Santa Clara, Calif. – – September 29, 2026 -- Forward Networks has made Forward Predict generally available, a network-change verification tool that customer IG Group says cut firewall change delivery time by roughly 95 percent and saves engineers more than 30 hours of manual work monthly.
Forward Predict verifies network changes before deployment using a mathematically accurate digital twin
The tool, built on Forward Enterprise's digital twin, models BGP, routing, path, ACL, NAT and firewall-rule changes to show connectivity, security and compliance impact before they reach production. Forward positions the capability as the verification layer required for AI agents to propose network changes safely at machine speed.
"Know before you act is more than a tagline, it's the operating model Agentic NetOps requires," said Nikhil Handigol, Chief AI Officer and co-founder of Forward. "Forward Predict verifies the impact of every proposed change with Forward's mathematically accurate digital twin before execution."
IG Group extended the tool from routing validation to automated firewall-rule checks
Since its May beta launch, Forward Predict has been deployed across financial services, media and technology companies including IG Group. Steve Bamford, Senior Network Engineer at IG Group, said the company extended the tool from validating BGP and routing changes to its firewall rule workflow, where automated path checks now flag unnecessary rule requests before implementation.
Across the beta program, one global company expects Forward Predict to deliver more than $3 million in annual benefits through reduced manual effort and improved change execution.
Forward Enterprise adds Zscaler ZPA, IBM Cloud coverage and nine new devices
Forward expanded Forward Enterprise's digital twin with general availability for Zscaler ZPA and IBM Cloud modeling, alongside support for nine new devices across six vendors including Cisco FMC and FTD, Check Point Maestro, and F5 Velos. The company also added CIS-certified benchmarks, updated DISA STIG support, and vulnerability intelligence enriched with KEV and CWE classifications.
Forward frames the launch as a step from safer agentic operations toward autonomous networking
The company argues that AI agents acting on stale data or without verified context cannot operate safely, and that Forward Predict supplies the proof layer between AI-generated intent and production changes. When a proposed change fails validation, the system surfaces specific evidence for engineers or agents to revise it before execution. Forward Predict is available now, with organizations able to request a free trial.