Cisco Accelerates AI Push with Acquisitions and Partner Program Updates
Cisco is making significant moves to become a leader in the artificial intelligence (AI) era. The company has acquired three key businesses this year, including AI observability specialist Galileo Technologies Inc. in April and identity protection startup Astrix Security in May. In June, Cisco announced plans to acquire WideField Security, with the goal of integrating these companies into its Splunk platform to enhance AI agent observability, protection, and security operations center (SOC) functions.
Alongside these acquisitions, Cisco underwent a workforce restructuring, announcing layoffs to reallocate resources towards advanced AI, security, and quantum networking technologies. The company also launched the Cisco 360 Partner Program, designed to support partners in the AI era with updated designations and a focus on AI-ready data centers and digital resilience.
Further solidifying its AI push, Cisco unveiled Cisco Cloud Control, a unified platform for agentic AI spanning its networking, security, collaboration, and observability portfolios, built on the Cisco Data Fabric and powered by the Splunk Platform. These moves position Cisco to capitalize on the increasing demand for AI infrastructure and support enterprises through rapid technology transitions.