Cisco thinks Mythos means instant death for unsupported networking kit

Cisco CEO Chuck Robbins warned that unsupported networking equipment could face "instant death" due to the "Mythos Effect." Mythos is Anthropic's bug-finding model, which has proven highly effective at identifying security flaws, prompting vendors and open source projects to issue more patches. Cisco customers are becoming increasingly aware of the risks posed by unsupported devices and are rushing to replace them before patches stop flowing.

Robbins noted that some CEOs he spoke to were concerned about the risks of operating unsupported devices once patches cease. He reported that Cisco customers have accelerated their network refresh efforts in response to the Mythos Effect. The CEO expects this trend to drive a significant amount of network spending, contributing to a "supercycle" of network investment.

Other factors driving the supercycle include the need to prepare for quantum computing and the rapid adoption of agentic AI. Cisco reported a 17% quarter-over-quarter revenue increase to $17.3 billion for the fourth quarter, as well as a 12% year-over-year rise to $63.3 billion. Net income grew by 51% to $3.9 billion in Q4, while full-year 2027 results saw a 30% jump to $13.27 billion.

Robbins emphasized Cisco's own use of AI, with 145,000 support cases resolved entirely by AI without human intervention during the fiscal year 2026. The company also unveiled Circuit, an in-house AI Assistant integrated into Cisco's operations, which handled over 75 million prompts during Q4.