Nutanix Cloud Infrastructure: VM Platform Ledger 2026 Scorecard

Part of the VM Platform Ledger (edition 2026-09-30). How the scores work: methodology.

Snapshot

Type: product
Owner: Nutanix Inc. (public, NTNX)
Engine: AHV (KVM-based, own management and storage layer)
Licence: Term subscription, per core, Starter / Pro / Ultimate tiers
Latest release: AOS 7.6 + AHV 11.2, 2026-07-27
Next milestone: NKP Metal GA, AMD GPU support, Cisco FlexPod (all stated for H2 2026)
Archetype: Sharp opportunist
Evidence grade: B. Most rows rest on vendor blogs and press (A/B). Feature lists for six older releases and the vTPM date are grade C. No evidence found either way on confidential VMs.

Scorecard

Dimension	Score	Direction
Capability today	89.6 / 100	higher is better
Momentum since end of 2022	+10.0 points (2015 to 2022: +42.9)	higher is better
Credibility	17.5 / 25	higher is better
Commercial risk	10.5 / 25	lower is better
Technical lock-in	14.5 / 25	lower is better
Integrator fit	15.5 / 20	higher is better
AI leverage	14.0 / 20	higher is better
Ledger Index	72.6 / 100	balanced weights; see the methodology

Capability by domain, 2015 to today

Scores 0 to 5 against fixed anchors; total is weighted to 100.

Domain (weight)	2015	2019	2022	Today
Compute core (15)	2	3.5	4	4.5
Storage (12)	3.5	4	4	4.5
Networking / SDN (10)	1.5	3	4	4.5
Data protection / DR (12)	2.5	4	4.5	5
Migration-in (8)	0.5	4	4	5
GPU / AI (10)	0	3	4	4.5
Kubernetes (8)	0	3	3.5	4
Security / confidential (8)	2.5	3	3.5	3.5
Fleet / multi-site (9)	2.5	3.5	4	4.5
Automation / ecosystem (8)	2.5	3.5	4	4.5
Total / 100	36.7	69.6	79.6	89.6

Year by year: 2015: 36.7 · 2016: 40.7 · 2017: 57.6 · 2018: 64.8 · 2019: 69.6 · 2020: 71.6 · 2021: 76.5 · 2022: 79.6 · 2023: 81.1 · 2024: 85.6 · 2025: 88.0 · 2026: 89.6

What moved the score

Year	Domain	Change	Points	Trigger
2016	Kubernetes	0 → 0.5	+0.8	AOS 4.7: Docker volume plugin
2016	Migration-in	0.5 → 2.5	+3.2	AOS 4.7: one-click ESXi-to-AHV cluster conversion
2017	Automation / ecosystem	2.5 → 3.5	+1.6	AOS 5.5: Calm automation; v3 API
2017	Compute core	2 → 3.5	+4.5	AOS 5.0/5.5: dynamic scheduling, affinity rules, vNUMA, hot-add
2017	Data protection / DR	2.5 → 3.5	+2.4	AOS 5.5: NearSync 1-minute RPO
2017	GPU / AI	0 → 3	+6.0	AOS 5.5: NVIDIA vGPU and passthrough
2017	Migration-in	2.5 → 3.5	+1.6	Xtract for VMs (later Move)
2017	Security / confidential	2.5 → 3	+0.8	AOS 5.5: software encryption at rest
2018	Data protection / DR	3.5 → 4	+1.2	AOS 5.10: Leap DR runbooks; Veeam for AHV
2018	Fleet / multi-site	2.5 → 3.5	+1.8	1-node and 2-node clusters; Life Cycle Manager
2018	Networking / SDN	1.5 → 3	+3.0	AOS 5.6: Flow microsegmentation
2018	Storage	3.5 → 4	+1.2	AOS 5.5/5.8: software encryption, native key manager, block services
2019	Kubernetes	0.5 → 3	+4.0	Karbon GA: Kubernetes on AHV with CSI
2019	Migration-in	3.5 → 4	+0.8	Move 3.0: Hyper-V and AWS sources
2020	GPU / AI	3 → 4	+2.0	AOS 5.18.1: live migration of vGPU VMs
2021	Data protection / DR	4 → 4.5	+1.2	AOS 6.0: Metro Availability for AHV with witness
2021	Fleet / multi-site	3.5 → 4	+0.9	AOS 5.20: Foundation Central; Prism Central to 25,000 VMs
2021	Networking / SDN	3 → 4	+2.0	AOS 6.0: Flow Networking with VPCs
2021	Security / confidential	3 → 3.5	+0.8	AOS 5.20: Secure Boot; vTPM follows in 2022
2022	Automation / ecosystem	3.5 → 4	+0.8	NCM bundles self-service and governance
2022	Compute core	3.5 → 4	+1.5	AOS 6.1 memory overcommit; 6.5 VM templates
2022	Kubernetes	3 → 3.5	+0.8	Karbon becomes NKE; OpenShift certified on AHV
2023	Compute core	4 → 4.5	+1.5	AOS 6.7: on-demand cross-cluster live migration
2024	Automation / ecosystem	4 → 4.5	+0.8	v4 API GA; official Terraform and Ansible
2024	Fleet / multi-site	4 → 4.5	+0.9	Nutanix Central GA
2024	GPU / AI	4 → 4.5	+1.0	Nutanix Enterprise AI GA
2024	Kubernetes	3.5 → 4	+0.8	Nutanix Kubernetes Platform (from D2iQ)
2024	Networking / SDN	4 → 4.5	+1.0	AOS 7.0: load balancer in VPCs, next-gen network security
2025	Data protection / DR	4.5 → 5	+1.2	AOS 7.3/7.5: multi-site Metro, multi-target replication
2025	Storage	4 → 4.5	+1.2	External storage: Dell PowerFlex, Pure FlashArray; NVMe/TCP
2026	Migration-in	4 → 5	+1.6	Move 6.3: zero-copy ESXi-to-AHV on external arrays

