Broadcom has officially launched VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF) 9.0, bringing a wave of upgrades designed to make private cloud operations more efficient, cost-conscious, and developer-friendly. The release reflects a growing shift among enterprises toward optimising private infrastructure while still leveraging the flexibility of hybrid models.
Why Private Cloud is Back in Focus
Broadcom’s research shows that more companies are rebalancing workloads between public and private environments. According to its findings, nearly two-thirds of organisations have moved some applications back on-premise. The main driver? Cost inefficiency. More than 90% of surveyed businesses admitted their public cloud budgets weren’t used effectively, with almost half estimating that at least a quarter of their spending was wasted.
This trend supports what Broadcom’s Prashanth Shenoy calls a “cloud smart” approach: choosing the right platform—private or public—based on business requirements, rather than following a one-size-fits-all strategy.
Streamlined Setup and Smarter Controls
VCF 9.0 introduces a modular architecture aimed at reducing complexity while improving scalability. A redesigned interface gives administrators better visibility into workloads and simplifies day-to-day tasks. The new Quick Start App centralises setup, policy management, and log tracking, helping teams accelerate deployment and resolve issues faster.
Cost tracking is another highlight. Built-in monitoring tools allow IT teams to analyse infrastructure usage, forecast resource needs, and optimise budgets. Updates also make it easier to apply patches and compliance checks across multiple clusters from a single dashboard.
Developers haven’t been left out either. The platform supports both virtual machines and containers within the same environment, with Kubernetes services integrated by default. Developers can request resources through self-service tools and APIs, while platform teams retain oversight with policy-driven governance.
Shenoy noted that many new private cloud workloads are containerised, and VCF is specifically designed to support these natively.
Built for AI and Performance Demands
Artificial intelligence and machine learning require powerful, responsive infrastructure. Broadcom says VCF 9.0 delivers 99% of bare-metal performance for AI workloads, enabling users to run advanced applications without sacrificing speed. Features like vMotion live migration also allow workloads to be shifted between systems without downtime.
Security has been strengthened too. A new compliance dashboard improves visibility into system posture, and confidential computing options—such as encrypted memory and secure enclaves—ensure sensitive workloads remain protected in hybrid environments.
Broadcom highlighted its own use of the platform, consolidating from 41 data centres down to seven, while increasing resource utilisation to nearly 90%. Built-in showback and chargeback tools also allow businesses to directly map spending to usage, improving cost transparency.
Security and Load Balancing Updates
Alongside VCF 9.0, Broadcom introduced enhancements to vDefend and Avi Load Balancer.
- vDefend now supports self-service micro-segmentation and integrated threat detection within the virtualisation layer. Security teams can define guardrails while application owners configure policies for their specific workloads. Additional features include traffic filtering by geography and support for importing existing deployments.
- Avi Load Balancer gains multi-tenant support and tighter integration with automation frameworks. Scaling, service discovery, and policy management are now more automated, while a built-in web application firewall (WAF) helps organisations meet stricter regulatory standards such as PCI compliance. Integration with Kubernetes ingress and the Gateway API makes it more versatile for modern applications.
Moving Toward “Cloud Smart” Infrastructure
The release of VCF 9.0 underscores Broadcom’s commitment to making private cloud management more agile, transparent, and secure. By blending automation with stronger controls, the company is enabling businesses to better align infrastructure strategy with real-world performance and cost considerations.
As enterprises seek balance between private and public cloud, solutions like VCF 9.0 aim to make the private side of the equation just as scalable, flexible, and easy to use as the public cloud—without the inefficiencies that have driven many to reconsider their cloud strategy.
