On theCUBE Pod: On location at RSAC '23 with John Chambers on cybersecurity

Amid the excitement of the RSA Conference in San Francisco, theCUBE industry analysts John Furrier and Dave Vellante found time to deconstruct the latest week in tech, along with what they saw on the show floor, on the latest episode of theCUBE Podcast.

“Everybody is trying to consolidate. They’re trying to figure out how to simplify,” Vellante (pictured, left) said of the cybersecurity sector. “We see some companies with 400 tools. There’s just too many. So you see big companies like Palo Alto Networks Inc., CrowdStrike Holdings Inc. and Cisco, trying to consolidate.”

Simultaneous to the goings-on at RSA, there was plenty to discuss on this week’s episode of the podcast, starting with a series of layoffs in tech. Amazon.com Inc. announced Wednesday it would begin laying off some employees in its cloud computing and human resources divisions, while Dropbox Inc. announced plans to let go 500 employees, or about 16% of its workforce.

“This is like a sign. Those first-gen software-as-a-service companies like Dropbox laying people off is not good,” said Furrier (center). “That’s not a good sign.”

The economy grew by 1.1%  in the first quarter, which was slower than anticipated.

“If you’re annualized, you’re still talking about 4.4% growth, and pre-pandemic it was growing just over 2%. But nonetheless, the Fed’s tightening is doing its job,” Vellante said of the Federal Reserve’s efforts to mitigate the lasting effects of a global pandemic. “You combine that with the bank failures, and you’re starting to see a suppression.”

Still, earnings have been as good or better than people expected, according to Vellante. For example, Facebook parent company Meta Platforms Inc. surprised this week with the return of revenue growth, sending its stock soaring. Alphabet Inc., meanwhile, said Google LLC delivered its first-ever cloud profit.

“Interestingly enough, it was the software side of their business that I think outperformed Google Cloud Platform, which is kind of cool,” Vellante said. “But you know what it is, John? These big companies, they have a lot of fat, and so they can dial down that fat in bad times, and it drops right down to the bottom line.”

Still, the current environment does present some opportunities, especially when it comes to artificial intelligence, according to Furrier.

“You can get two or three friends together, or colleagues that have complementary skills, and get out there and actually get a position and take down a position in a growing market, easily,” Furrier said. “Use AI, use Midjourney for graphics. You could be up and running literally in three weeks.”

An interview with John Chambers

This week on theCUBE podcast, Vellante and Furrier also included an interview with John Chambers (right), chief executive officer of JC2 Ventures and former CEO of Cisco Systems Inc. They discussed the future of cybersecurity, the role of artificial intelligence and insights on the investment landscape.

In today’s environment, Vellante and Furrier often find themselves asking executives a question: Is security a do-over?

“The answer is yes. I think security of the past isn’t going to work. Those were in silos, individual products, very complex, required human intervention,” Chambers said. “I think you’re going to see security of the future be an architectural play.”

When it comes to today’s market, Furrier asked Chambers how he would approach things, especially considering his appetite to take big positions on new companies and startups.

“To me, AI is going to be bigger than the cloud and bigger than the internet combined. And I bet six years ago on ASAPP, on Uniphore, SparkCognition or a Sprinklr,” Chambers said. “I think those are the exciting moves that will create the next generation.”

In addition to the layoffs in tech, this podcast this week also focused on what Furrier called the “implosion of mainstream media.”

Cable news hosts Tucker Carlson and Don Lemon were fired by Fox News and CNN within minutes of each other on Monday. After being fired, Carlson took to Twitter to levy his complaints against the U.S. media and the political system.

“[Tucker] basically said all these discussions that are going on are really irrelevant and really stupid. They don’t matter. You can’t get the truth anywhere,” Vellante said. “[But] he was the one who was perpetrating these falsehoods, so I don’t know what he’s talking about.”

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Photo: SiliconANGLE