Cisco

The rapid adoption of artificial intelligence—particularly AI inference and agentic AI systems—is beginning to reshape network traffic patterns in measurable and structurally important ways. By 2027, 80 percent  of executives believe their company’s competitive survival will depend on agentic AI, and consumer usage of AI is already prevalent and accelerating.

In 2026, as organizations face the inflection point of connectivity demand and AI-driven transformation, strategic wireless investments are proving to be a catalyst for enterprise-wide success. More than three-quarters of organizations report operational efficiency gains (78%), see employee productivity improvements (75%), and report enhanced customer engagement (75%), while almost 7 in 10 (68%) experience positive revenue impacts from wireless investments.

Cisco released the US Municipal Infrastructure Index, a nationwide survey of city, county, town and tribal government leaders. The findings are clear: an overwhelming majority agree that broadband is “critical infrastructure” and placed essential upgrades in the top tier of their must-do projects in their locales. We found:

Cisco unveiled its network solutions for rural broadband designed to help US service providers extend and improve the cost-efficiency of their networks for infrastructure buildouts in rural areas.