Cisco Live! 2026: AI Is Taking Away the Luxury of Time

Cisco Live! 2026: AI Is Taking Away the Luxury of Time

The most interesting thing at Cisco Live! 2026 wasn't a product announcement. It was a shift in tone. For years, technology leaders have had the luxury of studying change before responding to it. They could build a roadmap, socialize a strategy, secure a budget, and move forward on their own timeline. AI is taking that luxury away. Across nearly every conversation this week, the same tension kept surfacing. The technology is improving faster than organizations are adapting to it. Security teams are watching the window between vulnerability and exploit shrink dramatically. Infrastructure teams are preparing for a world where software doesn't just serve users, but acts on their behalf. And leaders are being forced to rethink operating models that were designed for a much slower era. In this episode, WWT leaders and industry experts explore what that shift means in practice. From AI-driven security threats and agentic operations to token economics and infrastructure modernization, the conversation focuses less on the technology itself and more on the consequences of its success. Because the question is no longer whether AI will change the enterprise. The question is how quickly the enterprise can change itself. Support for this episode provided by: Cohesity [https://www.wwt.com/partner/cohesity] The AI Proving Ground Podcast leverages the deep AI technical and business expertise from within World Wide Technology's one-of-a-kind AI Proving Ground, which provides unrivaled access to the world's leading AI technologies. This unique lab environment accelerates your ability to learn about, test, train and implement AI solutions.  Learn more about WWT's AI Proving Ground [https://www.wwt.com/atc/ai-proving-ground/overview]. The AI Proving Ground is a composable lab environment that features the latest high-performance infrastructure and reference architectures from the world's leading AI companies, such as NVIDIA, Cisco, Dell, F5, AMD, Intel and others. Developed within our Advanced Technology Center (ATC) [https://www.wwt.com/service/atc/overview], this one-of-a-kind lab environment empowers IT teams to evaluate and test AI infrastructure, software and solutions for efficacy, scalability and flexibility — all under one roof. The AI Proving Ground provides visibility into data flows across the entire development pipeline, enabling more informed decision-making while safeguarding production environments.

AI Is Having Its Dropbox Moment

Remember when employees started using Dropbox before IT approved it? AI agents feel a lot like that moment. People are building them because they're useful. Not because they were told to. The surprise isn't that agents are showing up across the enterprise, it's how quickly they're multiplying. In this episode of the AI Proving Ground Podcast, Softchoice's Craig McQueen and Stephanie Donahue discuss Microsoft's answer to a problem many organizations are only beginning to see: AI adoption is outpacing governance. We explore Microsoft 365 E7, the rise of shadow AI and why organizations are starting to think differently about identity, visibility and accountability in a world where agents can take action on their own. The challenge isn't getting employees to use AI, it's figuring out what they've already built. Support for this episode provided by: HP Poly [https://www.wwt.com/partner/hp-poly/overview] More about this week's guests: Craig McQueen [https://www.wwt.com/profile/craig-mcqueen] is Vice President of Digital Acceleration at Softchoice, where he helps shape the company's technology strategy and go-to-market vision. He leads the development of customer-focused services and solutions that help organizations securely adopt and scale emerging technologies across cloud, data center, collaboration and the digital workplace. Working closely with customers and partners, Craig focuses on turning technology innovation into measurable business outcomes. Stephanie Donahue [https://www.wwt.com/profile/stephanie-donahue] is Director of AI Business Solutions at Softchoice, where she helps organizations adopt and scale AI-powered ways of working. Her focus includes Microsoft 365, Copilot, agents and the broader technologies shaping the future of work. A Microsoft Regional Director and MVP, Stephanie works closely with customers to turn emerging technologies into practical business outcomes while helping organizations navigate AI adoption, governance and workforce transformation. The AI Proving Ground Podcast leverages the deep AI technical and business expertise from within World Wide Technology's one-of-a-kind AI Proving Ground, which provides unrivaled access to the world's leading AI technologies. This unique lab environment accelerates your ability to learn about, test, train and implement AI solutions.  Learn more about WWT's AI Proving Ground [https://www.wwt.com/atc/ai-proving-ground/overview]. The AI Proving Ground is a composable lab environment that features the latest high-performance infrastructure and reference architectures from the world's leading AI companies, such as NVIDIA, Cisco, Dell, F5, AMD, Intel and others. Developed within our Advanced Technology Center (ATC) [https://www.wwt.com/service/atc/overview], this one-of-a-kind lab environment empowers IT teams to evaluate and test AI infrastructure, software and solutions for efficacy, scalability and flexibility — all under one roof. The AI Proving Ground provides visibility into data flows across the entire development pipeline, enabling more informed decision-making while safeguarding production environments.

