Ciena Network Insights

Karina Dahlke sits down with Gabriele Di Piazza and Erik McLaughlin to explore what it really takes to reach “level five” autonomous networking. They break down what autonomous networks mean in practice – self-configuring, self-healing, self-optimizing, and ultimately zero-touch operations – and why the conversation has accelerated again in the last few years with the rise of AI. From cost pressure and growing network complexity to the foundational need for real-time observability, this episode offers a clear view into the technology, data, and governance required to make autonomous networks achievable at scale. Network experts and engineers at Ciena and Blue Planet bring deep network control plus cross-domain orchestration and intelligence, giving customers the visibility, context, and automation needed to accelerate the journey to level 5 autonomy.

Ciena's Rebecca Smith sits down with Brodie Gage and Dino DiPerna to reflect on OFC 2026 and how optical technology is taking center stage in the AI Era. They share perspectives shaped by decades in the industry and discuss what it takes to build, scale, and operate AI-driven networks—inside the data center and beyond. The podcast touches on some of the latest innovations in optical networking, including scale up, scale out, and scale across architectures; coherent and co-packaged optics; liquid cooling; and next-generation hollow‑core fiber. Together, they separate signal from noise, unpacking what's real, what's hype, and what's coming next for operators, hyperscalers, and service providers.

Ciena's Rebecca Smith sits down with Brodie Gage and Dino DiPerna to reflect on OFC 2026 and how optical technology is taking center stage in the AI Era. They share perspectives shaped by decades in the industry and discuss what it takes to build, scale, and operate AI-driven networks—inside the data center and beyond. The podcast touches on some of the latest innovations in optical networking, including scale up, scale out, and scale across architectures; coherent and co-packaged optics; liquid cooling; and next-generation hollow‑core fiber. Together, they separate signal from noise, unpacking what's real, what's hype, and what's coming next for operators, hyperscalers, and service providers.

Want to learn more about how some of the oldest submarine cables are still playing a key role in the AI era? In this episode, FLAG's Chief Network Officer, Brad Kneller and VP of Product & Marketing, Nadya Melic join Ciena's Gautam Billa, VP of Sales Engineering & CTO, APJI, to share insights on some of the factors contributing to the continued viability and sustainability of a submarine cable. The three discuss how FLAG is complementing its new cable buildouts by extending the lifespan of its existing cables, using advanced technologies, proactive monitoring and intelligent data analysis. As part of FLAG's Vision 2030 strategy, the private submarine cable operator is taking bold steps to optimize its network to support growing capacity demands driven by AI, cloud and other bandwidth-intensive applications.

Service providers globally are looking intently toward achieving fully autonomous networks in the near future. Kailem Anderson, Vice President for Global Products & Delivery shares some of the conversations we have been having with our Blue Planet customers around what they are doing to reach network autonomy.