euNetworks delivers long-haul backbone for Inter.link’s NaaS

euNetworks will provide long haul capacity to Inter.link GmbH, a global Network-as-a-Service (NaaS) and internet connectivity provider.

Under the multi-year deal, euNetworks has delivered long haul connectivity covering Germany, Austria, Czech Republic, Finland, Sweden, the Netherlands, France, Switzerland, Spain, Italy, the UK and Ireland, as well as metro Dark Fibre in Berlin, Frankfurt and Vienna. This infrastructure delivery - Inter.link’s core backbone in Europe - includes Inter.link measuring the associated carbon impact of euNetworks’ services, supporting Inter.link’s commitment to building a sustainable and automated connectivity platform internationally.

Inter.link is scaling up its network infrastructure by adding  26 new European points of presence.

“We’re delighted to be expanding our relationship with Inter.link and supporting the team as they move forward with their exciting growth plans,” said Paula Cogan, Chief Executive Officer of euNetworks. “We value the trust Inter.link has put in euNetworks and the close alignment and commitment both companies have to the sustainable growth of the European bandwidth market. We look forward to developing this partnership to enable and support Inter.link’s customers as their bandwidth needs grow, and their sustainability strategies develop.”

“It is an exciting growth phase here at Inter.link as we build our global platform for delivery of automated connectivity solutions,” said Theo Voss, CEO & Co-Founder of Inter.link. “We needed to work with a backbone provider who is committed to and actively investing in Europe’s future critical infrastructure, offers a unique solution in the market, has a strong track record in best-in-class service delivery and demonstrates alignment to our ESG values. euNetworks consistently delivers in all those areas and is the only bandwidth infrastructure provider able to deliver measured carbon impacts on network projects and their services. We look forward to collaborating further as we move forward with our connectivity plans.”

https://eunetworks.com/

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Infrantil to acquire 80% stake in Console Connect

Infratil acquire an 80% stake in Console Connect, which is a subsidiary of HKT Limited, a leading telecommunications company in Hong Kong, for US$160 million.

Console Connect is a top-3 global software-defined interconnection platform offering next-generation automated connectivity solutions. The Console Connect platform makes connecting to data centres, partners, clouds, and other applications simple and secure, with fully automated switching and routing.

Console Connect has been a top 10 Tier 1 network globally for the last 5 years, serving ~17% of all internet traffic and reaching over 150 countries. Integration with an owned Tier 1 IP network, as well as long-term integrated access to a global backbone network, provides a clear point of differentiation for Console Connect given its extensive network coverage and superior unit economics.

Infratil will also enter into a strategic partnership with HKT, with both jointly investing up to US$295 million over a 2-year period following completion of the acquisition to accelerate Console Connect’s growth through:

• Joint sales and marketing via an HKT-supported approach to offer critical fibre infrastructure and IP access to its existing and new enterprise & wholesale customers.
• Investment in new subsea cable systems and network development to increase Console Connect’s network capacity, resiliency, and reach.

Infratil CEO, Jason Boyes, said the investment in Console Connect builds Infratil’s presence in Asia and is complementary to its digital infrastructure investments globally, which include CDC Data Centres, One NZ, Kao Data in the United Kingdom, and Clearvision Ventures in the US.

“Console Connect is a leading global software-defined interconnection platform, and this acquisition is a continuation of our conviction in the tailwinds of the digital infrastructure sector. It enables us to invest in building a next generation platform to support underlying growth in the demand for digital infrastructure and global connectivity solutions by enterprise and wholesale users”.

HKT’s Group Managing Director, Susanna Hui, said: “Over the past few years, the team at Console Connect has successfully developed it into a world leading platform. We are pleased to have found a like-minded partner in Infratil who is excited about the potential opportunities to continue growing Console Connect. Our partnership around Console Connect, investing in the platform as a standalone operation, will deliver material benefits to the business as well as to HKT shareholders through unlocking value and further developing economies of scale.”

https://www.consoleconnect.com

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Arrcus adds financial backing from Hitachi Ventures

Arrcus, a hyperscale networking software start-up based in San Jose, California, announced a significant new investment from Hitachi Ventures in an additional closing of its Series D funding round. 

