

Telemetry Now
Phil Gervasi
Tired of network issues and finger-pointing? Do you know deep down that, yes, it probably is DNS? Well, you're in the right place.
Telemetry Now is the podcast that cuts through the noise. Join host Phil Gervasi and his expert guests as they demystify network intelligence, observability, and AIOps. We dive into emerging technologies, analyze the latest trends in IT operations, and talk shop about the engineering careers that make it all happen. Get ready to level up your understanding and let the packets wash over you.
Telemetry Now is the podcast that cuts through the noise. Join host Phil Gervasi and his expert guests as they demystify network intelligence, observability, and AIOps. We dive into emerging technologies, analyze the latest trends in IT operations, and talk shop about the engineering careers that make it all happen. Get ready to level up your understanding and let the packets wash over you.
Episodes
Mentioned books

14 snips
Aug 29, 2025 • 52min
From GPUs to Packets: The Critical Role of Networks in AI Data Centers
In this episode, Vijay Vusirikala, an industry leader at Arista with a rich background in large-scale optics and data centers, delves into the pivotal role networks play in AI data centers. He emphasizes that job completion time is the key performance metric, not just GPU power. Vijay discusses the significance of lossless networks, the challenges of optical power, and the importance of minimizing network tiers for efficiency. He also highlights emerging observability needs and the future of scalable inter-rack connectivity.

Aug 14, 2025 • 46min
Neocloud and the Future of AI Operations
In this episode of Telemetry Now, Phil and guest David Cliffe explore “neocloud”—what it is, why it’s growing fast, and how it’s reshaping AI infrastructure. From GPUs and high-speed interconnects to orchestration layers and energy constraints, we discuss what makes neocloud different from traditional cloud, and what it means for data center operators, service providers, and AI architects.

Aug 7, 2025 • 38min
Telemetry News Now: Intel Spins Off Networking Business, Cisco Teams Up with Hugging Face, Broadcom’s Jericho4 Ethernet Fabric Router
In this Telemetry News Now episode, Phil Gervasi and Justin Ryburn tackle Intel’s plan to spin off its Network & Edge Group (NEX) and what it means for high‑performance Ethernet NICs, examine Cisco’s new partnership with Hugging Face to scan every open‑source AI model for malware, and break down Broadcom’s Jericho4 fabric router—bringing 3.2 Tb/s “hyper‑ports” to distributed AI clusters. The hosts also discuss the real‑world state of SD‑WAN adoption, Palo Alto Networks’ $25 B CyberArk acquisition, Cisco’s quantum‑networking research, and upcoming industry events. Plus: a personal tale of basement‑automation triumph to kick things off.

Aug 1, 2025 • 46min
Adding Context to Network Telemetry with Data Enrichment
Phil Gervasi sits down with Kentik Product Marketing Manager Eric Hian-Cheong to discuss why data enrichment is the "secret sauce" that turns raw flow logs, metrics, and cloud telemetry into true network intelligence. They explore how tagging telemetry with human-readable context—such as customer names, app IDs, Kubernetes labels, and more—shrinks mean-time-to-insight, empowers cross-team troubleshooting, and lays the groundwork for AI-driven operations.

Jul 24, 2025 • 35min
Telemetry News Now: Cloudflare DNS Outage, Acquisition Rumors, Submarine Cable Security, Alaska Airlines Outage, New COO at Arista
In this Telemetry News Now episode, Phil and Justin cover the global Cloudflare DNS outage, a rumored $10B SentinelOne acquisition by Palo Alto Networks, submarine cable security concerns from U.S. lawmakers, a major Alaska Airlines data center failure, why some say data centers are obsolete before they open, and Arista’s latest strategic hire. Plus, upcoming events and industry insights.

Jul 17, 2025 • 60min
Getting Started with Building AI Applications for IT Operations
Ryan Booth, network engineer and AI developer, joins Philip Gervasi to explore the practical realities of building AI applications specifically for network and IT operations. They talk about the importance of starting with clear business objectives, understanding data engineering essentials, managing model evaluation, and bridging knowledge gaps between infrastructure and data teams. Ryan shares his insights about the need for iterative learning, using simple projects to gain practical skills, and recognizing how AI can effectively solve real ITOps and NetOps challenges.

Jul 10, 2025 • 33min
Telemetry News Now: Cisco Wins Lawsuit, CoreWeave’s $9B Play, Google’s New Subsea Cable, and Rackspace’s New GPU-as-a-Service
In this Telemetry News Now episode, Phil and Justin cover Cisco’s big legal win, HPE’s finalized Juniper acquisition, Arista’s strategic move to buy VeloCloud, CoreWeave’s $9B play for AI-ready data center infrastructure, Google’s new transatlantic subsea cable, Rackspace’s AI-focused private cloud, and yes—TSA may finally let you keep your shoes on.

Jun 27, 2025 • 37min
Telemetry News Now: AI Data Center Power Demands, Gartner’s AI Agent Prediction, AI Copyright Woes, 5G Infrastructure
In this Telemetry News Now episode, Phil and Justin discuss the future energy demands of AI infrastructure, including eye-opening predictions about GPU power consumption. They discuss Gartner's skepticism regarding agentic AI projects, cautioning against inflated expectations. The duo also covers Cisco's latest quantum networking moves, legal battles over AI data rights, innovative private 5G networks at UK ports, and new high-capacity networking investments in Scandinavia. Plus, updates from Panama's internet shutdown and the latest industry events.

Jun 18, 2025 • 54min
Networking for Schools and Colleges
In this episode of Telemetry Now, Jason Gintert and Philip Wightman join the show to look inside SLED networking (State, Local, and Education). We talk about the unique challenges, goals, and realities of building and supporting networks for schools, colleges, and government agencies.

Jun 12, 2025 • 26min
Telemetry News Now: Cisco Announces New Infrastructure for AI, Lemony’s Low-Power AI-in-a-Box, Broadcom Ships Tomahawk 6
In this Telemetry News Now episode, Phil and Justin cover Cisco's new infrastructure for AI, AI-in-a-box from Lemony, and the world's first 102.4 terabit switch from Broadcom. In other AI news: Salesforce blocks its AI rivals from using Slack data, and NVIDIA partners with Perplexity for local AI models.


