TrendForce says that microLED-based optical communication, offering low power consumption and low error rates, is emerging as one of the three major short-distance, high-speed intra-rack transmission solutions for scale-up data center networks, alongside active electrical cables (AEC) and VCSEL-based near-packaged optics (VCSEL NPO).
The high demand for AI datacenter communication solutions, will drive fast growth, and Trendforce projects that microLED co-packaged optics (CPO) will start to scale up in the second half of 2028, and will quickly ramp up to $848 million by 2030.
The global supply chain is expanding, with leading players including Microsoft, MediaTek, Credo (Hyperlume), Avicena, AUO, Ennostar, ams OSRAM and others. Trendforce highlights that as global alliances continue to take shape, defining product specifications and completing customer sample validation will still require time.
