Nutanix observes that AI is accelerating container adoption, but shadow IT and organizational silos bring security risks. Containers are becoming increasingly important for modern applications and AI workloads.
Nutanix shares its annual Enterprise Cloud Index. The research shows that 85 percent of respondents are accelerating container adoption to improve the speed, reliability, and scalability of AI. This highlights the growing role of containers in modern IT infrastructure. However, challenges are lurking around the corner.
Need for modernization
AI usage is increasing rapidly, leading to a greater need for application and infrastructure modernization. Containers are a core part of the application strategy in this regard. Nutanix emphasizes that organizations need enterprise-level security, resilience, and portability. This is essential as AI workloads are implemented in every layer of the environment.
Organizations benefit from a unified management environment for both virtual machines and containers. This enables IT leaders to scale AI with confidence in hybrid environments. Container adoption is further accelerated by the growing need for AI speed, reliability, and scalability.
Respondents see AI agents taking on a significant role within the organization. 61 percent expect AI agents to improve the customer or employee experience. Furthermore, 58 percent expect AI agents to increase productivity and efficiency, while 57 percent see them playing a larger role in creating new products, services, or revenue streams.
Organizational silos and shadow IT as challenges
However, organizational silos are causing problems. 82 percent of respondents say that silos between business units and IT make it difficult to effectively execute technology initiatives. This leads to delays and increased complexity.
Another obstacle is ‘shadow IT’: 79 percent of respondents regularly encounter AI applications or agents implemented by employees outside the IT department. 87 percent acknowledge that unauthorized AI use brings security risks, including exposure of sensitive data and intellectual property. This highlights the need for closer collaboration between IT teams and business stakeholders to implement AI securely, compliantly, and in line with organizational goals.
Data sovereignty non-negotiable
The study also gauges the need for data sovereignty. For 80 percent of respondents, it is a high priority when making infrastructure decisions, including where to use containers. More than half (57 percent) find it necessary to manage their infrastructure within a single country, either on-premises or via a local cloud region, primarily due to concerns about security and data protection.