If you tuned into HPE Discover 2026, either remotely or from the show floor in Las Vegas, one message came through loud and clear: AI is forcing a rethink of networking, data centers, and infrastructure. Unlike vendors positioning themselves primarily as software or cloud companies, HPE is leaning heavily into its heritage — the company […]

I wasn’t on the ground at Cisco Live in Las Vegas this year, but I stayed closely plugged in, comparing notes in real time with Joseph Blankenship, Carlos Rivera, and James Plouffe, who were navigating the show floor, breakout sessions, and keynotes (their blog on Cisco Live 2026 is coming soon!). My own take is […]

We’re about halfway through 2026, and there’s a lot to look forward to — and thankfully, not all of it is AI-for-networking nonsense. What won’t be nonsense is the continued rise and adoption of networking platforms. The idea may feel late to the party compared to the security market (and yes, that makes me bristle […]

Extreme Platform ONE changed the tone at Extreme Connect. The energy felt real — less marketing noise, more actual momentum — as Extreme started to look like a credible answer to the gap forming outside the data center while HPE digests Juniper Networks. That shift shows in Platform ONE’s maturation into something operationally meaningful: a […]

You can use data center (DC) network solutions to drive faster time to market, yield operational cost savings and resource optimization, and ensure risk mitigation and business continuity. But to realize these benefits, you’ll first have to select from a diverse set of vendors that vary by size, type of offering, geography, and use case differentiation. Technology professionals should use this report to understand the value they can expect from a DC network solutions vendor, learn how vendors differ, and investigate options based on size and market focus.

MWC 2026 in Barcelona made one thing clear: The 5G hype has finally cooled, and the industry is sprinting toward what’s next. While I was on the ground navigating the chaos of the Fira, my partner Octavio was tracking the global signals from the digital sidelines. Between my sore feet and his high-level view, we’ve […]

Digitalization is becoming increasingly verticalized, with strategies and investments tailored to each industry’s unique needs. Retailers focus on real-time engagement, omnichannel experiences, and personalized journeys, investing in cloud-native apps, edge computing, and analytics. Utilities prioritize grid reliability, safety, and compliance, adopting industrial IoT, SCADA, and cybersecurity. A business-optimized network (BON) aligns network performance, scalability, and security with business goals, transforming infrastructure from a passive utility into a strategic enabler. We explore the transition from generic networks built on datasheets to purpose-built BONs designed for business outcomes here.

Globalization and operations excellence require increased connectivity between industrial automation/control systems and business systems to enable real-time information visibility and effective collaboration. Connectivity ensures consistent quality and performance across global operations, allowing firms to balance manufacturing with demand to optimize material and asset utilization, implement agile operations, and meet regulatory compliance. This report guides leaders looking to meet the demands of smart manufacturing in applying the principles of Forrester’s business-optimized network (BON) to design a manufacturing-optimized network.

SpaceX’s latest FCC filing signals a bold escalation in the battle for AI infrastructure dominance: a proposal to deploy up to 1 million solar‑powered orbital data‑center satellites — positioning space, not Earth, as the next frontier for compute capacity. Framed as “the most efficient way to meet the accelerating demand for AI computing power” and […]

On January 14, Verizon experienced a major nationwide cellular service disruption that left subscribers across the country facing significant connectivity issues. Although outage report numbers climbed into the hundreds of thousands, this visible count represents only a small portion of the true impact. As is typical in large‑scale outages, many customers who encountered problems never […]