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FlexCompute works for any workload that runs on AWS EC2—from AI training to production web servers. Here’s how different teams use FlexCompute to cut costs while maintaining performance and reliability.

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AI/ML Training & Inference

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LLM Training & Fine-Tuning

Challenge: Training large language models on GPU instances (p4, p5) costs thousands per hour. Reserved Instances require 1-3 year commitments, but training needs fluctuate project-by-project. Solution: Use FlexCompute to access p5 instances at 30-40% discount with zero commitment. Spin up capacity when starting a training run, release when complete. Example:
  • Instance: 8x p5.48xlarge
  • Training duration: 120 hours
  • AWS On-Demand cost: $76,800
  • FlexCompute cost: $51,840
  • Savings: $24,960 per training run
Who uses this:
  • AI research labs
  • LLM development teams
  • Companies fine-tuning foundation models

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Computer Vision Model Development

Challenge: Training vision models requires GPU capacity (g5, g6 instances) but workload is inconsistent—intense during active development, idle between projects. Solution: Pay for GPU instances only when training, not 24/7. FlexCompute provides g5/g6 instances at 30-40% discount without Reserved Instance lock-in. Example:
  • Instance: 4x g5.12xlarge
  • Usage: 10 hours/day, 20 days/month
  • AWS On-Demand cost: $22,000/month
  • FlexCompute cost: $14,300/month
  • Savings: $7,700/month
Who uses this:
  • Autonomous vehicle teams
  • Medical imaging startups
  • Security/surveillance companies

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Real-Time Inference Serving

Challenge: Serving LLM or vision model inferences at scale requires always-on GPU capacity, making Reserved Instances attractive—but capacity needs vary with user growth. Solution: Start with FlexCompute instances, scale up as traffic grows, no upfront commitment. Maintain same performance as Reserved Instances at similar pricing but with full flexibility. Example:
  • Instance: 6x g6e.2xlarge (24/7)
  • AWS On-Demand: $12,096/month
  • AWS Reserved (1yr): $8,467/month (locked in)
  • FlexCompute: $7,862/month (no lock-in)
  • Savings vs On-Demand: $4,234/month
  • Flexibility vs Reserved: Cancel anytime
Who uses this:
  • AI API services
  • Chatbot platforms
  • Real-time recommendation engines

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Batch Inference Processing

Challenge: Processing large batches of inference requests (e.g., analyzing millions of images overnight) requires massive GPU capacity temporarily. Solution: Spin up 20-50 GPU instances for the batch job, run for a few hours, release capacity. Pay only for hours used at 30-40% discount. Example:
  • Instance: 50x g5.xlarge
  • Runtime: 6 hours
  • AWS On-Demand cost: $303
  • FlexCompute cost: $195
  • Savings: $108 per batch job
  • Run 30 batches/month = $3,240/month savings
Who uses this:
  • Content moderation platforms
  • Document processing services
  • Data labeling companies

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Development & Testing

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CI/CD Pipeline Infrastructure

Challenge: Running comprehensive test suites requires substantial compute capacity, but tests run intermittently throughout the day, not 24/7. Solution: Provision FlexCompute instances for CI/CD runners, scale to match build queue, release capacity during off-hours. Example:
  • Instance: 20x c5.4xlarge (running 8 hours/day)
  • AWS On-Demand: $1,835/month
  • FlexCompute: $1,193/month
  • Savings: $642/month
Who uses this:
  • Engineering teams with frequent deployments
  • Startups optimizing dev costs
  • Companies with large test suites

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Staging & QA Environments

Challenge: Staging environments mirror production but don’t need to run 24/7. Paying full price for environments used only during business hours wastes money. Solution: Run staging on FlexCompute instances, schedule automatic shutdown outside business hours, pay only for uptime at discounted rates. Example:
  • Instance: 15x m6i.2xlarge (10 hours/day, weekdays only)
  • AWS On-Demand: $1,152/month
  • FlexCompute: $749/month
  • Savings: $403/month
Who uses this:
  • Product teams with extensive QA needs
  • Agencies managing multiple client environments
  • SaaS companies with staging requirements

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Load Testing Infrastructure

Challenge: Load testing production systems requires spinning up hundreds of instances temporarily to simulate user traffic—expensive if using On-Demand rates. Solution: Use FlexCompute to provision load testing infrastructure for hours or days, not months. Pay 30-40% less for the same capacity. Example:
  • Instance: 100x c5.2xlarge
  • Duration: 8 hours (quarterly load test)
  • AWS On-Demand cost: $272 per test
  • FlexCompute cost: $177 per test
  • **Savings: 95pertest∗∗(95 per test** (380/year)
Who uses this:
  • E-commerce platforms (pre-Black Friday testing)
  • Gaming companies (launch testing)
  • FinTech (stress testing)