Hitachi Ventures' investment will bolster Arrcus' mission to revolutionize the networking industry through innovative software-driven solutions. With increasing adoption of Arrcus routing and switching solutions by Fortune 500 and Global 2000 customers, Arrcus and Hitachi Ventures are excited about the potential for creating complementary solutions for enterprise and service provider customers.

"We are thrilled to welcome Hitachi Ventures as our latest investor into our Series D and value this partnership. Hitachi Ventures’ deep industry expertise and reach will strengthen our position as a leading provider of software-driven networking solutions," said Shekar Ayyar, chairman and CEO of Arrcus. "This investment further validates our innovative technology and signifies the immense market potential for which we are staking a claim."

Hitachi Ventures brings an exceptional track record of successful investments in cutting-edge technology companies and a wealth of knowledge in enabling digital transformations across various industries. The partnership helps solidify Arrcus’ position as a foundational infrastructure provider to leading corporations, paving the way for future growth and expansion.

https://www.arrcus.com

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Oklahoma’s KAMO Power deploys Infinera’s XTM

KAMO Electric Cooperative (KAMO Power) is deploying Infinera’s XTM Series on its 2,700-route-mile rural network to serve its 17 member cooperatives across northeast Oklahoma and southwest Missouri. 

Infinera said the KAMO Power XTM Series deployment flexibly supports both legacy services and modern Ethernet-based services over a 100G-enabled flexible-grid ROADM-based network. Leveraging an open optical architecture, KAMO Power can seamlessly scale its network to support 400G transmission speeds and beyond to meet future capacity needs while also supporting third-party wavelengths if required. The deployment also utilizes the disaggregated architecture of the XTM Series to provide a highly flexible yet compact network design with low power consumption.

“As Infinera’s channel partner in this KAMO Power deployment, BlueAlly complements the Infinera XTM Series solution with additional IP solutions and an extensive service offering covering all aspects of the network,” said Maria Will, SVP, Telecom and Broadband at BlueAlly. “With initial network design expertise and a combination of pre-staging, installation, and commissioning services, BlueAlly is able to quickly and seamlessly bring KAMO Power an outstanding rural broadband network with minimal impact to their existing network operations.”

“Infinera’s XTM Series is ideal for rural broadband networks, delivering reliable and cost-effective network connectivity that can scale to meet demand, which is critical for cooperatives like KAMO Power,” said Nick Walden, Senior Vice President, Worldwide Sales, Infinera. “With Infinera’s XTM solution, KAMO Power can offer a wider range of capacity and provide new services to its cooperative members.”

www.infinera.com

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Philip Jansen to step down as CEO of BT

Philip Jansen announced his intention to step down as CEO of BT at an appropriate time within the next 12 months.

BT’s board of directors has begun the search for his replacement.

Philip Jansen, Group Chief Executive said: “We’ve made a lot of progress over the last four and half years and I’m proud of what we’ve achieved to date. We’re investing heavily in both BT’s and the UK’s future. We’re building like fury, have now passed over 11m homes with fibre, have got 5G service to 68% of the country and our customer service is much improved. This is creating a much stronger BT Group which is starting to drive growth for both investors and the UK. But there’s a lot more to do and I am fully committed to driving the business forward until I hand over to my successor.”

https://newsroom.bt.com/chief-executive-succession-process/

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Mitsubishi Heavy acquires Concentric for DC power infrastructure

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries has acquired Concentric, a provider of industrial power solutions in North America. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Dr. Hitoshi Kaguchi, Senior Executive Vice President at MHI said: "We are delighted to add Concentric to our growing portfolio for Smart Infrastructure Solutions. Combining MHI's technology capabilities with an experienced national service provider immediately benefits facilities across North America, and provides us with a platform to serve the globe. All facilities from data centers to logistics and manufacturing factories must be able to maintain sustainable, uninterruptible power in order to remain competitive in the 21st century."

