Lower the burden of AI adoption and continue AI operations even in large-scale environments

NetApp and Cisco have lowered the burden of AI adoption for enterprises through a new FlexPod validation solution that simplifies the deployment of enterprise AI infrastructure and enhances security.

On the 18th, NetApp announced a FlexPod validation solution with Cisco to support the deployment of more secure and scalable AI.

NetApp stated that this solution supports NVIDIA-based AI Factory and is designed to handle a variety of workloads, from enterprise RAG (Search Augmentation Generative) deployment to edge AI inference.

Through this FlexPod solution, NetApp and Cisco provide: △validation architectures for enterprise AI deployments such as RAG and semantic search; △data management, security, and operational functions utilizing NetApp AFX, NetApp AI Data Engine (AIDE), and Cisco Secure AI Factory; △pre-integrated infrastructure supporting AI inference and RAG workflows based on existing data; and △edge computing environments for handling AI inference and container and virtualization workloads in remote and distributed environments.

In enterprise AI deployment environments, AIDE based on NVIDIA's AI data platform was combined with Cisco's AI networking and security technologies to enhance data exploration, preparation, governance, and security capabilities.

The company explained that this enables companies to design and expand AI factories and continue AI operations even in large-scale environments.

DalDallas Olson, NetApp’s Chief Business Officer (CCO), said, “AI workloads are rapidly increasing demands on data infrastructure,” adding, “NetApp and Cisco’s FlexPod partnership has already proven effective in reducing customers’ infrastructure management and maintenance time by up to 20%.”

"As enterprises transition from AI experimentation to production environments, security has become an essential element," said Jeremy Foster, Senior Vice President at Cisco. "By extending Cisco Secure AI Factory to NetApp's proven FlexPod solution, we help address AI-related risks such as data exposure, governance gaps, and compliance."