The Cloud of Amsterdam: local, green and innovative

We’re working on a sustainable Kubernetes-as-a-Service cloud, that should act as a blueprint for the rest of Europe.

Far too many enterprise data centers across Europe are severely underutilized. In fact, only 30% of their capacity is used on average. This isn’t just a waste of resources and creates an unnecessarily large carbon footprint, we believe it’s also a missed opportunity. That’s why, together with the City of Amsterdam, we’re working on a local, more sustainable cloud alternative. And as a Kubernetes-as-a-Service cloud, it will also give local companies the opportunity to change the way they do business. Here’s a sneak peek into what we’re working on.

Heating a local daycare center

Our project, called the Cloud of Amsterdam, is a collaboration between several local parties to develop a sustainable, local cloud (which we like to call biodynamic free-range servers). So, rather than constructing a whole new data center for this purpose, we’re using existing and currently underutilized servers. And we’re also using refurbished hardware to make sure that our carbon footprint is as small as possible.

Data centers also generate a lot of heat of course. And in these uncertain times of rising gas prices, we also want to make sure that this isn’t a missed opportunity. That’s why the excess heat generated by these servers will be transported to a nearby child daycare center, among other places. 

A local broadcasting platform kicks off

But we’re aiming for more than just sustainability. The Cloud of Amsterdam will be a Kubernetes-as-a-Service platform, giving local companies an affordable opportunity to utilize the cloud in innovative and exciting new ways. For our pilot project, we approached the public broadcasting platform Salto to run on the cloud as a user. They were excited because this can be a scalable and sustainable alternative to the on-premise environment that is currently in use. However, the Salto broadcast platform will need to be modernized so that it can run on Kubernetes, and consequently on the cloud. 

Creating a new European standard 

The work we’re doing with Salto on a local scale is also part of a bigger stepping stone. That’s because our work with the Cloud of Amsterdam is part of the Sustainable Digital Infrastructure Alliance’s wider efforts of creating a sustainable European cloud platform. There is a similar pilot currently running in Berlin as well, so, together with them, we will be one of the first to implement the blueprints the SDIA is developing, including business models, software, and a go-to-market strategy, with the support of local governments and benefitting local businesses. In other words, we’re starting local, but we’re aiming high.

Join the Cloud of Amsterdam

We want you to aim high with us and explore this sustainable innovation. If you’re curious and wondering how our Kubernetes-as-a-service cloud can help your company, be sure to give us a call.

We’d love to sit down and talk to you about the possibilities and opportunities. Let’s talk cloud!