Navigating the AI Era as a CCIE

Well, it seems that we have arrived in a new era of networking, and boy, did it come up on us quickly.  Wasn’t it just five years ago we were navigating the “Programmability Age?” Network automation, cloud, and NetDevOps were all the rage, and we were celebrating the launch of the Cisco DevNet Certifications. Network engineers around the world were learning the joy of Python, APIs, and Ansible…

Wait… it was just five years ago… February 24, 2020, to be exact. What a five years it has been…

But this is not a blog post about past success stories. It is not a walk down memory lane about how, as CCIEs, we navigated major transitions in networking. Though we should give ourselves some credit, we really have done a bang-up job in past transitions.

No… this is a blog post at the start of the next major transition in networking. Okay, maybe this isn’t THE start… and AI is certainly not just a transition in networking, but there is definitely a road in front of us all, and I’m walking this road with each and every one of you. So grab your knapsack, and let’s go!

For those of you who might not know me, my name is Hank Preston, and I’m a proud Cisco Certified Internetwork Expert (CCIE). I earned my CCIE in Routing and Switching on February 25, 2013, and later became the first Cisco Certified DevNet Expert on May 2, 2022.

When I think back on my journey to become “an expert,” it was my passion for understanding how things work, diving deep under the covers of complex systems to follow the packet (or code) flow, enjoying the artistry of a debug output… Scratch that last one. 🙂

The journey to becoming an expert is all about what my boss, David Mallory, CCIE #1933, describes as “deliberate practice.” By the time you are “an expert,” you have designed, built, and operated hundreds of different networks. You have made so many errors—and then fixed them. You have earned the knowledge and skill through focus and time.

And when you become “an expert,” you know that no one truly is “an expert.” There is always more road in front of us, new challenges, and new things to learn. Which brings us back to today’s topic: How do we navigate the AI era as a CCIE?

Navigating the AI era as a CCIE

No doubt you’ve heard claims that “artificial intelligence means we won’t need CCIEs anymore.” However, this refrain is one we’ve heard time and time again.

Cloud was going to be the end of the CCIE.

Software Defined Networking was going to be the end of the CCIE.

Programmability was going to be the end of the CCIE.

Those are just examples from the last 15 years. No doubt there were claims that TCP/IP was going to be the end of the CCIE back when AppleTalk, ATM, DecNet, etc., were all the rage. So, no. AI is not going to be the end of CCIEs. At least it’s not unless AI is the end of everything… but I’m trying to be an AI optimist these days.

CCIEs, AI, and Cisco Live Amsterdam 2025

I recently returned from Cisco Live EMEA 2025, which took place in Amsterdam. While it won’t be a surprise to anyone reading this that AI was a central focus across the show floor, what might be a surprise to those of you who weren’t there was that technical expertise—and specifically CCIEs—was also a focus during the week.

During the opening keynote, Oliver Tuszik, President of Cisco EMEA, took time to acknowledge the value CCIEs have to both Cisco and our customers and partners.  He even took time to talk to two CCIEs, Michael, who earned his CCIE in 1993, and Esar, who earned his CCIE just a few months ago in 2024.

Michael was one of the first CCIEs ever. When Oliver asked him why he continues to value and remain a CCIE over 30 years later, I loved his reply:

“[Cisco] never stopped teaching me about new emerging technologies and keeping me in the front line of technology.”

Thanks, Michael. I couldn’t have said it better myself.

There is one more CCIE-specific highlight from Cisco Live that I want to highlight. For the first time at Cisco Live EMEA, CCIEs who were also NetVets were invited to an exclusive Ask Me Anything (AMA) Session with a group of Cisco Executives, including Chintan Patel (CTO EMEA), Tim Carnes (SVP Global SEs), Matt Gillies (Fellow and Chief Architect), Phil Wolfenden (VP CX Global TAC), and Oliver Tuszik (President EMEA). A similar AMA session has long been held at Cisco Live in the US. Oliver specifically reached out to the Learning & Certifications and Cisco Live EMEA teams to organize the event for CCIEs in EMEA.

These sessions truly are “ask me anything,” and the CCIEs in attendance didn’t hold back. A CCIE asked Phil how he and the Cisco Technical Assistance Center (TAC) organization were preparing for the AI transition. Did they still see a need for CCIEs on their own team? The session isn’t recorded, so I can’t give Phil’s exact answer, but the gist was emphatic:

“CCIEs are absolutely still needed.  Like automation, AI is becoming very good at tackling routine, common issues and problems. But by the nature of how AI is trained, problems that are new, unique, or complex require human expertise, creativity, and ingenuity. There is and always be a huge value placed on CCIEs within the Cisco TAC and CX organization.”

I totally agree with Phil here.

On the AI road with Learning & Certifications

For 32 years, the Learning & Certifications team has been walking the road of network evolution with each and every one of us. And as new technologies are born, the CCIE program and resources for CCIEs have evolved along the way. As a member of the Learning & Certifications team, I can tell you we have all hands on deck to support and navigate our entrance into the AI era right alongside you.

I won’t tell you that we have all the answers or that we know what obstacles we’ll face along the journey. That wouldn’t be honest. Things are changing fast, and I haven’t got a crystal ball. But like we very recently did with network automation and programmability, as a community, we will dive into AI, building our expertise on a solid foundation of deliberate practice, technical learning, sharing with each other, and fixing so many errors and mistakes.  There might be a few debugs along the way as well.

The biggest place you can see how we are taking AI seriously within the CCIE program is the addition of AI Infrastructure as a new area of expertise in the CCDE certification. Designing the infrastructure required to support GenAI workloads and data centers involves unique network, security, and compute considerations. Organizations in every geography and vertical are investing in AI, and having experts capable of helping them rapidly design and make this investment is a critical hurdle. The certification team moved fast to understand these challenges and bring them to the CCDE and the community.

But how do you “learn” these skills? Our technical training team has been working just as hard and fast to help there as well, and the new Cisco U. Learning Path AI Solutions on Cisco Infrastructure Essentials (DCAIE) has been released. Even better, the DCAIE Learning Path is available FOR FREE until March 24, 2025, as part of our ongoing Rev Up to Recert program. Take advantage of this brand-new AI learning and earn 34 Continuing Education credits while you are at it!

Rev Up to Recert: AI

AI Solutions on Cisco Infrastructure Essentials | DCAIE

Learn and earn 34 CE credits (in 34 hours) for free, February 7 – March 24, 2025

In addition to the new DCAIE Learning Path, there are lots of free AI tutorials and other content available on Cisco U.

One more great (and free) option available to get started with Artificial Intelligence is the Introduction to Modern AI course from Cisco Networking Academy. Don’t let the “NetAcad” location make you overlook this resource. This course provides an excellent introduction, with hands-on exercises to learn key AI concepts and create some basic AI-enabled applications. Build confidence in just a few hours—and have fun while you are at it.

There will be much more to come in the near future from myself and the Learning & Certifications team. I’m personally looking forward to the next year as I return to school myself, learning and absorbing everything I can about AI. And you can be sure I’ll be around in more blogs, videos, live streams, and conferences, sharing with each and every one of you. Let’s enjoy the road together!

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