Ashish Kumar, CEO of Teleglobal International

Cloud computing often delivers agility but also hidden waste. Industry surveys report that organisations typically overspend on cloud by roughly 25–35 per cent. In practice, continuous artificial intelligence (AI)-driven optimisation can claw back that wasted budget. For example, automating rightsizing and scheduling can recover 20–35 per cent of a cloud bill (i.e. $250K on a $1M spend) by eliminating idle resources and underutilisation.

Cloud cost challenge

Businesses struggle to control cloud costs because resources are easy to spin up and bills are complex. One consulting study found enterprises spend on average 35 per cent more on cloud resources than they actually need. Similarly, a Deloitte survey found roughly 27 per cent of cloud spend is wasted. Unused virtual machines, untapped reservation discounts, and sprawling multi-cloud environments all contribute. Half of organisations admit they overshot last year’s cloud budget (averaging a 15 per cent overrun). With pay-as-you-go pricing and multiple teams provisioning services, resources can slip out of control: idle servers run off-hours, storage tiers are misassigned, and departments purchase SaaS or compute without coordination.

Those inefficiencies add up. For example, one analysis noted that failing to apply autoscaling and rightsizing typically leads to wasted capacity. Complex billing and shadow IT amplify the problem. In short, “the race to the cloud” has often resulted in rising bills and little transparency. Enterprises need smarter tools to scan thousands of SKUs and usage metrics continuously, or budgets will keep ballooning.

How AI and automation help

Fortunately, new AI and machine learning (ML) tools can tackle these problems at scale. Rather than relying solely on manual audits, machine learning algorithms continuously analyse usage patterns, predict demand spikes, and flag anomalies. For example, Gartner notes that generative AI can “automatically analyse cloud billing, resource usage and infrastructure efficiency.” This means unusual spending trends or over-provisioned workloads are detected in real time. Automated systems can then recommend (or even enact) actions like rightsizing instances, scheduling idle workloads to shut down, or shifting to cheaper regions.

Using AI for cost optimisation is becoming a priority. Gartner found 54 per cent of infrastructure leaders cite cost reduction as a top goal for AI projects. Many FinOps platforms now include ML-driven forecasting and anomaly detection. For example, AWS’s new Cost Optimisation Hub automatically computes “potential savings” from idle or oversized resources, giving teams daily insights into how to improve efficiency. In practice, businesses see significant results: one AWS case study reported improving cloud efficiency from 60 per cent to 82 per cent and saving $4.6M annually through optimised reservations and automation.

From my own experience at Teleglobal International, AI driven analytics bring continuous oversight to cloud spend. The system can scan thousands of resources in real time, flag waste, and auto schedule shutdowns or rightsized. This kind of intelligent automation cuts costs by predictable amounts without adding manual work. When combined with strong FinOps practices, cloud stops being a black box and becomes a managed investment. It is not surprising that 62 percent of companies now say optimising existing cloud use is their top cost saving initiative.

Five practical optimisation steps

  • Rightsize compute resources: Use AI and tooling to match VM sizes to actual workloads. Analysts find rightsizing can cut costs by around 7 per cent. On a $1M annual bill, that is roughly $70,000 saved. For example, moving from oversized instances to ones that fit the workload avoids paying for excess CPU/RAM.
  • Implement autoscaling and scheduled shutdowns: Ensure applications scale out and in automatically. Policy-based automation (shutting down dev/test instances on nights/weekends) typically yields another 9 per cent savings. That’s about $90,000 off a $1M cloud spend. Continuous scaling and shutdowns eliminate many idle hours, cutting waste.
  • Use commitment plans and Spot instances: Switch on-demand workloads to reserved instances or savings plans for steady-state capacity, and use spot/preemptible instances for flexible tasks. AWS reports up to 72 per cent discount with one- or three-year commitments (saving ~$720,000 on $1M) and up to 90 per cent off with Spot Instances (saving ~$900,000 on $1M) for fault-tolerant workloads. For example, a $100k baseline VM bill could become just $28k (reserved) or $10k (spot) while maintaining performance.
  • Adopt efficient architectures (e.g. ARM/Graviton): Modern instance types can boost price-performance. AWS’s Graviton ARM instances deliver up to 40 per cent better price-performance than comparable x86 servers. Migrating workloads (especially large stateless or container jobs) to these chipsets can save ~$400,000 per $1M (40 per cent) of compute cost. Similarly, use serverless/database tiering to match spend to demand.
  • Establish FinOps and governance: Create a cloud financial ops culture with tagging, budget ownership, and dashboards. Explicit oversight often avoids roughly 25–30 per cent of waste. (Deloitte found about 27 per cent of spend is wasted without control.) On a $1M budget, better governance could save ~$270,000 by preventing orphaned resources and enforcing policies. Chargeback/showback models and regular reviews ensure accountability and sustain long-term savings.

Risks and mitigation

Relying on automation can introduce new risks if unchecked. For example, aggressive scheduling might inadvertently turn off a needed instance, or predictions might under-provision critical workloads. To mitigate this, define clear policies and safe guardrails (e.g. exclude production systems from automated shutdowns) and require human review for major changes. Use gradual rollouts of AI suggestions and monitor SLAs closely. Also beware of vendor lock-in: avoid overcommitting in ways that reduce flexibility if needs change. Robust monitoring and alerts can catch any missteps early. In general, pair intelligent tools with a strong FinOps team so that algorithms handle routine optimisations and humans oversee strategy.

India Focus

Cloud costs matter even more in India’s booming market. Research shows India’s IT budget (driven by cloud adoption) is growing roughly 10 per cent annually, expected to reach $176.3 B by 2026. That means Indian enterprises and government projects will carry ever-larger cloud bills. Industry experts in India are therefore emphasising AI-driven cost controls as a strategic priority. For example, major Indian banks and tech firms are now forming dedicated FinOps groups, using automation tools to track spending daily. The result: many report tighter budgets and improved ROI on their cloud projects.

Conclusion

Cutting cloud spend by 20–35 per cent is realistic with today’s AI and automation. Enterprise leaders should treat cloud cost optimisation as a business priority. Investing in analytics tools, predictive modeling, and FinOps practices pays off quickly, often in months, not years. By benchmarking usage continuously, rightsising aggressively, and utilising AI-driven insights (for example, automated anomaly alerts), companies both save money and free up capital for innovation. In short, the smartest organisations will combine technology and process: they will let machine learning find savings 24/7 while their finance and engineering teams execute strategy. This approach not only slashes the cloud bill, but also enables the agility and growth that modern businesses need.