Videos
Cisco on AI Moving from Intent to Impact and Enterprise Scale
Insights
- AI is moving from experimentation to measurable business impact, with success defined by outcomes rather than technology adoption.
- Scaling AI across the enterprise requires embedding it into both operations and strategy, not just isolated use cases.
- Telecom operators are uniquely positioned to lead sovereign AI due to their trust, infrastructure, and role within national ecosystems.
At MWC 2026, DP Venkatesh of Cisco and Vikram Meghal of Infosys discuss how AI is entering a new phase, moving from intent and experimentation to real, measurable impact across telecom and enterprise environments. The conversation highlights how organizations are shifting focus from technology adoption to business outcomes, with AI driving automation across both network operations and customer experience. They explore the growing importance of scaling AI enterprise-wide, embedding it across strategy and operations rather than isolated use cases. The discussion also emphasizes how transactional AI, particularly through agents, is making impact tangible in both front- and back-office functions. Together, they highlight the unique role of telecom operators in enabling sovereign AI, leveraging trust, infrastructure, and geographic presence to drive adoption at a national scale.
AI moves from intent to impact
DP Venkatesh:
What we’re starting to see is true AI impact, both on the telecom industry as well as from an enterprise perspective. You know, we started talking about it in 25, but I think in 26, we're seeing real enterprise adoption, both in the telecom industry as well as in the enterprises at large. Everyone is focused on what are the business outcomes that are driven by AI. So, it's not so much a technology play as it is a business outcome play.
Scaling AI across the enterprise
DP Venkatesh:
We're seeing huge emphasis on automating operations - both on the network layer, but also on the customer experience perspective - What can AI do in driving true reimagining of the enterprise is a key area that we're seeing happen.
Vikram Meghal:
I think the AI use cases that are coming to the fore. We are seeing impact. Now we have to see how to take that impact enterprise wide so that the telcos in all that they do, across strategy and operations together, they can impact that though AI. But it's really heartening to see that people are getting comfortable with the technology and really focusing on what are the right tools to use to drive some of that transformation.
Operational impact makes AI real
DP Venkatesh:
From a transactional perspective, we're starting to see real impact in terms of AI agents and what they're able to do on customer-facing operations as well as back-office operations. So, I think the transactional element is the way we can measure the impact of AI in the enterprise.
Telcos anchor sovereign AI
DP Venkatesh:
I think telecom operators have a unique position when it comes to trust when it comes to sovereign capabilities as well as, most incumbent telcos have a very strong presence in public sector, in utilities, in financial services and healthcare. These are the industries where infrastructure, securing infrastructure, data residency, data privacy all the way up to sovereignty are unique advantages that telcos can really leverage.
Vikram Meghal:
So as AI has developed, we know that the technology is being created at a global scale. But the diffusion of this technology has to happen in the context of each geography, each country. And that's where, telcos, because they understand the country boundaries and they are a natural part of the trust framework that a country has they are the right, you know, right tool to kind of get into a sovereign AI space and really capitalize on the ability to diffuse this technology rapidly, throughout the nation. And that's where I think we are also seeing a lot of focus on sovereign data centers but also use cases that can allow the diffusion of this technology for wider use.
