Extreme Networks & Intel join forces to boost AI in networks

Extreme Networks has announced a co-innovation alliance with Intel's Connectivity Analytics Program aiming to enhance the native AI capabilities within the Extreme AI Expert solution. This initiative is currently in a technology preview phase within Extreme Labs.

The collaboration is designed to assist customers in optimising network performance, detecting security threats, personalising end-user experiences, and reducing operational costs by leveraging network data and unique device data from PCs through Intel's Connectivity Analytics SDK and Generative AI (GenAI). According to the companies, this integration will make networks smarter, faster, and more resilient.

As the number of client devices continues to grow across various network environments, the need for improved visibility into device activity and simplified device management from the data centre to the network edge becomes more critical. This partnership between Extreme and Intel promises to deliver enhanced visibility into both network and client devices. Additionally, the collaboration aims to foster the development of further GenAI tools to optimise the design, deployment, and management of enterprise networking and security.

The new features introduced by this alliance are expected to help in optimising network performance by dynamically adjusting bandwidth to prioritise critical devices while also enhancing security threat detection and issue resolution.

Extreme AI Expert was introduced as a technology preview at Extreme Connect 2024. This solution combines documentation from Extreme’s knowledge bases with data from various applications and devices across customer networks to provide insights and proactive recommendations on the design, deployment, and management of networks. The integration with Intel is expected to incorporate data from Intel-connected devices to improve these recommendations further and extend the capabilities of Extreme AI Expert. Extreme plans to start integrating Extreme AI Expert into its solutions later this year.

Eric McLaughlin, Vice President and General Manager of Wireless Solutions at Intel's Client Computing Group, commented on the partnership: "The network is the hub of operations, innovation and experiences. By partnering with Extreme Networks, we're collectively making the network smarter, faster, more secure and more scalable. By leveraging the riches of AI-centric insights available through the millions of Intel-connected devices across the world and combining that with rich data from the network, we'll help organisations reduce operational costs and provide best-in-class end-user experiences."

Nabil Bukhari, Chief Technology and Product Officer and General Manager of Subscription Business at Extreme, added: "We're focused on advancing the network to improve human experiences. Partnering with Intel provides our customers with a more secure, more streamlined way to gain visibility of their network and client devices within a single platform. By augmenting our Extreme AI Expert solution with Intel Connectivity Analytics, we'll provide richer, more intuitive AI-driven insights and automation which results in smarter, more responsive experiences that enhance everything from network optimisation to swift security threat detection and resolution."

Extreme Networks and Intel expect their joint efforts to yield significant advancements in how networks are managed and optimised, potentially lowering operational costs and providing enhanced user experiences.