AutoCon and NetDevOps Days - TOGETHER!
2023 has been an extraordinary year for both NetBox Labs and the Network Automation Forum (NAF), as well as for the broader field of network automation. As we close out the year, we're excited to share some big news news: NetBox Labs' NetDevOps Days (NDOD) is merging into NAF's AutoCon event series!
This marks a significant step forward in our shared mission to support and empower the network automation community. Throughout 2023, both NetBox Labs and NAF independently pursued initiatives we believed would significantly benefit this creative, engaged community. Through this journey, we've realized how closely our visions align. Simply put, combining forces made sense.
A key part of this success story is the outstanding leadership and innovation from Kris Beevers, CEO of NetBox Labs, and Mark Coleman, NetBox Labs' Chief Product Officer. Their contributions, along with the tireless efforts of the entire NetBox Labs team, have been phenomenal. It's been an absolute pleasure learning the NetBox Labs story and working alongside them, and we're excited to continue this journey.
As NAF's co-founders, Chris and I couldn't be more enthusiastic. We're incredibly excited about the potential that our combined efforts hold for the future of network automation. This union is not just a merging of events but a fusion of the broader community's expertise, vision, and passion for advancing our field.
One unique aspect of this event is the way it allows each organization to fine-tune and focus their activities to their specific mission. Per Kris, "...while we’re incredibly proud of what we and the community have built with NetDevOps Days, we believe in AutoCon as the best forum to continue the conversation. So we’re putting all the energy of NetBox Labs and the NetBox community into AutoCon and we can’t wait to see everyone at the next event!” This will allow NetBox Labs to focus their resources into their product priorities, including their commitment to steward NetBox as an open source network source of truth platform. With more community momentum, this enables NAF to work more directly with a larger portion of the network automation community.
We firmly believe that our continued focus will help accelerate the momentum behind network automation. By combining all available resources, expertise, and networks, we're expecting many positive outcomes, including a stronger platform for innovation, increased opportunities for collaboration, and a clearer, unified voice on critical network automation issues.
To sum up, we see nothing but positive outcomes from this consolidation into a single network automation focused event series. It represents an opportunity to bring our collective voices together, creating a more significant impact and driving more critical mass for collaboration. This combination of the broader network automation community is poised to deliver benefits we haven't even imagined yet.
To learn more about what the future holds for NAF and AutoCon, we invite you to join us on January 18, 2024, at 11:00 am EST / 4:00 pm UTC. We're hosting an open virtual panel session for the network automation community, where we'll discuss the exciting developments for 2024 and beyond. This session will be an opportunity to engage with leaders in the field, ask questions, and get a glimpse of the exciting future that lies ahead.
To attend the virtual panel event, register here: https://networkautomation.forum/netdevopsdays-virtual-panel
You can also read more from NetBox Labs here: https://netboxlabs.com/blog/netdevops-days-joins-forces-with-autocon/
And here: https://netboxlabs.com/news/netdevops-days-and-autocon-join-forces-to-accelerate-network-automation/
We're so excited for our 2024 plans. Stay tuned for updates, and we can't wait to see you next year!!
All the best for 2024,
Chris and Scott
Network Automation Forum
