Take Your Edge Cloud to the Next Level with Rakuten Cloud at Google Cloud Next '26

The rapid emergence of new edge cloud applications presents unprecedented business opportunities, demanding new services and advanced infrastructure to unlock their full potential. To truly capitalize on this, organizations must prioritize robust data management strategies that deliver enhanced security, higher performance, lower latency and greater resilience at the edge.

The Rakuten Cloud team is gearing up to discuss the answers to these challenges at Google Cloud Next ’26 on April 22-24, 2026, in Las Vegas. We’ll be in booth #2107.

We’re going into this year’s event for the first time as an official Google Distributed Cloud Connected Server (GDCCS) OEM partner. This is the ultimate in Google business relationships, the result of years of working together. The benefit for GDCCS customers is access to the industry’s best software-defined storage (SDS), Rakuten Cloud-Native Storage, which is fully integrated into GDCCS with no need to separately specify, install or pay for this software.

I will discuss the benefits of SDS and this OEM collaboration in the four presentations I give in our booth.

Who should attend?

• CTO/business leaders who are managing expanding edge compute systems and new services.
• GDCCS technical managers who want to know how to best use software-defined storage to improve application performance and resilience.
• Tech managers who are looking for synergy between Google Edge and cloud services.
• IT managers in retail, public sector, manufacturing and healthcare organizations that need to transform their IT efficiency.

What will the sessions cover?

• Cost savings and operational benefits using software-defined storage with GDCCS.
• Extending Google Cloud benefits to distributed on-premises locations.
• Cutting-edge use cases across industries, including retail, manufacturing, healthcare, enterprise, BFSI and public sector.
• Understanding software-defined storage’s value in edge AI applications.
• Securing and managing data for distributed edge deployments.

By attending, you will

• Discover how SDS in GDCCS delivers operational benefits and cost savings.
• Gain insights into securing and managing data for distributed edge deployments.
• Explore extending Google Cloud's power to your on-premises locations.
• Understand the critical role of storage in high-performance edge AI applications.
• Learn from peers deploying cutting-edge use cases across diverse industries.

Next-level edge            

There is significant momentum behind edge cloud because it offers so many advantages and can be used by so many organizations. GDDCS customers can get better security, throughput and flexibility thanks to the Rakuten Cloud-Native Storage software.

Session titles and schedule

Session 1: GDC Connected: Your Secure Path to an Edge Transformation CNS SDS is the Enabler

Session 2: Why Software-Defined Storage Is Critical to GDCc

Session 3: GDCs and Software-Defined Storage Use Cases

Session 4: GDC Connected with CNS SDS: Your Secure Path to Edge Transformation

View the complete booth session schedule on our Google Cloud Next ’26 event page: https://cloud.rakuten.com/google-cloud-next-2026

With new edge computing possibilities and Rakuten Cloud’s closer relationship with Google Cloud, now is an exciting time for companies building out their edge network. I hope to connect with you at the show to hear more about your edge plans.