**Cloud computing** is the delivery of [[Computing|computing services]]—including [[Server (computing)|servers]], [[Computer data storage|storage]], [[Database|databases]], [[Computer network|networking]], [[Software|software]], [[Data analysis|analytics]], and [[Artificial intelligence|artificial intelligence]]—over the [[Internet]], commonly referred to as "the cloud." It enables on-demand access to a shared pool of configurable computing resources that can be rapidly provisioned and released with minimal management effort or [[Internet service provider|service provider]] interaction. Cloud computing has become a foundational element of modern [[Information technology|information technology]], enabling organizations and individuals to avoid the upfront cost and complexity of owning and maintaining [[IT infrastructure|physical infrastructure]]. Cloud services are generally categorized into three delivery models: [[Infrastructure as a service|Infrastructure as a Service]] (IaaS), which provides virtualized computing resources such as [[Virtual machine|virtual machines]] and storage; [[Platform as a service|Platform as a Service]] (PaaS), which offers development and deployment environments; and [[Software as a service|Software as a Service]] (SaaS), which delivers fully managed applications to end users. These services may be deployed through [[Cloud computing#Deployment models|public]], [[Cloud computing#Deployment models|private]], [[Hybrid cloud|hybrid]], or [[Multicloud|multi-cloud]] configurations depending on an organization's requirements for control, [[Computer security|security]], and [[Regulatory compliance|compliance]]. The origins of cloud computing trace to the 1960s concepts of [[Utility computing|utility computing]] and [[Time-sharing|time-sharing]], but the modern industry emerged in the early 2000s with the launch of [[Amazon Web Services]] (AWS) in 2006. Major providers now include AWS, [[Microsoft Azure]], and [[Google Cloud Platform]], which together dominate the global market. Cloud computing has driven significant shifts in how software is developed and delivered, enabling practices such as [[DevOps]], [[Microservices|microservice architectures]], and [[Serverless computing|serverless computing]], while also raising ongoing concerns about [[Data privacy|data privacy]], [[Vendor lock-in|vendor lock-in]], and the [[Environmental impact of computing|environmental impact]] of large-scale [[Data center|data centers]].