Nvidia’s Huang forecasts optical shift for AI infrastructure
TAIPEI (TVBS News) — Nvidia (輝達) CEO Jensen Huang (黃仁勳) predicted Tuesday (June 2) that artificial intelligence data centers will increasingly rely on optical communications as the industry shifts toward AI agents requiring distributed computing workloads. Huang made the prediction during a surprise appearance at Marvell (邁威爾) CEO Matt Murphy's keynote address at Computex Taipei (台北國際電腦展).
AI agents require workloads to be distributed across entire data centers rather than processed by individual systems, creating growing demand for high-speed networking technologies, Huang said. The shift from centralized models to agent-based architectures demands distributed computing tasks across data centers, increasing the need for high-speed interconnects.
"When token production becomes profitable, everyone wants to produce more tokens—this is precisely why demand for Marvell and NVIDIA is so strong," Huang said. Competition in AI systems will focus on effectively integrating infrastructure rather than solely on GPU power, he added. AI-generated tokens have started to generate profits, driving demand for computational and network infrastructure.
Copper will remain important for data transmission, but optical technologies will become increasingly necessary as AI systems grow larger and require greater bandwidth, Huang said. He acknowledged the physical limitations of copper in signal distance and bandwidth, advocating for optical technology as AI servers and data centers expand.
Murphy showcased several new products during his speech, including what he called the industry's lowest-power 100T Ethernet switch and a 1.6T optical connectivity solution targeting AI data center upgrades. He highlighted Marvell's comprehensive connectivity solutions from data centers to chip packaging and its development of co-packaged optics to address copper wire bottlenecks.
"When we started this journey, data center represented less than 10 percent of our revenue and we bet the farm on it. Last quarter, it was 75 percent of our revenue and growing very rapidly," Murphy said. Data center business now accounts for over 75% of Marvell's revenue, he added.
Computex Taipei, themed "AI Together," focuses on AI computing, robotics and next-generation communications, with 1,500 companies participating this year. The annual trade show, organized by the Taiwan External Trade Development Council (中華民國對外貿易發展協會) and Taipei Computer Association (台北市電腦商業同業公會), runs through Friday. Huang's appearance at Murphy's keynote drew attention to the growing partnership between the two semiconductor companies. ◼