When the University of Michigan’s Michigan Institute for Data and AI in Society (MIDAS) needed to get researchers into a secure cloud environment quickly, Presidio came in as the professional services partner, bringing AWS subject matter expertise, hands-on architecture support, and thought leadership on how to actually put AI to work. Here’s what that looked like in practice, and what it means for research institutes facing the same challenge.
1. Researchers got out of procurement purgatory and into the work
Every researcher knows this problem: the idea is ready, but the infrastructure isn’t. Standing up compute, locking down access, getting approvals… it can take weeks before a single experiment runs.
The Innovation Sandbox on AWS changed that math for MIDAS. Researchers got a secure, on-demand environment they could start using right away. For any organization sitting on a good idea, that’s the real unlock… time back.
2. The guardrails were there so the friction wasn’t
Governance and speed usually feel like they’re pulling in opposite directions. This setup proved they don’t have to. Researchers had a governed space to prototype and test without waiting on a chain of sign-offs for every new idea.
That’s the balance most organizations are still trying to strike with AI… secure enough to trust, open enough to actually move.
.3. Presidio brought the expertise, not just the environment
This is where Presidio’s role mattered most. Beyond the AWS tools themselves, our team provided the architectural guidance and hands-on support to help MIDAS researchers actually use the environment well from day one.
That’s the part that’s easy to underestimate: the tools are only as good as the people who help you use them.
4. The research itself has real stakes
Healthcare. Climate science. Social equity. These aren’t abstract use cases… they’re the kinds of problems where faster iteration cycles truly mean faster answers for people who need them.
5. It took more than one organization to get here
MIDAS brought the research questions. AWS brought the cloud foundation. Presidio brought the expertise to connect the two. None of that happens inisolation… and that’s really the point.
This is what it looks like when a services partner does more than implement technology… it helps a research institute or University figure out how to use it well. If your team is trying to move from AI strategy to AI execution, that’s exactly where we come in.
Ready to talk about it? Contact us today.
