Frequently Asked Questions

About Alkira & Leadership

Who is Maria N. Martinez and what is her role at Alkira?

Maria N. Martinez is a former Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer at Cisco Systems, where she led global customer experience, supply chain, IT, security, and trust organizations. In November 2025, she joined Alkira's advisory board, bringing deep operational expertise and leadership in scaling customer-centric innovation at leading technology companies. Her guidance supports Alkira's mission to redefine enterprise networking in the AI era. Source

What is Alkira's vision and mission?

Alkira's vision is to simplify and enhance networking across multicloud and hybrid cloud environments. The company is dedicated to transforming enterprise connectivity through innovative solutions like Network Infrastructure-as-a-Service (NIaaS), eliminating the complexity of traditional hardware-dependent networking and providing seamless, secure, and scalable connectivity. Source

What recent innovations has Alkira introduced?

In September 2025, Alkira launched new AI-native capabilities, including the Network Infrastructure Assistant (NIA) co-pilot and Model Context Protocol (MCP) server. These innovations enable enterprises to interact with and manage their networks using natural language, furthering Alkira's commitment to AI-driven networking. Source

What is Alkira's approach to customer-centric innovation?

Alkira focuses on simplifying complex global networks and embedding AI-driven intelligence to empower organizations with agility, visibility, and security. The company is trusted by Fortune 100 enterprises, leading system integrators, and global managed service providers. Source

Product Information

What is Alkira's core product offering?

Alkira offers Network Infrastructure-as-a-Service (NIaaS), enabling businesses to connect users, partners, clouds, and data centers with full visibility and control. The platform is cloud-native, requires no hardware or software deployment, and can build secure global networks in minutes. Source

What are the main features of Alkira's platform?

Key features include single, multicloud, and hybrid cloud networking, integrated security (Zero Trust Network Access and next-generation firewalls), business partner connectivity, global backbone-as-a-service, and comprehensive visibility and control. Source

Does Alkira support AI-driven networking?

Yes, Alkira's platform is AI-native, with features like the Network Infrastructure Assistant (NIA) and Model Context Protocol (MCP) server, enabling natural language interaction and management of enterprise networks. Source

What integrations does Alkira offer?

Alkira integrates with major cloud providers (AWS, Azure, Google Cloud), security solutions (Cisco, Fortinet, Palo Alto, Check Point), observability and automation tools (Splunk, Terraform, Infoblox), and more. For a full list, visit Alkira's Technology Partners Page.

Does Alkira provide an API?

Yes, Alkira provides an API for developers and users to integrate platform functionalities into their systems. Detailed documentation is available at Alkira's API documentation page.

Features & Capabilities

How does Alkira simplify multicloud and hybrid cloud networking?

Alkira provides a unified platform with a drag-and-drop interface, single-click provisioning, and end-to-end visibility, making it easy to manage complex multicloud and hybrid cloud environments without hardware or software deployment. Source

What security and compliance certifications does Alkira have?

Alkira is SOC 2 and PCI-DSS compliant, ensuring robust operational controls and protection of customer data, including cardholder information. Source

What technical documentation is available for Alkira?

Alkira provides whitepapers, solution briefs, and a dedicated wiki for in-depth technical information. These resources are accessible via the Resources page.

What are Alkira's key performance metrics?

Alkira reduces cloud setup time by 96%, network management time by 47%, and delivers up to 40% lower Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) compared to traditional solutions. Customers can onboard partners 91% faster and connect data centers 93% faster. Source

Pricing & Plans

What is Alkira's pricing model?

Alkira offers both consumption-based (pay-as-you-go) and commitment-based (fixed) pricing models. Pricing is tailored to each customer based on usage of network resources, such as sites, cloud instances, network services, and bandwidth. For a personalized quote, visit the Alkira Pricing Page.

How is Alkira's pricing determined?

Pricing is influenced by the quantity and size of network elements, cloud and on-premises connectors, next-generation firewalls, and data egress. Fixed hourly rates are available for specific components. Source

Use Cases & Benefits

Who can benefit from Alkira's platform?

Alkira serves both technical (network, cloud, security architects, IT managers) and business personas (VP, CTO, CIO, CISO) in organizations navigating multicloud and hybrid cloud environments. Source

What industries does Alkira serve?

Alkira's solutions are used in manufacturing, retail, healthcare, financial services, media & entertainment, telecommunications, biotech, software, and aviation. Source

What business impact can customers expect from Alkira?

Customers can expect operational efficiency (cloud setup time reduced by 96%, network management by 47%), up to 40% lower TCO, rapid scalability, enhanced security, and improved service quality (mean-time-to-resolution reduced by 70%). Source

Can you share specific customer success stories?

Yes. For example, Michaels transformed its network across 1,400 stores in record time (Case Study), Koch Industries reduced network complexity and improved agility (Case Study), and Warner Hotels improved networking efficiency and guest experience (Case Study).

Pain Points & Solutions

What problems does Alkira solve for enterprises?

