Among developers involved in building, deploying, or managing applications in the cloud, we find a high level of interest in distributed cloud computing, as well as a significant proportion of developers already using distributed cloud solutions in some capacity. Crucially, this high level of interest is found across all industries, but with a higher interest in industries like data analytics.

The developers surveyed were frequently most motivated and intrigued by features that help them to better serve their customers with lower latency and a better ability to scale services across a range of geographies.

Developer apprehensions around distributed cloud are commonly found with concerns about the costs of implementing and managing a distributed cloud network, as well as security concerns that emerge from a wider threat surface.

Developers suggest that the increased adoption and proliferation of standards for data security and interoperability is important to assist their own adoption of distributed cloud solutions. However, while there is a high level of interest and excitement from cloud developers around distributed cloud, many may find themselves unprepared once this future arrives.

Many observations throughout this study suggest that developers may still be viewing the distributed cloud through a platform-centric lens, which is impacting their imagination about how distributed clouds operate differently from the current legacy cloud framework. In a positive light, developer expectations of vendors suggest developers are keen to embrace this open, cloud-native future.

Developers primarily expect their cloud infrastructure providers to ensure high reliability of uptime and a flexible and scalable service. This provides the backbone upon which they can build and begin to take advantage of all of the benefits and opportunities they previously outlined.