Optical & Fiber Networking

Steve Klinger, VP of Product at Lightmatter, presents the company's optical scale-up interconnect solutions, featuring the Passage EVK50 system with DWDM technology that delivers 16 wavelengths per fiber with 400Gbps Tx and 400Gbps Rx. The architecture offers high energy efficiency and compact integration while aligning with the recently announced OCI MSA specifications using an 8-wavelength, 4+4 band interleave model.

Neel Patel, GM, Optical Networking Component Solutions at Nokia, explains in our Director's Cut edition, how AI data centers face significant power and supply challenges as GPU interconnect speeds double with each generation, requiring transitions from copper to optical solutions within racks. He highlights Nokia's competitive advantages in indium phosphide (InP) technology, positioning the company as an open ecosystem component supplier for hyperscalers.

Neel Patel, GM of Optical Networking Component Solutions at Nokia, discusses the power consumption challenges of advancing optical modules in data centers, where 1.6T modules consume nearly double the power of 800G modules, potentially adding 1KW to a 64-port switch. He explains how Linear Pluggable Optics (LPO) addresses this by leveraging switch ASIC DSPs reducing power consumption.

Anis Khemakhem, Chief Commercial Officer at Clearfield, shares his optimism from Fiber Connect 2026 about the fiber industry's expansion beyond homes to machine connectivity, fueled by private investment and anticipated public funding, while highlighting his company's focus on solving supply chain and workforce challenges.

Rich Williams,President of Connect2 Communications, explores Fiber Connect's "light years ahead" theme, explaining how fiber deployment enables communities to serve anchor institutions, attract businesses, and retain young talent through remote work opportunities.

Jeff Heynen, Vice President at Dell'Oro Group, reports that 2026 marks a significant upward trend for US fiber infrastructure investment, driven by private operator expansion, cable operator HFC upgrades with fiber buildouts, and BEAD funding flowing to early-qualifying states like Louisiana, Nevada, and New Mexico.

Evann Freeman, Director of Government Relations at EPB, discusses how the Chattanooga municipal utility launched the first commercially available quantum network in the U.S. in 2023, partnering with the Department of Energy and Qubitekk to enable industry, academia, and government to test quantum technologies on a live network.

Lukas Pietrzak, Director of Public Policy for the Fiber Broadband Association, discusses how fiber infrastructure serves as the foundational fabric enabling AI, quantum computing, and advanced technologies while delivering the speed, latency, and reliability needed across all communities.

Jessica Koch, Chair, FBA Conference Committee at the Fiber Broadband Association, introduces the "Light Years Ahead" theme for the 2026 conference celebrating 25 years of Fiber Connect.

Stephen Farnsworth, CRO of Gaia, explains how the ISP industry's main challenge has evolved from fiber infrastructure deployment to the speed of subscriber activation and billing, with many providers underestimating this operational hurdle until implementation timelines stretch to nine to eighteen months.

Kajsa Arvidsson, Chief Marketing Officer at Genexis, discusses how the company delivers connectivity to homes through smart optical network terminators with open, interoperable solutions that enable customer self-installation.

Mike Roddy, CEO of GoCare, explains how his company's customer experience platform consolidates data from billing, workforce management, network operations, and customer care into a unified system where AI analyzes conversations, outages, and service touchpoints to provide comprehensive insights beyond traditional digital channels.

Stefaan Vanhastel, Head of Marketing & Innovation at Nokia, explains how universal gigabit connectivity is essential as AI becomes pervasive in daily life, with peak speeds necessary to ensure cloud-based AI agents respond as quickly as local applications and prevent new digital divides.

Jaimie Lenderman, Research Manager & Principal Analyst at Omdia, reports from Fiber Connect 2026 that while BEAD funding discussions have diminished, the industry now focuses on access network viability and M&A activity driven by private equity interest, with operators facing decisions about acquiring or being acquired.

Stephen Rose, CEO of Render Networks, discusses at Fiber Connect how AI-first workflows are being integrated across design, build, and construction processes, creating an entirely new class of jobs in back office and field operations.

Conor Skipper, Director of Sales at RouteThis, attends Fiber Connect 2026 to explore how service providers are implementing AI in their operations, including voice AI applications for customer experience in tech support, billing, and marketing.

Robert Shore, Head of Optical Network Marketing at Nokia, discusses how Nokia's comprehensive end-to-end view of network connectivity—spanning mobile networks, core networks, submarine networks, and data center interconnect—provides valuable perspective for developing optical networking solutions. Shore explains that understanding what happens in the RAN and access networks enables Nokia to build better optical solutions that can accommodate the types of traffic flowing between the RAN and data centers, ultimately delivering a more holistic network solution for customers.

Jon Baldry from Nokia presents the company's 800 gig pluggable optical connectivity solutions for data center interconnection at Mobile World Congress, demonstrating through augmented reality how the technology reduces power consumption by 65-70% compared to embedded optics—a critical advantage for power-constrained data center operators managing AI-driven traffic between core and edge facilities. Nokia maintains its competitive edge in the 800 gig ZR and ZR plus optics market through vertical integration, manufacturing pluggables, subsystems, and optical chips at its indium phosphide fabrication facility in California, enabling superior transmission distances and supply chain control.

Joe Mocerino, Principal Solutions Architect at 1Finity, a Fujitsu company, presents the newly launched L1000 and L2000 ultra optical systems designed as a fundamental foundation for the AI era, addressing high-capacity traffic demands, lower cost per bit per kilometer, and network sustainability through compact modular designs supporting DCI, metro, long-haul, and edge access ROADM applications.

Per Hansen, Product Manager at Acacia, discusses the company's 1.6T transceiver portfolio for AI infrastructure scale-out applications and the growing adoption of scale-across architectures driving demand for 800G coherent solutions, with over 25,000 units already shipped.

Near Margalit, GM and VP of Optical Systems Division at Broadcom, presents the newly released OCI MSA optical standard for scale-up networks at OFC26, which reduces latency, power, and cost by utilizing wavelength division technology with four colors of light in each direction instead of high-speed serial PAM 4 lanes.

Mark Bieberich, Vice President of Product Marketing at Ciena, discusses the company's scale-across architectures for geographically distributed AI training, featuring next-generation coherent optical pluggables, new WaveLogic 6 Nano performance modes, and a roadmap toward 1600 ZR and ZR+ technologies.

Bill Gartner, SVP & GM, Optical Systems and Optical Business Unit at Cisco Systems, presents the company's optical innovations at OFC, including multi-rail optical line systems supporting 128 fibers in a single rack and a new 12.8 terabit transponder with 800-gig pluggable optics. He highlights Cisco's leadership in coherent pluggable optics for AI infrastructure.

Peter Jones, Chair of the Ethernet Alliance, presents at OFC 2026 on how Ethernet technology must address unprecedented AI-driven infrastructure demands that are straining supply chains for chips, power, and fiber. He emphasizes that despite these immense challenges, Ethernet's proven track record of reliability makes it the only viable solution for enabling the industry's AI connectivity requirements.