Founded in 2000 and headquartered in Carrolton, Texas, Concentric provides critical power systems for data centers, telecommunications, utilities, and commercial facilities, as well as motive power solutions for electric forklifts, automated guided vehicles, and airline ground support equipment.

John Winter, Chief Operating Officer at Concentric said: "We have spent the last two decades building no-interruption power and equipment services for material handling and critical power customers across North America. Joining the MHI group accelerates Concentric's mission to bring sustainable, proactive power systems and maintenance to facility leaders nationwide. Our forklift power customers have been converging towards energy storage for years. MHI's capabilities, including their cooling technologies and zero emission power generation systems, ensure our team is ready to serve their needs and achieve growth across the data center market. We have a shared vision to build the most advanced, clean and efficient power solutions."

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Telstra commercial 5G sites go live with Ericsson Cloud RAN

Telstra is the first operator in the world to activate Ericsson’s Cloud Native Infrastructure solution (CNIS) for Cloud RAN in a live commercial 5G network. 

CNIS is a bare metal infrastructure that is specifically optimized for hosting cloud-native 5G applications both at central data centers and at the edge. 

Ericsson says the combination of Cloud RAN running on CNIS as a system-verified solution reduces Telstra’s deployment and operational risks and ensures the best mobile network performance for Telstra’s customers.

With Ericsson’s Cloud RAN infrastructure hosting data traffic on Telstra’s 5G commercial network, Telstra’s customers can gain access to the full power of 5G, including low-latency and high-bandwidth performance for improved user experience.

In addition, the RAN virtualisation will allow for new network features and product/service introductions requiring latency, edge computing demands and security requirements. 

Iskra Nikolova, Telstra Executive for Network and Infrastructure, says: “This step in the validation and rollout of this technology is critical to ensure we get the most out of 5G now and in the future. It will allow us to roll out network capacity and new features faster while making our networks more intelligent, automated, flexible, reliable, and secure. This is particularly important when it comes to making sure that areas of high demand, particularly large events and seasonal hotspots can operate at the high standard our customers expect. Our ongoing partnership with Ericsson has once again supported Telstra’s efforts to deliver a world-leading 5G experience for the Australian public.”

Emilio Romeo, Head of Ericsson, Australia and New Zealand, says: “The flexibility provided by Ericsson’s Cloud RAN technology delivers a more open network architecture for Telstra, one that is fully independent of hardware solutions and easily scalable to meet evolving customer demand for optimal service performance now and into the future. As Ericsson’s Cloud RAN infrastructure is rolled out to more sites around the country, Telstra’s 5G network is set to offer even more capacity, reliability and performance to its Australian customers.”

https://www.ericsson.com/en/press-releases/7/2023/telstra-commercial-5g-sites-go-live-with-ericsson-cloud-ran-technology

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KKR invests in Peru’s first open access fiber network

KKR will acquire a majority interest in PangeaCo and the existing fiber optic networks of Telefónica del Perú and Entel Perú to build Perú’s first nationwide open access wholesale fiber optics company. Financial terms were not disclosed, although KKR said it plans to make approximately US$200 million of additional investment to more than double the ultra-fast fiber network from more than 2 million homes passed today to reach 5.2 million homes passed across 86 provinces by the end of 2026.

The deal will combine the existing fiber optic networks of PangeaCo, Telefónica del Perú, and Entel Perú into an independent company called ON*NET Fibra de Perú. KKR will own a 54% interest in ON*NET Fibra de Perú alongside Telefónica Hispanoamérica, which will own 36%, and Entel Perú, which will own 10%.

Significantly, the newly formed network will be open access, allowing usage to all internet service providers for the first time.  Telefónica del Perú and Entel Perú will be anchor tenants.

Through the combination of these networks, KKR will establish ON*NET Fibra de Perú as the new name for the platform which will independently build and operate the nation’s largest fiber optic network with world-class quality standards. 

The entire ON*NET Fibra de Perú fiber optic network will be open to use by all internet service providers, increasing competition in the wholesale market.

