Hybrid work has become table stakes for the modern network, and many organizations are taking a Zero Trust (ZT) approach to securely connect all users no matter their location. One of the core solutions for enabling ZT across a hybrid network is SASE, which integrates cloud-delivered security via security service edge (SSE) with SD-WAN.

However, most SASE solutions available today are fragmented. They require multiple management consoles and agents while providing limited visibility and security enforcement. Fortinet is the only vendor with a Unified SASE solution united by one operating system that converges networking and security on-premises and in the cloud with consistent AI-powered security enforcement. Fortinet Unified SASE also offers unparalleled deployment flexibility, eliminating the complexities, costs, and security gaps of fragmented solutions. 

In this executive Q&A, Nirav Shah, VP of products and solutions at Fortinet, gives a sneak peek of the upcoming Fortinet Unified SASE Summit, which includes a session from Gartner, and provides insight into new SASE updates.

What can we expect at the upcoming SASE Summit?

Nirav: We're hosting a Unified SASE Summit on October 10, "SASE Meets AI: Transform a Secure Hybrid World." Attendees will get an exclusive look at the future of SASE and how it's reshaping hybrid work security with insights from Fortinet customers, Google Cloud, and Gartner experts.

Things kick off with a session from Neil MacDonald, VP, Distinguished Analyst at Gartner, who will explore critical SASE trends shaping the industry, including single-vendor SASE, the need to secure the edge, key adjacent SASE use cases and deployments, and the role of AI in security.

Later in the day, I'll present the latest SASE innovations in SSE, SD-WAN, and ZTNA, with live demonstrations from members of the SASE team. We'll examine how our cutting-edge technologies work in real-life scenarios. I hope to see you there!

Register for Fortinet's "SASE Meets AI: Transform a Secure Hybrid World" Summit here. 

How does Fortinet Unified SASE give customers and partners a competitive advantage? 

Nirav:Fortinet Unified SASE helps eliminate complexities and reduce risk for customers by consolidating over 15 SASE capabilities, including secure web gateway, zero trust network access, cloud access security broker, and data loss prevention, into one offering. This provides partners and customers with the visibility and control needed to safeguard data across their entire environment.

With a single OS, one data lake, one agent, and one management platform, partners can offer a streamlined, integrated solution with best-of-breed, AI-powered security that reduces complexity and operational overhead, while enhancing service delivery efficiency and enabling advanced threat defense.

What is Fortinet Sovereign SASE, and how does it complement Fortinet Unified SASE?

Nirav:Fortinet Sovereign SASE is a new offering that provides a comprehensive SASE delivery option with local control over inspection and logs. Customers can determine how their data is routed and where security inspections occur, whether in a data center is owned by Fortinet, a partner, or the customer.

This ensures robust data privacy and compliance while offering enhanced security and flexibility, which is particularly important for organizations operating in highly regulated verticals with sensitive data like finance, government, and healthcare.

Fortinet Unified SASE is the most flexible SASE solution available today, and Fortinet Sovereign SASE provides customers with another way to use SASE.

Let's talk about FortiAI. What specific improvements does the new FortiAI integration within Fortinet Unified SASE deliver?

Nirav:FortiAI, the Fortinet GenAI assistant, is now integrated with Fortinet Secure SD-WAN (a component of Unified SASE), alongside existing implementations within NOC and SOC operation tools, to assist with Day 0 through Day 2 operations.

Specifically, FortiAI can automate the configuration of underlay secure SD-WAN tunnels between sites, set up SD-WAN policies, troubleshoot issues such as why tunnels are down, and drill down on IoT vulnerabilities.

This integration enables network IT teams to make decisions faster and helps alleviate staffing shortages by enabling IT teams to scale without increasing team size.

Don't forget to register for the Unified SASE Summit on October 10.