Lumentum, Qualcomm, Corning Showcase High-Density Optical…

Event summary

Lumentum, Qualcomm, and Corning will demonstrate a high-density die-to-die (D2D) optical interconnect at ECOC 2026 in Málaga, Spain.
The demonstration combines Qualcomm’s D2D interface IP, Lumentum’s 1060 nm VCSEL-based optical interconnect, and Corning’s multimode fiber connectivity.
The architecture supports approximately 1 Tb/s/mm of shoreline bandwidth density, with potential to scale to 4 Tb/s/mm.
Lumentum’s optical engine offers 10 Tb/s of aggregate transmit and receive capacity with high-density VCSEL and photodetector arrays.

The big picture

The demonstration highlights the growing need for high-density, low-latency optical connectivity in AI infrastructure, as traditional electrical interconnects reach their limits. This collaboration underscores the strategic importance of integrating advanced VCSEL technology with high-performance computing interfaces to support the next generation of AI scale-up architectures. The potential to scale bandwidth density to 4 Tb/s/mm positions this technology as a critical enabler for future AI systems.

What we're watching

Technology Scalability: How the demonstrated architecture will scale to support higher lane rates and increased channel density for future AI systems.
Market Adoption: Whether the collaboration will accelerate the adoption of optical D2D connectivity in AI scale-up architectures.
Competitive Dynamics: The pace at which competitors will respond with similar or superior optical interconnect solutions.