Navigating the 2025 Cloud Wars: AWS, GCP, Azure, and Private Cloud

By Koby Phillips, VP of Cloud Practice, Telarus
Today we’re diving deep into the heart of the cloud wars, and looking at the three market leaders: AWS, GCP (Google Cloud Platform), and Azure. These titans are locked in a fierce battle for dominance, each wielding powerful weapons in their quest for market share. As a technology advisor, you have a big opportunity to help clients navigate this complex landscape and find the right solutions. So it’s important to have a solid understanding of their pros and cons.
Read ahead for my take on AWS, GCP, Azure, and the resurgence of private cloud.
AWS: The Goliath
AWS is the granddaddy of them all boasting the most comprehensive suite of services, a massive global infrastructure, and a loyal customer base.
- Advantages:
- Maturity: AWS has years of experience and a proven track record, having launched back in 2006 and pioneering the cloud market.
- Market share: AWS is the undisputed market leader, offering the widest selection of services including cloud operations, AI, blockchain, containerization, database migrations, and much more.
- Growing developer community: Customers benefit from a massive and vibrant ecosystem with ample resources and support.
- The Catch: AWS can sometimes feel overwhelming due to its sheer scale and complexity. Customers need to watch out for hidden costs and be aware of Amazon’s shared security model.
GCP: The Underdog (with a Serious Bite)
GCP is known for its cutting-edge technology, particularly in areas like data analytics, machine learning, and artificial intelligence.
- Advantages:
- Data analytics prowess: Leveraging Google’s strengths in search and AI, GCP excels in data-intensive workloads.
- Competitive pricing: GCP offers aggressive pricing and compelling promotions.
- Open source leader: The company is a strong advocate for open-source technologies.
- The Catch: GCP has a smaller market share than AWS and Azure, which can sometimes translate to fewer available services and a smaller ecosystem.
Azure: The Challenger
Microsoft Azure offers deep enterprise relationships and is an extension of the Microsoft ecosystem—making it fast and easy to deploy.
- Advantages:
- Hybrid cloud focus: Azure seamlessly integrates with on-premises environments and offers strong hybrid cloud capabilities.
- Microsoft integration: The platform integrates with a wide range of Microsoft products, making it a natural choice for many enterprises.
- Rapid growth and development: Azure is experiencing significant growth and is constantly expanding its service offerings.
- The Catch: Azure can sometimes feel less mature than AWS, particularly in certain niche areas.
Enter Private Cloud: The Unsung Hero
Now, let’s not forget our trusty steed: private cloud, which offers plenty of flexibility, but with tighter access control and security resources than public cloud.
Private cloud is making a big comeback as organizations plan for AI, with IDC predicting that global spending on private, dedicated services 🡥 will more than double by 2027. In addition, organizations are increasingly embracing the best of both worlds: Hybrid models that leverage the agility and innovation of public cloud for burstable workloads, while relying on the security and control of private cloud for mission-critical applications.
The Bottom Line: There’s No One-Size-Fits-All
When it comes to cloud adoption, it’s impossible to say that one service is better than another. In fact, the best cloud strategy often involves a multi-cloud or hybrid approach, leveraging the strengths of different providers and deployment models.
That said, many business and technology leaders are struggling to keep up with the changing cloud landscape—and this is where you come in.
As technology advisors, your role is to help customers make informed choices and deliver optimal outcomes. This can be achieved through:
- Understanding clients’ unique needs: Spend time getting to know your clients’ business objectives, security and compliance requirements, and budgets.
- Bringing in resources: Help customers assess the strengths and weaknesses of each provider and figure out which ones align with their specific goals and requirements.
- Help design and implement optimal cloud strategies: Choosing the right cloud is the first step. Technology advisors can provide additional value by helping to design, implement, and optimize pure public cloud solutions, private cloud deployments, and hybrid architectures.
- Provide ongoing support and guidance: Continuously monitor and optimize clients’ cloud environments to ensure they are meeting their business objectives.
Final Thoughts
As you can see, there are many points to consider when selecting a cloud platform. And the rapidly evolving cloud landscape doesn’t make things any easier for IT decision-makers. Companies are also increasingly using AI to improve security, automate routine tasks, and streamline deployments.
This is certainly an exciting time to be a technology advisor. Stay informed, stay curious, and let’s continue to guide our clients towards success in this fast-changing market.
When in doubt, lean on the Telarus Cloud Practice Team—we’ve got you.
Ready for more learning? Check out this recent HITT session on Cybersecurity Challenges and Solutions!