March 24-26, 2026 | Palais des Congrès de Paris | Booth 105
The networking industry is undergoing significant changes. As AI workloads transform data center architectures and drive demand for intelligent, self-managing networks, the decisions we make now will shape future infrastructure. Cisco is pleased to announce our participation in Upperside World Congress Paris 2026, and we're eager to share our latest innovations and learn from the community in Paris.
Attend insightful sessions on AI infrastructure and more
Join Cisco experts for sessions on AI infrastructure, SRv6, autonomous networks, and more, gaining practical insights and hands-on experience to take your initiatives to the next level.
Tuesday, March 24: AI infrastructure foundations
Keynote (presented by Michael Beesley) - Opening keynote setting the stage for Cisco's vision at the Congress.
Theory Meets Reality: AI Reference Architectures in the Wild (presented by Shelly Cadora) - A candid look at deploying reference architectures in production environments. Shelly walks through concrete NVIDIA GPU-based cluster topologies and shares hard-won lessons on cultural resistance, compatibility surprises, and what matters when constraints meet your network team.
SONiC in AI Front-End and Back-End Networks-Evolution and Market Adoption (presented by Jiri Chaloupka) - Covers important SONiC technologies for AI networks: EVPN with IP data plane for front-end, DCI options, and advanced load-balancing techniques including flowlet, packet spray, and static pinning. Also addresses PFC, ECN, and SONiC programmability essentials.
SRv6 in AI Infrastructure (presented by Clarence Filsfils, roundtable with Alibaba Cloud, Verizon, Nebius, Rakuten Mobile, Deutsche Telekom) - Top hyperscalers and neocloud providers share their real-world SRv6 experiences in data center and DCI architectures.
Wednesday, March 25: Hands-on learning and SRv6 deep dives
AI Networking Test Drive (presented by Meghan Kachhi) - A hands-on session where you configure data center switches, explore reactive and proactive congestion management, and run InfiniBand Verbs Performance and NCCL tests. You'll leave with practical RDMA and distributed AI/ML workload optimization experience.
SRv6 uSID Addressing Design (presented by Jakub Horn) - Explores how micro-SID addressing makes SRv6 more scalable and efficient, covering architecture, encoding formats, and real-world deployment models in modern network fabrics and service provider cores.
Thursday, March 26: The path to autonomous networks
From Automation to Autonomy: Identifying High-Value Opportunities in Network AI (presented by Daniele Ceccarelli) - Focuses on where AI-driven automation delivers the quickest wins: intent interpretation, fault triage, service provisioning, and closed-loop remediation, with a clear framework for prioritizing automation efforts.
Implementing Self-Healing Networks with Agentic AI-Based Approach in Controllers (presented by Krishnan Thirukonda) - Covers building self-healing networks using agentic AI with leading SDN controllers, moving beyond rule-based methods toward true closed-loop automation.
Join the exclusive pre-workshop | March 23, Cisco Paris office
Arrive early for customer stories, SRv6 uSID testimonials, service provider automation case studies, strategic sessions on AI-era network transformation, and a networking reception.
Experience innovation at booth 105
Stop by booth 105 for an immersive experience showcasing how Cisco is redefining the future of networking. Across six live demo stations, our experts will walk you through the technologies and architectures that matter most right now.
See how Cisco powers hyperscaler and neocloud environments with next-generation data center fabrics and discover how agentic AI is transforming network operations-from detecting anomalies before they escalate to enabling rapid, AI-driven troubleshooting. Explore how service providers can monetize broadband more effectively with agile, cloud-native architectures built on SRv6 and EVPN, and learn how intelligent automation is enabling end-to-end network and service lifecycle management.
We'll also showcase how Cisco is tackling two of the most pressing challenges in modern networks: securing broadband infrastructure against DDoS attacks at scale and dynamically managing congestion through distributed traffic engineering-all without compromising performance.
Whether you're architecting AI-ready data centers, modernizing service provider infrastructure, or exploring the path to autonomous networks, booth 105 is where you'll find practical answers and real-world demonstrations.
Register now
Register for the pre-workshop and book a meeting with our experts. We look forward to seeing you at booth 105 in Paris!
Connect with Cisco at Upperside World Congress 2026