VAST Data Expand Partnership With Cisco
Together, VAST and Cisco provide a turnkey platform for building enterprise AI Factories – agentic, data-intensive AI systems at scale – ensuring security, performance, and operational agility from edge to core to cloud. The joint solution stack enables customers to unify data pipelines, automate infrastructure management, and reason over real-time data using scalable, zero-trust AI infrastructure.
VAST Founder and CEO, Renen Hallak, will join Cisco President and Chief Product Officer Jeetu Patel on stage at Cisco Live's Executive Symposium, for a fireside chat discussing this strategic partnership. The conversation will highlight how the two companies are driving enterprise AI adoption and explore key trends shaping the future of AI-driven business.
'Cisco and VAST share a vision for making AI infrastructure accessible, secure, and scalable for every enterprise,' said Jeremy Foster, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Cisco Compute. 'We're enabling customers to collapse complexity and unlock faster time-to-value by providing a unified infrastructure stack built for the demands of AI.
The joint solution integrates key technologies across both platforms, including: A Consolidated AI Infrastructure Stack: A jointly validated, enterprise-grade platform that brings together Cisco's compute and networking leadership with the industry defining VAST AI Operating System – delivering a full-stack solution for AI infrastructure that's simple to deploy, easy to manage, and built to scale from day one.
Integrated AI Execution with InsightEngine and AgentEngine: Customers can now run end-to-end AI pipelines – from retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) to real-time reasoning – directly within VAST's AI OS on Cisco UCS. VAST InsightEngine accelerates vector search, data preparation, and inference workflows at the point of data, while AgentEngine takes this further by orchestrating autonomous agents that continuously operate on live data streams, enabling real-time, event-driven decision-making. These capabilities empower Cisco environments to become intelligent execution layers – turning raw data into continuous, actionable insight.
Unified AI Data and Compute Services: A consolidated software stack via the VAST AI Operating System that simplifies infrastructure complexity by unifying structured, unstructured, and vector data management with agentic compute services – enabling real-time reasoning for next-gen AI applications and workflow automation at scale.
Enterprise-Grade Performance and Scalability: High-performance compute with Cisco UCS and scalable, AI-optimized network fabrics via Cisco Nexus, validated to run seamlessly with VAST's Disaggregated Shared Everything (DASE) architecture – delivering predictable performance across even the largest AI deployments.
Faster Time-to-Value with Turnkey Automation: SaaS-based orchestration and lifecycle management from Cisco Nexus Hyperfabric AI, combined with VAST's intelligent dataflows and global namespace, streamline infrastructure provisioning, monitoring, and scaling across the full AI pipeline.
Built-In Security and Multi-Tenant Readiness: A zero-trust infrastructure model that combines VAST's native data governance and multi-tenant controls with Cisco's secure platform architecture—ensuring isolated, compliant environments for sensitive AI workloads across hybrid and on-prem deployments. A Consolidated AI Infrastructure Stack: A jointly validated, enterprise-grade platform that brings together Cisco's compute and networking leadership with the industry defining VAST AI Operating System – delivering a full-stack solution for AI infrastructure that's simple to deploy, easy to manage, and built to scale from day one.
Integrated AI Execution with InsightEngine and AgentEngine: Customers can now run end-to-end AI pipelines – from retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) to real-time reasoning – directly within VAST's AI OS on Cisco UCS. VAST InsightEngine accelerates vector search, data preparation, and inference workflows at the point of data, while AgentEngine takes this further by orchestrating autonomous agents that continuously operate on live data streams, enabling real-time, event-driven decision-making. These capabilities empower Cisco environments to become intelligent execution layers – turning raw data into continuous, actionable insight.
Unified AI Data and Compute Services: A consolidated software stack via the VAST AI Operating System that simplifies infrastructure complexity by unifying structured, unstructured, and vector data management with agentic compute services – enabling real-time reasoning for next-gen AI applications and workflow automation at scale.
