Leader: Nutanix

Nutanix, which recently named VMware’s Rajiv Ramaswami as its new CEO, won the gold medal for execution on Gartner’s Magic Quadrant for Hyperconverged Infrastructure Software, while ranking second place for vision. The San Jose, Calif.-based HCI pioneer provides some of the most comprehensive HCI software capabilities and data services for on-premises and public cloud deployments. Nutanix has recently expanded support for server hardware OEMs, introduced Nutanix Clusters enabling customers to achieve hybrid clouds using HCI software, and expanded its as-a-service offerings.

Strengths: Gartner said Nutanix has one of the largest and most loyal hyperconverged infrastructure customer bases. Nutanix’s software licenses are fully portable between on-premises and public cloud deployments, while its offerings are now supported in public cloud environments with Nutanix Clusters.

Weaknesses: Nutanix HCI is a premium offering and might not be the most cost-effective for scaled-down and edge deployments. The company is not yet profitable by GAAP standards, Gartner said.