Intel and Google are collaborating on a new reference design for hybrid cloud dubbed Anthos.

Anthos is based on the second-generation Intel Xeon Scalable processor and an optimised Kubernetes software stack.

The approach is intended to deliver increased workload portability to customers who want to take advantage of hybrid cloud environments.

"Google and Intel enjoy a long-standing partnership focused on delivering infrastructure innovation to customers," said Google Cloud senior vice president of technical infrastructure Urs Hölzle.

"Data centre environments today are complex, and hardware and software infrastructure is not 'one size fits all.' Our ability to collaborate with Intel and take advantage of their technology and product innovation to deliver Anthos solutions ensures that our customers can run their applications in the way that best suits them."

Intel data centre group executive vice president and general manager Navin Shenoy said "Our collaboration with Google in delivering the infrastructure and software optimisations required to advance their hybrid and multi-cloud solution is a natural fit with Intel's vision for data-centric computing.

"We're delivering an Intel technology foundation for customers to take advantage of their data, and that requires delivery of architectures that can span across various operating environments. This collaboration will give customers a choice of optimised solutions that can be utilised both in the on-prem as well as cloud environments."

Early adopters are already speaking about their experiences.

"At HSBC, we needed a consistent platform to deploy both on-premises and in the cloud," said HSBC group chief information officer Darryl West.

"Google Cloud's software-based approach for managing hybrid environments provided us an innovative, differentiated solution that was able to be deployed quickly for our customers."

Siemens head of research Martin Lehofer said "Anthos is a great fit for us. It gives us a unified management view of our hybrid deployment and a consistent platform to run our workloads across environments."

The Anthos reference design will be delivered by the middle of the year, with products expected to be available from OEMs and solutions integrators by the end of 2019.

Among the hardware vendors and SIs expressing support for Anthos are Cisco, VMware, Dell EMC, HPE, Lenovo, Accenture, Deloitte, HCL Technologies, NTT Communications, Tata Consultancy Services, and Wipro.

ISVs committed to Anthos integration include Citrix, F5, GitLab, MongoDB, NetApp and Splunk.