Enterprise-Grade Performance and Scalability: High-performance compute with Cisco UCS and scalable, AI-optimized network fabrics via Cisco Nexus, validated to run seamlessly with VAST's Disaggregated Shared Everything (DASE) architecture – delivering predictable performance across even the largest AI deployments.
Faster Time-to-Value with Turnkey Automation: SaaS-based orchestration and lifecycle management from Cisco Nexus Hyperfabric AI, combined with VAST's intelligent dataflows and global namespace, streamline infrastructure provisioning, monitoring, and scaling across the full AI pipeline.
Built-In Security and Multi-Tenant Readiness: A zero-trust infrastructure model that combines VAST's native data governance and multi-tenant controls with Cisco's secure platform architecture—ensuring isolated, compliant environments for sensitive AI workloads across hybrid and on-prem deployments.
The VAST + Cisco solution is purpose-built for generative and agentic AI workloads, enabling customers to power complex, data-driven applications with the performance, insight, and operational control needed to drive business transformation.
'This partnership represents the convergence of two best-in-class platforms to create a foundational blueprint for enterprise AI,' said Renen Hallak, Founder and CEO at VAST Data. 'By aligning the VAST AI OS with Cisco's UCS and Nexus infrastructure, we're delivering the turnkey simplicity, observability, and scalability that enterprises need to deploy and manage intelligent systems globally.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Web Release
4 days ago
- Web Release
Cisco Duo Reimagines Identity Security to Combat AI Era Threats
Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO), the leader in security and networking, today unveiled Duo Identity and Access Management (IAM), a new security solution that transforms how organizations combat persistent identity-based attacks that are accelerating in the AI era. Identity is a prime target for bad actors, accounting for 60% of Cisco Talos Incident Response cases in 2024, because current solutions have critical weaknesses that attackers exploit. Duo IAM offers an innovative and security-first approach, with added protection built on its globally trusted multifactor authentication (MFA). Duo IAM is the latest advancement in Cisco's long-standing commitment to user-friendly Zero Trust security. 'The security industry is facing an 'identity crisis' as persistent identity-based attacks are among the most dangerous and costly challenges for security teams. Attackers don't need to hack in, when they can simply log in,' said Jeetu Patel, President and Chief Product Officer, Cisco. 'While identity is the foundation of strong security, traditional IAM solutions have failed to prioritize security despite increasingly sophisticated threats. With this massive innovation, Duo is moving beyond MFA and restoring trust in identity security with a fundamentally different approach that attackers hate and users love.' Security-First Identity and Access Management According to Cisco's 2025 Cybersecurity Readiness Index, nearly a third of companies worldwide rank identity as their top cybersecurity challenge, but traditional IAM solutions often treat security as optional rather than foundational. Purpose-built to protect against modern identity threats, Duo IAM enables organizations to securely manage their entire identity infrastructure. Duo includes a new User Directory to simplify storing user identities – including usernames, emails, and roles – and managing their access to resources. Paired with its existing capabilities including MFA and Single Sign On (SSO) to provide users with simple, easy and secure access to hundreds of applications from one login page, Duo now offers customers a comprehensive IAM solution. Open and flexible, Duo IAM also integrates effortlessly with existing third-party identity systems. The new Identity Routing Engine allows Duo to integrate with many identity providers either as an identity broker or as a secondary identity provider. Incorporating security by default, Duo IAM frustrates attackers, while improving user experience and management costs. The Cisco AI Assistant is embedded in Duo to help organizations easily deploy and manage the new solution out-of-the-box. End-to-End Phishing-Resistance AI has accelerated the scale and complexity of account takeover through automated agentic social engineering. In response to rising threats, globally trusted Duo MFA now delivers the strongest form of authentication, without sacrificing convenience or purchasing expensive hardware keys. Recent innovations strengthening