David Rodgers, Technical Business Development Manager at Ethernet Alliance, presents from the organization's booth at the Optical Fiber Conference 2026 in Los Angeles, where member participants demonstrate interoperability of Ethernet for AI with 1.6 terabit solutions alongside 800 gig and 400 gig technologies.

Anabel Alarcon, Product Line Manager at EXFO, presents key trends at the Ethernet Alliance booth at OFC 2026, including OSFP-RHS for higher density AI deployments and the growing adoption of coherent transceiver technology for GPU-to-switch connectivity.

Rafik Ward, Chief Strategy Officer & CMO at Lumentum, presents from OFC 2026 showcasing the company's next-generation co-packaged optics technology, including an 800mW laser in an ELSFP module and a dual ELSFP system with 16 multiplexed channels delivering 24 dBm fiber coupling.

Vivek Thyagarajan, Application Engineer at Marvell, demonstrates the industry's first 800G coherent light module powered by Marvell's Aquila DSP, optimized for O-band campus data center interconnects with links up to 20 km. The demonstration shows excellent pre-FEC performance, a clear coherent constellation diagram, and zero uncorrectable code words, confirming clean link operation.

Robert Shore, Head of Optical Network Marketing at Nokia, discusses the surging demand for optical networking solutions driven by massive data center buildouts that are diversifying applications and requiring innovative, customer-specific solutions.

Matt Crowley, CEO of Scintil Photonics, presents the company's heterogeneous silicon photonics technology that integrates indium phosphide lasers using a proprietary "backside on box" process. The company's external light sources combine lasers, muxes, photodiodes, and wavelength references on a single die to address AI data center demands for dense wavelength division multiplexing, with evaluation kits shipping to select customers in Q2 and high-volume deployment expected by 2028.

Anis Khemakhem, Chief Marketing Officer at Clearfield, identifies five major trends shaping the fiber industry, including accelerated global fiber deployment driven by BEAD funding and public-private partnerships, the growing importance of simplified design and training to address workforce shortages, and speed and density innovations through higher-capacity hardware and multi-gigabit technologies.

Gary Bolton, President and CEO of the Fiber Broadband Association, predicts that 2026 will see record fiber deployment driven by private investment and BEAD program funding, while quantum networking becomes critical as "Q Day" threats accelerate the need for enhanced encryption security.

Noam Mizrahi, EVP and Corporate CTO at Marvell, presents three key predictions for the semiconductor and AI infrastructure landscape in the coming year. He anticipates hybrid electrical-optical connectivity evolving to fully optical by 2027, greater integration of AI capabilities into chip design technologies, and expanded memory capacity beyond traditional HBM through attached or disaggregated architectures.

Nathan Tracy, President of OIF, discusses 2026 predictions focusing on the industry's push toward 400/448 Gbps implementation while addressing reliability, power efficiency, and reach challenges, with particular emphasis on coherent lite market development and CMIS as critical firmware infrastructure for AI applications.

Rafael Francis, Senior Director of Product Line Management at Ciena, discusses how AI is changing networking as the market shifts from model training to inference, showcasing the company's routing portfolio for data center interconnection and coherent routing integration with optical capabilities. He also touches on automation and agentic AI.

Roland Thienpont, Director of IP Division Product Marketing at Nokia, presents data center interconnection with automation capabilities using modular architectures. He discusses the network journey from data centers to wide area networks, featuring AI agents for network operations, DDoS protection, and quantum-safe networks.

David Stokes, Head of IP Solutions & Portfolio Marketing at Ribbon, discusses how the industry is evolving beyond traditional networking by incorporating automation and AI to optimize user experience. He showcases advances in IP and optical networking capabilities enabled by domain-level automation platforms.

Adtran’s Stephan Rettenberger joined Converge Digest’s Jim Carroll for a 31-minute deep-dive into next-gen optical infrastructure while riding through San Francisco in a Waymo robotaxi.

Vivek Raghunathan, Co-Founder and CEO of Xscape Photonics, is developing silicon photonics-based laser solutions to address bandwidth constraints in AI computing systems, where GPU-to-memory bandwidth significantly outpaces package-to-package communication. The company's technology adapts wavelength division multiplexing to create scalable lasers generating multiple wavelengths on silicon chips, with initial products targeting AI fabric and accelerator vendors.

Robert Conger, SVP of Technology and Strategy at Adtran, explains how the company connects optical core to customer premises through solutions ranging from Wi-Fi 7 to 50G PON and 800G transport speeds. He highlights their approach to combining network data from multiple sources to enable intelligent decision-making and simplified management, particularly beneficial for rural broadband providers seeking efficient operations.

Carlos Peña, Product Manager II at Amphenol, demonstrates the company's turnkey solutions for accelerating fiber deployments through comprehensive offerings like wall-mounted enclosures and connectivity products at Fiber Connect in Nashville. He explains that their solutions help service providers efficiently deliver connectivity to every unit within buildings, going beyond just reaching living units.

Trey Peppers, Owner of Blitz Broadband, has led the company's expansion from basic fiber services to comprehensive construction and maintenance operations across the southeastern United States. The company's strategic growth includes plans for long-haul fiber deployment and middle mile infrastructure development, with a focus on meeting increasing data center connectivity demands from Georgia to Texas.

Dustin Heath, Director of Customer Success at CHR Solutions, showcases the company's comprehensive suite of tools for broadband providers, including engineering operations, feasibility studies, and construction management solutions. The company's advanced technology stack, featuring the Omnia 360 platform, drone fleets, and GIS capabilities, enables faster engineering processes and enhanced cybersecurity protection for service providers nationwide.

Anis Khemakhem, Chief Marketing Officer at Clearfield, discusses the company's labor-efficient modular products and new tools at Fiber Connect 2025 in Nashville. The company's initiatives include training programs and 3D help tools through a partnership with Built, offering installers easy access to product information and installation guidance via mobile devices.

Johannes Maassen, President of Collaborative Synergy, discusses his company's efforts to improve make-ready applications for ISPs and power companies at Fiber Connect 2025. His insights address the challenges of understaffed utility companies and varying application requirements, showing how early planning creates better outcomes in engineering and construction phases.

Kara Mullaley, Market Development Manager for Carrier Networks at Corning, outlines the company's $500 million investment in global fiber and cable capacity since 2020 at Fiber Connect in Nashville. Her presentation showcases how Corning's connectivity solutions have helped connect over 100 million homes worldwide while enabling faster, more cost-effective installations.

Sachin Gupta, Chair of the Middle Mile Working Group at Fiber Broadband Association, leads a discussion on the organization's white paper addressing middle mile infrastructure needs in rural America. The analysis shows current last-mile networks are built on outdated bandwidth requirements, highlighting the necessity for new middle mile deployment to support 100 Mbps symmetric connections for modern households.

Gary Bolton, President of Fiber Broadband Association, Jaimie Lenderman, Research Manager at Omdia, and Jeff Heynen, Vice President at Dell'Oro Group, led discussions at Fiber Connect 2025 in Nashville, where the event celebrated graduating over 1,000 fiber optic technicians and showcased industry advancements. The conference highlighted the industry's dedication to expansion through AI and quantum networking solutions, while setting the stage for its 2026 edition in Orlando.

