Dell's Microsoft/AMD collaboration: Three insights you may have missed from theCUBE's coverage of Dell Technologies World
At Dell Technologies World, theCUBE covered how Dell's partnerships with Microsoft and AMD are reshaping enterprise infrastructure for AI. Dell executives and partners described rising AI deployment costs, including memory and storage cost volatility and runaway token spend, as the force driving creative new solutions. Among them is Dell's new Deskside Agentic AI, an on-premises or PC-based sandbox where AI agents can be built and tested locally without driving up cloud expenses.
Key Takeaways
- Dell's alliances with Microsoft and AMD aim to build integrated infrastructure for AI deployment.
- Escalating AI deployment costs are pushing vendors toward more cost-efficient solutions.
- Memory and storage cost volatility is a major industry trend, with costs going up.
- Token costs are described as through the roof because the volume of tokens consumed is astronomical.
- Dell launched Deskside Agentic AI, a local sandbox for building and testing AI agents without high cloud costs.
- Dell's president of infrastructure solutions sees a large opportunity for partners to add services around AI.
Stats & Key Facts
- #The State of FinOps 2026 report noted that 98% of practitioners now manage AI spend.
- #Most organizations still overspend on AI workloads by four to five times their original budget.
Dell's partnership strategy
Strategic AI partnerships sit at the center of Dell's approach.
- ›Dell's alliances span chipmakers, virtualization leaders, cloud providers and software platforms.
- ›These let Dell make compute, storage, networking and workloads work together across hybrid and multicloud environments.
- ›Two key partnerships involve Microsoft and Advanced Micro Devices.
Arthur Lewis, president of Dell's infrastructure solutions group, said there is still a very large opportunity for the partner community. He noted that with AI, partners are creating new offers and services that surround the infrastructure Dell provides, including data services and day-two services.
Rising AI costs drive new solutions
The first insight from theCUBE's coverage focused on cost pressure.
- ›Enterprises are discovering that AI deployment comes with significant cost.
- ›The State of FinOps 2026 report found 98% of practitioners now manage AI spend.
- ›Most organizations overspend on AI workloads by four to five times their original budget.
Kenny Lowe, a Dell cloud platforms lead, described memory and storage cost volatility as a major industry trend, with costs going up and up. He said this is leading people to be much smarter about how they architect their solutions.
Managing token costs with Deskside Agentic AI
Dell launched a local tool to keep agent development costs down.
- ›Tokens are the fundamental units of data processed by large language models.
- ›Deskside Agentic AI is an on-premises or PC-based sandbox for building and testing AI agents locally.
- ›Local testing avoids driving up cloud expenses, and free token generation can help reduce AI expense.
Jon Siegal, senior vice president of Dell portfolio marketing, said the cost of tokens is through the roof. He noted that even though the cost per token has come down dramatically, the amount of tokens being consumed is astronomical, leaving customers to balance which workloads run where.
The opportunity for partners
Dell sees its ecosystem as a continuing source of innovation.
- ›Lewis said partners are creating tons of new offers and services around AI.
- ›Dell provides the infrastructure while partners add other services on top.
- ›Examples include data services and day-two services.
Reporting from Dell Technologies World in Las Vegas, theCUBE explored how Dell and ecosystem partners such as Microsoft and AMD are generating new solutions to power AI deployments.
Frequently Asked Questions
What companies are central to Dell's AI partnership story?
Dell's partnerships with Microsoft and AMD are central, providing integrated solutions to help joint customers build infrastructure platforms for AI.
How widespread is AI spend management?
The State of FinOps 2026 report found that 98% of practitioners now manage AI spend, and most organizations overspend on AI workloads by four to five times their original budget.
What is Deskside Agentic AI?
It is a Dell offering described as an on-premises or PC-based sandbox where AI agents can be built and tested locally without driving up cloud expenses.
Why are token costs a concern?
Even though the cost per token has fallen, the volume of tokens being consumed is astronomical, which keeps overall cloud costs high for customers running AI workloads.
What opportunity does Dell see for partners?
Dell's Arthur Lewis said partners are creating many new offers and services around AI, such as data services and day-two services, on top of the infrastructure Dell provides.
The coverage frames Dell's Microsoft and AMD partnerships as a response to escalating AI costs, with tools like Deskside Agentic AI aimed at keeping agent development affordable.
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