Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) shares hiked on Thursday, as the technology titan unveiled a new security architecture product aimed at securing data centers, clouds, and other IT environments with the help of AI.
Called HyperShield, the product uses AI to protect applications, devices, and data across public and private data centers, clouds, and physical locations, according to a company press release.
HyperShield follows the company’s $28-billion acquisition of Splunk last year, a cybersecurity company competing with the likes of DataDog, Elastic, SolarWinds, and Dynatrace. Its launch also builds on Cisco’s partnership with Nvidia on managing and securing AI infrastructure.
This is Cisco’s big chance to prove itself as a serious AI player at a time when technology giants like Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT), Google (NASDAQ;GOOGL), and Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) are spending billions to become leaders in artificial intelligence.
“This is not a product, but a new architecture – the first version of something new,” Jeetu Patel, Cisco’s executive vice president and general manager of security and collaboration, said.
Other brands are also moving in a similar direction. Hewlett Packard Enterprise (NYSE:HPE) recently announced new large AI model integrations for its Aruba networking division, while Broadcom’s (NASDAQ:AVGO) VMWare launched a tool to allow companies to use generative AI products in a privacy-secure way.
As for CSCO, its shares grabbed 49 cents to $48.28, first thing Thursday.
