F5 targets AI application security with renewed workload management software

Key to the new offering is the F5 AI Gateway, which is a container or standalone package that runs alongside an AI application or large language model (LLM) that manages, orchestrates, and secures the interaction between various AI services, data sources, and user-facing applications. It ensures traffic management and communication between on-premises systems, cloud-based AI models, edge devices, and APIs.

The F5 AI Gateway offers an automated way for customers to secure and manage interactions among AI applications, APIs, and LLMs. It’s a containerized Kubernetes service that can be deployed on its own or integrated with existing F5 software, hardware, or services, the company stated. The gateway supports popular AI models such as OpenAI, Anthropic, and Ollama as well as generic HTTP upstream LLMs and small language model (SLM) services.

F5 has also added an AI assistant for its NGINX One SaaS-based application support management console. The tool is powered by the F5 AI Data Fabric and serves as an intelligent partner to stretched NetOps, SecOps, DevOps, and platform ops teams. The AI assistant for NGINX One uses a natural language interface to streamline operations and helps customers configure and optimize application delivery, preemptively address threats, and identify anomalies before they impact production, according to F5.

F5 said it will add an AI assistant for its BIG-IP application delivery system. Customers will be able to automate the creation, maintenance, and optimization of iRules while reducing the time and resources required to manage traffic and securely deliver apps, F5 stated.

In addition to the software, F5 has expanded its Velos hardware family by adding a CX1610 chassis and BX520 blade. The Velos CX1610 chassis and BX520 400-Gbps blade scale to multi-terabits of throughput. The F5 Velos features data packet routing, granular security, load balancing, and low latency, enabling data ingestion and real-time data needs for AI workloads, F5 stated.

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