Comparing the Cost-effectiveness of Image Recognition for Elastic Cloud Computing : A cost comparison between Amazon Web Services EC2 instances

Abstract: With the rise of the usage of AI, the need for computing power has grown exponentially. This has made cloud computing a popular option with its cost- effective and highly scalable capabilities. However, due to its popularity there exists thousands of possible services to choose from, making it hard to find the right tool for the job. The purpose of this thesis is to provide a methodological approach for evaluating which alternative is the best for machine learning applications deployed in the cloud. Nine different instances were evaluated on a major cloud provider and compared for their performance relative to their cost. This was accomplished by developing a cost evaluation model together with a test environment for image recognition models. The environment can be used on any type of cloud instance to aid in the decision-making. The results derived from the specific premises used in this study indicate that the higher the hourly cost an instance had, the less cost-effective it was. However, when making the same comparison within an instance family of similar machines the same conclusion can not be made. Regardless of the conclusions made in this thesis, the problem addressed remains, as the domain is too large to cover in one report. But the methodology used holds great value as it can act as guidance for similar evaluation with a different set of premises.