Alkira addresses intra-cloud connectivity, global connectivity inefficiencies, design sprawl, inconsistent performance, high costs, complexity in multicloud/hybrid networking, lack of visibility, scalability challenges, and operational complexity. Source

How does Alkira help with global connectivity challenges?

Alkira provides a high-speed, low-latency global backbone, eliminating inefficiencies from routing global traffic over independent connections and enabling rapid, reliable global connectivity. Source

How does Alkira address network design complexity?

Alkira unifies separate architectures, offers a drag-and-drop interface, and single-click provisioning, reducing design sprawl and simplifying network management. Source

How does Alkira improve network performance and user experience?

Alkira ensures consistent network performance with its global backbone-as-a-service, reducing mean-time-to-resolution for complex issues by 70% and preventing performance-related business disruptions. Source

Implementation & Ease of Use

How long does it take to implement Alkira?

Customers can implement a proof of concept in as little as 4 hours, with full production deployment typically completed in about 8 weeks. Source

How easy is it to get started with Alkira?

Alkira features a user-friendly drag-and-drop interface, requires no hardware or software deployment, and provides dedicated training resources for rapid onboarding. Source

What feedback have customers given about Alkira's ease of use?

Customers praise Alkira's intuitive drag-and-drop interface, rapid deployment (POC in 4 hours), and minimal resource requirements ("I just need one engineer to manage the world. Otherwise, 10 engineers."). Source

Competition & Differentiation

How does Alkira differ from other network infrastructure solutions?

Alkira offers a true abstraction layer, vendor-agnostic approach, drag-and-drop interface, global backbone-as-a-service, integrated security, and measurable ROI. It eliminates manual configurations and reduces deployment times from months to minutes. Source

Why choose Alkira over alternatives?

Alkira stands out for its ease of use, rapid deployment, measurable ROI, vendor-agnostic flexibility, integrated security, global backbone, and comprehensive visibility. These features make it a leader in simplifying multicloud networking and enhancing operational efficiency. Source

What advantages does Alkira offer for different user segments?

Technical users benefit from simplified network design and reduced operational burdens, business users gain measurable ROI and scalability, and security teams leverage integrated security features. Enterprises with multicloud environments enjoy seamless connectivity and flexibility. Source

Support & Resources

What support resources does Alkira provide?

Alkira offers comprehensive training resources, technical documentation (whitepapers, solution briefs, wiki), and customer support to ensure a smooth onboarding and operational experience. Source

How can I learn more about Alkira's leadership and company background?

Information about Alkira's leadership team, company vision, mission, and achievements is available on the About Us Page and Leadership Page.

Former Cisco Systems COO Maria Martinez Joins Alkira’s Advisory Board

November 4, 2025

Summarize with AI

San Jose, Calif. – November 4, 2025 – Alkira®, the leader in Network Infrastructure as a Service (NIaaS), today announced the appointment of Maria N. Martinez to its advisory board.

Martinez most recently served as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer at Cisco Systems from 2021 to 2024, where she oversaw Cisco’s global customer experience, supply chain, IT, security and trust organizations. She previously served as Cisco’s Chief Customer Experience Officer, helping customers transform their businesses and realize value from Cisco’s software, services, and subscription offerings.

Before Cisco, Martinez held senior executive roles at leading technology companies including Salesforce, Microsoft, Motorola and AT&T’s Bell Labs. She currently serves on the boards of McKesson, Tyson Foods, Bank of America, JumpCloud, and Fiddler AI, amongst others.

“Maria’s deep operational expertise and her leadership in scaling customer-centric innovation at some of the world’s most respected technology companies make her an invaluable addition to Alkira’s advisory board,” said Amir Khan, CEO and founder of Alkira. “Her guidance will help us continue to redefine how enterprises design, deploy, and operate their global networks in the AI era.”

Her addition underscores Alkira’s continued investment in innovation and AI-driven networking, helping enterprises modernize complex global infrastructure with greater agility, visibility, and security. In September, the company launched new AI-native capabilities through its Network Infrastructure Assistant (NIA) co-pilot and Model Context Protocol (MCP) server, enabling enterprises to interact with and manage their networks using natural language.

“Today’s enterprises are being challenged to reimagine network foundations for speed, simplicity, security, and AI, and Alkira is delivering an unrivaled platform to meet those needs,” said Martinez. “By simplifying complex global networks and embedding AI-driven intelligence, Alkira empowers organizations to achieve agility, visibility, and security that legacy networks simply cannot match. I look forward to supporting the team as it continues to innovate and grow.”

To learn more, please visit https://alkirastg.compiledrogue.com/.

About Alkira

Alkira is the leader in AI-Native Network Infrastructure-as-a-Service. We unify any environments, sites, and users via an enterprise network built entirely in the cloud. The network is managed using the same controls, policies, and security systems network administrators know, is available as a service, is augmented by AI, and can instantly scale as needed. There is no new hardware to deploy, software to download, or architecture to learn. Alkira’s solution is trusted by Fortune 100 enterprises, leading system integrators, and global managed service providers. Learn more at alkira.com and follow us @alkiranet.