IT AI Index
Index › Function 07 of 6 · September 2026 Edition
Edition 01 · September 2026Function 07

Network and edge

Connecting and protecting traffic: SASE, zero trust access, firewalls, SD-WAN, web application firewalls, DDoS protection and content delivery. 7 of 11 categories scored, 4 planned.

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Standing in network and edge

First-choice share across the direct, paraphrase, budget and scale prompts, all twelve models, for the seven network and edge categories scored in the September 2026 Edition.
Network and edge
DDoS protection
One leader in all three segments
CloudflareClear leader
SMB
89%
Mid-market
93%
Enterprise
80%
Network and edge
Content delivery networks
One leader in all three segments
CloudflareClear leader
SMB
90%
Mid-market
80%
Enterprise
53%
Network and edge
Next-generation firewalls
Small business and mid-market share a leader. Enterprise differs.
Fortinet FortiGateClear leader
SMB
35%
Mid-market
61%
Palo Alto Networks tiedContested
Enterprise
28%
Network and edge
Web application firewalls
One leader in all three segments
CloudflareClear leader
SMB
73%
Mid-market
55%
Enterprise
27%
Network and edge
SD-WAN
A different leader in every segment
Cisco Meraki SD-WANContested
SMB
40%
Fortinet Secure SD-WANClear leader
Mid-market
41%
Cisco Catalyst SD-WANClear leader
Enterprise
45%
Network and edge
Zero trust network access
Small business and mid-market share a leader. Enterprise differs.
Cloudflare OneClear leader
SMB
51%
Mid-market
35%
Zscaler Private AccessClear leader
Enterprise
50%
Network and edge
SASE platforms
A different leader in every segment
Cloudflare OneClear leader
SMB
54%
Cato SASE CloudContested
Mid-market
28%
Palo Alto Networks Prisma SASEContested
Enterprise
31%

Next in network and edge

Planned categories are in the build queue and are scored exactly like every other.
DNS security plannedNetwork access control plannedNetwork detection and response plannedNetwork monitoring planned
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