Strategic Cloud Platform Services
Digital sovereignty, AI and cloud resilience are among the new trends shaping how organizations select a public cloud provider in 2025. Use this Magic Quadrant to understand how hyperscalers are adapting to new customer demands and determine which providers are right for your business.
Market Definition
Gartner defines strategic cloud platform services (SCPS) as standardized, automated, public cloud offerings integrating infrastructure services (for example, computing, network and storage), platform services (for example, application, data and value-added services such as AI/ML) and transformation services (resources to help customers adopt cloud-oriented IT delivery models). Although owned by the service provider, infrastructure and platform services may be hosted in providers’ infrastructures or customers’ data centers. Services should be elastically scalable, metered by use and consumable via web-based interfaces and programmable APIs. Transformation programs may be delivered by automated, self-service interfaces, and managed interactions facilitated by account teams/partners.
Not all enterprise cloud journeys are the same; however, there are similarities. In Cloud Journey: A Comprehensive Guide to Navigate Complexity and Avoid Pitfalls, Gartner defines four broad types of cloud journeys that our clients take: Technology replacement, Cloud-native adoption, Cloud innovation, Business transformation.
Each journey requires a different combination of cloud services and digital transformation activities. To choose the right approach, Gartner clients must determine where they are and where they’re headed. There are many types of cloud service providers (CSPs) in the market— infrastructure/platform/software as a service (IaaS/PaaS/SaaS), as well as managed services providers (MSPs). However, few strategic global hyperscalers combine the breadth and depth of capabilities necessary to meet any enterprise where it is, help it determine where it’s headed, and provide the cloud services and transformation support to help it get there.
Customers must consider their relationship with their SCPS provider of choice as long term and strategic. While selecting the SCPS provider that is right for their business, Gartner clients must:
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Gauge the relative strengths and weaknesses of each provider in the areas that are important to the business.
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Determine which providers are most aligned with their immediate and long-term objectives in the cloud.
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Learn about provider programs and resources to help digitally transform the organization.
Report 2025
Here is a summary of the vendors featured in the Gartner magic quadrant 2025 report.
For the full analysis and detailed insights, you can read the report
here
and view the magic quadrant graphic
here.
| Market Status | Market Vendor |
|---|---|
Leader |
Amazon Web Services |
Leader |
|
Leader |
Microsoft |
Leader |
Oracle |
Niche Player |
IBM |
Niche Player |
Huawei Cloud |
Niche Player |
Tencent Cloud |
Challenger |
Alibaba Cloud |
Report 2024
Here is a summary of the vendors featured in the Gartner magic quadrant 2024 report.
For the full analysis and detailed insights, you can read the report
here
and view the magic quadrant graphic
here.
| Market Status | Market Vendor |
|---|---|
Leader |
Amazon Web Services |
Leader |
|
Leader |
Microsoft |
Leader |
Oracle |
Niche Player |
IBM |
Niche Player |
Huawei Cloud |
Niche Player |
Tencent Cloud |
Challenger |
Alibaba Cloud |