Cloud in 2025: Clarity, Cost and the Case for Control
The new State of the Cloud Report is out, and it tells a clear story: organisations are going all-in on cloud, but the cracks in cost control are showing. If 2024 was about scaling fast, 2025 needs to be about getting smart.
Here’s what stood out - and what it means for you.
Cloud waste is still a significant problem
Despite all the tools, teams and intentions, over a quarter of IaaS and PaaS spend is still being wasted. That’s before you even factor in underused software licenses (24% wasted). The sheer scale of this is astonishing - and yet, unfortunately, unsurprising. Most organisations are running without joined-up FinOps and ITAM practices.
💡 Our advice: If you're not treating software and infrastructure spend as one ecosystem, you're leaking value. FinOps must go beyond billing dashboards.
FinOps is maturing - but still misunderstood
Good news: 59% of orgs surveyed now have a FinOps team in place (up from 51%). Better news: only 14% say they have no plans to build one. But here’s the catch - many FinOps teams still don’t have clear responsibility for cloud license management. That's like managing your fuel bill without knowing your engine size and distance you need to travel.
🧠 Our advice: If your FinOps team isn’t talking to your procurement and software asset management leads, you’re flying blind.
AI is eating cloud spend - and fast!
72% are now using generative AI in some form. That figure was 47% last year. And we’re seeing a spike in the use of data warehousing services, often to feed AI models. More AI means more compute, more storage - and more chance of cost spiralling out of control if you’re not tracking value as closely as usage.
📊 Our advice: Treat GenAI like a product, not a toy. Build in cost guardrails and ROI checkpoints from the start.
Hybrid/multi-cloud is the new normal, but so is complexity
Most enterprises are now deep into hybrid or multi-cloud setups. Azure has edged slightly ahead of AWS in enterprise usage, but both dominate. Google Cloud continues to own the “experimental” space. The real challenge is not adoption - it’s optimisation.
🧭 Our advice: Don’t add clouds until you’ve mastered the ones you’ve got. A sprawling footprint without strong governance is a recipe for overspend and outages.
Sustainability is rising - but still definitely playing catch-up
57% now track their cloud carbon footprint or plan to in the next year. It’s encouraging. But for most, cost still trumps sustainability. That might work for now, but regulation (especially in Europe) is coming.
🌱 Our advice: Get ahead of the compliance curve. Sustainability isn’t just good ethics - it’s going to be good business hygiene.
Final work: Run cloud like a business
Cloud is no longer a playground. It’s a primary cost centre, a productivity enabler, and increasingly, a reputational risk if not managed well. The organisations that will win in 2025 are those that bring discipline, visibility and financial fluency to their cloud strategies.
At Shaping Cloud, we help organisations move from reactive firefighting to proactive cost and value optimisation - grounded in real FinOps and governance maturity.
If you’re ready to take control, we’re ready to help.