Boards Can't Stay at 30,000 Feet Anymore

AI is collapsing the space between oversight and ownership. In this episode of the AI Proving Ground Podcast, NASDAQ Global Head of Board Advisory Byron Loflin and WWT Global Head of Cyber Advocacy Kate Kuehn break down why boards are entering an age of accountability and what happens when AI moves faster than governance can keep up. As AI moves deeper into the enterprise, the challenge is no longer adopting the technology. It's knowing who owns the consequences. Byron and Kate unpack what happens when innovation moves faster than governance, and what leadership accountability looks like in an AI-driven world. Because the question is no longer whether AI changes the business. It's whether leadership changes with it. Support for this episode provided by: Rubrik [https://www.wwt.com/partner/rubrik/overview] More about this week's guests:  Byron Loflin [https://www.nasdaq.com/authors/byron-loflin] is Global Head of Board Advisory at Nasdaq, where he leads board assessments and boardroom training for Nasdaq Governance Solutions. Founder and former CEO of the Center for Board Excellence, acquired by Nasdaq in 2019, Byron is known for his work in board performance, governance, accountability and corporate strategy. He advises boards and executive teams on governance practices, board effectiveness and organizational leadership. Kate Kuehn [https://www.wwt.com/profile/kate-kuehn/bio] is Global Head of Cyber Advocacy at WWT and brings more than 25 years of experience leading cybersecurity, technology and AI strategy across the industry. Having served in executive leadership roles including CISO, CEO, Chief Trust Officer and board advisor, Kate is known for helping organizations navigate the intersection of security, risk and emerging technologies. She advises leaders and boards on cyber resilience, AI adoption and integrated risk management strategies. The AI Proving Ground Podcast leverages the deep AI technical and business expertise from within World Wide Technology's one-of-a-kind AI Proving Ground, which provides unrivaled access to the world's leading AI technologies. This unique lab environment accelerates your ability to learn about, test, train and implement AI solutions.  Learn more about WWT's AI Proving Ground [https://www.wwt.com/atc/ai-proving-ground/overview]. The AI Proving Ground is a composable lab environment that features the latest high-performance infrastructure and reference architectures from the world's leading AI companies, such as NVIDIA, Cisco, Dell, F5, AMD, Intel and others. Developed within our Advanced Technology Center (ATC) [https://www.wwt.com/service/atc/overview], this one-of-a-kind lab environment empowers IT teams to evaluate and test AI infrastructure, software and solutions for efficacy, scalability and flexibility — all under one roof. The AI Proving Ground provides visibility into data flows across the entire development pipeline, enabling more informed decision-making while safeguarding production environments.

When AI Stops Assisting And Starts Acting

What changes when AI stops answering questions and starts taking actions? In this episode of the AI Proving Ground Podcast, WWT security leaders Istvan Burko and Jillian Anderson-Nix break down why agentic AI is forcing enterprises to rethink security from the ground up. These systems are no longer just generating content. They're touching sensitive data, triggering workflows, modifying code and operating with a level of speed and autonomy existing security models were never designed to handle. The conversation explores the idea of blast radius, why AI agents can behave like highly privileged employees vulnerable to manipulation, and what happens when AI deployments move faster than governance and operational controls can keep up. We also unpack ARMOR, WWT’s AI Readiness Model for Operational Resilience, along with the practical guardrails leaders should be thinking about now, including observability, least privilege, secure operations and disciplined human oversight for coding agents. If your organization is building or deploying agentic AI, this episode offers a practical look at where the next generation of security risk is starting to emerge. Support for this episode provided by: Akamai [https://www.wwt.com/partner/akamai/overview] More about this week's guests: Jillian Anderson-Nix [https://www.wwt.com/profile/jillian-anderson-nix/bio] is a Technical Solutions Architect at World Wide Technology [https://www.wwt.com?utm_source=chatgpt.com] focused on enterprise AI security and operational resilience. Her background spans biomedical research, aerospace and applied AI, bringing a cross-industry perspective to securing emerging technologies. Jillian is passionate about building safe, practical and collaborative AI ecosystems grounded in real-world enterprise use cases. Jillian's top pick: How to Use ARMOR: A Guide to AI Security Transformation [https://www.wwt.com/article/how-to-use-armor-a-guide-to-ai-security-transformation] Istvan Burko [https://www.wwt.com/profile/istvan-berko/bio] is a security and governance leader with more than 25 years of experience across cybersecurity, risk and cloud strategy. He has held senior leadership roles at NTT/Dimension Data and Amazon Web Services, where he contributed to the AWS Cloud Adoption Framework whitepapers. Istvan remains active in the cybersecurity community through industry leadership, events and enterprise security initiatives focused on modern operational resilience. Istvan's top pick: Breaking Data Silos: How Private Inference Unlocks GPU ROI on Sensitive Data [https://www.wwt.com/blog/breaking-data-silos-how-private-inference-unlocks-gpu-roi-on-sensitive-data] The AI Proving Ground Podcast leverages the deep AI technical and business expertise from within World Wide Technology's one-of-a-kind AI Proving Ground, which provides unrivaled access to the world's leading AI technologies. This unique lab environment accelerates your ability to learn about, test, train and implement AI solutions.  Learn more about WWT's AI Proving Ground [https://www.wwt.com/atc/ai-proving-ground/overview]. The AI Proving Ground is a composable lab environment that features the latest high-performance infrastructure and reference architectures from the world's leading AI companies, such as NVIDIA, Cisco, Dell, F5, AMD, Intel and others. Developed within our Advanced Technology Center (ATC) [https://www.wwt.com/service/atc/overview], this one-of-a-kind lab environment empowers IT teams to evaluate and test AI infrastructure, software and solutions for efficacy, scalability and flexibility — all under one roof. The AI Proving Ground provides visibility into data flows across the entire development pipeline, enabling more informed decision-making while safeguarding production environments.

