As artificial intelligence goes into production, unified storage could be the glue that keeps everything together.

NetApp Inc., a leader in enterprise data storage, wants to lift the burden of AI on enterprise infrastructure. Data management has proven to be one of the biggest hurdles for AI adopters, so NetApp’s unified storage solutions aims to lay the groundwork for smoother AI workflows.

“AI is forcing enterprises to rethink infrastructure around the data,” said Krista Case, principal analyst for theCUBE Research. “Training, RAG, inference and agentic workloads need governed, current data that may span the data center, cloud and edge. That makes fragmentation and data movement increasingly expensive, not just in performance terms, but in security, governance and operational complexity. NetApp’s opportunity is to make the existing enterprise data estate usable by AI without forcing organizations to create yet another data silo.”

The NetApp INSIGHT event will feature NetApp leaders and experts in unified storage, with an exclusive broadcast on theCUBE, SiliconANGLE Media’s livestreaming studio, on Sept. 30. Join us to learn more about NetApp’s strategy for building an AI-ready enterprise data foundation and supporting data mobility. (* Disclosure below.)

Unified storage ensures consistent access to data

TheCUBE’s application development research shows that 64% of organizations have already integrated AI-driven functionality directly into their software delivery pipelines. That reality has laid the ground for unified storage, which makes data continuously available and usable for AI workflows.

“Unified storage is becoming an important part of that foundation because developers are increasingly building applications that depend on real-time data, distributed architectures and AI-generated context,” said Paul Nashawaty, principal analyst for theCUBE research. “Our research points to real-time data access becoming a prerequisite for AI-driven applications, while the broader shift toward agent-first development means applications will increasingly need continuous access to trusted data rather than relying on static datasets.”

NetApp has an opportunity to provide a unified data layer that AI platforms can consume across multiple locations, according to Case and Nashawaty. This will be a critical tool for enterprises looking to ground probabilistic intelligence in a reliable data foundation, ensuring continuity as AI pilots move into production.

“The bigger strategic question isn’t simply whether NetApp can deliver faster storage,” Nashawaty said. “It’s whether it can reduce the data fragmentation and operational complexity that stand between enterprise data and production AI. As AI moves from experimentation into production, unified storage becomes less about where data sits and more about how quickly, consistently and securely applications can use it.”

TheCUBE event livestream

Don’t miss theCUBE’s coverage of NetApp INSIGHT on Sept. 30. Plus, you can watch theCUBE’s exclusive content on-demand after the live event.

How to watch theCUBE interviews

We offer various ways for you to watch theCUBE’s coverage of NetApp INSIGHT, including theCUBE’s dedicated website and YouTube channel. You can also get all the coverage from this year’s events on SiliconANGLE.

TheCUBE podcasts

SiliconANGLE’s “theCUBE Pod” is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube, which you can enjoy while on the go. During each podcast, SiliconANGLE’s John Furrier and Dave Vellante unpack the biggest trends in enterprise tech — from AI and cloud to regulation and workplace culture — with exclusive context and analysis.

SiliconANGLE also produces our weekly “Breaking Analysis” program, where Dave Vellante examines the top stories in enterprise tech, combining insights from theCUBE with spending data from Enterprise Technology Research, available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube.

Guests

At NetApp INSIGHT, theCUBE will talk with industry experts about how NetApp is shaping its storage, cloud and data strategy for production AI, including unified data access, infrastructure modernization, ecosystem partnerships, AI-ready platforms and the growing demands of enterprise workloads.

(* Disclosure: TheCUBE is a paid media partner for NetApp INSIGHT. Neither NetApp, the sponsor of theCUBE’s event coverage, nor other sponsors have editorial control over content on theCUBE or SiliconANGLE.)

Image: SiliconANGLE