By Timothy Green
Publication Date: 2026-02-16 17:50:00
The networking giant is finally having success selling to hyperscalers.
For years, networking giant Cisco Systems (CSCO +2.53%) largely missed out on demand from hyperscale cloud companies. The company’s proprietary approach, which bundled its hardware and software, didn’t align well with hyperscalers’ needs. Starting in 2018, the company began offering its hardware and software separately, enabling hyperscalers to use any software with its switches or run its software on third-party hardware.
Image source: Getty Images.
In the age of AI, the need for custom networking solutions has become even more critical. Cisco’s Silicon One family of networking chips, introduced in 2019, has proven a key asset as the company taps into booming demand for AI infrastructure. Cisco took in $2.1 billion in AI infrastructure orders from hyperscalers during the second quarter of fiscal 2026, up from $1.3 billion in the first quarter. The company’s embrace of disaggregating hardware and software is…
