To better address the evolving priorities of today’s IT organizations, Cisco (News - Alert) has introduced a range of innovations and capabilities across its networking portfolio. The strategic initiative aims to deliver a more unified and integrated approach to managing and securing customer networks, focusing on key priorities such as security, automation, and a seamless digital experience for end users.

The new Cisco Networking Cloud innovations include deeper integrations with Cisco Secure Access. Also, integrations with Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN and ThousandEyes provide a unified approach to networking and security management. This not only helps to enhance security posture reporting for Operational Technology (OT) assets but also empowers industrial organizations with comprehensive insights into asset inventories, vulnerabilities, and cyber risks - ultimately reducing the attack surface.

To help simplify operations, Cisco is also converging its management platforms, offering Cloud Monitoring for Catalyst Wireless. Initially introduced for Catalyst switching, this capability now extends to Catalyst wireless devices, providing customers with a comprehensive, cloud-managed view of their access networks.

Cisco is also driving advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) with scalable infrastructure. The introduction of Cisco UCS X-Series Direct, an extension of the UCS X-Series Modular System, caters to environments requiring edge connectivity and compute power. To this end, the company also unveiled Cisco AI Validated Designs - expanding the offering of converged and hyper-converged designs, facilitating AI/ML deployments with tailored automation and visibility for various enterprise use cases.

"The future of AI depends on the network and the future of the network depends on AI," said Jonathan Davidson, EVP and GM, Cisco Networking. "With Cisco Networking Cloud, the data set that feeds this AI comes from more than one billion endpoints. No other networking vendor has more or better intelligence to simplify and secure network operations at any scale for a better user experience."