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This audio is auto-generated. Please let us know if you have feedback<\/a>.<\/p>\n ORLANDO, Fla. \u2013 Managing cloud spend will become a key focus for enterprises rolling out AI functionality, and it\u2019s a challenge that\u2019s top of mind for IT leaders.\u00a0<\/p>\n Shanthi Pudota, chief data officer at the Bank of Oklahoma, said cloud will be foundational for deploying AI at scale. That means employing different strategies for managing cloud spend is \u201cpretty high\u201d on her agenda.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWith AI, [cloud spend] is going to be exponentially higher if we don\u2019t manage it well,\u201d Pudota said, speaking Monday at the Gartner IT Symposium\/Xpo in Orlando, Florida.\u00a0\u201cSo really understanding our use cases, having visibility into it and going into it with our eyes open so there are no surprises later in terms of how we manage it.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n IT public cloud spending will exceed over $1 trillion in 2027, said Gartner Distinguished VP and Analyst Dennis Smith, who spoke during a future of cloud session at the conference.\u00a0Public cloud spend is expected to quadruple over the next three years, largely due to the influx of generative AI workloads, according to research from TD Cowen<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n Cloud financial management will be a crucial element for enterprise AI strategies going forward. Through 2030, tech executives should expect costs of traditional cloud services to increase as hyperscalers seek to recoup massive AI investments. Increases will correlate with how successful hyperscalers are in selling new AI services, Smith said.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIt’s going to be vitally important for you to really get your arms around cloud financial management as you\u2019re moving forward with AI workloads,\u201d Smith said during the session.\u00a0<\/p>\n Bryan Mjaanes, chief information technology officer at Wespath Benefits and Investments, attended the session to determine how to position his organization for the future.\u00a0<\/p>\n Mjaanes said some of his top concerns are the speed of AI adoption and value creation from AI use cases. He added that identifying opportunities to drive value from AI<\/a> is a primary focus \u2013 more than cloud spend and spend management.\u00a0<\/p>\n Pudota said the need to deploy a multicloud strategy for AI stood out to her from the session.\u00a0<\/p>\n By 2030, more than 60% of enterprises will conduct intensive AI model activity in one cloud, but include data from another cloud in the model as well, according to Gartner. The figure marks a 50% increase from such usage in 2025.<\/p>\n