Cisco survey says IT professionals are eager to embrace artificial intelligence and machine learning

With increasingly complex applications and services, IT professionals are looking to machine learning and artificial intelligence to help align their business needs. In a survey of over 2,000 IT leaders and network strategists, Cisco found maximizing businesses' value to be IT's top priority, which indicates a desire to drive greater innovation and closer alignment to business strategies. In addition to investing in machine learning (ML) and artificial intelligence (AI), Cisco's survey also found that IT professionals are moving their networks towards intent-based networking. Cisco introduced intent-based networking with the launch of its DNA Center in 2017, and has since integrated it across the company's portfolio. "IT teams today are running vast, complex networks that are providing massive amounts of data. But using that data to improve the network and accelerate the business requires new tools. That's why IT teams are embracing intent-based networking, AI and machine learning --because the business demands it," said Scott Harrell, SVP and GM, Cisco Enterprise Networking, in a statement.