Cisco used its Partner Summit to outline a sweeping plan for how it intends to equip enterprises for the coming wave of AI workloads, and the partners who will deliver them.
The company said only 13% of organizations are fully prepared for AI and that more than half of AI pilots are stalling, creating urgency for edge performance, simplified networking, and unified security management.
The announcements positioned Cisco as an infrastructure anchor in a market where AI applications are driving massive data movement and compute demand at the edge.
Cisco’s unified edge brings AI to where the data lives
At the center of the event was the debut of Cisco Unified Edge, a new platform that merges compute, networking, and storage into a single stack designed to run real-time inferencing and “agentic” AI workloads close to data sources. Cisco framed the system as a direct answer to the bottlenecks that have slowed AI pilot deployments, chiefly, the cost and latency of routing inference traffic back to the cloud.
The modular platform can be ordered immediately and is expected to reach general availability by year’s end. It integrates with Cisco Intersight for zero-touch provisioning and fleet-wide management, folds in observability through Splunk and ThousandEyes, and includes multiple layers of zero-trust security.
By embedding AI processing at the edge, Cisco argued, enterprises in manufacturing, retail, and healthcare can meet real-time operational requirements without overhauling core networks. Industry voices echoed that view. Rockwell Automation’s Blake Moret called “performant, secure networking at the edge” essential.
Rewiring the enterprise network for AI operations
Cisco also previewed a modernized Secure Enterprise Network Architecture, aimed at simplifying how large organizations deploy and operate campus and branch networks in an AI-driven environment. The roadmap adds automation and analytics under a unifying control layer that extends across Catalyst and Meraki infrastructures.
The architecture introduces a series of milestones:
- A Global Overview feature in the Meraki Dashboard for visibility across multi-domain networks, entering beta in November 2025.
- Cloud-managed fabric capabilities to streamline large-site provisioning, slated for general availability in early 2026.
- An AI Assistant and AI Canvas for cross-domain troubleshooting and automation, now in early testing.
New hardware supports the shift. Cisco’s 8200 and 8400 Series Secure Routers, along with Wi-Fi 7 access points and the CW9800L controller, will reach orderability in late 2025. The company paired these releases with an expansion of its Secure Access service to integrate identity-based access management directly into Meraki networks. The approach signaled a tighter link between networking and security, a priority as AI workloads multiply the number of connected endpoints.
Security Cloud Control targets partner profitability
Another key update centered on managed service providers. Cisco introduced Security Cloud Control for MSPs, a multi-tenant management layer that consolidates operations for Hybrid Mesh Firewall, Secure Access, and AI Defense under one console. The company framed the release as both an efficiency and revenue play, promising lower operational costs and faster customer onboarding.
The system adds role-based access control, flexible licensing under MSEA and MSLA agreements, and open APIs to integrate with MSP automation tools. Cisco said it expects general availability in February 2026. It also refreshed its firewall portfolio, highlighting the Secure Firewall 200 and 6100 Series for improved throughput and density, alongside the latest Threat Defense 7.7 software tested by NetSecOPEN.
For partners, the offer extends beyond tools: the platform enables bundled security and AI-enabled protection as managed services, aligning with the summit’s broader theme of AI readiness through collaboration.
Cisco IQ links AI with customer experience
Cisco also used the summit to show off Cisco IQ, an AI-driven interface that combines real-time insights, lifecycle visibility, troubleshooting, and automation for enterprise customers. The system is designed to make AI support more proactive, using agentic capabilities to surface recommendations and manage complex hybrid deployments across on-premises, SaaS, and air-gapped environments.
Cisco IQ underscored a broader shift in the company’s customer-experience strategy, from reactive service models to predictive, AI-led engagement. The AI platform is scheduled for release in the second half of fiscal 2026.
A connected story for partners
Taken together, the announcements revealed a coordinated architecture for the AI era: compute and inference moving to the edge, a network fabric optimized for automation, security built for multi-tenant delivery, and support systems infused with intelligent guidance.
By aligning these components under a partner-first message, Cisco sought to reassure its ecosystem that its AI ambitions run through them, not around them. For customers, the company’s roadmap offered a practical framework to close the readiness gap it identified at the outset, moving AI from concept to continuous operation without fragmenting the enterprise stack.
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