Neoclouds Disrupt the Cloud Landscape: Four Trends for 2026

The cloud infrastructure landscape is undergoing a significant transformation as neoclouds emerge to challenge traditional hyperscalers like Amazon and Microsoft. As enterprises expand their Artificial Intelligence (AI) workloads and navigate demands for sovereign AI solutions, neoclouds are stepping in to fill the gaps left by larger providers. These specialized cloud service companies, while smaller in scale, are gaining traction by focusing on regional compliance and tailored applications, setting the stage for a major restructuring in the compute ecosystem.

According to ABI Research, several key trends will shape the neocloud market in 2026.

Market Potential: A $250 Billion Opportunity

ABI Research predicts that neocloud companies could generate a staggering $250 billion from GPU-as-a-Service (GPUaaS) by 2030. The driving forces behind this growth include the rising demand for AI inference workloads and the increasing importance of cloud sovereignty. Currently, training workloads dominate GPUaaS revenue, but by 2030, inference workloads are expected to represent 80% of the neocloud market. This shift is largely fueled by the widespread adoption of Generative Artificial Intelligence (Gen AI) across production and real-time enterprise operations.

North America is currently the leader in the neocloud market, accounting for an impressive 88% of total neocloud GPUaaS revenue in 2026. However, this figure is projected to decrease to 72% by 2030 as other regions begin to meet their own sovereign cloud needs.

Acquisitions Driving Full-Stack Capabilities

To enhance their offerings, neocloud providers are actively acquiring software, data, and AI startups. This strategy is essential as they face intense competition from hyperscalers and must differentiate themselves in a crowded market. Building full-stack capabilities in-house is often impractical, prompting providers to seek new technology through acquisitions.

In 2025, notable acquisitions highlighted by ABI Research included:

– **Weights & Biases** by CoreWeave: This integration enhances AI model tracking and observability.
– **OpenPipe** by CoreWeave: Adds capabilities for reinforcement learning and agent training.
– **Monolith AI** by CoreWeave: Expands into industrial R&D and design simulation.
– **Saagie** by Scaleway: Strengthens data governance and orchestration capabilities.
– **Refuel.ai** by Together AI: Enhances data workflow and processing capabilities.

These strategic moves illustrate the urgency for neoclouds to build robust offerings quickly, as latecomers may find themselves at a disadvantage.

Silicon Partnerships: Seeking Alternatives

Historically, neocloud providers have relied on major semiconductor companies such as NVIDIA, AMD, and Intel for their hardware needs. However, Paul Schell, a Senior Analyst at ABI Research, cautions that neoclouds must explore new silicon options to mitigate risks associated with overreliance on a single vendor. Supply constraints, pricing volatility, and competitive pressures necessitate this shift.

The partnership between Groq and Equinix in Europe and Australia is one to watch closely. If successful, it could inspire other neoclouds to pursue similar strategies. Additionally, companies like Cerebras, SambaNova, and Recogni offer application-specific alternatives to traditional GPUs, presenting further opportunities for innovation.

Engaging with Enterprises: A Critical Path Forward

The majority of current GPUaaS demand from neoclouds stems from traditional compute supply chains, particularly from semiconductor companies and hyperscalers. For instance, NVIDIA is a significant customer for both Lambda and CoreWeave, while Microsoft accounted for 62% of CoreWeave’s total revenue in 2024. ABI Research warns that neoclouds risk relegation to a back-end role if they do not actively pursue enterprise clients.

To avoid this fate, neoclouds must engage directly with enterprises and establish trust. They should focus on demonstrating the measurable operational value their infrastructure can offer.

For further insights into the neocloud market and its dynamics, ABI Research offers a free whitepaper titled “11 Things to Know About the Neocloud Market in 2026.” This resource covers various topics, including enterprise pain points, cloud sovereignty, and venture capital trends, providing a comprehensive overview of this evolving landscape.