Pure Storage & Cisco Launch AI Factories with NVIDIA
▼ Summary
– Pure Storage and Cisco have launched a new FlashStack validated design to help enterprises scale AI from pilot projects to production by unifying compute, storage, and networking.
– The solution addresses the common problem where AI models are ready before the data infrastructure is, ensuring reliable data pipelines for operationalizing AI.
– It integrates Pure Storage’s high-performance data platform with Cisco’s GPU-accelerated compute and NVIDIA AI Enterprise software for scalable, production-ready AI deployment.
– The platform simplifies AI infrastructure management, allowing teams to focus on innovation by providing unified visibility, control, and low-latency data flow.
– The validated design will be generally available in Q1 2026 through channel partners, with early access available via Pure Storage, Cisco, or NVIDIA teams.
A new collaboration between Pure Storage and Cisco introduces a validated design for FlashStack, creating a unified platform that integrates compute, storage, and networking to help businesses transition generative AI from experimental pilots to full-scale production. This initiative, part of the Cisco Secure AI Factory with NVIDIA, delivers a production-ready environment designed to overcome the common data bottlenecks that hinder AI deployment.
Many companies concentrate heavily on GPU and computing resources, yet overlook the critical role of reliable data infrastructure. Maciej Kranz, General Manager for Enterprise at Pure Storage, notes that this partnership directly addresses those gaps, offering customers the performance, simplicity, and efficiency necessary to operationalize their AI initiatives successfully.
Enterprise AI has moved beyond the testing phase. Organizations are actively experimenting with large language models, RAG-powered assistants, and specialized AI applications. A recurring challenge emerges: AI models are often prepared for deployment before the underlying data architecture is ready. Jeremy Foster, SVP and GM for Cisco Compute, explains that the new FlashStack design goes beyond hardware validation. It orchestrates all components of retrieval-augmented generation into an AI-ready infrastructure, simplifying complexity and mitigating risk so clients can concentrate on converting data into actionable business insights.
Achieving AI success involves more than just model training, it requires trustworthy data pipelines. Disjointed data systems, poor visibility, and operational inefficiencies frequently prevent even the most promising AI projects from reaching a production state.
Data readiness frequently becomes the missing link in enterprise AI. As companies advance beyond initial proofs-of-concept, they realize that model performance is intrinsically tied to data accessibility and quality. The joint solution from Cisco and Pure Storage confronts these issues by ensuring both structured and unstructured data are readily accessible for AI workflows. Leveraging Pure Storage’s Enterprise Data Cloud architecture, the platform delivers high-performance data access, concurrency, and energy efficiency via FlashBlade//S™, while Portworx® provides persistent, portable, and protected data management for Kubernetes-based AI environments. This allows AI teams to dedicate their efforts to innovation rather than infrastructure upkeep.
The core objective of this partnership is to streamline the journey from AI experimentation to dependable, scalable deployment. The AI factory framework integrates several key technologies: Pure Storage FlashBlade//S™ for enterprise-scale data management, Cisco UCS C845a servers equipped with NVIDIA RTX PRO 6000 GPUs for accelerated computing, and NVIDIA AI Enterprise software, a production-ready stack for building and deploying AI solutions. Combined, these elements form a comprehensive blueprint for an enterprise AI factory, an end-to-end system that transforms data into valuable outcomes across applications like RAG, agentic AI, semantic search, video analytics, and automated code generation.
This validated solution effectively converts electricity and raw data into tokens, the fundamental units of generative AI, that power meaningful business transformation. Building on a foundation of over 5,000 existing FlashStack clients, the new design merges Cisco’s GPU-accelerated compute and Nexus Switching, NVIDIA AI Enterprise software, and Pure Storage’s high-performance unified data platform. Enterprises receive a streamlined, production-ready pathway from pilot to full implementation, eliminating the need to manually integrate disparate systems. The outcome is a robust, reliable, and governed infrastructure tailored for data-heavy, regulated sectors that are spearheading the next phase of AI adoption.
AI workloads require seamless coordination across compute, storage, and networking layers. The FlashStack design meets this need by incorporating Cisco’s Nexus 9000 series networking to establish a low-latency, congestion-aware fabric essential for high-performance AI operations. Capabilities such as telemetry, adaptive routing, and per-packet load balancing optimize data movement between GPUs, storage, and compute resources. Through Cisco NX-OS and the Nexus Dashboard, IT teams achieve unified visibility and control, upholding enterprise security standards while accommodating the specific demands of AI-native applications.
The new Cisco and Pure Storage FlashStack validated design is scheduled for general availability in the first quarter of 2026 through top channel partners, including AHEAD, ePlus, SHI International, and World Wide Technology. Interested customers can arrange early access and solution briefings immediately by contacting field teams from Pure Storage, Cisco, or NVIDIA. To explore the capabilities of FlashBlade//S™, Cisco UCS C845a servers with NVIDIA GPUs, and NVIDIA AI Enterprise software, visit the NVIDIA GTC event in Washington, D.C., from October 27–29, or go to www.FlashStack.com.
(Source: ITWire Australia)
