CAST AI vs HPE Morpheus VM Essentials Software
CAST AI
cast.aiHPE Morpheus VM Essentials Software
hpe.comSide by side
| Figure | CAST AI | HPE Morpheus VM Essentials Software |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | — | $50/mo |
| Free plan | — | — |
| Free trial | Yes | Yes |
| Open source | — | — |
| Web | Yes | Yes |
| Linux | — | Yes |
| Self-hosted | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 1 | 10 |
| Spec score · FinOps Software | 7.7 (#3) | 7.9 (#2) |
| Automation | The platform automates workload rightsizing, node scaling, GPU and Spot optimization, and issue remediation. | VM Essentials provides basic provisioning and scripting for VM lifecycle tasks. |
| Integrations | The integrations page lists Grafana, Terraform, Crossplane, Prometheus, Jira, OpenTelemetry, Helm, and Pulumi. | HPE says the product supports 90+ integrations; its VM Essentials ecosystem includes HVM and VMware vSphere, among other listed integrations. |
| Security | CAST AI states that it has achieved ISO 27001 certification and describes policies for information security and data privacy. | HPE describes role-based access policies and governance controls for managing access to IT resources. |
Plans
HPE Morpheus VM Essentials Software
- 1-year E-LTUPriced on request
- Enterprise Software per Socket — 1-year New InstallPriced on request
- 3-year E-LTUPriced on request
- Enterprise Software per Socket — 3-year New InstallPriced on request
- 5-year E-LTUPriced on request
- Enterprise Software per Socket — 5-year New InstallPriced on request
- Enterprise Software per Socket — 1-year RenewalPriced on request
- Enterprise Software per Socket — 3-year RenewalPriced on request
- Enterprise Software per Socket — 5-year RenewalPriced on request
- VM Essentials$600 a year
In their own words
CAST AI
CAST AI is an Application Performance Automation platform for cloud-native operations and Kubernetes automation. It automates workload rightsizing, node scaling, GPU and Spot optimization, and issue remediation. Rightsizing adjusts CPU and memory requests, limits, and replicas in response to workload behavior. The platform says its engine can predict Spot interruptions up to 30 minutes ahead and migrate workloads before a slowdown. Agentic runbooks can address operational and security issues, with approval required for each change before it ships.
Teams can connect clusters in read-only mode without infrastructure changes. Listed environments include AWS, Google Cloud, Azure, Oracle Cloud, IBM Cloud, OpenShift, Rancher, VMware Tanzu, AliCloud, kOps, PostgreSQL, MySQL, and on-prem Kubernetes. Cost tools include allocation, spend forecasting, rightsizing guidance, and commitment management. CAST AI integrates with tools including Grafana, Terraform, Prometheus, Jira, and Pulumi. It is available on the web and as self-hosted software. Pricing is custom and available on request; a free trial is available.
HPE Morpheus VM Essentials Software
HPE Morpheus VM Essentials Software manages virtual machines across HPE’s HVM hypervisor and VMware, with provisioning and automation in a governed control plane. It is aimed at lower-cost virtualization and VMware coexistence: guided workflows support moving VMs from VMware to HVM, and both environments can operate side by side during a phased transition. VM features include high availability, live migration within HVM clusters, workload placement, policy-driven provisioning, and external storage support for NFS, iSCSI, and Fibre Channel. Basic scripting covers VM lifecycle tasks, while access controls include user access and VM-level permissions. An MCP server extends automation workflows with AI integration. HPE lists more than 90 integrations, including HVM and VMware vSphere, and describes role-based access policies and governance controls. VM Essentials runs on Linux, web, and self-hosted deployments. The listed VM Essentials plan is $600 a year per CPU socket, including support, with 1-, 3-, or 5-year licensing options; actual end-user price may vary.