Speaker & press kit
Book Robin Johns to speak
Keynotes, board briefings, panels, webinars and podcasts on AI security, enterprise AI adoption, SASE and Zero Trust — delivered by someone who debugged the network before he explained it.
Why book Robin Johns
Robin Johns is the Worldwide AI Subject Matter Expert at Cato Networks, the author of two books on SASE, and is known across the industry as “The SASE Guy”. He speaks worldwide across AMER, EMEA and APJ on AI security, enterprise AI adoption, SASE and Zero Trust — for audiences ranging from a Fortune 500 board to a room of packet-level engineers.
The differentiator is credibility in both directions. Robin spent a decade owning Tier-3 escalations and consulting on DV-cleared defence networks before he ever stood on a stage, so the engineering audience cannot catch him out — and eighteen years of turning that depth into plain language means the executive audience does not switch off. He has led worldwide enablement for a company scaling from roughly $70M to more than $350M ARR, which is a useful way of saying he has had to make this material land with thousands of people who had no choice but to understand it.
Have fun, help others, and turn complicated technology into something people can actually understand.
Robin Johns, on what the whole career is for
Speaking topics
Robin Johns speaks on AI security, enterprise AI adoption and governance, agentic AI risk, SASE and SSE architecture, Zero Trust and ZTNA, and the discipline of technical communication itself. Every talk is tailored to the audience — the board version and the engineering version of the same subject are genuinely different talks, not the same deck with fewer slides.
AI and AI security
- What “AI security” actually means — and why most programmes secure one third of the problem.
- Shadow AI — what your people are already doing, and why blocking makes it worse.
- Prompt injection, explained without hand-waving — the attack that cannot be fully fixed, and what to do instead.
- Securing agentic AI — the excessive-agency problem, and treating agents like privileged service accounts.
- AI governance that people will actually follow — NIST AI RMF, ISO/IEC 42001 and the EU AI Act, minus the theatre.
- The first 90 days of an enterprise AI security programme.
SASE, SSE and Zero Trust
- SASE explained properly — convergence versus integration, and how to tell them apart in a demo.
- SASE vs SSE vs SD-WAN — what to buy first, and why.
- Retiring the VPN — ZTNA as the first, fastest SASE win.
- Migrating to SASE without a big-bang cutover.
- Where SASE became the enforcement point for AI.
Communication and enablement
- Making the world’s hardest technology understandable — the craft, taught as a craft.
- Building an enablement engine that scales with the business — $70M to $350M+ ARR, and a 40% cut in ramp time.
- Why comprehension is a security control.
Formats
Robin Johns delivers conference keynotes, executive and board briefings, technical deep-dives with live demonstrations, moderated panels and fireside chats, webinars, podcast guest appearances, and analyst and press briefings. He works in person worldwide and remotely.
| Format | Typical length | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Conference keynote | 30–45 minutes | Main-stage audiences, mixed technical level |
| Executive / board briefing | 30–60 minutes | Boards, CISOs, C-suite; risk and decision framing |
| Technical deep-dive + live demo | 45–90 minutes | Engineering and architecture audiences |
| Panel or fireside chat | 30–60 minutes | Moderated discussion, analyst events |
| Webinar | 30–60 minutes | Remote, global audiences |
| Podcast appearance | 30–90 minutes | Long-form conversation |
| Workshop | Half or full day | Enablement, certification, hands-on readiness |
Speaker bios (copy and paste)
Three approved biographies of Robin Johns — short, medium and long — provided for programmes, event sites, podcast show notes and press. Use them verbatim.
One line
Robin Johns is the Worldwide AI Subject Matter Expert at Cato Networks, author of SASE: Explained and SASE Evolved, and the man the industry calls “The SASE Guy”.
Short (50 words)
Robin Johns is a worldwide authority on AI security and SASE. As Cato Networks’ Worldwide AI Subject Matter Expert he is the trusted AI voice for customers, partners and the market. He is the author of SASE: Explained (2023) and SASE Evolved (2024), and is known across the industry as “The SASE Guy”.
Medium (110 words)
Robin Johns is the Worldwide AI Subject Matter Expert at Cato Networks and a recognised worldwide authority on AI security and SASE. Known across the industry as “The SASE Guy”, he is the author of SASE: Explained (2023) and SASE Evolved (2024), and the trusted AI voice for Cato’s customers, partners and worldwide field organisation.