Stephen Farnsworth, CRO of GAIA Telecom, outlines the company's approach to modernizing subscriber experiences for fiber network operators at the 2025 Fiber Connect conference. The company has successfully partnered with over 35 ISPs in the past year, focusing on optimizing subscriber acquisition and management through their OSSBSS software solutions.

Kajsa Arvidsson, Chief Marketing Officer at Genexis, showcases the company's dedication to open networking solutions through interoperability demonstrations with multiple OLT vendors and their rapid Fiber Twist installation system. The Swedish-Dutch company develops network terminations and Wi-Fi gateways with European-based software development, helping to expand connectivity to homes worldwide.

Kevin Mitchell, Marketing & Partnerships at GoCare, demonstrates how their digital experience platform enables broadband operators to enhance customer communications through multiple digital channels. The platform integrates with service providers' systems to deliver proactive messaging that reduces call volumes while improving operational efficiency and customer satisfaction.

Martin Boss, COO of Manning Technology Services, highlights the critical role of continuous field training for contractors handling residential installations and service work. He focuses on community education about installation practices while stressing that ongoing field training, beyond initial employee onboarding, is essential for enhancing service delivery and job performance.

Tracy Doaks, President and CEO of MCNC, manages 4,500 miles of middle mile fiber infrastructure that connects educational and healthcare facilities throughout North Carolina. Under her leadership, MCNC focuses on protected connectivity through cyber practices while preparing their network for emerging technologies like AI and quantum computing.

Stefaan Vanhastel, Head of Marketing & Innovation at Nokia, explains that fiber technology delivers the most cost-effective multi-gigabit capacity solution with long-term scalability for subscribers. His insights reveal that Nokia's North American XGS-PON shipments have reached 95%, with 25G solutions gaining market momentum and advanced trials of 50G and 100G technologies showing promising results for both residential and business applications.

Stephen Rose, CEO of Render Networks, explains that fiber network rollouts frequently exceed budgets by 40-60% due to poor project visibility and tracking capabilities. Speaking from Nashville, he outlines how Render Networks solves these issues through real-time deployment monitoring and user-friendly tools that drive field worker adoption.

Jenni Dettman, VP of Marketing at RouteThis, discusses strategies for enhancing customer experience and support in the fiber industry at Fiber Connect 2025. She highlights how RouteThis enables service providers to optimize whole-home deployments through improved technician tools and self-installation processes, leading to better customer retention.

Trent Edwards, President of Broadband Solutions at Tak Communications, showcased the company's end-to-end solution capabilities at Fiber Connect. His presentation detailed how Tak Communications functions as a revenue-generating contractor by providing comprehensive services from door-to-door sales to engineering, construction, and fulfillment.

Peter Cresse, Executive at USI, showcases how artificial intelligence integration with fiber networks enhances performance across data centers, middle mile, and access networks. USI's platform enables collaboration between humans and machines to improve end-to-end quality of experience through intelligent network management.

Roger Timmerman, Executive Director of Utopia Fiber, led the early completion of a fiber network in Bountiful City that connects 16,500 households with 10-gigabit services through an open access system supporting 19 competing providers. As a publicly-owned organization, Utopia Fiber continues expanding its community-owned network model through partnerships in Yellowstone Fiber, Boseman, and California's rural areas.

Geoff Burke, SVP of Marketing at Zhone, outlines the company's return to the telecommunications market following its acquisition of DZS's assets, bringing with it the complete product portfolio . The revival of the Zhone brand connects back to its original 1999 Oakland roots while maintaining strong customer relationships and building on its 25-year industry presence.

Radha Nagarajan, SVP and CTO, Optical and Cloud, outlines three networking architecture categories and how Marvell addresses all three segments through its Celestial acquisition for scale up, internal development for scale out, and an established business in scale across, including 1.6 terabit per second single wavelength links currently in development.

Gina Nienaber, Senior Director of Products and Solutions at Ciena, outlines three central themes: network operations, IP Optical convergence, and transport technology migration to segment routing. She explains how Ciena focuses on AI-powered network management while supporting multi-vendor integration through interoperability testing.

Mirko Voltolini, VP Innovation at Colt, examines how enterprises are turning to internet underlay for their connectivity requirements, especially in multi-cloud and edge deployments supporting IT and AI workloads. He outlines a trategy of developing streamlined, distributed IP networks that emphasize cost efficiency and sustainability through routed optical networking technologies.

David Stokes, Head of IP Solutions & Portfolio Marketing at Ribbon, discusses key takeaways, including the adoption of pluggable optics in routers and the importance of network automation for IP and optical network convergence. He explains how the industry is moving toward a unified network resource model to support advanced services and AI deployments.

CEO Juho Sarvikas of Inseego announced their FX 5000 FWA product as the first to complete a data call using Qualcomm's Dragonwing FWA Generation 4 platform. The company's focus on enterprise FWA markets aligns with the enhanced capabilities of 5G Advanced technology, which offers improved uplink and downlink speeds for wireless broadband deployments.

Helen Xenos, Senior Director, Portfolio Marketing at Ciena, presents the company's comprehensive AI infrastructure solutions at OCP, including their industry-first single carrier 1.6 terabit per second coherent solution and ultra-low power metro DCI with 400 gig coherent pluggables. She also discusses Ciena's recent acquisition of Nubis Communications, which enables linear redrivers for active copper cables and XT optical engines for co-packaged optics applications.

Kishore Atreya, Sr. Director, Platform Product Management at Marvell, presents the company's co-packaged optics reference platform featuring a liquid-cooled 1 OU system with 16 6.4T light engines that integrate silicon photonics technology for electrical-to-optical signal conversion. He addresses the significant deployment challenge of managing over 36,000 fibers when scaling to 32 units per rack, emphasizing the need for industry solutions in backplane design and fiber routing for successful rack-level implementation.

Tom Williams, VP, Marketing at Acacia , outlines the progression of coherent optics from 400 ZR to 800 ZR/ZR+, highlighting the development of 1.6T standards that will be introduced in the next few years. The technology's expansion beyond DCI metro applications through OpenZR+ and Open ROADM models has led to broader adoption, with ZR/ZR+ optics now accounting for over 50% of coherent ports industry-wide.

Adtran’s Stephan Rettenberger joined Converge Digest’s Jim Carroll for a 31-minute deep-dive into next-gen optical infrastructure while riding through San Francisco in a Waymo robotaxi.

Senior Director and Business Lead Gilles Garcia from AMD outlines how hyperscalers' demands are accelerating optical networking innovation, pushing speeds from 400G to 800G and beyond. At OFC, AMD showcases its 400G OTN solutions and 800G capabilities while providing technology blocks and reference designs to help customers adapt to network evolution.

Mattias Fridström, Chief Evangelist at Arelion, explains how pluggable optics and AI advancements are improving internet backbone operations through enhanced problem detection and cost-effective solutions. He outlines how Arelion is expanding its network with new routes in the southern United States while comparing the contrasting fiber infrastructure landscapes between Europe and America.

