Forward Networks claims first network digital twin for enterprises

In a move that the digital twin technology provider believes will transform how organisations such as Goldman Sachs, PayPal, S&P Global and IBM manage and secure their networks, Forward Networks has unveiled Forward AI, the “world’s first network digital twin”.

The developer said that as IT organisations accelerate artificial intelligence (AI) adoption and modernisation, network complexity is increasing while headcount remains largely flat, placing pressure on teams to sustain reliability and security at scale. AI-driven operations offer a path forward, but require accurate, complete and verifiable data, according to the company.

Built on a mathematically accurate digital twin of a network, and scheduled for general availability in April 2026, Forward AI is attributed with the fundamental quality of turning human intent into validated network answers using agentic AI “grounded in mathematical accuracy”. That is, said the company, offering trusted, verifiable answers for complex networks and allowing IT teams and AI agents to “act on trusted data rather than assumptions”.

It is designed to accelerate network operations by enabling network, security and cloud teams to ask complex questions, understand network behaviour, validate outcomes and safely automate workflows.

As is increasingly the case for systems of its kind, Forward AI is based on agentic AI and the system is attributed with establishing a foundation for the safe adoption of agentic AI in network operations by delivering validated, evidence-backed recommendations. Built on a behaviourally accurate understanding of the network, Forward AI allows the creation of agentic workflows, with each result accompanied by clear evidence, allowing teams to inspect underlying data and reasoning, and validate outcomes.

Through support for the Model Context Protocol (MCP), Forward Networks said that it is extending trusted agentic AI beyond its own platform, making its verification foundation available to enterprises and third-party developers.

Commenting on the launch, Bob Laliberte, principal analyst for networking and observability at theCUBE Research, said: “Because Forward Enterprise delivers comprehensive, domain-specific network data for heterogeneous environments, it is well-positioned to take advantage of agentic capabilities. Forward AI strengthens trust in AI by providing full transparency into how recommendations are generated. Exposing the reasoning behind AI-driven actions, keeps humans in the loop, builds confidence and ultimately improves operational efficiency.”

David Erickson, CEO and co-founder of Forward Networks, said: “When we founded Forward Networks, we started with a simple but strategic question: does the network actually behave as intended, by design, in production, and across changes.

“Answering that question requires more than visibility. It requires a mathematically accurate model of the network itself. That foundation is what Forward Enterprise delivers. Forward AI [allows] enterprises to safely reason about their networks, validate outcomes and take action with confidence. This is how AI becomes a trusted part of operating critical infrastructure.”

Nikhil Handigol, co-founder and chief AI officer at Forward Networks, added: “Forward Enterprise is already trusted by organisations running some of the largest and most complex networks in the world. That experience has given us a first-hand view into the operational challenges that matter most, and into where human error and uncertainty still limit confidence and scale.

“Forward AI builds on those learnings by extending the power of a mathematically accurate digital twin across operations, enabling organisations to safely adopt AI-driven workflows, reason transparently about outcomes and preserve the safeguards required to operate critical infrastructure.”