Direction, 2023 to 2026

Each release item carries one theme and one driver (V vision, C customer need, M market window, U upstream, P portfolio).

Date	Item	Theme	Driver
2023-08	AOS 6.7: on-demand cross-cluster live migration	D1 Core compute	C
2023-08	Cisco alliance replaces HyperFlex	D11 Ecosystem openness	M
2023-08	GPT-in-a-Box	D6 AI/GPU infrastructure	V
2023-12	D2iQ Kubernetes assets acquired (becomes NKP)	D8 Kubernetes	V
2024-05	AOS 6.8: multi-cluster placement, CPU compatibility	D1 Core compute	C
2024-05	Nutanix Central SaaS GA	D10 Fleet/edge	V
2024-11	Nutanix Enterprise AI GA	D6 AI/GPU infrastructure	V
2024-12	AOS 7.0: VPC load balancer, network security	D3 Networking	C
2024-12	AOS 7.0: single release model; AHV unbundled	D12 Packaging	P
2024-12	v4 API GA	D11 Ecosystem openness	C
2025-05	Compute-only licence and Dell PowerFlex external storage GA	D2 Storage	M
2025-06	AOS 7.3: NVMe/TCP, multi-site Metro	D4 Data protection	C
2025-07	Cloud Native AOS 1.0 on Amazon EKS	D8 Kubernetes	V
2025-12	AHV installer for standard compute nodes	D11 Ecosystem openness	M
2025-12	AOS 7.5: Pure FlashArray external storage	D2 Storage	M
2026-03	Nutanix Central on-premises	D10 Fleet/edge	C
2026-04	NKP Metal early access (GA pending)	D8 Kubernetes	V
2026-04	VMware cloud-provider switching programme	D12 Packaging	M
2026-07	AOS 7.6: Dell PowerStore external storage	D2 Storage	M
2026-07	Move 6.3: zero-copy ESXi-to-AHV migration	D5 Migration-in	M
2026-08	Enterprise AI 2.8: agent and MCP gateway	D7 AI-assisted ops	V
2026-08	Service Provider Central GA (multi-tenancy)	D11 Ecosystem openness	C
2026-09	NetApp ONTAP external storage (GA per NetApp)	D2 Storage	M

Centre of gravity: Ecosystem openness (4), Storage (4), Kubernetes (3)
Blind spots (no items): Security
Driver mix: Vision 30%, Customer need 30%, Market window 35%, Upstream 0%, Portfolio 4%
Idea-to-need index: 0.32 (0 = demand-pulled, 1 = thesis-pushed)