Don Barnetson, SVP & Head of Product at Credo, explains how liquid cooling has shortened data center connectivity needs to 1-2 meters, enabling new copper-based solutions. His company's 800G zero flap Active Electrical Cables are replacing optical alternatives in hyperscale environments, delivering better reliability and significant power savings that can be redirected to GPU operations.

Rob Shore, Head of Optical Network Marketing at Nokia, outlined major optical networking developments at OFC50, focusing on how AI and data center growth are impacting network operator requirements. He detailed the ongoing importance of embedded coherent engines while highlighting increased adoption of coherent pluggable solutions that deliver extended reach at 800G speeds.

Karl Gass, Physical and Link Layer Working Group Optical Vice Chair at OIF, leads a comprehensive demonstration of coherent pluggable optics featuring multiple Ethernet implementations across three simulated data centers. The demonstration incorporates various module vendors, traffic generators, and orchestrators, showcasing interoperable solutions for 100G, 400G, and 800G Ethernet applications using different form factors and line systems.

Ian Alderdice, Physical and Link Layer Working Group Management Co-Vice Chair at OIF, presents CMIS, a management interface for pluggable modules through three demonstrations showing module support, multi-vendor optical management, and link training optimization. The demonstrations highlight CMIS' ability to provide standardized monitoring and alarm reporting across different vendor ecosystems, ensuring consistent parameter readings from single router environments to complex multi-vendor setups.

Raza Khan, Product Marketing Director at Semtech, showcases the company's power-efficient AI interconnect solutions including 800G LPO with ACC interconnects at OFC. The presentation highlights Semtech's advancement toward 1.6T and 3.2T capabilities while featuring 50G PON and wireless infrastructure products for 6G applications.

Scott Wilkinson, Lead Analyst, Networking Components at Cignal AI, examines the development of 448G PAM4 technology and its implications for networking speed transitions from 50G to 400G and beyond. His analysis combines technical expertise with market insights to evaluate how AI applications are accelerating the need for advanced data center technologies, including coherent light and PAM4 solutions.

Tom Issenhuth, Co-Chair of the MA&E Committee at OIF, outlines the progression of coherent optics standards from 400G ZR to 800G ZR and upcoming 1.6T interfaces. The increasing demands of AI/ML workloads and higher data rates are making coherent optics essential for both inter- and intra-data center connectivity, especially when accounting for optical switching requirements.

Nathan Tracy, President of OIF, leads a comprehensive 400 gigabit workshop focused on AI compute infrastructure requirements, bringing together industry experts, hyperscalers, and analysts. The workshop addresses six key areas including electrical data rates, coherent technology, and network capacity management, with Tracy emphasizing recent progress in 448 gigabit solutions while tackling technical hurdles in achieving higher data rates.

Stephan Rettenberger, SVP of Marketing and Corporate Communications at Adtran, forecasts that by 2025, bandwidth demands will surge due to streaming, gaming, and AI, while networks shift from 10G to 100G using coherent technology. His analysis indicates the residential broadband market will maintain strong growth, especially in underserved regions, with XGS-PON and software automation leading deployment strategies.

Ryan McCowan, VP Global Technical Sales at Adtran, examines how AI will advance network management and customer support while enabling more automated operations across network domains. He explains that 50G PON deployment will let providers deliver faster speeds and merge multiple services onto unified infrastructure.

Michael Klempa, Product Marketing Engineer at Alphawave Semi, forecasts that 2025 will bring specialized AI hardware and increased connectivity demands, with 400Gig-class signaling taking center stage in AI network scaling. He highlights the need to reassess traditional technologies like PAM modulation at higher speeds while anticipating new optical devices, advanced packaging solutions, and the expansion of coherent optical connectivity into shorter-reach applications.

Mattias Fridström, Chief Evangelist at Arelion, outlines three essential predictions for 2025, focusing on fiber availability for network resilience, power infrastructure requirements for AI advancement, and mandatory sustainability reporting. His analysis highlights how network operators must adapt to increasing demands for route diversity while balancing power resources and environmental responsibilities.

Kevin Morgan, Chief Marketing Officer at Clearfield, outlines predictions for 2025 including fiber's dominance over LEO satellites in BEAD funding and regulatory changes to accelerate broadband deployment. His analysis highlights how AI advancements will push networks toward multi-terabit speeds and drive significant infrastructure investments.

Bill Major, CEO of Fiberlight, forecasts intense M&A activity in 2025 across enterprise fiber, fiber-to-the-tower, and fiber-to-the-home markets, while highlighting strong data center growth and Bitcoin mining's expanding influence.

Tim Doiron, VP of Solution Marketing at Infinera, shares his vision for 2025's optical networking landscape, highlighting advancements in Next Generation Optical engines and compact modular systems. His analysis points to significant progress in open optical automation, with network operators embracing multivendor solutions across coherent pluggables, optical line systems, and embedded optical engines.

PacketLight's CEO Koby Reshef anticipates the rise of specialized AI cloud providers in 2025, offering GPU-on-demand services and requiring networks to support higher data rates up to 1.6T wavelengths. He emphasizes the need for enhanced security measures like layer-one encryption and quantum key distribution to safeguard AI operations while maintaining network performance.

Rob Laudati, VP, Products & Services at Render Networks, forecasts that AI will play a central role in optimizing network planning and construction while enhancing field operations through mobile technologies by 2025. His analysis points to the continued dominance of fiber technologies alongside emerging solutions like fixed wireless and satellite systems to meet growing bandwidth demands.

Jason Moore, Co-founder and CEO of RouteThis, outlines three predictions for broadband providers in 2025, focusing on heightened competition and the importance of customer experience. He highlights how data visibility will become essential for competitive advantage, enabling providers to enhance support operations and field service efficiency through advanced tools and real-time insights.

John D'Ambrosia, Chair, IEEE P802.3dj Task Force at IEEE, discusses the working group's progress on 400 Gbit per second Ethernet signaling, covering modulation schemes, forward error correction, channel characteristics, and various fiber options including hollow core and multi-core fiber. He announces an IEEE workshop in late February to examine fiber technologies, emphasizing the goal of effective information transmission across different channel types as high-speed Ethernet development continues to advance.

Erin Dunne, Director of Research Services at Vertical Systems Group, examines the complexities of monitoring NaaS and reports significant growth in related SD-WAN services. Her analysis highlights the importance of broadband and Ethernet Dedicated Internet Access as key factors driving the expansion of network services.

Joel Silverman, Chief Customer Officer at Actifai, explains how the company uses AI to enhance broadband sales and customer experiences for fiber companies. Actifai's AI-driven approach compares customer data with previous buyers to recommend suitable products and services, leading to improved outcomes for both companies and customers.

Robert Conger, SVP of Technology and Strategy at Adtran, explores advancements in fiber technology across the network, including the transition to multi-gig speeds in the access network and the implementation of intelligent monitoring systems. Conger highlights the industry's shift from focusing solely on speed increases to improving network operability and enhancing user experience through technologies like fiber monitoring and cloud-based analytics.

Cheri Beranek, President and CEO of Clearfield, discusses the company's focus on fiber technology and innovative tools like its "Built" app to improve broadband deployment. Clearfield aims to reduce operational costs in network construction through new products that simplify labor requirements.

