HPE unveils smarter switches, Wi-Fi 7 for enterprise AI era

Hewlett Packard Enterprise has introduced a series of updates to its HPE Aruba Networking portfolio, adding a new distributed services switch and expanding its suite of wired and wireless solutions for enterprise environments.

The updates are aimed at addressing the growing demands of artificial intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IoT), and high-performance computing (HPC) across data centres and enterprise campuses.

A key highlight is the introduction of the HPE Aruba Networking CX 10040 distributed services switch, which HPE states doubles the scale and performance of its predecessor by using programmable data processing units (DPUs) from AMD Pensando. This switch, sometimes referred to as a "smart switch", is designed to offload security and network services to free up resources for complex AI workload processing.

The HPE Aruba Networking portfolio expansion also includes four new CX 6300M campus switches. These devices are intended to provide enhanced speed, security, and control within a compact physical footprint. The new series is tailored to support faster data speeds for enterprise IoT, AI, and HPC applications.

In wireless networking, HPE has launched a suite of Wi-Fi 7 access points, including the indoor 720 and 740 Series, and the indoor/outdoor 760 Series. These access points incorporate network slicing capability and dynamic application prioritisation to meet the transmission and performance needs of real-time AI and cloud applications. The 760 Series is suited for both indoor and industrial outdoor environments, offering flexible radio and antenna configurations.

Enhancements in application-aware networking are now available across the HPE Aruba Networking CX 5420 and 6200 series switches. This allows enterprises to manage specific policies more granularly so that data for AI, IoT, and high-performance workloads can move across networks based on pre-set service level agreements (SLAs).

The latest release of HPE Aruba Networking Central, the network management platform, now delivers a single point of visibility, control, and analytics. This cloud-based solution features secure, AI-driven management and is designed to scale across both campus networks and data centres.

Additionally, HPE announced integration with HPE Morpheus VM Essentials for the CX 10000 Switch Series, facilitating unified orchestration of both virtual and physical network and security services. This enables organisations to streamline operations such as distributed firewall and microsegmentation across various environments, including ESXi, KVM, and bare metal hosts. The integration is intended to support migration to open virtualisation models without requiring major infrastructure changes.

"Data-fueled AI, IoT, and other high-performance applications are driving unprecedented demands for enterprises to provide cost-effective connectivity, no matter where devices and users are or how they access the network. HPE is again raising the bar with innovations that simplify data centre and overall server connectivity at ten times the scale and performance and one-third the cost of traditional enterprise solutions," Phil Mottram, Executive Vice President and General Manager of HPE Aruba Networking, commented.

"Across Asia, we are witnessing high demand for high-performance applications – including AI, IoT, and data centre services – which is driving the need for faster, more secure, and resilient connectivity. With the region expected to reach 400 million 5G connections in 2025, organizations are prioritizing robust digital infrastructure to support innovation and economic growth. The new HPE Aruba Networking portfolio will deliver greater network performance, security, and intelligence, while generating significant savings for enterprises," Mark Ablett, Vice President for Asia Pacific and Japan at HPE Aruba Networking, said, addressing the growing regional demands.

"As AI and data-driven applications continue to transform every industry, the need for scalable, compliant, and high-performance networking has never been greater. Together with HPE and the HPE Aruba Networking CX 10040 platform, we're delivering cutting-edge solutions that combine AMD's advanced, programmable DPU and software technology with HPE's data centre networking—enabling secure, scalable services for data centre and colocation deployments that support the world's largest enterprises at a fraction of the cost of legacy solutions," Soni Jiandani, Senior Vice President and General Manager of the Networking Technology and Solutions Group at AMD, commented on the collaboration.

The HPE Aruba Networking CX 10040 smart switch features an AMD Pensando DPU and maintains built-in firewalling, in-line encryption, and precision telemetry. These features are intended to enhance security, provide greater observability, and enable more efficient server operation as organisations manage increased AI-driven computing demands.

The four new CX 6300M campus switches include encryption protocols, precision timing, and application recognition and control (ARC), helping enterprises to comply with a variety of data security, volume, and bandwidth SLAs on a single switch, as well as operate within demanding deployment environments.

HPE states that these advances are intended to help enterprises efficiently scale their digital infrastructures, supporting the increasing complexity and volume of modern workloads.