en.Wedoany.com Reported - On June 4, 2026, NetApp and Cisco announced new validated solutions designed to enable secure, scalable, and simplified AI deployment. Built on the proven experience of the FlexPod platform, these solutions provide a simple and reliable path for enterprises to address the specific challenges posed by AI workloads in computing, networking, and storage infrastructure.
Dallas Olson, Chief Commercial Officer at NetApp, stated that IT teams need to deliver reliable and consistent performance across various environments, while AI workloads place increasing demands on data infrastructure. The long-standing partnership between NetApp and Cisco has proven effective on FlexPod, helping customers save up to 20% of infrastructure management and maintenance time. Both companies are applying their expertise to modern challenges to accelerate AI adoption while reducing risk through built-in security. The two companies are expanding FlexPod to support organizations of all sizes and maturity levels in adopting AI, using pre-tested, validated architectures and enterprise-grade data management as a consistent foundation.
These solutions support use cases such as enterprise AI deployment, AI inference and RAG workflows, and edge computing. For enterprise AI deployment, organizations can deploy high-performance infrastructure for AI use cases, including retrieval-augmented generation and semantic search, using validated architectures. FlexPod reduces integration complexity, allowing AI capabilities to run directly where data resides, with end-to-end security. The architecture includes disaggregated storage (NetApp AFX) for independently scaling performance and capacity; future data discovery, preparation, and governance capabilities from the NetApp AI Data Engine (AIDE), which integrates the NVIDIA AI Data Platform reference design; and distributed security and zero-trust alignment controls from Cisco Secure AI Factory with NVIDIA, covering the entire AI pipeline to address AI-specific risks. As the foundation of Secure AI Factory, Cisco AI Networking Infrastructure (Nexus One) transforms the network into a deterministic, high-performance architecture to maximize XPU utilization, reduce task completion time, and achieve predictable AI outcomes at scale. For full-stack enterprise AI use cases, NetApp and Cisco have partnered with NVIDIA to build FlexPod solutions based on the NVIDIA Enterprise Reference Architecture, enabling organizations to design, deploy, and scale high-performance AI factories.
For AI inference and RAG workflows, this simplified, pre-integrated solution aims to reduce the cost, complexity, and specialized skill requirements associated with deploying AI infrastructure, enabling teams and departments to leverage existing data for AI benefits. For edge computing, the solution enables organizations to support AI inference, containerized, and virtualized workloads at the edge while maintaining low latency and operational consistency. By extending the proven FlexPod architecture to remote and edge locations, customers can achieve faster time-to-value and lower operational complexity compared to custom infrastructure or independent IT stacks at each site. This solution combines Cisco Unified Edge with flexible NetApp storage options to deliver a flexible and validated converged solution. Centralized fleet management, policy-based configuration, and automated orchestration enable repeatable deployment and simplified operations across highly distributed environments.
Jeremy Foster, General Manager and Senior Vice President at Cisco, noted that as organizations move from AI experimentation to actual deployment, security cannot be an afterthought and must be built in from the start. By partnering with NetApp to extend Cisco Secure AI Factory with NVIDIA into validated FlexPod solutions, specific AI risks such as data exposure, governance gaps, and compliance challenges can be addressed, while simplifying AI infrastructure deployment and operations. Jason Hardy, Vice President of Storage Technology at NVIDIA, pointed out that enterprises possess vast amounts of data, but without built-in data discovery, governance, and preparation capabilities in the infrastructure itself, supporting production-grade AI will be difficult. The NetApp AI Data Engine, co-designed with the NVIDIA AI Data Platform and validated through Cisco Secure AI Factory with NVIDIA, provides organizations with a secure, AI-ready data foundation to deploy AI factories at scale on FlexPod infrastructure.
Brian Bartell, Compute and Storage Practice Manager at WWT, stated that the new AI capabilities in FlexPod expand the ability to help customers navigate the AI era. Through partnerships, the introduction of the NetApp AI Data Engine, and the ability to validate these architectures hands-on at the WWT AI Validation Center, the time from concept to execution can be shortened, providing customers with a pre-tested, industry-leading foundation to keep pace with market speed and unlock the power of data.
About NetApp: For over three decades, NetApp has helped leading global organizations navigate change, from the rise of enterprise storage to the intelligent era defined by data and AI. Today, NetApp is an intelligent data infrastructure company, helping customers turn data into a catalyst for innovation, resilience, and growth. About Cisco: Cisco is a global technology leader revolutionizing how organizations connect and protect in the AI era. For over 40 years, Cisco has securely connected the world, and with its industry-leading AI-driven solutions and services, it enables customers, partners, and communities to unlock innovation, increase productivity, and enhance digital resilience.
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