Cisco makes a big push in AI skilling

Tie ups with state govts and academia to bolster efforts

- SUDHIR CHOWDHARY

CISCO HAS SIGNED an MoU with Andhra Pradesh government to train 50,000 youth with advanced IT skills over the next year. It will offer training in networking, cybersecurity and AI. Another pact has been inked with Telangana government institutes, including Young India Skills University, Telangana Academy for Skill and Knowledge (TASK), and the state's IT ministry, to expand digital skills training on their AI and cybersecurity vision to train 75,000 students over the next three years. Cisco will also invest in an AI centre of excellence (CoE) in the southern state.

That's not all. The opening of a Cisco CoE and Networking Academy lab at GL Bajaj Institute of Management & Research in Greater Noida, is aimed at empowering students with advanced networking technologies and enhance their industry readiness. The lab, inaugurated by Cisco senior vice-president & global innovation officer, Guy Diedrich, is part of a larger programme that focuses on IT skills-to-jobs, aiming to transform lives through technology, education, and career opportunities. Cisco Networking Academy to date has trained over 2.2 million students across India.