Red Hat, enterprise open-source software solutions provider, emphasised the importance of open platforms and hybrid infrastructure as enterprises navigate the growing demands of artificial intelligence (AI).
Speaking at the company’s summit, Matt Hicks, president and chief executive officer at Red Hat, argued that success will depend on building on the “right foundation” rather than relying on a single vendor, cloud, or AI model.
Building the right foundation
He said: “The organisations that will have the most success in this environment are not necessarily the ones that spin the most or move the fastest. They will be the ones who build on the right foundation. “
He added that virtual machines, containers, and AI agents are not competing with each other but are converging.
“The answer to this is not going to be one cloud or one vendor or one model. It will be the right platform with a broad ecosystem that supports it. And I’m biased, but I think the organisations that will have the most success will pick a platform with an open foundation,” he said.
Artificial intelligence adoption
In his keynote, Hicks noted that AI adoption is not optional at this point.
“Whether it brings you energy or whether it creates real uncertainty. I think for many of us, it is a combination, a mixture of both.”
As much as the technology cannot be ignored, Hicks noted that there is not a single path to adoption: “Some of you might be ready to run AI or are in production. Some of you might just be trying to figure out what is hype and what is reality at this point. And some of you might just be trying to get your infrastructure to make this a reality. All of that is legit.”
However, he warns against adopting extremes. On one side, moving so slowly that it prevents organisations from catching up, and on the other side, moving too fast, building on a shaky foundation, not knowing what comes next.
“I’ve genuinely never been more excited about the potential of the application of this technology. And also that the timing is perfect for us to figure out this journey together,” he concluded.
The Red Hat Summit convenes over 6,000 technology partners, vendors, and end users to shape the future of AI, virtualisation, and cloud architecture at the Georgia World Congress Centre in Atlanta from May 11-14, 2026.
