This week on Cloud Unplugged: AI goes local, Google Cloud breaks the internet, and the DOJ turns up the heat on Google’s $32B Wiz acquisition.

We’re breaking down the biggest stories in cloud and AI:

• Context & Qualcomm are teaming up to move AI agents off the cloud and onto your device. What does this mean for the future of local-first AI?
• A major Google Cloud outage caused chaos across Cloudflare, Shopify, and Discord. We explain what went wrong and what it tells us about the risks of centralised cloud infrastructure.
• The DOJ is investigating Google’s acquisition of Wiz, raising questions about cloud security competition and antitrust concerns.
• Plus: Andrej Karpathy’s Software 3.0 vision, is natural language the new programming interface?

Hosted by Lewis and Jon, two cloud-native veterans covering the real stories behind the hype in cloud, AI, and dev infrastructure.

This week, we delve into the UK government’s substantial investment in AI infrastructure and its implications for cloud sovereignty; Is it related to the trump administration, the economy or the AI arms race? We discuss China’s unprecedented 631 GB personal data leak and whether it is a honeytrap or negligence. Plus, Wandercraft’s latest advancements in robotic exoskeletons and how technology is transforming mobility and rehabilitation.

Whether you're deep in tech, cloud services, AI innovation, or market dynamics, this episode delivers sharp analysis, insightful predictions, and essential context to stay ahead in a rapidly evolving technological landscape.

Hosts:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanshanks/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/lewismarshall/

In this episode, Jon and Lewis cover four wildly different stories, from Warfare to the impact of Trump conspiracies on Datacentres.

First up, Microsoft is investing $400 million to turn Switzerland into the next cloud capital. Is it for neutrality, Trump instability syndrome or just demand?

Then, we meet a glow-in-the-dark protein made by an AI called ESM3, because why not let machines start designing life?

Next, we detour into wartime sci-fi: Ukraine’s drone swarm attack: trucks, remote lids, and enough AI autopilot to cause substantial damage. Finally, we finish with Fi, a smart dog collar that integrates with your Apple Watch. Track your dog's steps, sleep, and GPS location. Why? Who knows!

All that, plus plenty of opinions, speculation, and the usual unpacking of what is going on in the Cloud, Tech and AI space. 

This week, we dive into OpenAI’s $6.5B acquisition of Jony Ive’s ‘io’ and what it means for the future of AI-native devices. We explore Google’s VEO 3 and the deepfake dilemmas it raises, along with Microsoft’s Aurora AI and its ability to predict the weather. Plus, Google’s new try-on AI lets you see how clothes fit without leaving your house, and in a more random story, it turns out some plants can hear bees to protect their nectar.

Whether you're deep in tech, cloud services, AI innovation, or market dynamics, this episode delivers sharp analysis, insightful predictions, and essential context to stay ahead in a rapidly evolving technological landscape.

Hosts:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanshanks/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/lewismarshall/

In this episode, we dissect industry-shaping stories, debating CoreWeave's $35 billion IPO, AWS Transform: AI for legacy app modernisation, and the exciting intersection of quantum computing and AI and how much Nvidia is investing in the Market - are they becoming the new Microsoft, Apple or Google?

Whether you're deep in tech, cloud services, AI innovation, or market dynamics, this episode delivers sharp analysis, insightful predictions, and essential context to stay ahead in a rapidly evolving technological landscape.

Hosts:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanshanks/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/lewismarshall/

In this, almost, but never quite, 30-minute episode, we investigate how Saudi Arabia is set to become the world’s next AI hub. Unravelling the state-backed initiative, HUMAIN, and the billions being channelled into local data-centre capacity with Nvidia and AWS.

We also uncover Nvidia’s newly open-sourced Isaac GR00T N1 foundation model, trained on vast libraries of human motion-capture, and the impact that is going to have on the robotics industry. When will they be coming for our jobs?

Finally, we explore the EnMap satellites now tracking CO₂ and NO₂  and if countries are even paying any attention to climate change. As well as finding out what dolphins think of humans by translating their conversations using Gemma AI.

Hosts:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanshanks/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/lewismarshall/

In this 30‑minute episode, Jon and Lewis unpick the coordinated ransomware wave that struck Britain’s high‑street giants. They trace the attack chain that emptied Co‑op shelves, froze M&S online orders and attempted, but failed, to extort Harrods.

Lewis takes a look at Amazon’s latest generative‑AI arsenal: Amazon Q’s new developer‑first agents, the multimodal Nova Premier family running on Bedrock, and AWS’s landmark decision to let any SaaS vendor list in Marketplace regardless of where the software runs, a direct play to become the app store for the whole cloud economy. 

Finally, they ask whether enterprises can really keep their data out of Google’s AI engines.

Hosts:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanshanks/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/lewismarshall/

In this 30-minute episode, Jon and Lewis delve into the root causes of Europe’s recent Spain, France and Portugal blackouts, scrutinising grid-failure reports and probing whether a sophisticated cyber-attack might have been to blame. They then analyse Meta’s newly unveiled AI alongside the arrival of Qwen 3 and Google's AgentSpace update, and how Jon progressed with integrating it into Google Drive to streamline internal teams.

Next, they unpack NASA’s groundbreaking study showing how three massive dams have redistributed Earth’s water mass, subtly altering the planet’s shape and extending our days. 

Hosts:
 https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanshanks/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/lewismarshall/

In this fact-busting 30-minute episode, Jon and Lewis explore Google’s AI AgentSpace technology and how it could let business teams run complete workflows without ever leaving the agent environment. They then test the marketing claims behind Openai’s latest model features, before dissecting Oracle’s cloud data breach. 

Finally, they map out the potential impact of the proposed Clean Cloud Act on the energy footprint. 

Hosts:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanshanks/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/lewismarshall/

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In this episode of Cloud Unplugged, Jon talks with Thomas Boltze—CTO at Santander’s PagoNxt, former CTO of Funding Circle, Agile Coach, and cloud/fintech leader with 15+ years experience—about fixing broken tech teams. They cover rebuilding systems from scratch, cutting through technical debt, and why culture trumps code every time. Lessons from fintech, startups and hard-won engineering battles.

Guest LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thomasboltze/

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Jon & Jay's start-up: https://www.appvia.io/

Hosts:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanshanks/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jaykeshur/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/lewismarshall/
 
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Welcome to The Cloud Unplugged Podcast, where hosts Jon Shanks (CEO of a Cloud Platform Engineering and Developer Platform Company), Lewis Marshall (Developer Evangelist, AI enthusiast, and science devotee), and occasionally Jay Keshur (COO, championing business modernisation and transformation) explore the latest in cloud technology.

Each week, they investigate developments in AI, data, emerging cloud platforms, and cloud growth, occasionally highlighting the geo-political and global commercial pressures shaping the industry. Drawing on their extensive experience helping customers adopt, scale, and innovate in the cloud (and managing their own Internal Developer Product), Jon, Lewis, and Jay share insights and welcome industry experts to discuss new trends, tackle business challenges, and offer practical solutions.