'I think you can run this thing on a potato,' NodeWeaver CTO Alan Conboy said.

Broadcom's price increases and policy changes have led many VMware customers to look for other options. Nodeweaver is positioning itself as an alternative for customers running computing workloads in far-flung edge locations, from cruise ships to solar farms in Sub-Saharan Africa, and it is taking cost out of the hardware needed as well.

Founded in Italy but headquartered in Florida, Nodeweaver sells a platform that installs directly on off-the-shelf x86 servers and runs virtual machines and containerized applications without the layers of separate software some competing products require.

The company is pitching its approach as a lower-cost, lower-maintenance option for businesses rethinking their infrastructure after Broadcom's acquisition of VMware triggered sharp virtualization price increases.

"Broadcom's as-a-service offering for VMware at the edge, it's not only cost-prohibitive, it is so hyper-limiting, it isn’t worth the effort," NodeWeaver’s CTO Alan Conboy told The Register.

The pitch ...