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Converged and Hyperconverged Systems in the AI Era: For Core and Edge Deployments

Rajiv Ranjan — Wed, 07 Oct 2026 04:00:00 GMT

This IDC Market Perspective discusses how converged infrastructure (CI) and hyperconverged infrastructure (HCI) have entered a new strategic era. AI workload proliferation from core to edge and the simultaneous increase in edge computing investments have fundamentally changed the value proposition of CI/HCI from operational simplicity to an AI-ready, edge-deployable infrastructure option.

IDC's research confirms that the market leaders — Nutanix, HPE, Dell Technologies, Cisco, and Lenovo — have made significant investments to align their CI and/or HCI platforms with AI requirements. Nutanix brings cloud-like management capabilities through its cloud platform, hardware-agnostic software, and integration with LLM frameworks. HPE has introduced disaggregated architecture and bundled much of its offerings under its GreenLake consumption offering. Dell has transitioned to its private cloud offering and introduced disaggregated architecture as part of it. It offers separate VMware- and Nutanix-based HCI products, as well as validated design offerings for specific workloads. Cisco has a wide range of offerings, including Nutanix-based HCI and an AI POD offering, as well as converged systems in separate collaborations with NetApp, Everpure, and Hitachi Vantara. Lenovo offers HCI products based on Nutanix, VMware, and Microsoft virtualization, as well as an AIPod in collaboration with NetApp.

The enterprises best positioned to capture value from this infrastructure evolution will be those that approach CI/HCI selection as an AI infrastructure decision first. They must evaluate platforms not just on consolidation efficiency but on their ability to serve as the on-premises AI factory for the next few years. As IDC projects AI infrastructure spending to grow rapidly over the next four to five years, decisions made in 2026 will define which organizations lead and which lag in the AI-powered competitive landscape.

"Converged and hyperconverged offerings are fast evolving from merely consolidating virtualization environments to serving dedicated AI training, fine-tuning, and inferencing workloads. Enterprises can evaluate different CI and HCI offerings from multiple vendors for their AI use cases based on architecture, GPU support, performance commitment, and integration with popular LLM frameworks," says Rajiv Ranjan, associate research director, Storage and Data Management, Enterprise Infrastructure, IDC.

IDC MarketScape: Worldwide Advanced Distribution Management Systems 2026 Vendor Assessment

Gaia Gallotti, Jean-François Segalotto, John Villali — Wed, 07 Oct 2026 04:00:00 GMT

This IDC MarketScape study evaluates vendors providing advanced distribution management system (ADMS) solutions to utilities worldwide. It analyzes vendors’ capabilities, strategies, and comparative positioning in a market undergoing structural transformation as distribution networks absorb rising volumes of distributed energy resources (DERs) and utilities pursue electrification-driven grid modernization. The report provides utilities with a structured framework to assess vendor offerings across core operational functionality, DER-aware distribution operations, platform architecture, integration capabilities, and ecosystem extensibility.

“The difference between a genuinely unified ADMS and a set of interfaced applications sharing a label only becomes visible on the worst night of the year,” said Jean-François Segalotto, senior associate advisor, IDC Energy Insights. “This IDC MarketScape shows that the unified model also sets the ceiling on operational AI and autonomy, because every advance — from automated restoration to agentic operator support — ultimately inherits the accuracy of the underlying network model and operational data.”

IDC MarketScape: Worldwide Edge Distributed Energy Resource Management Systems 2026 Vendor Assessment

John Villali, Gaia Gallotti, Jean-François Segalotto — Wed, 07 Oct 2026 04:00:00 GMT

This IDC study evaluates vendors providing edge distributed energy resource management systems (edge DERMSs) solutions to utilities worldwide. It analyzes vendors' capabilities, strategies, and comparative positioning in a market undergoing structural transformation as distribution networks absorb rising volumes of distributed energy resources (DERs) and utilities pursue electrification-driven grid modernization. The document provides utilities with a structured framework to assess vendor offerings across DER portfolio optimization and aggregation, market participation and VPP orchestration, platform architecture, integration capabilities, and ecosystem extensibility.

"Edge DERMS is no longer a bet on future flexibility markets; its infrastructure utilities need now, as DER penetration outpaces the tools built to manage it. The vendors that succeed the next three to five years will be the ones proving real-time dispatch at production scale today while building the interoperability with grid DERMS and ADMS that regulators and utilities will increasingly demand," said John Villali, senior research director, IDC Energy Insights.

IDC ProductScape: Worldwide AI Business-Cycle Services for Media and Entertainment, 2026

Alex Holtz — Wed, 07 Oct 2026 04:00:00 GMT

This IDC ProductScape offers a comprehensive guide on key functionalities of the media industry. Its business cycle comprises operations, orchestration, production, distribution, and monetization (as well as their primary functional use cases). This report features products from Accenture, Arc XP, AWS, Amagi, Comcast Technology Solutions, EPAM, Vizrt, Dalet, HCLTech, Tata Communications, Grass Valley, Ross Video, Telestream, Harmonic, MediaKind, Microsoft, Imagine Communication, and Globant. Based on IDC's framework, the status of each functionality is categorized as fully supported, partially supported, partner provided, road map, or not supported, aiding technology purchasers in quickly identifying which vendors align with their changing requirements.

