Molex
Executive perspectives from Molex across NextGenInfra's event and research showcases.
1 video interview · 2026
Copper vs. Fiber in AI Scale-Up: Why Optics Are Moving Inside the Box
- Larger AI scale-up clusters push optics into shorter parts of the channel that copper has traditionally owned, moving the fiber-versus-copper decision off the front panel.
- Near-package optics keep a pluggable, modular approach while avoiding the challenges of co-packaged optics on the substrate.
- Molex's Mirror Mezz Enhanced, Gemini and other mezzanine connectors scale from 224G toward 448G, alongside its second-source Si-Fly HD for the OpenCPX MSA.
Abstract
Bill Wilson, Group Product Manager at Molex, explains at the OCP Global Summit how AI scale-up is reshaping the fiber-versus-copper decision, as larger clusters push optics into shorter channel segments that copper has traditionally dominated, and highlights industry efforts such as OCP's Short Reach Optical Interconnect initiative, OIF work, and the OpenCPX MSA. He showcases Molex copper solutions that enable pluggable near-package optics modules, including Mirror Mezz Enhanced, Gemini, and other mezzanine connectors scaling from 224G toward 448G, along with the second-source Si-Fly HD product supporting the OpenCPX MSA.