AI Optics Boom: Nvidia Seeks 20x InP Capacity to Power Massive Clusters
Nvidia has asked suppliers to boost indium phosphide laser capacity by 20x through 2030 to support AI cluster networking, with suppliers countering at 12x; the InP optics market is projected to grow from about $1.9B in 2025 to $22.75B by 2030. Major players like Lumentum, Coherent, Broadcom, Mitsubishi, Sumitomo and AAOI are expanding capacity, driven by the shift to co-packaged optics that moves connections closer to chips to boost speed and cut power. Investors see optics as the next AI bottleneck, and Rosenblatt expects Coherent and Lumentum to benefit, while more speculative names like AXT and Lightwave Logic carry higher risk. In short, optics infrastructure is becoming a foundational piece of AI deployment, and Nvidia’s demand signals indicate multi-year growth, tempered by caution over overexpansion among suppliers.
