WebAssembly is a rapidly evolving cloud-native technology that CSPs should consider adopting

WebAssembly (Wasm) is an emerging cloud-native technology that is attracting the attention of the members of the Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF), and the broader technology community. Wasm is a portable, high-performance binary instruction format with associated system interfaces designed for efficient application execution across various environments, including cloud and edge. It enables code written in multiple languages to run with near-native speed, security and portability on any platform with a Wasm runtime. Essentially, Wasm addresses the question: “What if you could write one application and run it anywhere, on any platform or cloud?”

Achieving multi-cloud operability has been a challenging and ongoing mission for Kubernetes-based implementations, especially for communications service providers (CSPs) with distributed networks and IT infrastructure of varying generations. However, Wasm promises to deliver true application portability, which has significant implications for CSPs.

In this article, we summarise what Wasm is, how it is different to containers, and the potential solutions that it brings to challenges that CSPs have with cloud-native transformation projects. Our recently published report provides more details about Wasm, includes specific information about its implications for CSPs’ networks, and looks into what Etisalat, Orange, nbnCo and Vodafone are doing in this space.