Kevin Morgan, Chief Marketing Officer at Clearfield, discusses the company's emphasis on developing user-friendly field engineering products for fiber network installations. Morgan introduces Clearfield's latest innovation, the Deploy Real Tap Box, which aims to reduce installation time and increase installer productivity, showcasing the company's commitment to accelerating fiber deployment and improving connection efficiency.

Alberto Patron, CEO of Condor Technologies, advocates for open networks at Fiber Connect, emphasizing their importance for sustainable fiber network growth and cost-effective multi-operator sharing. Condor Technologies offers solutions for operators to open and manage networks for various ISPs, showcasing their Host Network Portal solution integrated with Nokia's Altiplano using standard protocols defined by the Broadband Forum.

Rich Williams, CEO of Connect2 Communications and content director for Fiber Connect, highlights the industry's collaborative efforts to address current challenges and advance fiber connectivity. Williams emphasizes the shared commitment among federal speakers, service providers, vendors, and technologists to work together in ensuring universal access to fiber-based connections.

Bill Thomson, Vice President of Marketing and Product Management for DC Blox, outlines the company's strategy to expand data center and fiber network infrastructure in the southeastern United States. Thomson highlights DC Blox's efforts to build dark fiber capacity, following the example set by hyperscalers, to meet the growing demand for improved connectivity and bring infrastructure closer to end users.

Geoff Burke, Chief Marketing Officer at DZS, outlines the company's strategy to accelerate fiber deployment through complementary technologies like G.fast and MG-fast for challenging environments. He also introduces DZS's new DWDM coherent optics services, designed to enhance middle-mile infrastructure and deliver high-speed connectivity to the network edge.

Gary Bolton, President of the Fiber Broadband Association, outlines five key priorities for advancing the fiber future at Fiber Connect 2024. Bolton highlights the importance of fiber infrastructure, accelerated deployment, network protection, workforce development, and universal adoption while inviting attendees to the next Fiber Connect event in Nashville.

Doug Mohney, Editor-in-Chief of Fiber Forward Magazine, recounts his experience at Fiber Connect 2024 in Nashville, describing it as an action-packed event with hundreds of vendors, dozens of sessions, and interactions with service providers building future networks. Mohney notes the event's significant size, with over 5,000 attendees, and anticipates continued growth as funding flows into fiber projects.

Larry Johnson, President of Fiberstory, explores the evolution of fiber optic technology since 1977, highlighting its progress in enabling high-speed internet communication worldwide. Johnson discusses the industry's resilience, ongoing construction efforts, and the technology's benefits, including low latency and future-proofing capabilities, while expressing optimism for fiber optics' continued advancements.

Kajsa Arvidsson, Chief Marketing Officer of Genexis, highlights the company's focus on enhancing life through broadband connectivity and their expertise in smart fiber installation for homes. Genexis offers rapidly installable ONTs compatible with any OLT, designed for ease of use and comprehensive home connectivity, aligning with their mission to seamlessly connect every household to fiber broadband.

Heather Moyer, President, CEO & Founder of HNM Systems, leads a tech-enabled consulting and staffing firm specializing in wireless, wireline networking, utility construction, and IT verticals. HNM Systems partners with FBA to connect talent with industry needs, focusing on workforce development strategies, grant funding, and approvals.

Jimmy Todd, CEO of Nex-Tech and chairman of the Fiber Broadband Association, emphasizes the critical role of fiber infrastructure in connecting rural communities and addressing the digital divide.

Stefaan Vanhastel, Head of Marketing & Innovation at Nokia, discusses the enduring nature of fiber infrastructure and its progression through various speed tiers, from the current 10 Gig era to future 100 Gig capabilities. He emphasizes how Nokia's investments in proprietary chipset technology have facilitated trials of higher-speed fiber networks with partners like Google and Frontier, expanding connectivity options for diverse applications beyond residential use.

Sam Pratt, CEO of Render Networks, outlines four crucial elements for advancing fiber network deployment at Fiber Connect 2024. These components include streamlined field adoption, well-defined construction scope, real-time insights, and digital documentation, which Pratt claims can accelerate network buildouts by at least 15%.

Jason Moore, Co-founder and CEO of RouteThis, discusses how his company is advancing the fiber future by helping service providers deliver a seamless fiber experience to all devices within consumers' homes. RouteThis leverages generative AI to empower frontline teams, automating tasks like issue diagnosis and Wi-Fi environment analysis, enabling more efficient network deployment and enhanced customer experiences across all end devices.

Jenni Dettman, VP of Marketing at RouteThis, emphasizes the critical importance of customer experience in driving the future of fiber networks. RouteThis aims to accelerate the fiber future by enabling service providers to deliver an optimal customer experience from day one, regardless of network build or CPE choices.

Heather B. Gold, VP of External Affairs at Tak Communications, highlights three key factors to accelerate the fiber future: simplifying regulations, addressing financial requirements, and choosing experienced partners. Gold emphasizes the importance of partnering with reputable vendors and leveraging resources from medium to large companies to support local construction efforts.

Trent Edwards, President of Broadband Solutions at Tak Communications, views the current industry landscape as an opportunity and emphasizes the importance of collaboration, coining the term "cooperati" to describe the balance between competition and cooperation. Edwards identifies workforce development as the primary challenge, stressing the need to engage younger generations in the industry while expressing enthusiasm for upcoming projects.

Jeff Babbitt, Solution Architect at Tejas Networks, addresses the growing complexity of telecom networks and presents a strategy to streamline operations by reducing vendor and management system count. Drawing on Tejas Networks' extensive experience and comprehensive product portfolio, Babbitt encourages interested parties to reach out for discussions on simplifying network architectures and boosting operational efficiency.

John Carr, VP of Business Development at TransUnion, explores the intricacies of fiber network construction and sales, emphasizing TransUnion's proficiency in order management to streamline fiber promotion and delivery. TransUnion's Universal Order Connect system and Order Insights application offer automation and customization, enhancing the efficiency of fiber deployment processes and improving customer experience.

Tom Counts, CEO of Velox, highlights the company's commitment to delivering peace of mind through top-quality fiber networks built by the industry's best talent. Velox's growth strategy involves expanding its workforce and implementing rigorous training processes to meet the demand while maintaining high standards of quality, precision, and safety.

Tom Counts, CEO of Velox, highlights the company's commitment to delivering peace of mind through top-quality fiber networks built by the industry's best talent. Velox's growth strategy involves expanding its workforce and implementing rigorous training processes to meet the demand while maintaining high standards of quality, precision, and safety.

Loi Nguyen, EVP and GM of Optical, highlights the enormous power demands of modern data centers and AI clusters, with future "gigawatt-class" facilities requiring energy comparable to major cities. Nguyen discusses the need for multi-site 400k+ node clusters connected by high-speed optics like Marvell's DCI Optics ZR and ZR+.

Nick Kucharewski, SVP and GM of Network Switching, highlights co-packaged optics (CPO) as a promising technology for scale-up networking, integrating fiber links directly into product packages for higher speed signals with lower power consumption and latency. Marvell's light engine provides to 51 Tbps bandwidth for scale-up switches and supports reliable large-scale deployment.

