The second quarter of 2024 saw a North American technology market in transition, with total distributor revenue flat at $19.5 billion compared to the previous year. The International Data Corporation (IDC), in its North America Distribution Tracker (NADT) report, highlights how the decline in network infrastructure sales was offset by growth in the PC and software sectors, both driven by artificial intelligence (AI).
Ruth Flynn, vice president of research at IDC, highlights how the shift to AI-centric processes is reshaping the market. The focus is shifting from network infrastructure development to software, endpoint, and storage solutions, with growth expected in supporting services and frameworks as well.
PC and Software: The Push of AI
The PC industry regained the top spot in sales, reaching $3.9 billion in the second quarter, thanks to 9.9% year-over-year growth. AI-powered PCs were a significant contributor, generating 17.8% of revenue and growing 33% over the first quarter. Apple and Microsoft in particular enjoyed considerable success with their AI-powered PCs (such as the Copilot+ PC), with 75% and 32% share, respectively.
I PC Windows Copilot+ con IA
The software market also benefited from the growing demand for AI solutions. Software-defined storage (SDS) control software grew 31% year-over-year, driven by AI support and hyperconverged infrastructure. In this segment, Nutanix stood out with 45% growth, followed by NetApp with 24%.
But that’s not all, as the growing demand for compute-centric workloads needed to support AI platforms has also spurred growth in server and storage products. The 3.7% year-over-year increase in enterprise infrastructure was driven by SSDs, servers, and storage systems that leverage both flash and HDD solutions. This trend is expected to continue as technology infrastructure increasingly adapts to the heavy workloads required by AI.
In short, IDC’s analysis paints a clear picture of a rapidly evolving technology market, where artificial intelligence is emerging as the main growth driver. Companies that will be able to seize this opportunity and adapt to the new market needs will be the ones that will be most successful in the near future.
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