Learning in Public: Elliot Conner in the VibeOps Lounge

Elliot Conner joins me for VibeOps Lounge 007: Learning Network Automation & AI in Public. He brings three demos and a practical message for engineers getting started: pick up the tools, work on a problem you understand, and share what you learn.

Watch the full 35-minute conversation.

Elliot’s route into the work runs from restaurant management through AT&T, Department of Defense contracts, and Cisco. We discuss the Python, pyATS, and MCP experiments that helped him move from years of CLI experience into building automation tools. The conversation also covers making that work visible through a public GitHub portfolio.

Three demos to explore

• 15:03 — A network operations interface for Containerlab. The walkthrough covers access controls, NetBox, change management, rollback, and ways to inspect the lab.
• 21:39 — Net Planner. Elliot shows an AI-assisted planning tool with cost comparisons, vendor quotes, and reports.
• 26:48 — A network troubleshooting game. We work through VLAN and OSPF problems in an interactive CLI exercise.

Find Elliot’s work

Explore Elliot’s GitHub projects, follow him on LinkedIn, and visit his YouTube channel.

You can also join the VibeOps Forum and find the Itential team at AutoCon 6. Bring something you want to build, or a problem you have already started solving.

Published October 29, 2026. Demo links use the chapter markers supplied with the original YouTube upload.