Marvell plans to buy photonics company Lumentum in an all-stock deal worth $115 billion. It’s expected to close in the first half of 2028.
Why it matters
- Lumentum fills gaps in Marvell’s lineup: high-performance lasers, optical transceivers, optical circuit switches and indium phosphide manufacturing.
- Copper is hitting a wall. A 400 Gbps lane only reaches about 1.25 meters over copper, and every time the per-lane speed doubles, the reach is cut in half.
- Optics carry the signal for kilometers, so AI systems can span whole aisles with less power and cooling per rack.
My take
I’ve spent my career around switches and cabling, and this is the trend I’ve been watching: optics moving closer and closer to the chip. AI clusters are pulling the whole industry toward co-packaged optics faster than anyone expected. Network folks, brush up on your optics.
God Bless, and Happy hacking!
