tech
Ciena Study: AI Workloads Forcing Optical Network Overhaul
Ciena's CTO Brodie Gage says that AI data centres, optical networks and data centre interconnect (DCI) will reshape service provider revenues
TL;DR
- 90% of service providers expect AI-driven network services to drive revenue growth over the next three to five years.
- AI inference requires consistent and fast data movement, making network performance crucial.
- 88% of respondents report an urgent need for optical network upgrades to support enterprise AI services.
- Data Centre Interconnect (DCI) is a critical component, with 96% expecting MOFN services to generate revenue from connecting distributed AI compute clusters.
- Service providers see opportunities beyond raw connectivity, including managing multi-cloud environments and network consistency.
- Real-world deployments by Vodafone Idea and e& UAE demonstrate high-capacity DCI capabilities using Ciena's technology.