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IDC: Worldwide public cloud services topped $500B in 2022

Worldwide revenue for the public cloud services market totaled $545.8 billion in 2022, an increase of 22.9% over 2021, according to IDC’s Worldwide Semiannual Public Cloud Services Tracker.

• Software as a Service – Applications (SaaS – Applications) continued to be the largest source of public cloud services revenue, accounting for more than 45% of the total in 2022. 
• Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) was the second largest revenue category with 21.2% of the total.
• Platform as a Service (PaaS) and Software as a Service – System Infrastructure Software (SaaS – SIS) delivered 17.0% and 16.7% of overall revenue respectively. 

"Given the economic challenges of the past year, it's easy to conclude that we are in a period where a focus on constraining new expenditures and optimizing the use of existing cloud assets will dominate CIOs' priorities and shape the fortunes of IT providers for the next several years. It's also a very wrong conclusion. The assessment and use of AI, triggered by generative AI, is starting to dominate the planning and long term investment agendas of businesses and cloud providers will play a significant role in the evaluation and adoption of AI enablement services," said Rick Villars, group vice president, Worldwide Research at IDC.

Some additional highlights from IDC:

• Spending with the leading providers of public cloud services further consolidated in 2022 with the combined revenue of the top 5 public cloud service providers – Microsoft, Amazon Web Services, Salesforce Inc., Google, and Oracle – capturing more than 41% of the worldwide total and growing 27.3% year over year. 
• With offerings in all four deployment categories, Microsoft remained in the top position in the overall public cloud services market with 16.8% share in 2022, followed by Amazon Web Services with 13.5% share.
• While the overall public cloud services market grew 22.9% year over year in 2022, revenue for foundational cloud services that support digital-first strategies saw revenue growth of 28.8%. 

"Cloud providers are making significant investments in high-performance infrastructure," said Dave McCarthy, research vice president, Cloud and Edge Infrastructure Services. "This serves two purposes. First, it unlocks the next wave of migration for enterprise applications that have previously remained on-premises. Second, it creates the foundation for new AI software that can be quickly deployed at scale. In both cases, these investments are resulting in market growth opportunities."

https://www.idc.com/getdoc.jsp?containerId=prUS51009523

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CyrusOne to build sixth data center in Frankfurt

CyrusOne plans to build its next data center in Frankfurt, named FRA6, following the acquisition of the Europark site in Sossenheim, which is situated in close proximity to several operational CyrusOne Data Centers.

The new data center will offer a total IT capacity of 72 MW delivered over four floors, with each level delivering 18 MW. The acquired site encompasses over 27,500 square meters (6.8 acres) of land.

“The acquisition of the Europark site further demonstrates CyrusOne’s commitment to Frankfurt as the digital capital of Europe and our ongoing European expansion. We are continually assessing the market with a view to increasing our presence in the Frankfurt area,” said Andreas Paduch, Area Vice President, European Sales at CyrusOne. “Initial discussions with hyperscale customers and other large enterprises have revealed significant early interest in FRA6 and we look forward to continuing these as we progress the build. This underscores both our expertise in this market and our ability to consistently deliver solutions that are instrumental to our customers’ business success and expansion goals.”

The company’s European portfolio includes over 270 MW IT capacity across Frankfurt, London, Amsterdam, Madrid, Paris and Dublin, including all operational data centers and active developments.

https://www.cyrusone.com/resources/press-releases/cyrusone-announces-sixth-german-facility-in-frankfurt-following-europark-acquisition

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SpaceX completes 2 Starlink launches over weekend

SpaceX completed 2 Starlink missions over the past few days, bringing the numbers of Starlink satellites in orbit to approximately 4,768.

On Sunday, July 9 at 11:58 p.m. ET SpaceX launched 22 Starlink satellites to low-Earth orbit from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Base in Florida.  This is the 16th flight for the first stage booster supporting this mission, which previously launched Crew Demo-2, ANASIS-II, CRS-21, Transporter-1, Transporter-3, and ten Starlink missions. 