Achyut Shah, SVP and GM of Connectivity, introduces the company's new "coherent-lite" technology, addressing intermediate-reach connectivity needs in data centers. This solution combines coherent modulation with O-band optics and a re-architected DSP to provide lower latency, cost, and power consumption for links ranging from 2 km to 20 km.

Mirko Voltolini, VP Innovation at Colt, discusses Colt's global fiber network expansion (Lumen EU acquisition) and the integration of their IP network with new capabilities like SRv6 and automation. Colt is also developing a green connectivity solution.

Heidi Adams, Head of Global Marketing for IP/Optical Networks at Nokia, discusses quantum safe networking and the use of AI in networking, along with the ongoing significance of DDoS protection.

At the Mobile World Congress, Jon Baldry, Director Metro Marketing at Infinera, highlighted the influence of AI on optical transport networks, driving bandwidth within data centers and potentially leading to a significant increase in network traffic. Baldry emphasized the potential of machine learning in optimizing network operations, predicting network behavior, guiding maintenance, and enhancing the end-user experience.

Ian Hood, Chief Strategist at Red Hat, highlights the integration of 5G and AI in business operations, particularly through Red Hat's OpenShift AI, which enables businesses to customize their AI models for diverse needs. He also mentions the use of AI in automating and reconfiguring networks for capacity and power, with Red Hat's tool, Anable Light Speed, and collaborations with network companies for sustainable power usage in radio and optical networks.

Sanjai Parthasarathi, CMO of Coherent, presented the company's Liquid Crystal-based Optical switch platform, emphasizing its low drive voltage, absence of moving parts, data rate agnosticism, and power reduction capabilities of 30-40%, making it an attractive solution for power-hungry data centers. Parthasarathi also revealed plans to sample the platform in the coming months, commercialize it next year, and noted strong interest from data center operators, hyperscalers, and OEMs.

Easwar Sankar, Optical FAE Director at Credo, demos the company's new Linear Receive Optics (LRO) product, Dove 850. In an LRO transceiver, or Active Optical Cable (AOC), only the transmit path from the electrical input to the optical line side output includes a DSP for signal retiming and equalization. This unlocks dramatic power savings.

DustPhotonics’ transmit Carmel-8-IMC chip supports an optical assembly with no free-space optics. Inside the chip, lasers are butt-coupled to the PIC and the fiber is also attached directly to the PIC, thus enabling transceiver designs that can be used for both immersion and air cooling. Ronnen Lovinger, CEO of Dust Photonics, shares a demo.

Jason Lauzon, Strategic Sales Director at DZS, unveiled the Saber 2200, a high-capacity layer 2 Ethernet aggregation switch developed in collaboration with Infera. The new product supports XR Optics, features 24 ports of varying gig capacity, and is part of DZS's exploration of XRS with their Edge RMS, a hardened RM system that utilizes XR as a spectrum as a service.

Richard Colter, Head of Marketing at Fujitsu Network Communications, discussed key trends at the Optical Fiber Communication Conference, including enhancements to the Infinity Ultra Optical system, the growing importance of AI automation in network design, and the shift of funds from wireless to green initiatives for network modernization.

Robert Shore, SVP of Marketing at Infinera, showcases new solutions including their enhanced GX platform, new aggregation cards, the ICE 7 1.2 terabit optical engine, and optical line system functionality. Infinera will present its suite of intelligent coherent pluggable optics (ICE-X) and new applications for its Open Wave network automation suite.

Marc Stiller, VP of Product Line Management at Lumentum, shows the latest 800G ZR+ and 400F high power ZR+ modules for coherent communications in metro and longhaul applications.

OIF hosted its latest pluggable coherent optics demonstration, showcasing the latest advancements in 800ZR, 400ZR and ZR+ optics interoperability. The demo highlights include the first public 800ZR multivendor interop; high transmit power, OpenZR+ over a 1000km, multi-span network; OpenROADM/ITU-T over that same network; and 400ZR collocated on the single-span network with 800ZR. Karl Gass, Physical and Link Layer Working Group Optical Vice Chair from OIF, provides some highlights:

Kevin Morgan, Chief Marketing Officer at Clearfield, predicts a rise in integration and on-shoring (Buy America, Build America), maximization of existing fiber investment, and service providers developing more efficient technologies to connect homes rather than laying fiber for the sake of achieving the artificial "homes passed" metric.

Gary Bolton, President of the Fiber Broadband Association, predicts a normalization of the supply chain, increased access and affordability of fiber broadband, and a surge in demand for fiber optic technicians in 2024. The Association plans to expand its technician training program nationwide, leveraging Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) funding.

Tim Doiron, VP of Solution Marketing from Infinera, predicts an increased adoption of 400G coherent pluggables by traditional network operators, an expansion of the transmission spectrum on fiber, and commercial availability of the first generation of 800G coherent pluggables.

Rob Laudati, VP of Products & Services at Render Networks, predicts that market pressure and high costs of rural broadband deployment will drive efficiencies in the telecommunications sector in 2024. Laudati also anticipates the significant role of AI in optimizing and automating processes, creating opportunities for innovation in the industry.

Thomas Whitaker, the Chief Operating Officer at All Points Broadband, revealed the company's ongoing project to provide broadband services to around 120,000 unserved homes in 23 rural Virginia counties. Whitaker anticipates that the introduction of fiber will enhance the quality of life for aging Americans, especially the Baby Boomer generation, by enabling them to age comfortably at home with the support of advanced technology.

Jay Lee, Chief Technology and Strategy Officer at ATX Networks, discussed the company's new super capacitor technology for improved energy storage in broadband networks and the launch of a fiber services organization to tackle the impending broadband industry shortage. Lee also emphasized the disruptive potential of fiber as the preferred platform for new builds and its role in the development of DOCSIS 4.0 technology, enabling cable operators to offer fiber-like services within their existing HFC networks.

Greg McLaughlin, CEO of Automation Exchange (AEX), at Fiber Connect 2023, emphasized that fiber networks will disrupt economic models and businesses, enabling smaller companies to operate fiber networks due to increased funding and automation technologies. McLaughlin predicts a significant transformation in the fiber business landscape over the next three years, with diverse groups entering the industry and providing services to their communities.

Tom Maguire, COO of Brightspeed, emphasized the transformative potential of fiber broadband connectivity for remote, rural communities, particularly for older individuals who may feel isolated. He underscored the ability of this technology to enhance their lives by facilitating communication with loved ones, access to telehealth and online shopping, and enriching their daily experiences beyond traditional financial, educational, or medical benefits.

Kevin Morgan, Chief Marketing Officer at Clearfield, addressed Fiber Connect 2023, predicting that the next industry disruption will be in edge computing due to fiber technology's ability to push data center functions closer to end users. Morgan highlighted that the expansion of fiber networks, driven by increased investment, will facilitate home and business services for gigabit and 10 gigabit services, as well as the aggregation of high capacity links from various devices, with fiber's capacity to meet lower latency requirements being the next significant disruption.

