Open Hardware Is Becoming A Trend: State of the Edge Report

### Overview In this panel discussion, guests Matt Trifero (State of the Edge Co-Chair and CMO of Vapor IO) and Jacob Smith (VP of Bare Metal Strategy and Marketing at Equinix), interviewed by Swapnil, discuss the release and findings of the State of the Edge report under the Linux Foundation (LF Edge). The initiative aims to provide vendor-neutral open research, standardized vocabulary, and market forecasting to demystify edge computing and track its rapid evolution.

### Key Topics - **Demystifying and Defining the Edge:** The edge is described as placing compute closer to data and end-user experiences, specifically focusing on the last-mile network across both service provider and user/device facets. - **Report Structure:** The report is organized into four core pillars—Hardware, Software, Networks, and Critical Infrastructure—along with an updated bottoms-up financial forecast model and an interstitial series called "Postcards from the Edge." - **Open Hardware and Open Source Influence:** Hardware innovation is increasingly shaped by open source software, open hardware designs, and major industry M&A activities (e.g., AMD buying Xilinx, NVIDIA attempting to acquire Arm). - **The Role of 5G and Spectrum:** 5G serves as both an enabler and a direct consumer of edge computing through the virtualization of cellular network functions on whitebox servers. Additionally, unlicensed spectrum, open source initiatives like Facebook's Magma, and satellite connectivity help address the digital divide across rural and underserved areas. - **Open Governance and LF Edge:** LF Edge and the Linux Foundation provide an impartial governance model, cross-pollinating projects (such as Kubernetes and open glossaries) and allowing companies to establish common, non-differentiated infrastructure.

### Technical Details - **Financial & Infrastructure Forecasting:** The report models edge demand from the ground up, evaluating use cases, processing requirements, and converting aggregate power demands (kilowatts) into infrastructure expenditures. The updated forecast projects $180 billion in data center infrastructure needed to support edge computing, significantly accelerated by COVID-19 demand. - **Network Function Virtualization:** Telecom networks are transitioning towards running virtualized network functions (VNFs) on standard whitebox servers within edge facilities, enabling multi-tenant workloads. - **Open Glossary of Edge Computing:** Originating as an internal style guide to standardize terminology (e.g., telco edge, near edge, far edge), the glossary was contributed to GitHub as an open source project and served as a foundational project under LF Edge alongside landscape and research working groups.

### Takeaways - **Mass Customization of Hardware:** Due to global power and efficiency limits, compute infrastructure at the edge will require specialized, highly efficient, and customized hardware components. - **Automation Acceleration:** Enterprise digital transformation and automation roadmaps that originally spanned 10 years have shrunk to 3–5 years. - **Convergence into the Core Internet:** Within roughly five years, the term "edge computing" is predicted to largely dissolve, seamlessly integrating into the broader definition of cloud computing and the next iteration of the internet.