Supersizing the Middleman: Uber's ezCater Acquisition Extends Platform Consolidation to Catering and Raises the Stakes for Direct Ordering

Dorothy Creamer — Wed, 07 Oct 2026 04:00:00 GMT

This IDC Link examines Uber Technologies' October 6, 2026, announcement that the company will acquire ezCater, the leading U.S. platform for workplace catering and group meal ordering, in an all-cash transaction valued at $2.3 billion. ezCater connects more than 140,000 restaurants with business buyers and generated more than $2.5 billion in gross bookings over the trailing 12 months, and the deal will fold that catering marketplace into Uber Eats and the enterprise relationships of Uber for Business. The acquisition is the latest signal that third-party ordering and delivery is consolidating into a small number of scaled, multiservice platforms, and it lands at a moment when restaurant operators are telling IDC that building their own direct digital channels is a top investment priority. The move carries implications for restaurant brands, franchisors, and multi-brand groups and for the point of sale (POS), ordering, loyalty, and AI vendors that serve them. When the same app that delivers your favorite fast-food indulgence can also cater your company's all-hands lunch, the restaurants that own their guest relationship will be the ones taking a seat at the table.

Coforge: Engineering the AI-Native Future — Domain-Led Delivery for the Agentic Era

Mukesh Dialani — Tue, 06 Oct 2026 04:00:00 GMT

This IDC Vendor Profile analyzes Coforge's current software engineering capabilities, its AI-native delivery vision, and its three-stage road map for the future of AI-led software engineering services. It examines the company's service lines that anchor today's revenue. These include software product engineering, legacy modernization, modern AMS, integration and API gateways, and SRE/observability — and how each will be reshaped by Coforge's Nuuron, AI Operating System, AI Mod Squad construct, and the broader shift in how SDLC, talent, and related economics will impact these services over the next two to three years.

The Coforge narrative, data, figures, and case study outcomes in this document are supplied by Coforge and reflect the company's own reporting. IDC has not independently validated these inputs. IDC's independent views are confined to the IDC Opinion, Future Outlook, and Essential Guidance sections.

IDC Survey: AI-Enabled Water Management Trends, 2026

Bjoern Stengel — Tue, 06 Oct 2026 04:00:00 GMT

This IDC Survey discusses how water management is now a top ESG-AI priority for 22.5% of organizations, up from 18.9% in 2024 — a 19% relative increase, although growth is far from evenly spread. IDC Survey: AI-Enabled Water Management Trends, 2026, based on IDC’s 2026 AI and Sustainability Survey (n = 1,570; weighted) and IDC’s 2024 AI and Sustainability Survey (n = 1,390), finds that process manufacturing (43.7%), financial and investment services (40.4%), and accommodation and restaurants (34.6%) lead AI-for-sustainability investment in water management, while traditionally water-intensive industries — utilities and oil and gas — rank near the bottom of the 24 industries profiled.

Predictive AI is the leading modality across five of the six industry case studies detailed in the document, and AI investment concentrates upstream, in environmentally sustainable manufacturing and sourcing, rather than at the point of consumption. The document also profiles six industries in depth, examines buyer psychology and decision-maker ownership by sector, and provides vendor-selection guidance for technology providers targeting water-focused AI-for-sustainability buyers.

This document is an essential read for sustainability, ESG, and AI product strategy leaders assessing where water-management AI demand concentrates in 2026.

IDC Survey: Market Readiness and Strategic Priorities for Agentic AI

Deepika Giri, Daeil Chun — Tue, 06 Oct 2026 04:00:00 GMT

This IDC survey, Market Readiness and Strategic Priorities for Agentic AI, examines how Asia/Pacific enterprises are adopting, deploying, and scaling agentic AI, based on IDC’s Asia/Pacific Emerging AI Technologies Survey 2025. Agentic AI adoption is moving beyond experimentation, with organizations across the region progressing toward production deployment while following different adoption and governance paths. IT and security remain leading areas for automation, while productivity and innovation are emerging as stronger adoption priorities than cost reduction.

As enterprises move toward greater agent autonomy, new challenges are emerging around control, trust, partnerships, governance, and cost. The document examines how these factors will shape the next phase of agentic AI adoption across Asia/Pacific. Findings indicate that success will increasingly depend not only on technology capabilities but also on effective governance, ecosystem partnerships, commercial models, managed services, and market-specific execution. The document also provides focused country perspectives on India, Australia, and Singapore, highlighting how adoption priorities, engagement models, and governance approaches vary across these key markets.

Market Analysis Perspective: Worldwide Datacenter Facilities Services, 2026

Andrew Buss, Luis Fernandes, Dr. William Lee — Tue, 06 Oct 2026 04:00:00 GMT

This IDC Market Analysis Perspective provides insight into the current and future state of the datacenter facilities services market. It includes an overview of the current market landscape, a technology buyer perspective, a market outlook, and IDC's advice for service providers.

It is based on data from IDC's Semiannual Datacenter Facilities Tracker as well as from IDC's Enterprise Datacenter Survey.

"With an expected double-digit growth until the end of the decade, datacenters have become a critical asset in today's IT ecosystem. Companies operating and providing services in datacenters are a central figure in the market, providing services for all companies, from the biggest hyperscalers to the smallest start-ups." — Andrew Buss, senior research director, Cloud and Datacenters, Enterprise Infrastructure

Market Forecast: Worldwide Accounts Receivable Applications Forecast, 2026–2030

Kevin Permenter — Tue, 06 Oct 2026 04:00:00 GMT

This IDC study provides the five-year forecast for the accounts receivable applications market and delivers insights into the drivers and inhibitors of growth.

“Collections will shift from chasing late payments to predicting them. AI will pinpoint customer payment behavior early, helping finance safeguard cash flow before issues even surface.” — Kevin Permenter, research director, Financial Applications