Kara Mullaley, Market Development Manager for Carrier Networks at Corning Optical Communications, forecasts that the enhanced bandwidth from fiber technology will allow homeowners to utilize previously inaccessible technologies such as AI, virtual and augmented reality, and sustainability efforts. Mullaley asserts that the improved efficiency in information collection and distribution will result in superior decision-making for individuals, communities, and workplaces.

Debra Freitas, Chief Commercial Officer at DC Blox, predicts that fiber technology will revolutionize the Southeast region, particularly through a cable landing station in Myrtle Beach that links to Atlanta, a significant connectivity hub. DC Blox anticipates this development to foster a new ecosystem, providing access to underserved and non-served communities in the region.

Jeff Heynen, Vice President of Broadband Access and Home Networking Research for Dell'Oro Group, discussed the upcoming waves of innovation for fiber broadband, highlighting the transition from GPON to XGS-PON in the U.S. residential market. He also mentioned the ongoing work on 50 gig deployments in China and future developments including symmetric 50 gig options and 100 gig, emphasizing the limitless capabilities of fiber optics and predicting a rapid evolution of technologies for residential and enterprise deployments.

Geoff Burke, Chief Marketing Officer at DZS, spoke at #FiberConnect2023 about the impending disruption of the 'middle mile' in the network by widespread fiber access rollouts. Burke emphasized the potential of using coherent optics and DWDM to move bandwidth closer to the subscriber edge, and the opportunities this presents for creating a more robust infrastructure and adding new services to communities, thereby raising the bar for communication networks across North America and beyond.

Evann Freeman, Director of Government Relations at EPB, revealed the company's plan to construct the first commercially available quantum network in the U.S, a move inspired by a McKinsey study forecasting quantum to be a $106 billion industry by the decade's end. The network, which could potentially revolutionize technology and create generational wealth, is designed to stimulate private investment and growth, enhance national security, and benefit businesses and industries in the Chattanooga area, with the potential for nationwide replication.

Eric Beightel, Executive Director of the Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council, predicts that fiber technology will revolutionize the federal permitting process, particularly for projects funded through the NTIA's Broadband Middle Mile and Digital Inclusion programs. Beightel is keen to partner with the Fiber Broadband Association and its members to accelerate rollout.

Beni Blell, VP and Head of Sales and Marketing at Hexatronic, discussed the disruptive potential of fiber optics in various industries, highlighting innovative applications like distance learning, telehealth, and enhanced neighborhood safety through fiber-empowered applications such as crime-monitoring drones. Blell anticipates the development of many more such applications in the future.

Earnie Holtrey, Deputy Director of the Indiana Broadband Office, emphasized the importance of fiber connectivity in sectors like agriculture, remote work, education, and telemedicine at the Fiber Broadband Association 2023. He also highlighted the potential of fiber technology to support emerging technologies like chat GPT and AI, underscoring the need for quality connectivity for equitable access to these advancements.

Fady Masoud, Senior Director of Solutions Marketing at Infinera, spoke at Fiber Connect 2023 about the disruption of access and edge networks by fiber, showcasing a proof of concept with Infinera's ICE-X intelligent coherent optics that extends coherent capacity and reach 40 times the capacity and 10 times the reach over existing PON infrastructure. This technology allows high-speed business services to be overlaid over existing infrastructure, maximizing ROI, opening new revenue streams, and providing a competitive edge, with Infinera currently conducting global field trials.

Hossam Salib, VP Sales, Americas at IP Infusion, emphasized the potential of fiber to revolutionize the 'middle mile' connection and the challenges of traffic aggregation and transportation from fiber to various locations. Salib proposed a flexible, disaggregated solution that allows carriers to select optimal software and hardware solutions, which could significantly cut costs and ease the transition to ubiquitous fiber.

Quinn Jordan, Executive Director of the Mississippi Broadband Association, discussed the transformative potential of fiber networks in Mississippi at the Fiber Broadband Association's fall conference, emphasizing its impact on workforce development and job creation, particularly in the South. Jordan underscored the importance of online training and cooperative efforts in preparing individuals for new roles in the fiber industry, concluding that fiber will be a significant disruptor in the near future.

Weixiao Liu, CEO of NetElastic, predicts that fiber will disrupt hardware-based routers, especially access routers, and advocates for software-defined routing solutions like vbng and CGN routers. Liu asserts that these software-defined routers, which run on commodity hardware and offer cost-effective scalability, are the optimal choice to meet the increasing demand for servers and bandwidth in the Access Network.

Alex Saroyan, CEO and co-founder of Netris, discussed how Netris provides public cloud-like networking for private infrastructure. Netris provides VPC networking software, and utilizes open-source technology like WireGuard to automate and optimize the configuration of cross-cloud and cross-VPC connections.

Stefaan Vanhastel, Head of Marketing & Innovation at Nokia, emphasized the transformative potential of fiber in connecting everyone and everything, transforming business operations, and enabling high-speed innovation. He highlighted the role of fiber in providing access to essential services like e-health and e-learning, enhancing business efficiency, and facilitating the generation of innovative ideas due to its high speed of up to 25 gigabits per second and beyond.

Troy Cross from OZMO highlighted the potential of fiber technology to revolutionize senior home healthcare, citing remote monitoring capabilities, rapid emergency responses, enhanced telemedicine efficacy, access to health information, and reliable video connections for social interaction as key reasons. He emphasized that this technology can empower seniors to take control of their health and prevent isolation.

Ralph Huff, the Regional Sales Director for Padtec, predicts that rural communities and farms will be the next areas disrupted by fiber technology, enabling precision agriculture and facilitating data upload for improved crop yield analysis. Huff also anticipates the emergence of new markets, potential for remote work, and significant developments as fiber technology expands into rural areas.

Sam Pratt, CEO of Render Networks, addressed Fiber Connect 2023, discussing the disruptive potential of fiber in sectors like AI, connected communities, and rural education, and highlighting the increasing demand for fiber and the readiness of its supply. Pratt emphasized the importance of technology in construction management projects and the role of geospatial data in enhancing customer connection experiences and delivering top-tier connectivity.

Alain Meller, the Deputy CEO of Setics, emphasized the transformative impact of high-speed fiber connectivity on people's lives, including remote work, simultaneous content streaming, and numerous connected devices in the home. Meller concluded that the future is led by fiber connectivity, indicating its disruptive potential is already present but not yet fully realized by all.

Brant Carter, Director of Telecom at SiteTracker, addressed the potential of fiber to revolutionize network deployment and construction at Fiber Connect, highlighting the inefficiency of traditional methods in the future. Carter emphasized the opportunity to enhance collaboration and digitally connect field to office, facilitated by SiteTracker's cloud software application that assists in planning, deploying, and maintaining networks.

Daniel Romer, Sales Director at STL, predicts that fiber-based broadband will revolutionize the digital economy in the U.S., supporting remote work, online learning, and skill monetization from any location. Over the next five years, STL aims to extend broadband networks across the country, including rural areas, to provide reliable and consistent broadband connections with equal upload and download speeds for all.

