Google, SAP team up to ease AI tasks for cloud clients
GOOGLE’S cloud computing unit and German software maker SAP said they are teaming up to make it easier for clients to unite data from disparate sources, to more efficiently use artificial intelligence (AI) in their businesses.
The partnership between SAP and the cloud unit of the Internet giant will help customers in a range of industries, from supply chain and inventory management to marketing and commerce, said Google Cloud chief executive officer Thomas Kurian.
“We are bringing the power of data and the power of AI,” Kurian said in an interview. “It’s a joint effort between our two companies to drive business transformation using this information.”
Google Cloud is one of the biggest bets for growth at parent Alphabet, as the company’s core Internet search and advertising businesses matures. Google trails Amazon.com and Microsoft in the market for cloud computing, but the unit had its first profitable quarter earlier this year. Google’s prowess in AI is seen as a key way that the company can set itself apart in the cloud.
SAP, Europe’s largest software company, has been making moves in recent quarters to sharpen its focus on its fast-growing cloud business.
Kurian said the partnership would help with “harmonising” data sets. For instance, if a store manager needed to make sure a branch was well-stocked, that manager could use a chatbot created with Google Cloud tools to query inventory for an order.
Christian Klein, SAP’s CEO, said any of its customers could take advantage of the partnership and choose to use Google Cloud’s AI tools.
Though he noted that SAP has partnerships with other companies in cloud, “this is for sure now the front runner”, Klein said in an interview. BLOOMBERG
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