end-to-end phishing resistance include: Complete Passwordless : New option ensures a secure authentication experience without users ever having to use or remember a password. : New option ensures a secure authentication experience without users ever having to use or remember a password. Proximity Verification : This capability uses Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) to ensure a user's mobile and access devices are near each other when authenticating. : This capability uses Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) to ensure a user's mobile and access devices are near each other when authenticating. Session Theft Protection: New enhancements to Duo Passport remove the reliance on browser cookies from authentication, protecting against session theft and hijacking. Unified Identity Intelligence Identity infrastructure is complex and often disconnected, creating blind spots where attacks and vulnerabilities go unnoticed. To help organizations continuously monitor and respond to changes in identity risk, Duo IAM integrates with Cisco Identity Intelligence, connecting identity and access data across the Cisco Security Cloud platform. With AI-driven behavioral analytics and Cisco's unmatched reach into the network, organizations gain comprehensive visibility, threat detection, and the ability to take graduated responses like quarantining an identity, killing active sessions or isolating the network. 'Cisco Duo has been a trusted security partner when it comes to MFA, and in today's environment we're eager to use these new capabilities to fight growing identity-based attacks,' said Todd Perrault, Senior Vice President of Client Advisory, Optiv. 'Duo's expanding suite of identity and access management solutions will deliver even stronger results for our customers with a security-first approach to identity while providing reduced friction for end users.' 'Identity breaches are no longer the exception—they're the rule. Seeing a trusted security brand like Duo broaden from access management to include identity management and provide a security-first approach in the market is both timely and refreshing,' said Todd Thiemann, Principal Analyst, Enterprise Strategy Group. 'Duo's commitment to maximizing security while minimizing user and admin friction is exactly what the industry needs. In particular, their approach to end-to-end phishing resistance marks a major leap forward, not just in security, but also in ease of deployment, to combat the latest identity threats.' For more information about Duo and its new IAM solution, visit
Zawya
5 days ago
- Zawya
Cisco Duo reimagines identity security to combat AI era threats
Cisco Duo unveiled an innovative, security-first Identity and Access Management (IAM) solution. Duo IAM protects against modern AI-driven identity threats, while maintaining user productivity. Building on its globally trusted multifactor authentication (MFA), Duo IAM sets a new standard for end-to-end phishing resistance without expensive hardware keys. Riyadh, Saudi Arabia – Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO), the leader in security and networking, today unveiled Duo Identity and Access Management (IAM), a new security solution that transforms how organizations combat persistent identity-based attacks that are accelerating in the AI era. Identity is a prime target for bad actors, accounting for 60% of Cisco Talos Incident Response cases in 2024, because current solutions have critical weaknesses that attackers exploit. Duo IAM offers an innovative and security-first approach, with added protection built on its globally trusted multifactor authentication (MFA). Duo IAM is the latest advancement in Cisco's long-standing commitment to user-friendly Zero Trust security. 'The security industry is facing an 'identity crisis' as persistent identity-based attacks are among the most dangerous and costly challenges for security teams. Attackers don't need to hack in, when they can simply log in,' said Jeetu Patel, President and Chief Product Officer, Cisco. 