axle ai, the leader in software that radically simplifies tagging, searching, and sharing video, announced availability of its axle 2018 software for Quantum’s StorNext- powered Xcellis Scale-Out NAS and Xcellis Foundation storage solutions. The software runs directly on Quantum storage systems and unlike other versions of axle’s software, axle 2018 for Xcellis does not require a dedicated Mac or Linux appliance on the network. It includes a 5 user license, which can be expanded in 5 and 50 user increments, ai search for premise or remote auto-tagging of media, and powerful transcode software modules from AWS Elemental.

Among dozens of Quantum storage solution customers relying on axle software to accelerate workflow, share media, and empower colleagues are a top global accounting firm, a leading Dutch broadcaster, an online publisher of web news for millennials, and a major sporting goods retailer.  Based on feedback from these and other Quantum-axle sites, it became clear that there was an opportunity to provide a more closely coupled solution where axle’s radically simple tools could run directly on the Quantum storage hardware, simplifying setup to merely enabling a software license on a new or previously deployed Quantum Xcellis system.

Quantum’s Dynamic Application Environment, or DAE, provided axle ai with the right technology to implement this type of integrated solution.  DAE, technically known as a hypervisor, provides a virtual machine (VM) environment in which customers and integrators can now install additional operating systems to run third-party applications. Once licensed and configured, the DAE feature allows applications installed in the VM to run in a completely independent environment, while also accessing StorNext resources and shares as needed.  DAE provides resource usage safeguards to ensure that StorNext, running on the host system, has adequate CPU and RAM resources.

Pricing for axle 2018 for Quantum’s Xcellis storage:

  1. axle 2018 for Xcellis, base 5 user license - $5,995 (purchase)
  2. axle 2018 for Xcellis, additional 5 user licenses - $2,995 (purchase)
  3. axle 2018 for Xcellis, additional 50 user licenses - $16,995 (purchase)
  4. axle-integrated AWS Elemental transcode module, per 4 CPU cores - $4,000 (purchase)
  5. axle ai on-premise machine learning module for object and face tagging - $500/month (billed quarterly) 
  6. axle ai cloud gateway for Microsoft, Google or Amazon auto-tagging - each $250/month (billed quarterly)

All configurations of axle 2018 for Xcellis are available immediately from axle ai and its resellers worldwide.  axle ai and Quantum will be available to answer questions at the NAB show in Las Vegas (Quantum booth SL8511 and axle ai booth SL15116).

“axle ai has shown the market that it’s possible to bring a simple approach to even advanced media management functions, and the integration with our Dynamic Application Environment on Xcellis is a further step in making powerful capabilities available in a simple-to-deploy package,” said Anniek Snauwaert, director of technology alliances for Quantum.  “The tight integration of axle ai and Xcellis really gives our customers an elegant solution for their media workflows.”

About axle ai
axle ai is the pioneer in developing radically simple video search and management software that takes full advantage of ongoing developments in artificial intelligence and machine learning. As social media drives massive growth in video capture and postproduction, axle ai uniquely addresses a burgeoning need and has caught on rapidly among video professionals in post-production, education, broadcast, corporate, sports, house of worship, non-profit, advertising-marketing, and government organizations worldwide. At its introduction, axle software was recognized with the IBC 2012 Best of Show award and at NAB 2013 with the prestigious DV Magazine Black Diamond and Post Picks awards. axle ai is a privately held company, based in Boston; its founders have extensive industry experience in media asset management for creative applications. Learn more at www.axle.ai.