Network Break
Packet Pushers
Network Break keeps you informed with fast, focused analysis of IT news, products, tech trends, and business outcomes. Blending sharp commentary with a touch of humor, hosts Drew Conry-Murray & Johna Till Johnson sift through the weekly landslide of press announcements, product launches, financial reports, and marketing decks to find the stories worth talking about. You come away with the information and context to make smart decisions in your organization and career … all in the span of a (longish) coffee break.
Episodes
Mentioned books
Jan 29, 2024 • 1h 1min
NB464: Juniper Begins AI Push Into The Data Center; VMware Customers Confront Higher Prices
This week we discuss new products from Juniper including synthetic testing software for its Mist wireless networks and its first step toward integrating its Apstra data center software with AI. VMware clarifies its product strategy as customers face rising prices, and undersea cables in the Red Sea face potential threats. Nokia and Chinese mobile device... Read more »
Jan 22, 2024 • 55min
NB463: Cisco Buys eBPF Startup For Cloud-Native Networking; Gartner Forecasts $5 Trillion In IT Spending
This week’s Network Break examines why Cisco bought eBPF startup Isovalent (hint: it’s about cloud-native networking), why Broadcom is cranking up pressure on VMware resellers and customers (hint: it’s about money), and why Google Cloud is sort of dropping fees for customers who want to exit the cloud (hint: it’s about getting out ahead of... Read more »
Jan 15, 2024 • 48min
NB462: HPE Spends $14 Billion For Juniper Networks; Starlink Tests SMS Via Satellite
Take a Network Break! On today’s show we spend most of the episode talking about HPE’s $14 billion bid for Juniper Networks. We discuss reasons for the deal, product overlap, potential upsides, challenges to integrating these two companies and their product lines, and more. We also talk about a successful test by Starlink to send... Read more »
Jan 9, 2024 • 1h 15min
NB461: 2024 Trends – AI Beyond LLMs, Cisco Vs. Everybody, Next-Gen IT Workers, And More
Topics discussed in the podcast include the dominance of AI in 2024, global shipping challenges and supply chain implications, SASE and SD-WAN for security and connectivity in the cloud, Meta's failure and Qualcomm's silicon chip, challenges of VR in enterprise IT, transforming IT teams with AI ops, and the value of integrated end-to-end single vendor story for security and troubleshooting.
Dec 18, 2023 • 58min
NB460: VMware Ditches Perpetual Licenses; GenAI Is Coming To Network Ops
Broadcom’s VMware has announced an end to perpetual licensing, network automation provider Anuta Networks is adding generative AI capabilities to its Atom platform, and high-end firewall revenues dip but campus switch sales soared in Q3 2023. The Open Networking Foundation, which oversaw open projects around software-defined networking, is closing its doors and folding its projects... Read more »
Dec 11, 2023 • 37min
NB459: IBM Aims To Own The Quantum Realm; Amazon Hitches A Ride With SpaceX
IBM has announced a new quantum processor and modular quantum computer in an effort to own the next generation of computing, Cisco unveils an AI assistant to help you untangle firewall rules, and Marvell debuts new DPUs for switches, firewalls, and other networking devices. The MEF looks for ways to stay relevant in the broadband... Read more »
Dec 4, 2023 • 58min
NB458: Broadcom Debuts On-Chip Neural Net, Lays Off VMware Staff; Okta Breach Gets Worse
Broadcom’s latest Trident ASIC will include a neural net inference engine on the chip that can analyze traffic and take action in the packet pipeline, but it’s up to customers to build rules and signatures based on their own training data. Broadcom has also announced it will lay off approximately 1,300 VMware employees. Identity provider... Read more »
Nov 27, 2023 • 53min
NB457: Broadcom, VMware Tie The Knot; Nvidia SuperNICs Target AI Ethernet Acceleration
Now that Broadcom’s $69 billion VMware acquisition is complete, will Broadcom invest more in VMware to compete in multi-cloud or settle for profitable revenue collection from existing customers? Nvidia debuts a SuperNIC designed to accelerate Ethernet to support AI workloads and announces partnerships with server makers to bundle its NIC in an AI Ethernet stack.... Read more »
Nov 20, 2023 • 39min
NB456: China Flexes Tech Muscles With 1.2Tb Backbone; Will CISOs Mitigate Risk Or Liability?
China demonstrates the strength of its home-grown technology industry by announcing a 1.2Tbit Internet backbone that stretches 3,000 kilometers, Fortinet warns of a 9.8 severity bug in its SIEM product, and Nvidia and Dell roll out ready-made models and infrastructure for enterprises to build their own generative AI apps. HPE Aruba Networking releases a new... Read more »
Nov 13, 2023 • 49min
NB455: Extreme Announces ZTNA Offering; Palo Alto Networks Spends Big On A Browser Startup
Extreme Networks is jumping into Zero Trust Network Access, Palo Alto Networks is reportedly spending more than half a billion dollars to acquire a corporate browser startup, and Forrester predicts as much as 20% of VMware’s customers may jump ship after the Broadcom acquisition completes. Arista touts a strong third quarter, while F5 forecasts a... Read more »