'While identity is the foundation of strong security, traditional IAM solutions have failed to prioritize security despite increasingly sophisticated threats. With this massive innovation, Duo is moving beyond MFA and restoring trust in identity security with a fundamentally different approach that attackers hate and users love.' Security-First Identity and Access Management According to Cisco's 2025 Cybersecurity Readiness Index, nearly a third of companies worldwide rank identity as their top cybersecurity challenge, but traditional IAM solutions often treat security as optional rather than foundational. Purpose-built to protect against modern identity threats, Duo IAM enables organizations to securely manage their entire identity infrastructure. Duo includes a new User Directory to simplify storing user identities – including usernames, emails, and roles – and managing their access to resources. Paired with its existing capabilities including MFA and Single Sign On (SSO) to provide users with simple, easy and secure access to hundreds of applications from one login page, Duo now offers customers a comprehensive IAM solution. Open and flexible, Duo IAM also integrates effortlessly with existing third-party identity systems. The new Identity Routing Engine allows Duo to integrate with many identity providers either as an identity broker or as a secondary identity provider. Incorporating security by default, Duo IAM frustrates attackers, while improving user experience and management costs. The Cisco AI Assistant is embedded in Duo to help organizations easily deploy and manage the new solution out-of-the-box. End-to-End Phishing-Resistance AI has accelerated the scale and complexity of account takeover through automated agentic social engineering. In response to rising threats, globally trusted Duo MFA now delivers the strongest form of authentication, without sacrificing convenience or purchasing expensive hardware keys. Recent innovations strengthening end-to-end phishing resistance include: Complete Passwordless: New option ensures a secure authentication experience without users ever having to use or remember a password. Proximity Verification: This capability uses Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) to ensure a user's mobile and access devices are near each other when authenticating. Session Theft Protection: New enhancements to Duo Passport remove the reliance on browser cookies from authentication, protecting against session theft and hijacking. Unified Identity Intelligence Identity infrastructure is complex and often disconnected, creating blind spots where attacks and vulnerabilities go unnoticed. To help organizations continuously monitor and respond to changes in identity risk, Duo IAM integrates with Cisco Identity Intelligence, connecting identity and access data across the Cisco Security Cloud platform. With AI-driven behavioral analytics and Cisco's unmatched reach into the network, organizations gain comprehensive visibility, threat detection, and the ability to take graduated responses like quarantining an identity, killing active sessions or isolating the network. 'Cisco Duo has been a trusted security partner when it comes to MFA, and in today's environment we're eager to use these new capabilities to fight growing identity-based attacks,' said Todd Perrault, Senior Vice President of Client Advisory, Optiv. 'Duo's expanding suite of identity and access management solutions will deliver even stronger results for our customers with a security-first approach to identity while providing reduced friction for end users.' 'Identity breaches are no longer the exception—they're the rule. Seeing a trusted security brand like Duo broaden from access management to include identity management and provide a security-first approach in the market is both timely and refreshing,' said Todd Thiemann, Principal Analyst, Enterprise Strategy Group. 'Duo's commitment to maximizing security while minimizing user and admin friction is exactly what the industry needs. In particular, their approach to end-to-end phishing resistance marks a major leap forward, not just in security, but also in ease of deployment, to combat the latest identity threats.' For more information about Duo and its new IAM solution, visit About Cisco Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO) is the worldwide technology leader that is revolutionizing the way organizations connect and protect in the AI era. For more than 40 years, Cisco has securely connected the world. With its industry leading AI-powered solutions and services, Cisco enables its customers, partners and communities to unlock innovation, enhance productivity and strengthen digital resilience. With purpose at its core, Cisco remains committed to creating a more connected and inclusive future for all. Discover more on The Newsroom and follow us on X at @Cisco. Cisco and the Cisco logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Cisco and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and other countries. A listing of Cisco's trademarks can be found at Third-party trademarks mentioned are the property of their respective owners. The use of the word 'partner' does not imply a partnership relationship between Cisco and any other company.
