Cisco just launched Cloud Control—a single platform where human operators and AI agents manage IT infrastructure together. This isn’t another dashboard update. It’s a command center built for what Cisco calls AgenticOps, a new operating model where AI runs at software speed but humans keep control.

Cloud Control unites networking, security, compute, observability, and collaboration tools under one login and one data layer. Both humans and AI agents share the same real-time telemetry and operational context. The goal: stop teams from drowning in disparate tools and siloed data.

The platform supports natural language interfaces for building custom AI agents and applications. Users can create workflows, apps, and agents tailored to their policies via Cloud Control Studio. It connects to over 50 third-party services, including AWS, Microsoft, ServiceNow, Slack, and Google Cloud. OpenAI Codex integration powers app development within the platform.

Trusted AI agents don’t just alert—they act. They spot issues, diagnose causes, apply fixes, test changes in digital twins, and confirm recovery—all governed under human oversight. Cisco AI Canvas offers a collaborative workspace where operators and AI agents investigate incidents together, preserving context across shifts and escalations.

Security at Machine Speed

Cisco knows the vulnerability-exploit window has shrunk from weeks to minutes. Reactive defense won’t cut it anymore. Cloud Control anchors Cisco’s expanded security suite, starting with Live Protect. This “digital immune system” shields supported products from new vulnerabilities at runtime—no reboots, no downtime.

Live Protect is live on Nexus 9000 switches and will roll out to campus switches and secure routers this year. Hybrid Mesh Firewall extends unified protection across networks, apps, and mixed firewall environments, limiting damage spread during incidents.

Cisco also addresses the new threat vector: AI agents themselves. The company introduced layered defenses for AI agents, including AI Defense, Zero Trust policies for agents, and an automated Agentic SOC to cut incident response from days to minutes.

Quantum-Ready Infrastructure

Harvest now, decrypt later attacks are here. Adversaries capture encrypted data today, aiming to crack it when quantum computers arrive. Cisco is future-proofing critical systems with quantum-safe secure boot on new routers, switches, and firewalls.

Its Quantum Resilience Framework guides enterprises in adopting post-quantum cryptography for communications and products. Quantum Ready Assessments, accessible through Cisco IQ, help customers identify vulnerable assets and prioritize mitigation. Both services will see global availability by July 2026.

Cisco IQ integrates deeply with Cloud Control, delivering AI-driven insights and support. It offers a Resilient Infrastructure Playbook based on Zero Trust principles and benchmarks anonymized customer data to reveal exposure risks and security gaps by industry and size.

Cloud Control enters controlled availability in the U.S. now, with global rollout planned soon. Cisco bets that tomorrow’s infrastructure will be managed by human-AI teams working side by side, wielding real-time data and governed AI agents to keep systems running, defended, and ready for the unknown.