On Friday, July 7, SpaceX launched 48 Starlink satellites to low-Earth orbit from Space Launch Complex 4 East (SLC-4E) at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. This was the 12th flight for the first stage booster supporting this mission, which previously launched Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich, DART, Transporter-7, Iridium OneWeb, and now eight Starlink missions.

https://www.spacex.com/launches/mission/?missionId=sl-6-5

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RIP: James Q. Crowe, 74, known for MFS Com, Level 3

James Q. Crowe, a technology and telecommunications visionary and  founder of Level 3 Communications, passed away on July 2nd  in Paradise Valley, Arizona, after a battle with pulmonary arterial hypertension. He was 74.

In 1988, Crowe is credited with launching MFS Communications, the first company to bring robust local competition to the Baby Bells via fiber optic communication technology. He took MFS public in 1993 and built it rapidly into a Fortune 500 company, before it was acquired by WorldCom in 1996 for $14.3 billion.

In 1997, with the support of Omaha-based construction giant Peter Kiewit Sons', and Kiewit Chairman and Crowe mentor Walter Scott, Crowe raised $15 billion to establish Level 3 Communications. The company dug trenches and buried multiple conduits to carry optical fibers across the United States and parts of Canada, digging 16,000 miles along streets and railroads, installing electrical and optical equipment all along the path. They also built a similar network across Western Europe. 

"Ever since James Crowe brought Level 3 Communications and thousands of jobs to Colorado a quarter century ago, Jim has been an admired and active business leader among our major employers," said Colorado Governor Jared Polis. "Both my predecessors, former Governors Ritter and Hickenlooper, and I have called upon James Crowe for his creative and trusted advice on issues ranging from healthcare, technology, education and transportation to Covid response. He was a giant, and all of Colorado will miss his contributions to our civic life."

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Tech Update: Ethernet vs Infiniband for GPU clusters

Wondering whether to use Infiniband or Ethernet for building large-scale clustered GPU environments?

https://youtu.be/I2NKlVG3Ai0

Ram Velaga, SVP & GM, Switching and Routing from Broadcom explains: * Why Ethernet is the best technology for your needs, whether you're building a thousand GPU cluster or something larger. It's proven over multiple decades to meet new requirements as they arise. * How Ethernet has evolved to meet the requirements for clustered GPUs, including low latencies, controlling tail latency, and building large topologies without a lot of idle time on the GPUs. * The advantages of Ethernet, including its ubiquity, the scale of its market, the rapid innovation it drives, and the economies of scale it offers. Have a tech update that you want to brief us on? Contact info@nextgeninfra.io

Check out other Tech Updates on our YouTube Channel (subscribe today): https://www.youtube.com/@NextGenInfra and check out our latest reports at: https://nextgeninfra.io/

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Samsung and MediaTek hit 363 Mbps uplink with 5G 3Tx antennas

Samsung Electronics and MediaTek achieved a peak throughput rate of 363 Mbps with  5G Standalone Uplink (UL) 2CC Carrier Aggregation (CA) with C-Band UL MIMO.

The test used used three transmit (3Tx) antennas to hit and uplink speed that is near theoretical peak.

The test was conducted in Samsung’s lab, based in Suwon, Korea. Samsung provided its 5G network solutions, including its C-Band Massive MIMO radios, virtualized Distributed Unit (vDU) and core. The MediaTek test device featuring its new M80-based CPE chipset began with one uplink channel apiece at 1,900MHz and 3.7GHz, but added an extra uplink flow using MIMO on 3.7GHz.

 “We are excited to have successfully achieved this industry breakthrough with MediaTek, bringing greater efficiency and performance to consumer devices,” said Dongwoo Lee, Head of Technology Solution Group, Networks Business at Samsung Electronics. “Faster uplink speeds bring new possibilities and have the potential to transform user experiences. This milestone further demonstrates our commitment to improving our customers’ networks using the most advanced technology available.”

