GE releases Predix Cloud, world’s first cloud service

NEW YORK -- GE has announced the launch of Predix Cloud, the world’s first and only cloud solution designed specifically for industrial data and analytics.

This platform-as-a-service (PaaS) will capture and analyze the unique volume, velocity and variety of machine data within a highly secure, industrial-strength cloud environment.

Predix Cloud will drive the next phase of growth for the Industrial Internet and enable developers to rapidly create, deploy and manage applications and services for industry. With $4 billion in software revenues in 2014 and projected software revenues of $6 billion in 2015, GE continues to grow its investment in software.

Jeffrey Immelt, CEO of GE, said, “Cloud computing has enabled incredible innovation across the consumer world. With Predix Cloud, GE is providing a new level of service and results across the industrial world.

“A more digital hospital means better, faster healthcare. A more digital manufacturing plant means more products are made faster. A more digital oil company means better asset management and more productivity at every well. We look forward to partnering with our customers to develop customized solutions that will help transform their business.”

Predix Cloud will enable operators to use machine data faster and more efficiently, saving billions of dollars annually. By combining GE’s deep domain expertise in information technology (IT) and operational technology (OT), GE’s Predix Cloud will deliver advanced tools like asset connectivity, machine data support and industrial-grade security and compliance.

Harel Kodesh, V.P., general manager of Predix at GE Software, said, “A cloud built exclusively to capture and analyze machine data will make unforeseen problems and missed opportunities increasingly a complication of the past. GE’s Predix Cloud will unlock an industrial app economy that delivers more value to machines, fleets and factories - and enable a thriving developer community to collaborate and rapidly deploy industrial applications in a highly protected environment.”

The Industrial Internet is generating data twice as quickly as any other sector. With investment in infrastructure expected to top $60 trillion over the next 15 years, the number of devices connected to the Internet will continue to swell, generating an unprecedented collection of data and analytics. Built for Predix, the cloud platform for the Industrial Internet, Predix Cloud is designed to provide a highly secure infrastructure for this next phase of growth, which will generate a new level of insight, asset performance management (APM) capabilities and innovation in the developer community.

The success of the Industrial Internet depends on a collaborative ecosystem of partners. GE’s Predix Cloud is purpose-built from the ground up, but it will also run on other cloud fabrics if required by a customer. Predix Cloud uses Pivotal's Cloud Foundry to help with application development, deployment and operations.

GE businesses will begin migrating their software and analytics to the Predix Cloud in fourth quarter of 2015, and the service will be commercially available to customers and other industrial businesses for managing data and applications on Predix Cloud in 2016.