Jeanette Lee, Senior Director of Technical Marketing at Tarana, highlighted the potential of wireless technology in improving the reach and efficiency of fiber operators. Lee suggested that integrating wireless with fiber can help operators expand coverage, increase subscribers, deliver applications faster, and expedite the realization of fiber applications, particularly when combined with next-generation wireless technology.

Daniel Turner, CEO of Traxyl, highlighted the company's unique approach to fiber optic cable installation, which involves developing machines that can "paint" fiber optic cables directly onto pavement, thereby eliminating trenching. Turner believes this innovative method, aimed at providing fast, affordable connectivity to underserved locations, could significantly disrupt the fiber industry and contribute to economic growth.

Jim Freeze, Chief Revenue Officer at Vetro, predicts that state and local government will be the next sector disrupted by fiber technology due to their lack of comprehensive understanding of their fiber assets and connections. Freeze believes this disruption will lead to improved management and utilization of fiber assets within these government bodies.

Erin Dunne, Director of Research Services at Vertical Systems Group, emphasized the growing significance of network connectivity in facilitating automated services, with layer one and two services like wavelengths and ethernet becoming increasingly crucial. She also highlighted the role of Network as a Service (NaaS) in providing simplicity desired by enterprises, the importance of APIs and standards for service providers and equipment vendors, and the efforts of MEF in enabling cost-efficient and simple automated services among multiple vendors.

Stefan Pongratz, Vice President and Analyst at Dell'Oro Group, highlighted the significant growth in public mobile broadband and the emerging focus on new growth areas like fixed wireless access and private wireless in the networking industry. Pongratz also emphasized the need for a balance between exploring these new opportunities and maintaining current revenue streams, reflecting recent trends observed in Barcelona's market events.

In this video, Mattias Fridström, Chief Evangelist from Arelion, explains why the US is lacking middle mile fibers. He highlights three key talking points: * Europe has a lot of fibers built 20 years ago that are still in good shape, making it easier to equip the middle mile with more equipment. * In contrast, the US has a significant amount of missing fibers in the middle mile due to a lack of fiber deployments over the years. * While there is fantastic growth in last mile fibers being built to the home in the US, there is a need for more middle mile fibers to be built. If you're interested in learning more about the challenges of building middle mile fibers in the US, this video is a must-watch.

How will BT upgrade their core network to support 400 gigabits and beyond? In this video, Russell Davey, Distinguished Engineer and Principal Network Architect from BT, explains the different options they are considering. Here are the top three talking points from the video: * With the advancement of coherent WM transceivers, it's now possible to put them in a plug that can be directly connected to a router, instead of using a separate transponder card. * BT is considering two options for upgrading their core network: continuing to use rodems and transponders, or putting the WDM optics into the router and going hop by hop through all the routers down the length of the country. * The best option for a particular route will depend on bandwidth and distance, and BT plans to deploy all the options over the next year or so before picking the best one. Overall, the video provides valuable insights into how BT plans to upgrade their core network to support faster speeds and stay ahead of the curve.

Jason Taylor, VP of Large Enterprise Sales at Zayo discusses the role hyperscaler trends and multi-cloud use drives fiber adoption and upgrades in the middle mile by enterprises and government agencies. He also touches on the importance of APIs and agile service management.

Radha Nagarajan, SVP and CTO of Optical and Cloud at Marvell, highlighted the company's new 800 Gbps ZR/ZR+ coherent pluggable module designed to enhance data center connectivity by converting a switch or router into a transport platform. The module, which leverages Marvell's capabilities at 800 gig, including the DSP, high-speed TIAs, drivers, and silicon photonics, enables a single fiber capacity of 25.6 terabits between data centers, facilitating larger data aggregation.

Where will investments be focused in broadband access networks? More last mile fiber, DOCSIS 4.0, or middle mile aggregation? Here are 3 predictions from ATX Networks's Dan Whalen.

Can operators accelerate their fiber deployment? How can they overcome the obstacles holding back the rapid rollout of fiber broadband networks? Clearfield’s Kevin Morgan makes his predictions for what's next on fiber rollouts in 2023.

Will geopolitics and supply chain issues continue impact the rollout of broadband networks in 2023 and beyond? Commscope's Koen Ter Linde makes their predictions for what's next on broadband networks in 2023.

Will public cloud spending come under budgetary scrutiny more than ever in 2023? What about AI/ML workloads? Here are 3 predictions for 2023 from Cyxtera's Holland Barry .

Will fiber deployments continue to accelerate this year? Will cable operators move quickly with DOCSIS 4.0? Here are 3 predictions from Dell’Oro Group’s Jeff Heynen.

Will data center interconnects become fully automated? Will Network-as-a-Service take off? Here are 3 predictions from Equinix's Jim Poole.

How is workforce development shaping up to be a major success factor for network operators as they deploy fiber broadband? What new advanced service is on the horizon? Fiber Broadband Association’s Gary Bolton makes his predictions for what's next on fiber broadband in 2023.

Several major innovations are coming to optical transport simultaneously, including pluggables and disaggregated architecture. Padtec's Ralph Huff makes their predictions for optical transport in 2023.

Wondering how to transform broadband connectivity and support 5G research on a university campus? Kurt Schaubach, CTO from Federated Wireless, explains how they collaborated with Cal Poly to achieve this goal by: - Partnering with AWS and T-Mobile to deploy and operationalize a private 5G network - Introducing a unique neutral host capability to augment carrier connectivity on campus - Expanding coverage and emergency services to previously challenged areas like Poly Canyon and inside the William and Linda Frost Center for Research and Innovation

If you look toward the requirements of tomorrow's likely applications, whether that's private 5G, IoT, AR/VR or metaverse, a common denominator will be the proximity of compute/storage to the end-user. Optical transport will be key to ensure optimal performance. Here's a perspective from Travis Ewert, Chief Operating Officer, Lightriver.

Kevin Morgan, Chief Marketing Officer of Clearfield, shares predictions for 2022. Download AvidThink's 2021 Select Report Collection to explore strategies and opportunities in the Telco, Private Mobile Networks, Service Assurance, SD-WAN and Open RAN space.

Gary Bolton, President and CEO of Fiber Broadband Association, shares predictions for 2022. Download AvidThink's 2021 Select Report Collection to explore strategies and opportunities in the Telco, Private Mobile Networks, Service Assurance, SD-WAN and Open RAN space.

Radha Nagarajan, SVP & CTO, Optical & Copper Connectivity at Marvell, shares predictions for 2022. Download AvidThink's 2021 Select Report Collection to explore strategies and opportunities in the Telco, Private Mobile Networks, Service Assurance, SD-WAN and Open RAN space.

Broadband adoption is becoming a regulation in the enterprise. In this video, Ajay Pandya, Director of Product Management at Masergy, discusses why a broadband boost is needed for SD-WAN and how Masergy Performance Edge boosts the performance of a SD-WAN connection, making it perform more like a private line or an ethernet circuit.

Architectural changes are needed in optical transport networks to accommodate 5G. In this video, Tim Doiron, Senior Director of Solution Marketing at Infinera, discusses four key attributes of open, disaggregated transport networks. Operators will not tolerate Open RAN and closed transport.