(Reuters) -Cisco Systems launched a computing device on Monday that will run artificial intelligence workloads at local entities such as retail stores, factory floors and healthcare facilities, speeding up their AI data processing capabilities.
The new platform, named “Cisco Unified Edge,” is an attempt to bring AI infrastructure closer to where the data is created – on shop and factory floors, for example – as traditional data centers become overburdened with complex commands, especially as agentic and reasoning models drive up network traffic.
The Cisco platform features an Intel chip and has seen an early adopter in Verizon. It is expected to be generally available by the end of the year.
Tech firms have committed tens of billions of dollars to expand their data center operations to accommodate the soaring use of AI models.
“As AI agents and experiences proliferate, they will naturally emerge closer to where customers interact and decisions are made – the branch office, retail store, factory floor, stadium, and more,” said Cisco’s Chief Product Officer Jeetu Patel.
(Reporting by Zaheer Kachwala in Bengaluru; Editing by Pooja Desai)
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