Google to Unveil New Titan Computer Chip
In an effort to better compete against Amazon and Microsoft in the cloud computing space, Google will reveal the technical details of its new security feature, the Titan computer chip.
Thursday, in an effort to better compete against Amazon.com and Microsoft in the cloud computing space, Alphabet Inc.’s Google will reveal the technical details of its new Titan computer chip, an elaborate security feature for its cloud computing network which was announced in March.
Innovation in Cybersecurity
The Titan chip, which is designed to protect the data centers powering its cloud services, is about the size of a tiny stud earring and has already been installed in each of the many thousands of computer servers and network cards that populate the company’s massive data centers.
Titan scans hardware to ensure it has not been tampered with and if anything has been changed, the chip will prevent the machine from booting, Neal Mueller, head of infrastructure product marketing for Google Cloud Platform, said in a recent interview.
As most servers and other network hardware are made by Asian hardware companies, data center operators have become increasingly concerned that nation-state hackers or cyber criminals could compromise devices before they are sent overseas.
“It allows us to maintain a level of understanding in our supply chain that we otherwise wouldn’t have,” Mueller said.
A Competitive Edge
Google has struggled to compete with Amazon Web Services, which has more features, and Microsoft, which has long-standing relationships with enterprises, Lydia Leong, an analyst for Gartner told Reuters.
The company is hoping its new strategy, spearheaded by the release of the Titan chip, will differentiate its services and attract enterprise customers from sectors with complex compliance regulations, such as those in financial services and the medical field.
Since Google holds just 7 percent of the worldwide cloud market – which is forecasted by Gartner to be worth nearly $50 billion – the goal is for the company to carve out a bigger piece of the pie.
Neither Amazon.com nor Microsoft (which, according to Synergy Research Group, hold 41 percent and 13 percent of cloud market share, respectively) have said if they have implemented similar features.