about AI, data is the fuel that powers AI and we’ve been in the data business. Our connectivity to the cloud allows us to help customers, whether they’re doing their applications in their data, resident in the cloud or resident on-prem. Those enhancements really help position us to help our customers with AI.”

NetApp’s ONTAP data management software plays a vital role in this strategy, offering a common platform across different environments and providing flexibility and scalability.

“Our government customers and university customers are not unlike other customers,” Rudnicki said. “They do like to have the choice of where and when they’re running their applications. And our ability to help them move and migrate their data and have that connectivity is really important.”

Here’s the complete video interview, part of SiliconANGLE’s and theCUBE Research’s coverage of the NetApp Unveils Unified Data Storage Built for the AI Era event:

(* Disclosure: TheCUBE is a paid media partner for the NetApp Unveils Unified Data Storage Built for the AI Era event. Neither NetApp Inc., the sponsor of theCUBE’s event coverage, nor other sponsors have editorial control over content on theCUBE or SiliconANGLE.)

Photo: SiliconANGLE