VMware has unveiled plans to enhance adoption of next-generation technologies in Singapore through a pilot training program designed to deepen workforce specialisations levels.

Under the banner of Getting Future Ready, the eight-week program is available to VMware customers and partners enrolled in the SGUnited Traineeship program, with the aim of offering “structured learning paths” towards emerging cloud native job roles and opportunities.

“The vibrancy and strength of Singapore’s innovation economy, along with its deep pool of tech talent, serve as a powerful testament to the country’s Smart Nation ambitions,” said Adrian Hia, country manager of Singapore at VMware.

“As organisations continue to adapt, respond and accelerate their businesses in this new digital paradigm, VMware is committed to leveraging our industry-leading technologies and expertise to up-skill and enable a new generation of tech talents, so they can drive Singapore’s economy forward in its next chapter of growth.”

The program – endorsed by DBS Bank and M1 among others – will offer up to 1000 traineeship opportunities to Singapore-based companies, comprising of a mix of “instructor-led and self-paced training sessions” conducted in-person and online as part of VMware Learning. In addition to learning and engaging with industry specialists, trainees will also have access to “hackathons, hands-on labs and gamification” offerings during the program.

DBS is committed to doing our part to build a strong pipeline of talent in Singapore equipped with the right skills for the new digital economy,” added Jimmy Ng, group CIO at DBS. “We are pleased to now partner with VMware in this initiative to equip our people with cloud-native skills.

“DBS will complement VMware’s training with hands on experience in managing DBS’ private cloud, from engineering a resilient active-active cloud platform, to automating cloud operations at scale. Cloud skills are highly relevant as DBS powers ahead with our digital transformation journey, and contributes to Singapore’s aspiration to be a Smart Nation.”

Upon completion of the program, trainees will undergo a “capstone certification event” in which users will apply key learnings from the course, alongside being awarded with industry-recognised certifications such as VMware Certified Technical Associate (VCTA).

This new VCTA credential will validate the skills and knowledge required by candidates performing operational tasks within a virtualised infrastructure, in areas across multi-cloud operations, networking, security and device management.

Singapore’s innovation ecosystem is going through immerse shift in how modern applications are being built, run and managed to meet fast-changing customer demands,” said Manjot Singh Mann, CEO of M1.

“Our partnership with VMware underscores our strong commitment to support enterprises on their business innovation journeys. In addition, VMware’s training programme will also help to strengthen our competencies, enhancing our ability to tap on cutting-edge technologies to drive greater outcomes for organisations in Singapore.”

CloudBolt Expands Into APAC With Kumolus Acquisition

US-based cloud management and integration vendor CloudBolt Software has acquired Kumolus, a Melbourne-headquartered SaaS cloud management platform (CMP). The deal is designed to deepen CloudBolt’s technical capabilities around cost optimisation, security posture management, and cloud governance, while simultaneously accelerating its expansion into the Asia-Pacific (APAC) market.

The acquisition follows CloudBolt’s earlier purchase of SovLabs and was reported as subject to customary closing and regulatory approvals at the time of announcement.

Why This Acquisition Matters: The Hybrid Cloud Governance Challenge

Enterprise cloud adoption continues to outpace the maturity of the tools and processes used to manage it. According to Flexera’s 2020 State of the Cloud report, the top three challenges cited by enterprise respondents were:

• Security — cited by 83% of enterprises
• Managing cloud spend — cited by 82% of enterprises
• Governance — cited by 79% of enterprises

Gartner also projected that by 2023, 90% of enterprises would make governance their primary requirement when selecting cloud management tooling, up from fewer than 30% in 2020. These figures frame the strategic rationale behind the acquisition: enterprises advancing hybrid cloud adoption need a unified platform that addresses cost visibility, compliance enforcement, and security in a single solution.

About Kumolus

Founded in 2012, Kumolus is a SaaS-based CMP built for deep day-2 operations and continuous optimisation across AWS and Azure environments. Enterprise IT teams use the platform to:

• Discover and visualise cloud environments across accounts and regions
• Automate cloud cost management and rightsizing recommendations
• Continuously enforce security posture and regulatory compliance

The company claims that enterprises using the platform have been able to reduce cloud spend by up to 60% while maintaining compliance with standards such as CIS Benchmarks and PCI-DSS.

Kumolus holds AWS Cloud Management Tools Competency Status — a designation the company describes as rare among global CMPs — and is a recognised AWS Partner Network (APN) member. Its customer base spans Australia, India, and Singapore, with a partner ecosystem that includes NEC Australia, Advent One, and other technology, consulting, and managed service providers.

What CloudBolt Gains From the Deal

CloudBolt Software provides cloud management and integration solutions to enterprise customers, with a platform focused on automation, orchestration, and self-service provisioning. The Kumolus acquisition adds complementary SaaS-native capabilities:

• Cloud cost visualisation and optimisation — real-time spend visibility and automated rightsizing recommendations
• Security posture management — continuous compliance checking against industry frameworks
• Governance tooling — policy enforcement across multi-cloud environments
• APAC market presence — an established customer base and partner network in Australia, India, and Singapore

Leadership Statements

CloudBolt Software CEO Jeff Kukowski commented on the deal:

“As IT, security, and development organisations aggressively invest in hybrid cloud, the need for improved visibility, cost control, and security is paramount. As a SaaS-based solution, Kumolus strengthens CloudBolt’s long-standing mission of delivering rapid time-to-value to customers, and we’ll be in an even stronger place with Kumolus’ visualisation, cost optimisation, and governance capabilities. Moreover, as we grow our customer base beyond North America and Europe, we look forward to the momentum and partners that Kumolus has built to accelerate our growth worldwide.”

Kumolus CEO and co-founder Josh McGrath added:

“CloudBolt continues to extend its leadership position with this acquisition by providing enterprises with the most innovative cost management, security, and governance capabilities for AWS and Azure. Kumolus’ and CloudBolt’s market-leading automation, orchestration, and provisioning capabilities create a powerful combination to help our joint customers and prospects worldwide better meet their hybrid cloud needs.”

Kumolus CTO and co-founder Michael Salleo noted the significance of the AWS technical competency recognition:

“The Kumolus team has worked exceptionally hard over the past few years to bring a leading SaaS-based cloud management platform to market, achieve AWS technical competency, and we’re thrilled that CloudBolt has recognised our leadership.”

Key Takeaways for DevOps and Cloud Engineering Teams

For engineering and platform teams evaluating cloud management tooling, this acquisition signals several broader trends worth tracking:

• CMP consolidation is accelerating. Standalone cost management, security, and governance tools are being absorbed into larger, integrated cloud management platforms.
• SaaS-native delivery is becoming the default expectation. Enterprise buyers increasingly prefer cloud-native SaaS CMPs over on-premise or agent-heavy alternatives.
• Governance is moving up the priority stack. Regulatory compliance and policy enforcement are no longer afterthoughts — they are primary evaluation criteria for platform selection.
• APAC is a growing enterprise cloud market. Vendors with established North American and European presence are actively acquiring APAC-native companies to gain regional footholds.