Mythos And The Disappearing Patch Window

What happens when vulnerabilities can be discovered in minutes and exploits can be generated faster than organizations can patch them? In this episode of the AI Proving Ground Podcast, former NSA Cybersecurity Director Rob Joyce and WWT cyber architecture and innovation leader Kent Noyes break down how AI is compressing the timelines cybersecurity teams have relied on for decades. We explore why Anthropic’s Mythos became a wake-up call for the security industry, how agentic AI is accelerating vulnerability discovery, and why traditional patching and vulnerability management strategies are struggling to keep pace. The conversation also examines which defenses still hold up under machine-speed pressure, from zero trust and segmentation to deception techniques, resilience planning and recovery. If your security strategy still assumes defenders have time on their side, this episode explains why that assumption is starting to break. Support for this episode provided by: ExtraHop [https://www.wwt.com/partner/extrahop/overview] More about this week's guests: Rob Joyce [https://www.linkedin.com/in/rob-joyce-b43445116] served more than 34 years at the NSA, spending his final years as Director of Cybersecurity. Throughout his career, he held leadership roles in signals intelligence and cybersecurity, including leading Tailored Access Operations (TAO), the NSA’s elite hacking unit focused on foreign intelligence operations. He also served on the White House National Security Council as Special Assistant to the President and Cybersecurity Coordinator, and as Acting Homeland Security Advisor. Joyce is now founder of Joyce Cyber LLC and serves in advisory roles for organizations including OpenAI, Microsoft, PwC and others. Rob's top pick: Cyber Resilience: Why Security Fails When It Matters Most [https://www.wwt.com/video/cyber-resilience-why-security-fails-when-it-matters-most] Kent Noyes [https://www.wwt.com/profile/kent-noyes/bio] is a cybersecurity and infrastructure leader with more than two decades at World Wide Technology [https://www.wwt.com?utm_source=chatgpt.com], where he has held senior roles across technical pre-sales and service delivery. A Cisco CCIE and WWT’s first Distinguished Solutions Architect, Kent now leads Cyber Architecture & Innovation within WWT’s Global Cyber organization, helping enterprise customers address evolving security challenges, emerging technologies and modern cyber risk. Kent's top pick: Defending at the Speed of AI [https://www.wwt.com/wwt-research/defending-at-the-speed-of-ai] The AI Proving Ground Podcast leverages the deep AI technical and business expertise from within World Wide Technology's one-of-a-kind AI Proving Ground, which provides unrivaled access to the world's leading AI technologies. This unique lab environment accelerates your ability to learn about, test, train and implement AI solutions.  Learn more about WWT's AI Proving Ground [https://www.wwt.com/atc/ai-proving-ground/overview]. The AI Proving Ground is a composable lab environment that features the latest high-performance infrastructure and reference architectures from the world's leading AI companies, such as NVIDIA, Cisco, Dell, F5, AMD, Intel and others. Developed within our Advanced Technology Center (ATC) [https://www.wwt.com/service/atc/overview], this one-of-a-kind lab environment empowers IT teams to evaluate and test AI infrastructure, software and solutions for efficacy, scalability and flexibility — all under one roof. The AI Proving Ground provides visibility into data flows across the entire development pipeline, enabling more informed decision-making while safeguarding production environments.