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Network Automation Nerds

Network Automation Nerds

Hosted by Packet Pushers

Episodes

76

Latest episode

Aug 2026

Language

EN

About the show

Network Automation Nerds is for network engineers and infrastructure professionals eager to learn more about automation. Join host Eric Chou as he explores how to take advantage of modern network programmability to automate tasks, build robust systems, and get more done in less time. You’ll hear from a lineup of seasoned engineers, avid learners, industry leaders, and tool creators as they share tips, best practices, and hard-won advice.

Listen to episodes

60 recent
August 19, 2026Episode 12944 min

NAN129: How Do We Make Network Engineering Cool Again?

Known across the industry for making network engineering cool again with her highly relatable tech content, Alexis Bertholf is a powerhouse when it comes to combining technical expertise with personal branding. Eric Chou sat down with Alexis at AutoCon 5 to chat about Alexis’ career, the art of storytelling in 60 seconds or less, the ... Read more »

August 5, 2026Episode 12845 min

NAN128: Beyond RAG: Making Network AI Truly Agentic

Eric Chou welcomes Juulia Santala, a Solutions Engineer at Cisco, to discuss her transition from traditional network programmability to cutting-edge AI research. They explore how she moved beyond simple RAG to make AI truly agentic, while solving some hallucination problems in production configurations. They also cover the number one skill network engineers need by 2027, ... Read more »

July 22, 2026Episode 12747 min

NAN127: Scaling Network Automation Communities

Eric Chou welcomes Florian Lohden, a NetDevOps engineer and co-founder of the NetAuto Group, to discuss his community-building efforts and his latest adventures in network automation. Together they explore how adopting software development practices can help with network automation, and the importance of sharing knowledge within networking communities. Florian also talks about how he balances ... Read more »

July 1, 2026Episode 12643 min

NAN126: Fine-Tuning Open Source LLMs for Network Engineering

Eric welcomes Eduard Dulharu, a veteran network architect and the Founder and CTO of vExpertAI, to talk about how agentic AI, open-source LLMs, and digital twins are changing network operations. Eduard discusses the rapid evolution of generative AI, draws parallels between AI’s current limitations and early network protocols such as Spanning Tree, talks about why ... Read more »

June 17, 2026Episode 12558 min

NAN125: Inside the Packet Pushers 2026 Salary Survey

Early in 2026, Drew Conry-Murray authored the first Packet Pushers Salary Survey, offering a transparent look into compensation in the network engineering industry. Drew joins Eric to discuss the results of the survey, the challenges of interpreting global data, how to use this data to advocate for your market value, and more! AdSpot Sponsor: Meter ... Read more »

June 3, 2026Episode 12454 min

NAN124: AI and Trust in Modern Network Automation

Sif Baksh joins Eric Chou to share his professional experience and resources to help engineers get their arms around using AI in network automation. They discuss practical advantages of AI over standard Python scripts and the risks and benefits of vibe coding for prototyping. Sif also breaks down the P.E.N.E. framework, a structure for writing ... Read more »

May 20, 2026Episode 12358 min

NAN123: How ION Meets the Out-of-this-World Challenges of Deep-Space Networking

Eric Chou and guest host Drew Conry-Murray sit down with deep space networking specialist Scott Spicer. Following the Artemis 2 mission, they discuss the challenges of long-delay space communications and the essential technologies making it possible such as the Interplanetary Overlay Network (ION), Delay-Tolerant Networking (DTN), and Contact Graph Routing (CGR). AdSpot Sponsor: Meter Meter ... Read more »

May 13, 2026Episode 1221 hr 2 min

NAN122: From Anxiety to Empowerment: Building Confidence into Machine‑Speed Network Updates (Sponsored)

Network teams are being asked to move faster than ever as automation and AI-driven workflows increase the volume and frequency of network changes. In this episode, sponsored by Cisco, we explore how modern network operating systems make zero-downtime, zero-stress updates possible, even at machine speed. We’ll break down three key capabilities: Atomic Config Replace (ACR), ... Read more »

May 6, 2026Episode 12152 min

NAN121: Simplifying Network Automation with NetGru

Eric Chou talks with Adrian Iliesiu aka NetGru, a seasoned CCIE veteran and community leader known for his work to simplify network automation and make it accessible to network engineers. He focuses on helping network teams navigate the transition into AI and vibe coding while maintaining their core technical skills. Adrian shares insights and practical ... Read more »

April 22, 2026Episode 12057 min

NAN120: How Network Engineers Can Thrive in an AI-Driven World

Eric Chou is joined by Ashwin Joshi, a Senior Solutions Engineer at Keysight Technologies, to discuss the rapidly increasing demands that AI places on modern networks. They break down the differences between networking for AI and AI for networking. They also talk about how network engineers can adopt AI to help them do their jobs, ... Read more »

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