Cisco is unleashing a new era of secure hardware for AI-ready networks

Cisco unveiled a revolutionary network architecture designed to meet the unprecedented demands of the artificial intelligence (AI) era at its flagship Cisco Live event. The announcement focuses on delivering unparalleled operational simplicity, boosting network performance with purpose-built hardware, and embedding robust security at every layer.

With AI initiatives rapidly expanding, businesses are facing an explosion of network traffic, critical uptime requirements, and an increasingly aggressive cybersecurity landscape. A recent Cisco IT Networking Leader Survey revealed that a staggering 97% of organisations recognise the necessity of upgrading their networks to successfully implement AI and IoT. The financial implications of network downtime are severe, with a single significant outage potentially costing businesses globally up to USD 160 billion. Cisco’s new architecture can be a direct response to these challenges, enabling organisations to confidently embrace AI and gain a competitive edge.

Next-generation hardware for AI-driven performance

In terms to support the immense traffic and low-latency requirements of AI workloads, Cisco is introducing a series of purpose-built hardware:

• Cisco C9350 and C9610 Smart Switches: These next-generation Cisco Smart Switches, powered by Cisco Silicon One, deliver exceptional throughput (up to 51.2 Tbps), ultra-low latency (below 5 microseconds), and quantum-resistant secure networking, crucial for high-stakes AI applications in campus environments.
• Cisco 8100, 8200, 8300, 8400, and 8500 Secure Routers: Engineered for the AI-transformed branch, these routers offer native SD-WAN and Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) integration, next-generation firewall (NGFW), and post-quantum security within a single-box WAN solution, delivering up to three times the throughput of previous generations.
• Expanded Wireless Portfolio: Cisco is expanding its Wi-Fi 7 offerings with the Cisco Wireless 9179F Series Access Points for large venues and stadiums. The new Cisco Campus Gateway ensures seamless, cloud-managed roaming for extensive campus environments.
• Enhanced Industrial Portfolio: To meet the rigorous demands of industrial AI use cases, Cisco is introducing new ruggedised switches in various form factors to support applications such as visual quality inspections and autonomous mobile robots. The integration of Ultra-Reliable Wireless Backhaul (URWB) with Wi-Fi technology in a single access point also enhances connectivity for critical industrial wireless scenarios.

Security woven into the network fabric

Cisco by recognising the escalating complexity of cyber threats, it is trying to deeply embed advanced security capabilities directly into the network across three critical layers. Securing network infrastructure is achieved through Cisco Live Protect, which provides kernel-level compensating controls to block exploits and defend campus switches and routers without requiring system reimaging or downtime. For defending data in transit, Cisco has implemented post-quantum-ready MACsec, WAN MACsec, and IPsec encryption to counter “harvest-now, decrypt-later” attacks. The new Cisco C9000 Smart Switches are also Hypershield-ready, enabling enhanced network segmentation for machine-speed threat containment. Lastly, for protecting users, endpoints, and applications, building on a strong foundation of microsegmentation, AI-powered device classification, and common policy, Cisco extends protections for every device and application connected across the network. With intelligence from Cisco Identity Services Engine, Cyber Vision, Cisco Talos, and Cisco Secure Access SSE, organisations can enforce security effectively at every point in the network.