Cisco GM underscores focus on issues critical for Spain's tech development

In addition, Cisco has trained some 350,000 people in digital skills through programs such as Digitaliza and Cisco Networking Academy. Vilamitjana also highlighted Cisco’s commitment to sustainability, its focus on clean energy, and its emphasis on artificial intelligence and the ethics of AI. In this regard, Cisco has a dedicated $1 billion fund to boost startups.

One of the pillars of Cisco’s current strategy is based on AI and the preparation of data centers that enable AI and that need, according to an internal study, more maturity for the future. Although 47% of local organizations already allocate between 10% and 30% of their IT budget to AI – mainly in cybersecurity, data management and analytics – only 9% have an infrastructure that is fully prepared to take advantage of AI’s potential.

Vilamitjana referred two additional areas of focus for the company. One is the creation of the workplace for the future, with new collaborative models and a multitude of connected devices, which is especially relevant in Spain after the Covid crisis that began in 2020. The second focus is cybersecurity, an area that Cisco has been refining in recent years with major acquisitions such as Splunk.