 “Enhancing uplink performance using groundbreaking tri-antenna and 5G UL infrastructure technologies will ensure next-generation 5G experiences continue to impress users globally,” said HC Hwang, General Manager of Wireless Communication System and Partnership at MediaTek. “Our collaboration with Samsung has proved our combined technical capabilities to overcome previous limits, enhancing network performance and efficiency, opening up new possibilities for service providers and consumers to enjoy faster and more reliable 5G data connectivity.”

https://news.samsung.com/global/samsung-electronics-and-mediatek-achieve-innovative-5g-uplink-breakthrough-with-three-transmit-antennas

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Australia’s Titan Telecoms deploys Adtran for OLS

Titan Telecoms, an Australian provider offering dark fibre and wavelength services, has deployed Adtran’s FSP 3000 open line system (OLS) with flexgrid ROADMs and its FSP 3000 TeraFlex open terminal to create a high-capacity, ultra-flexible optical backbone network. 

The infrastructure supports speeds up to 800Gbit/s across the backbone, with customer-facing interfaces up to 400Gbit/s. 

Titan Telecoms is also using Adtran Ensemble software for network and service management, as well as the Adtran ALM proactive fiber monitoring solution.

“Our new network is great news for Australian businesses and service providers. It empowers us to expand quickly into new areas and reach more locations than ever before. With Adtran’s technology supporting rapid service rollout, we can help our customers stay ahead of the curve in today’s fast-changing digital landscape,” said Matt McDonough, CEO of Titan Telecoms. 

“We’re helping Titan Telecoms execute its ambitious plans to reach more areas and provide its customers with even more value. The new infrastructure significantly boosts capacity and guarantees maximum data throughput over every link,”  commented Erik Lindberg, GM of APAC sales at Adtran. 

https://www.adtran.com

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Sivers Photonics lands DFB laser array order from Ayar Labs

Sivers Photonics received a new US$1 million order from Ayar Labs for the development of next-generation DFB laser arrays.

The order will be delivered across 2023 and 2024 and includes agreed commercial terms for volume pricing in anticipation of future manufacturing by Sivers at larger volumes.

Sivers Photonics said its DFB laser arrays provide the high-quality light source for Ayar Labs’ SuperNova remote optical source product as they scale to volume production across a broad range of applications including AI/ML interconnects, disaggregated data centers, 6G networks, phased array sensor systems and more.

“We are excited to continue our strong relationship with Ayar Labs after our successful joint demos at both ECOC 2022 and OFC 2023. Utilising our proven technology, Ayar Labs can confidently deliver to their customers at scale, all whilst leveraging the continued growth of the CW-WDM MSA ecosystem for high bandwidth and channel count laser solutions.” said Dr Andrew McKee, Interim Managing Director, and CTO at Sivers Photonics.

“Ayar Labs is revolutionizing the way CPUs and GPUs will communicate within next generation HPC and AI/ML architectures. We are more than excited to be part of this journey with Ayar Labs and all its very prominent customers and partners. By enabling the switch to optical interconnect technology vs traditional electrical links, Ayar’s solution, leveraging Sivers technology, will provide a dramatic step change in the required bandwidth, power and latency improvements necessary for these complex systems to scale and meet the exploding demand for AI/ML clusters. With the massive growth of generative AI, , we believe this is just the beginning and are excited to support our customers in enabling the AI revolution that is changing the world.” said Anders Storm, Group CEO, Sivers Semiconductors. 

https://www.sivers-semiconductors.com/press/sivers-photonics-receives-new-order-worth-1m-from-ayar-labs-for-light-source-technology-to-support-the-growth-of-generative-ai/

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STC expands its hyperscale data center in Riyadh

center3, the data center arm of the stc Group, completed a 9.6MW expansion of its hyperscaler-grade data center Khurais in Riyadh. The state-of-the-art facility is built to meet global hyperscalers requirements. 

This expansion follows center3’s plan to build new data centers across Jeddah, Riyadh, Dammam, and other strategic locations in the Kingdom to address its customers’ requirements for high availability, disaster recovery, and scalability. The new facilities will feature operational standards that support service-level agreements and key performance indicators aligned with best-in-class international standards.

center3 aims to reach over 300MW of managed capacity in the next few years, not just within Saudi Arabia but beyond as well. 

