Cisco recently highlighted rising pressure on enterprise networks from AI deployments. The company went on to warn that campus and branch infrastructure is emerging as a potential bottleneck for companies scaling the technology.
In a study conducted with UK-based technology media company Foundry, Cisco found organisations are caught between accelerating AI ambitions and network constraints which could slow progress. It stated more than half of enterprises now have widespread generative AI (genAI) deployments. However, 73% of respondents said AI expansion will cause them to hit campus and branch capacity limits within 24 months.
Indeed, pressure is already building as respondents reported a 34% average increase in campus and branch network traffic tied to AI workloads over the past year, with a further 96% spike expected within the coming year.
Respondents reported AI was already reshaping traffic patterns, with 67% citing increases in internal data traffic tied to AI workloads, while 61% saw growth in continuous automated traffic generated by AI systems. “Suddenly, three AI agents are trying to talk to each other and solve a problem. That is going to be a big thing”, noted the head of AI strategy for global IT and network engineering operations at a US technology company, who was left anonymous.
Cisco highlighted majority of the AI readiness debate has focused on GPUs, cloud platforms and data centre buildouts, while pressure on workplace networks has been underplayed.
Security
Beyond capacity, security is also emerging as a brake on AI scale. Respondents pointed to expanded attack surfaces, shadow AI activity, weak AI-driven traffic visibility and inconsistent policy enforcement as key challenges.
The report found 91% of UK businesses are adding security controls specifically to support new AI workloads. More than half of UK respondents added their current campus and branch security posture may be insufficient for next-generation AI workloads.
“The issue from a security standpoint is that it’s hard to create the guardrails for every possible AI tool that your organisation must use”, a U.S-based retail executive explained.
According to Cisco, AI is ultimately creating “fundamentally different operational environments”, making network modernisation “a prerequisite for operating and competing effectively in an AI-powered economy”.
The report surveyed more than 3,472 CIOs and technology leaders across 15 countries.
Source: Mobile World Live
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