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APIs · head to head

Akana vs Lambda

Akana logo

Akana

APIs

Enterprise API lifecycle management platform

From
$2500/monthly
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Lambda logo

Lambda

Cloud

GPU supercomputers for AI training and inference at enterprise scale

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Akana owned by Perforce and sold within their portfolio rather than independently, and akana.com redirects to perforce.com; Lambda no free tier or trial, requiring immediate commitment for testing
  • They diverge on capability: Akana covers API Lifecycle Management, Lambda covers Superclusters.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Akana and Lambda actually diverge.

Attributes where Akana and Lambda differ
AttributeAkanaLambda
Starting price$2500/monthlyOn request
Pricing modelsubscriptionPay-as-you-go hourly pricing with volume discounts for reserved capacity
PlatformsCloud, On-premise, HybridCloud
CategoryAPIsCloud
Founded20012012

Identical on both: free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Akana

  • API Lifecycle Management
  • API Security
  • Governance Controls
  • OAuth
  • SAML
  • LDAP
  • Active Directory
  • Cloud support

Only in Lambda

  • Superclusters
  • 1-Click Clusters
  • On-demand instances
  • Liquid cooling
  • InfiniBand networking
  • Managed orchestration
  • Co-engineering support

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Akana

  • API lifecycle management across REST, SOAP and GraphQLnot Lambda
  • Applying OAuth, JWT and SAML policies at the gatewaynot Lambda
  • Running the same platform on-premises, in Kubernetes or across cloudsnot Lambda
  • Developer portal and API monetisationnot Lambda
  • Monitoring API traffic and enforcing quotasnot Lambda

Lambda

  • Training foundation models at scale with dedicated GPU infrastructurenot Akana
  • Large-scale inference serving on enterprise-grade hardwarenot Akana
  • Multi-GPU distributed training with InfiniBand networkingnot Akana
  • Single-tenant secure compute for regulated industriesnot Akana
  • AI lab infrastructure for frontier model developmentnot Akana

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Akana

  • Owned by Perforce and sold within their portfolio rather than independently, and akana.com redirects to perforce.com
  • Pricing is not published; only a 30 day trial is offered

Lambda

  • No free tier or trial, requiring immediate commitment for testing
  • Single-tenant Superclusters require custom pricing discussions
  • Pricing complexity across multiple GPU types and cluster sizes
  • Less suitable for experimentation or small teams with tight budgets

Pricing, plan by plan

Akana

$2500/monthly
  • Professional$2500/monthly
    • API Gateway
    • Developer Portal
    • Basic analytics
  • Enterprise$5000/monthly
    • Advanced governance
    • Multi-cloud support
    • Premium support
  • Custom$undefined/monthly
    • Custom solutions
    • Dedicated support
    • SLA guarantee

Lambda

On request
  • 1-Click Clusters B200$undefined/hourly
    • 16 GPUs: $9.86/GPU/hour
    • 256+ GPUs: $8.87/GPU/hour
    • 1-year+ reserved discounts available
  • 1-Click Clusters H100$undefined/hourly
    • 16 GPUs: $6.16/GPU/hour
    • 256+ GPUs: $5.54/GPU/hour
  • On-Demand Instances B200$undefined/hourly
    • SXM6: $6.69/GPU/hour
  • On-Demand Instances H100$undefined/hourly
    • SXM: $3.99/GPU/hour

Which should you pick?

Choose Akana if

  • You need api lifecycle management.
  • You work on Cloud, On-premise, Hybrid.
  • You also want api security.
Akana review

Choose Lambda if

  • You need superclusters.
  • You work on Cloud.
  • You also want 1-click clusters.
Lambda review

Questions people ask

Is Akana or Lambda better?
Neither clearly leads. Akana starts at $2500/monthly and Lambda at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Akana or Lambda?
Akana starts at $2500/monthly and Lambda at On request.
Does Akana or Lambda run on more platforms?
Akana runs on Cloud, On-premise, Hybrid. Lambda runs on Cloud.
What is Akana best used for?
Akana is most often used for api lifecycle management across rest, soap and graphql, applying oauth, jwt and saml policies at the gateway, running the same platform on-premises, in kubernetes or across clouds, developer portal and api monetisation. Of those, api lifecycle management across rest, soap and graphql and applying oauth, jwt and saml policies at the gateway are not what Lambda is typically brought in for.
What can Akana do that Lambda cannot?
Akana covers API Lifecycle Management, API Security, Governance Controls, OAuth. Lambda covers Superclusters, 1-Click Clusters, On-demand instances, Liquid cooling.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Akana: What does Akana API Platform include?

Akana provides mediation and integration capabilities for creating easy-to-consume API products from API code, with features for API governance, security, and operational management.

Source
Lambda: What makes Lambda's infrastructure different?

Lambda offers single-tenant Superclusters with exclusive GPU access, liquid cooling, and NVIDIA Quantum-2 InfiniBand networking. The company is 100% focused on AI infrastructure with co-engineering support from teams who built infrastructure for major AI labs.

Source
Akana: How does Akana help secure APIs?

Akana addresses the security challenges that come with more APIs and more endpoints, providing tools for enterprise API governance and compliance management.

Source
Lambda: How does pricing work for large clusters?

1-Click Clusters pricing ranges from $5.54-$9.86 per GPU/hour depending on GPU type and cluster size, with volume discounts for 256+ GPUs. Reserved capacity is available at custom pricing for 1-year+ commitments.

Source
Lambda: Which GPU types are available?

Lambda offers NVIDIA B200, H100, A100, and Tesla V100 GPUs. Individual instances range from V100 at $0.79/hour to B200 SXM6 at $6.69/hour. Newer models like Vera Rubin are available in Superclusters.

Source
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