Enterprise storage is evolving to meet the needs of artificial intelligence models.

NetApp, which specializes in intelligent data infrastructure, has deep roots in the storage industry. With new additions to its AFF A-series portfolio of all-flash arrays, the company feels ready to support customers’ AI deployments.

NetApp’s Riccardo Di Blasio talks with theCUBE about AI’s impact on storage.

“You cannot implement any AI model or training system if your data is not ready,” said Riccardo Di Blasio (pictured), senior vice president and general manager for America sales at NetApp. “Representing the company that is the leader of data management, particularly in the high end of the market … where the majority of the AI project will start to take place, we feel uniquely positioned and advantaged to monetize that opportunity and to help our customer to make sure their AI project will be successful.”

Blasio spoke with theCUBE’s Rob Strechay and Rebecca Knight at the “Architecting Outcomes in the Era of Intelligence” event, during an exclusive broadcast on theCUBE, SiliconANGLE Media’s livestreaming studio. They discussed NetApp’s role in enterprise storage and how it fits into a future of intelligent automation. (* Disclosure below.)

Managing the burden of AI on enterprise storage

NetApp can be natively integrated with any of the major hyperscalers and supports different types of storage protocols, making it a highly flexible and low-cost option. The new flash series also has a smaller physical footprint than previous versions, enabling customers to install it in more remote locations, according to Blasio.

“We’re the only player that is capable of still providing the entire storage protocol available in the market,” Blasio said. “We are a leader in file but also in block and object. But not only that, we’re capable of mirroring those protocols and technologies into our partners, the different hyperscalers, Amazon, Google, Microsoft, everything operating from one single [operating system].”

Data management has proven to be the biggest hurdle for many companies trying to implement AI. NetApp helps customers classify and order their storage while also leveraging AI to protect against ransomware attacks, according to Blasio.

“We’re solving an important problem,” Blasio said. “We do it in a very unique way, which is better than anyone else in the market. It may sound like a marketing slogan, but I think that the longevity of our company, paired with the longevity of our industry, is actually proving my point. The people that are NetApp users, they love how simple it is,  how reliable it is, how secure it is and how connected it is.”

Here’s the complete video interview, part of SiliconANGLE’s and theCUBE’s coverage of the “Architecting Outcomes in the Era of Intelligence” event:

(* Disclosure: TheCUBE is a paid media partner for the “Architecting Outcomes in the Era of Intelligence” 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