Zawya
5 days ago
- Zawya
Cisco Duo unveils next-gen identity protection amid rising AI threats
Cisco Duo unveiled an innovative, security-first Identity and Access Management (IAM) solution. Duo IAM protects against modern AI-driven identity threats, while maintaining user productivity. Building on its globally trusted multifactor authentication (MFA), Duo IAM sets a new standard for end-to-end phishing resistance without expensive hardware keys. Dubai, UAE – Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO), the leader in security and networking, today unveiled Duo Identity and Access Management (IAM), a new security solution that transforms how organizations combat persistent identity-based attacks that are accelerating in the AI era. Identity is a prime target for bad actors, accounting for 60% of Cisco Talos Incident Response cases in 2024, because current solutions have critical weaknesses that attackers exploit. Duo IAM offers an innovative and security-first approach, with added protection built on its globally trusted multifactor authentication (MFA). Duo IAM is the latest advancement in Cisco's long-standing commitment to user-friendly Zero Trust security. 'The security industry is facing an 'identity crisis' as persistent identity-based attacks are among the most dangerous and costly challenges for security teams. Attackers don't need to hack in, when they can simply log in,' said Jeetu Patel, President and Chief Product Officer, Cisco. 'While identity is the foundation of strong security, traditional IAM solutions have failed to prioritize security despite increasingly sophisticated threats. With this massive innovation, Duo is moving beyond MFA and restoring trust in identity security with a fundamentally different approach that attackers hate and users love.' Security-First Identity and Access Management According to Cisco's 2025 Cybersecurity Readiness Index, nearly a third of companies worldwide rank identity as their top cybersecurity challenge, but traditional IAM solutions often treat security as optional rather than foundational. Purpose-built to protect against modern identity threats, Duo IAM enables organizations to securely manage their entire identity infrastructure. Duo includes a new User Directory to simplify storing user identities – including usernames, emails, and roles – and managing their access to resources. Paired with its existing capabilities including MFA and Single Sign On (SSO) to provide users with simple, easy and secure access to hundreds of applications from one login page, Duo now offers customers a comprehensive IAM solution. Open and flexible, Duo IAM also integrates effortlessly with existing third-party identity systems. The new Identity Routing Engine allows Duo to integrate with many identity providers either as an identity broker or as a secondary identity provider. Incorporating security by default, Duo IAM frustrates attackers, while improving user experience and management costs. The Cisco AI Assistant is embedded in Duo to help organizations easily deploy and manage the new solution out-of-the-box. End-to-End Phishing-Resistance AI has accelerated the scale and complexity of account takeover through automated agentic social engineering. In response to rising threats, globally trusted Duo MFA now delivers the strongest form of authentication, without sacrificing convenience or purchasing expensive hardware keys. Recent innovations strengthening end-to-end phishing resistance include: Complete Passwordless: New option ensures a secure authentication experience without users ever having to use or remember a password. Proximity Verification: This capability uses Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) to ensure a user's mobile and access devices are near each other when authenticating. Session Theft Protection: New enhancements to Duo Passport remove the reliance on browser cookies from authentication, protecting against session theft and hijacking. Unified Identity Intelligence Identity infrastructure is complex and often disconnected, creating blind spots where attacks and vulnerabilities go unnoticed. To help organizations continuously monitor and respond to changes in identity risk, Duo IAM integrates with Cisco Identity Intelligence, connecting identity and access data across the Cisco Security Cloud platform. With AI-driven behavioral analytics and Cisco's unmatched reach into the network, organizations gain comprehensive visibility, threat detection, and the ability to take graduated responses like quarantining an identity, killing active sessions or isolating the network. 'Cisco Duo has been a trusted security partner when it comes to MFA, and in today's environment we're eager to use these new capabilities to fight growing identity-based attacks,' said Todd Perrault, Senior Vice President of Client Advisory, Optiv. 'Duo's expanding suite of identity and access management solutions will deliver even stronger results for our customers with a security-first approach to identity while providing reduced friction for end users.' 'Identity breaches are no longer the exception—they're the rule. Seeing a trusted security brand like Duo broaden from access management to include identity management and provide a security-first approach in the market is both timely and refreshing,' said Todd Thiemann, Principal Analyst, Enterprise Strategy Group. 'Duo's commitment to maximizing security while minimizing user and admin friction is exactly what the industry needs. In particular, their approach to end-to-end phishing resistance marks a major leap forward, not just in security, but also in ease of deployment, to combat the latest identity threats.' For more information about Duo and its new IAM solution, visit About Cisco Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO) is the worldwide technology leader that is revolutionizing the way organizations connect and protect in the AI era. For more than 40 years, Cisco has securely connected the world. With its industry leading AI-powered solutions and services, Cisco enables its customers, partners and communities to unlock innovation, enhance productivity and strengthen digital resilience. With purpose at its core, Cisco remains committed to creating a more connected and inclusive future for all. Discover more on The Newsroom and follow us on X at @Cisco. Cisco and the Cisco logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Cisco and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and other countries. A listing of Cisco's trademarks can be found at Third-party trademarks mentioned are the property of their respective owners. The use of the word 'partner' does not imply a partnership relationship between Cisco and any other company.
