Cloud spotting is a pastime that can be applied to off-site data storage as well as meteorology. For years, cloud computing could rely on balmy conditions that spawn cumulus in summer skies. Now thunder heads are forming overhead. Companies that ramped up cloud spending during the pandemic are cutting back.
Salesforce, a big cloud-based software provider, is the latest to sound the alarm. The company, which has a market capitalisation of $139bn, is laying off 10 per cent of its workforce and closing some offices.
Customers are taking a more “measured” approach to spending, apparently. Amazon, Microsoft and Alphabet all reported slower revenue growth from their cloud divisions in their most recent quarters.