Eng. Fahad AlHajeri, CEO of Center3, commented: “We are proud to announce the expansion of our Khurais data center in Riyadh. We are committed to investing in the latest technologies and providing exceptional services to our customers while meeting growing demand. Through this milestone, we also contribute to the regional data center industry’s development, which is crucial for the Kingdom and the wider region’s digital transformation as it enables the localization of digital applications.”

https://www.stc.com.sa/content/stcgroupwebsite/sa/en/media-center/press-release/press-release-detail.html?id=center3-announces-expansion-khurais-riyadh

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BT launches Global Managed LAN service with HPE Aruba

BT introduced a new managed service powered by HPE Aruba Networking delivering improved performance, flexibility and control of local area networks (LANs). 

The service combines BT’s global reach and extensive experience in the design, deployment and management of in-building wired and wireless connectivity with the latest HPE Aruba Networking LAN solutions. 

Andrew Small, director of voice and digital work, Business, BT Group, said: “It’s clear that legacy in-building networks can’t handle modern hybrid working and IoT devices, never mind what comes next.  That’s why we’re expanding customer choice of managed LAN solutions by partnering with HPE Aruba Networking. This will offer the visibility, flexibility and security customers need to deliver productive, trusted wired and wireless connectivity.”

“Global customers that are building their connectivity strategies are focusing on modern enterprise networks that are secure, agile, responsive to business needs and simple to operate, while being powerful drivers of transformation,” said Phil Mottram, executive vice president and general manager, HPE Aruba Networking. 

https://newsroom.bt.com/bt-and-hpe-partner-for-new-global-managed-lan-service/

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Hamamatsu Photonics breaks ground on new factory building in Japan

Hamamatsu Photonics has begun construction on a new factory building for opto-semiconductors at its main factory site located in Ichino-cho, Higashi-ku, Hamamatsu City in Japan.

The new factory building is scheduled for completion in June 2025.

Hamamatsu Photonics supplies a broad portfolio of optical components (lenses, mirrors, MEMS, lasers, etc), optical sensors (photodiodes, photo ICs, phototubes, spectrometers, etc), light sources, etc.

https://www.hamamatsu.com/jp/en/our-company/at-a-glance.html

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Celestial AI raises $100M for its Photonic Fabric Optical Interconnect

Celestial AI, a start-up developing an optical interconnect for disaggregated, exascale compute and memory clusters, raised $100 million in Series B funding.

Celestial AI is working on Optical Compute Interconnect (OCI) to enable disaggregation of scalable data center memory and accelerated computing.  The company says its Photonic Fabric is unconstrained by package beachfront limitations and can deliver data to any location on the compute die, directly to the point of consumption. It promises greater scalability and more than 10X lower latency and power consumption compared with any optical interconnect alternative, such as Co-Packaged Optics (CPO).

Celestial AI’s Photonic Fabric ecosystem will consist of AI compute, memory suppliers, hyperscalers and high-volume commercial supply chain partners. The technology is compatible with existing industry standards including CXL, PCIe, UCIe, JEDEC HBM, and proprietary electrical communication links. 

The new funding was led by IAG Capital Partners, Koch Disruptive Technologies (KDT) and Temasek’s Xora Innovation fund. Other major investors in the round include Samsung Catalyst, Smart Global Holdings (SGH), Porsche Automobil Holding SE, The Engine Fund, imec.xpand, M Ventures and Tyche Partners. 

“We are at the beginning of an unprecedented journey toward the next generation of intelligence which will transform our way of life,” said Dave Lazovsky, Celestial AI founder and CEO. “Generative AI and Recommendation Engines, which today are running on general purpose computing systems, have already begun to measurably impact business processes, products and services. A rapid transition will take place in the coming years as global data center infrastructure transitions from general purpose to accelerated computing systems. This next wave of data center infrastructure is being architected to deliver tremendous advancements in AI workload efficiencies, resulting from disaggregation of memory and compute resources which is enabled by optical interconnectivity. Our technology solutions are lighting the way to the future of accelerated computing.”

https://www.celestial.ai/

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