Scaling Live Video Infrastructure with AI and VPUs
Voices of Video with Mike Vitale & Barry Owen from Wowza
Video is no longer just content. It is becoming a valuable source of real-time data.
In this episode of Voices of Video, Mark Donnigan speaks with Wowza’s Mike Vitale, VP of Product and AI Strategy, and Barry Owen, Chief Solutions Architect, about how streaming infrastructure is evolving to handle greater scale, new AI applications, and increasingly demanding workloads.
The conversation explores how Wowza Streaming Engine supports live video workflows across on-premises, cloud, edge, and hybrid environments. Mike and Barry explain how developers can process and analyze video without disrupting the stream, and why hardware acceleration becomes increasingly important as stream counts and transcoding requirements grow.
They also discuss:
• How AI is turning live video into a searchable source of actionable data
• The role of VPUs in improving transcoding density, efficiency, and scalability
• How Wowza supports on-premises, cloud, edge, and hybrid deployments
• Practical applications such as synthetic video detection and intelligent surveillance
• Why observability should be built into video workflows from the beginning
• How transcoding could become a key intelligence layer in future video pipelines
The discussion also looks at how NETINT VPUs fit into these evolving workflows by providing dedicated video processing for high-density transcoding.
For anyone building or scaling live video infrastructure, this episode offers a practical look at how AI, hardware acceleration, and flexible deployment models are reshaping the modern video workflow.
Mike Vitale - VP of Product and AI Strategy at Wowza, North America
Mike Vitale is Vice President of AI Strategy and Product Intelligence at Wowza, where he helps bring practical AI capabilities to live and on-premises video workflows. With more than 25 years in software, SaaS, cloud architecture, and video technology, he has built scalable platforms, led global teams, and guided multiple companies through successful acquisitions. Before joining Wowza, he co-founded AVA Intellect, an AI communications platform acquired by Wowza in 2025, and spent more than 20 years leading technology and operations at TalkPoint.
Barry Owen - Chief Solutions Architect at Wowza, North America
Barry Owen is Chief Solutions Architect at Wowza and a recognized video streaming expert with more than 25 years of experience in software architecture, product development, and engineering leadership. He works with customers and partners to turn complex streaming requirements into scalable, reliable solutions across on-premises, cloud, edge, and hybrid environments. Known for combining deep technical expertise with clear communication, Barry helps organizations solve integration challenges, build high-performance video workflows, and unlock more value from live and on-demand video.
Mark Donnigan - Head of Strategic Marketing at NETINT Technologies
Mark Donnigan is the Head of Strategic Marketing at NETINT Technologies, where his extensive experience and innovative approach have significantly contributed to the company's growth and industry standing. With a background that combines deep technical understanding and strategic marketing expertise, Mark has been instrumental in positioning NETINT as a leader in ASIC Video Processing Units (VPUs) for ultra-high density video encoding and streaming. His work at NETINT involves not just promoting the brand and its products but also shaping the future direction of the video streaming and encoding market.