His authority is built on engineering rather than analysis: eighteen years across networking and security, including Tier-3 escalation work at Riverbed Technology and DV-cleared defence network consulting. As Cato’s Global Director of Enablement he built the global readiness engine behind growth from roughly $70M to more than $350M ARR, cutting new-hire ramp time by 40%. He lives in Barry, Wales, and releases original music in his spare time.
Long (200 words)
Robin Johns is a worldwide authority on AI security and SASE, and the Worldwide AI Subject Matter Expert at Cato Networks. In that role he is the company’s trusted AI voice for customers, partners and the market: the central source of truth for AI strategy across a global go-to-market organisation, the escalation point for the hardest AI deployments, and the person who sets the AI readiness standard for the worldwide field.
Known across the industry as “The SASE Guy”, he is the author of SASE: Explained (2023) and SASE Evolved (2024), is SASE Expert Level 1 certified, and designed the official SASE certification programmes that thousands of engineers and partners are certified against.
What makes the authority unusual is where it came from. Robin spent eighteen years underneath the technology before he stood in front of it — a decade owning the Tier-3 escalations nobody else could close at Riverbed Technology, DV-cleared consulting on defence and government networks, and a spell running an offensive-security business. As Cato’s Global Director of Enablement he built the engine behind growth from roughly $70M to more than $350M ARR and cut new-hire ramp time by 40%.
He is based in Barry, Wales, speaks across AMER, EMEA and APJ, and releases original music on Spotify.
Press fact sheet
Verified facts about Robin Johns for press, event programmes and show notes.
| Name | Robin Johns |
|---|---|
| Also known as | The SASE Guy |
| Title | Worldwide AI Subject Matter Expert (WW AI SME) |
| Company | Cato Networks |
| Topics | AI security, enterprise AI adoption, agentic AI risk, AI governance, SASE, SSE, ZTNA, Zero Trust, cloud and network security |
| Books | SASE: Explained (2023, 179pp) and SASE Evolved (2024, 291pp) |
| Certification | SASE Expert Level 1 |
| Experience | 18+ years in networking, security and technical leadership |
| Regions | AMER, EMEA, APJ |
| Based | Barry, Wales, United Kingdom |
| Languages | English (native), Japanese (limited working proficiency) |
| Website | therobinjohns.com |
| linkedin.com/in/thesaseguy | |
| Amazon author page | Robin Johns on Amazon |
| Spotify | Original music |
| Booking | robinjohns@therobinjohns.com |
Appearances
Robin Johns speaks across AMER, EMEA and APJ at conferences, customer and partner events, webinars and on podcasts. Recorded sessions are listed below; upcoming dates are announced on LinkedIn.
A public listing of appearances is being compiled. In the meantime, recent and upcoming sessions are announced on LinkedIn, and enquiries are welcome at robinjohns@therobinjohns.com.
Recorded sessions
- Data Loss Prevention with Cato Networks [Demo] — A live demonstration of configuring and testing Data Loss Prevention policies in Cato Networks, presented by Robin Johns. Cato Networks, 11 August 2023.
Enquiries
To book Robin Johns for a keynote, briefing, panel, webinar or podcast, email robinjohns@therobinjohns.com or message him on LinkedIn. Please include the date, location, audience, format and desired topic.
Helpful things to include in a first email: event name and date, city or platform, audience size and seniority, session length and format, the topic you have in mind, and whether the session is recorded. Analyst and press enquiries are welcome on the same address.
Frequently asked questions
How do I book Robin Johns to speak?
Email robinjohns@therobinjohns.com or message him on LinkedIn at linkedin.com/in/thesaseguy. Include the event date, location, audience, session format and the topic you have in mind.
What topics does Robin Johns speak on?
AI security, enterprise AI adoption and governance, agentic AI risk, prompt injection and shadow AI, SASE and SSE architecture, Zero Trust and ZTNA, and technical communication and enablement. Talks are tailored to the audience — the board version and the engineering version are genuinely different sessions.
Does Robin Johns speak internationally?
Yes. He is based in Barry, Wales, in the United Kingdom, and speaks across AMER, EMEA and APJ, both in person and remotely.
What formats does Robin Johns deliver?
Conference keynotes, executive and board briefings, technical deep-dives with live demonstrations, moderated panels and fireside chats, webinars, podcast guest appearances, analyst and press briefings, and half- or full-day workshops.
Is Robin Johns available for podcast interviews?
Yes. He appears regularly on podcasts and webinars discussing AI security, enterprise AI adoption, SASE and Zero Trust, and has produced podcast content himself. Enquiries to robinjohns@therobinjohns.com.