Google Cloud and Cisco have announced a partnership to combine their products and create what the companies are describing as the industry’s first application-centric multi-cloud networking fabric.

What this means in practice is that through Google Cloud and Cisco’s SD-WAN Cloud Hub, customers will be able to mix and match and optimise application stacks by distributing components to the most manageable workloads.

For example, an application suite could have its front end running on one public cloud for cost purposes, the analytics library on another for its artificial intelligence and machine learning expertise – not surprising this example was noted with Google – and the financial side running on-prem for security.

This harmonious vision for multi-cloud workloads living together can only be achieved if the network is right, the two companies said. The network fabric needs to be able to discover apps, identify their attributes, and adapt for the best user experience, while also being able to accommodate shifts in load, taking the strain for an enterprise organisation, while maintaining security.

Another use case which this partnership is aiming to remediate is through applications dynamically requesting required network resources. A business-critical app which is dependent on quick response times, for instance, would have that requirement noted in its Google Cloud service directory entry – for which Cisco’s SD-WAN policies can be applied.

The companies noted that Anthos, Google Cloud’s environment for open applications, is a primary target for this partnership.

“Expansion of the Google-Cisco partnership represents a significant step forward for enterprises operating across hybrid and multi-cloud environments,” said Shailesh Shukla, Google Cloud VP of products and general manager of networking. “By linking Cisco’s SD-WAN with Google Cloud’s global network and Anthos, we can jointly provide customers a unique solution that automates, secures and optimises the end to end network based on the application demands, simplifying hybrid deployments for enterprise organisations.”

The two companies are looking to invite select customers to take part in previews by the end of this year, with general availability slated for the first half of 2021. You can read a blog around the news here.

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