Why CIOs are Rethinking their Cloud Strategy in 2026
Written by Chris Cowdry:
For more than two decades, VMware has been the backbone of enterprise virtualisation. CIOs trusted it as the reliable constant, the technology layer that – just worked. However, we have seen that the Broadcom acquisition has triggered a disruptive shift in the cloud and infrastructure market with leaders across every industry pausing, reassessing their virtualisation and cloud plans.
If you are faced with a similar situation, you are not alone.
The Post Broadcom Reality: Uncertainty, Cost Concerns, and Strategic Change
Since the acquisition closed, organisations are facing the impacts of:
- Partner programmes reshaped
- Licensing changes which have led to expensive subscription bundles
- Increases in cost
For many, this wasn’t just a surprise, it has created a problem as it impacts critical workloads, multiyear strategies, and longstanding operational models. The changes have had a knock-on effect on organisations confidence with relying on VMware as their long-term foundation.
Why the VMware Fallout Matters More than Just Licensing
Whenever a major player shifts direction, it creates shockwaves across the technology stack. The recent VMWare changes have collided with other trends:
- Confidence in hyperscale public cloud is weakening, fuelled by outages, rising egress costs, and regulatory pressure.
- Geopolitical concerns are intensifying, with the Patriot Act and Cloud Act raising valid questions about data sovereignty.
- AI workloads are exploding, creating unprecedented demand for compute, storage, and GPU capacity.
The VMware disruption and these challenges has amplified the need for CIOs to rethink their infrastructure strategy and to consider exploring credible, sovereign, VMware independent alternatives.
The Rise of the Sovereign Alternative Cloud
In response to this rapidly shifting landscape, a new category of cloud is gaining momentum. Enterprise grade, UK sovereign alternative cloud platforms designed specifically for organisations leaving VMware or reducing hyperscale dependency.
Platforms like Trust Cloud, powered by Zadara, deliver the virtualisation features enterprises rely on. Delivering high availability, workload mobility, resilience, and security without the volatility or cost unpredictability now associated with VMware and hyperscale environments.
CIOs are seeking:
- Predictable OpEx without steep licensing uplifts
- A secure, sovereign home for sensitive data
- A hypervisor platform with stability and a long-term roadmap
- Elastic storage and compute without complex pricing traps
- A smoother migration path away from VMware without rearchitecting everything
Trust Cloud is engineered intentionally around these priorities.
You Don’t Need to Replace VMware with a Hyperscaler
Organisations don’t have to move to hyperscale cloud providers as an alternative to VMware as this potentially introduces a different set of challenges:
- Increased operating costs
- Lack of control around data jurisdiction
- Latency constraints
- Regulatory exposure
- Skills burden
- And ironically — the same vendor lock in CIOs are trying to escape
The smarter strategy is often to repatriate predictable workloads to a sovereign cloud that offers VMware like capability, predictable economics, and full control, without sacrificing scalability.
Want the Full Strategic Picture? Download the Whitepaper
This blog just scratches the surface. Our full whitepaper: Life After VMware: Navigating the New Cloud Landscape – dives deeper into:
- Implications of Broadcom’s VMware model
- How the hypervisor market is evolving
- Why enterprises are planning workload repatriation
- Where hyperscale cloud fits (and where it doesn’t)
- How sovereign cloud is emerging as the credible enterprise alternative
- Practical steps to migrate safely and efficiently
Download the full whitepaper now And discover how your organisation can build a futureproof cloud strategy that removes risk, restores control, and delivers cost certainty.
Life After VMware
Navigating the New Cloud Landscape
Learn how your organisation can exit VMware safely — and build a future-ready cloud strategy with full UK sovereignty.
About the author:
Chris Cowdry, Cloud Solutions Architect at Trust
Chris Cowdry, Cloud Solutions Architect at Trust specialises in designing and delivering secure, resilient hybrid cloud strategies to enable organisations to modernise their infrastructure with confidence. His expertise spans complex cloud adoption journeys, governance, and performance optimisation, ensuring solutions are both scalable and future-ready. Known for translating technical complexity into clear, actionable insights, Chris helps businesses achieve agility while maintaining security and compliance.
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