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Batch Processing & Data Workloads

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Data Analytics Pipelines

Challenge: Running nightly ETL jobs on large datasets requires compute-optimized or memory-optimized instances, but jobs complete in 2-6 hours—not 24 hours. Solution: Schedule FlexCompute instances to provision before job start, process data, release capacity when complete. No paying for 18+ idle hours daily. Example:
  • Instance: 10x c5.9xlarge (4 hours/day)
  • AWS On-Demand: $2,448/month
  • FlexCompute: $1,591/month
  • Savings: $857/month
Who uses this:
  • Data engineering teams
  • Business intelligence platforms
  • Analytics-heavy SaaS companies

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Video Rendering & Transcoding

Challenge: Rendering video content requires high-compute instances but demand fluctuates—heavy during project work, idle between clients. Solution: Provision rendering farm with FlexCompute instances on-demand, scale to match project queue, release when queue clears. Example:
  • Instance: 30x c6i.8xlarge
  • Usage: Variable (15 hours/day average)
  • AWS On-Demand: $12,240/month
  • FlexCompute: $7,956/month
  • Savings: $4,284/month
Who uses this:
  • Video production studios
  • Streaming platforms
  • Social media content creators

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Scientific Computing

Challenge: Research simulations require massive compute capacity for days or weeks, but projects are episodic—not continuous. Solution: Access high-performance computing instances through FlexCompute for simulation runs without multi-year commitments. Example:
  • Instance: 20x c5.18xlarge
  • Duration: 2 weeks per quarter
  • AWS On-Demand: $4,896 per simulation
  • FlexCompute: $3,182 per simulation
  • **Savings: 1,714persimulation∗∗(1,714 per simulation** (6,856/year)
Who uses this:
  • Research institutions
  • Pharmaceutical companies (drug modeling)
  • Engineering firms (finite element analysis)

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Production Workloads

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Web Application Servers

Challenge: Production web servers need high availability but capacity requirements vary with traffic patterns (daily/weekly fluctuations). Solution: Run baseline capacity on FlexCompute instances, scale up during traffic peaks, maintain same reliability as Reserved Instances without commitment. Example:
  • Instance: 25x m6i.xlarge (24/7)
  • AWS On-Demand: $4,800/month
  • AWS Reserved (1yr): $3,360/month (locked in)
  • FlexCompute: $3,120/month (no lock-in)
  • Savings vs On-Demand: $1,680/month
  • Flexibility vs Reserved: Scale freely
Who uses this:
  • SaaS platforms
  • E-commerce sites
  • API services

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Microservices & API Backends

Challenge: Microservice architectures run dozens of small-to-medium instances. Reserved Instances make capacity planning difficult as service needs change. Solution: Run all microservices on FlexCompute instances, adjust capacity per service independently, no commitment required. Example:
  • Instances: 50 mixed (t3, c5, m6i)
  • AWS On-Demand: $8,500/month
  • FlexCompute: $5,525/month
  • Savings: $2,975/month
Who uses this:
  • Cloud-native applications
  • Startups scaling rapidly
  • Companies modernizing legacy apps

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Database Instances

Challenge: Running databases on EC2 (PostgreSQL, MySQL, MongoDB) requires memory-optimized instances running 24/7—expensive on On-Demand, inflexible with Reserved. Solution: Use FlexCompute for database instances, maintain same performance and uptime, save 30-40% without multi-year commitment. Example:
  • Instance: 3x r7i.4xlarge (24/7, Multi-AZ)
  • AWS On-Demand: $7,272/month
  • FlexCompute: $4,727/month
  • Savings: $2,545/month
Who uses this:
  • Companies running self-managed databases
  • Teams avoiding managed database costs
  • Applications with specific DB requirements

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Common Patterns Across Use Cases

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Pattern 1: Variable Workloads

Best for: Workloads that scale up/down daily, weekly, or seasonally
Savings: Pay only for hours used, save 30-40% vs On-Demand
Examples: Dev/test, CI/CD, batch processing

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Pattern 2: Project-Based Capacity

Best for: Capacity needed for specific projects, not continuously
Savings: No idle costs between projects, no long-term commitments
Examples: AI training, load testing, video rendering

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Pattern 3: Growing Production

Best for: Production workloads with unpredictable growth
Savings: Reserved pricing without capacity lock-in
Examples: SaaS apps, microservices, databases
Ready to save on your workloads? Get started with FlexCompute → Questions about your specific use case? Contact us →