Cisco goes all-in on agents - and it could mean big changes in your workplace (www.techradar.com)

Cisco unveiled a major push into agent-driven collaboration at WebexOne 2025, introducing “Connected Intelligence” tools that embed AI agents across Webex to automate tasks, summarize meetings and handle workflows. New agents include a task agent (creates action items), notetaker (transcribes and summarizes), polling and scheduling agents, plus an “always-on” AI receptionist for customer inquiries, call transfers and scheduling. Cisco frames these capabilities as human-AI collaboration to boost productivity—CEO-level messaging even claims the agents will change how people and AIs interact—positioning Webex to compete with recent AI-first moves from rivals like Zoom. On the infrastructure side, RoomOS 26 brings practical device-level AI: collaboration endpoints can launch audio zones using the Ceiling Mic Pro to capture sound only in defined areas, and Cisco worked with Nvidia to build digital twins of meeting rooms so IT can simulate and optimize configurations. Cisco also plans integrations with Amazon Q Index, Microsoft 365 Copilot, Salesforce and Jira to extend agent usefulness across enterprise workflows. The agent features and RoomOS updates are slated for general availability in late 2025 and early 2026, signaling an enterprise-ready push to automate meeting lifecycles, reduce manual follow-ups and centralize conversational data—while raising questions about deployment, privacy and governance that IT teams will need to address.