AWS and Google Cloud Jointly Launch Multicloud Private Networking with Open Specification

AWS and Google Cloud have jointly engineered a multicloud private networking product — the first time two hyperscale cloud providers have collaborated on a networking service with an open interoperability specification. The product, combining AWS Interconnect - multicloud with Google Cloud Cross-Cloud Interconnect, is available in preview across five initial region pairs.

How It Works

The service provides private dedicated bandwidth between AWS and Google Cloud that is provisioned on demand in minutes rather than the weeks typically required for traditional cross-cloud dedicated interconnects. The architecture uses quad-redundancy across physically separate interconnect facilities, meaning that four independent physical paths connect each region pair. MACsec encryption is applied between cloud edge routers, providing link-layer encryption for all traffic traversing the interconnect without requiring application-level encryption changes.

The initial five region pairs are: US East (N. Virginia), US West (N. California), US West (Oregon), Europe (London), and Europe (Frankfurt). Each AWS region is paired with a corresponding Google Cloud region in the same metropolitan area, minimizing latency on the interconnect. Additional region pairs are expected as the service moves from preview to general availability.

The Open Specification

The most strategically significant element is the open interoperability API specification that AWS and Google Cloud have published alongside the service. The specification defines the control plane interactions, bandwidth provisioning APIs, and monitoring interfaces in a format that other cloud providers can implement. Microsoft Azure has confirmed it will join the initiative in 2026, which would extend the private interconnect model to all three major public cloud platforms.

The open specification represents a departure from the traditional model where each cloud provider operates its own proprietary interconnect product. By standardizing the API, the initiative enables networking vendors, enterprise IT teams, and third-party management platforms to build tooling that works consistently across participating clouds — reducing the operational complexity of multicloud networking.

Market Implications

Enterprise adoption of multicloud architectures has grown steadily, but networking between clouds has remained a friction point. Organizations running workloads across AWS and Google Cloud typically rely on third-party SD-WAN solutions, VPN tunnels over the public internet, or manual dedicated interconnect provisioning — all of which introduce latency, complexity, or both. A jointly engineered, on-demand private interconnect addresses the networking gap that has been one of the primary operational challenges of multicloud deployments.

The service is currently in preview, and pricing details have not been finalized. For organizations already running multicloud workloads across AWS and Google Cloud, the preview provides an opportunity to evaluate whether dedicated private bandwidth improves performance and simplifies networking operations compared to existing cross-cloud connectivity approaches.