Credibility: 17.5 / 25

Criterion	Score	Basis
Cadence	4	Two feature releases a year since 7.0, kept
Roadmap transparency	2	No roadmap; release notes behind portal login; public product-updates feed
Say-do	4	No announcement dropped outright; most GA 3 to 12 months after early access; one 'GA now' claim preceded the release by ~4 months; Project Beacon dissolved
Velocity	4.5	Several substantive capabilities per release, sustained
Lifecycle stability	3	24-month life per release since 7.0 forces a steady upgrade pace; upgrades are in place

Commercial risk: 10.5 / 25 (lower is better)

Criterion	Score	Basis
Price and licence volatility	1.5	No dated price change found; last re-bundle was Feb 2022; release model changed Dec 2024
Purchase constraints	3	Subscription only; all cores in a cluster must be licensed; tiers gate DR and security add-ons
Channel and access	2	Open partner programme; much documentation behind login
Owner stability	1.5	Public, profitable, growing; no ownership change
Cost of staying supported	2.5	Shorter support windows since 7.0; expiry behaviour not documented publicly

Technical lock-in: 14.5 / 25 (lower is better)

Criterion	Score	Basis
Formats	2.5	Raw disks on the vendor's storage fabric; VM definitions in a database
Export path	3	Per-VM OVA export; the vendor migration tool is inbound only
Stack coupling	3.5	Vendor storage software is always the control plane; external arrays only from a named list
Hardware / cloud coupling	2.5	Compatibility-list hardware from several vendors; no mandatory cloud connection
Skills and tooling coupling	3	Proprietary management plane on a KVM base

Integrator fit: 15.5 / 20

Criterion	Score	Basis
Partner programme openness	4	Open programme with channel-led deal control; service-provider track since 2021
Multi-tenancy and self-service	3.5	True multi-tenancy only since Service Provider Central GA (Aug 2026)
API and infrastructure-as-code	4.5	v4 API and SDKs; official Terraform and certified Ansible
Skills and certification	3.5	Full certification ladder; smaller pool than VMware or Microsoft

AI leverage: 14.0 / 20

How the platform uses AI, scored per year like capability. Only GA counts.

Criterion	2019	2022	Today	Latest step
AI workload infrastructure	2.5	4	4	2022: AOS 6.5: scheduling aware of vGPU VMs; NVIDIA AI Enterprise certified 2023
AI platform stack	0	0	4	2026: NAI 2.8: MCP and agent gateways, multi-tenant through Service Provider Central
AI-assisted operations	2.5	2.5	2.5	2019: X-Play event-driven playbooks with anomaly detection
Agent openness	2	2	3.5	2026: Official MCP server (open-source tech preview); NAI agent gateway GA

Year by year: 2015: 2.5 · 2016: 3.5 · 2017: 6.5 · 2018: 6.5 · 2019: 7.0 · 2020: 8.0 · 2021: 8.0 · 2022: 8.5 · 2023: 11.0 · 2024: 12.0 · 2025: 12.0 · 2026: 14.0

AI say-do, 2023 to 2026: 14 AI items announced; 7 GA, 1 still preview, 5 pending, 0 dropped. One more (the conversational NCM AI Assistant) is unclear. All shipped items arrived on or before the stated date.

Nutanix sells a real AI platform (Enterprise AI) and has shipped its AI promises on time, but it is a separate paid product. GPU support is solid but not current: no documented MIG, Blackwell model names or AMD yet; the platform MCP server is a preview.

Reading

Nutanix is spending its engineering on removing each reason a VMware customer gives for not switching: keep your arrays, keep your servers, convert without copying data. On top sits a vision layer (Kubernetes, enterprise AI) that so far has shipped close to when it was promised. The trade is that you swap one proprietary control plane for another: capability and credibility are high, and the exit is per-VM export.

Open questions and items to re-score

Confidential VMs (SEV-SNP, TDX): no evidence of support found. The Security score assumes absent; verify on the portal.
No public price history. Commercial risk volatility is scored low on absence of evidence, not on proof.
External storage is a list of named integrations, not generic SAN. Check the array and feature matrix per deal.
Pending say-do items to re-score next edition: NKP Metal, AMD GPU support, FlexPod, NetApp GA on the Nutanix side.