At NTT’s Upgrade event in San Francisco today, Sean Lawrence, VP & Head of IOWN Development Office, outlined a photonic integration roadmap that aims to replace traditional electrical interconnects with optical links—starting at the WAN and extending deep into server architectures and chip-level systems. The IOWN (Innovative Optical and Wireless Network)initiative is built around a phased miniaturization strategy for photonic-electronic conversion devices (PECD), with the goal of enabling fully disaggregated compute and storage fabrics over optical buses.
The roadmap begins with the All-Photonics Network (APN)—already commercially deployed in Japan—which eliminates all electro-optical conversions across long-haul links by preserving end-to-end single-wavelength paths. Next is board-to-board optical interconnect, where circuit boards communicate via external optical buses, decoupling compute elements from traditional server chassis. Lawrence previewed prototypes of this system set to debut at the Osaka Expo this month. Future phases, dubbed IOWN 3.0 and 4.0, target optical interconnects between packages and eventually die-to-die communication inside a package, unlocking higher performance, lower power consumption, and new design flexibility.
Lawrence emphasized that realizing this vision requires an ecosystem approach, which is why NTT co-founded the IOWN Global Forum alongside Intel and Sony. With over 150 members—including hyperscalers (Google, Microsoft), network vendors (Cisco, Nokia, Juniper), chipmakers (Intel, AMD, Nvidia), and software providers (VMware, Databricks)—the forum is developing standards and use cases to support IOWN’s goals: 100× reduction in power consumption, 125× increase in bandwidth, and 200× reduction in end-to-end latency. While NTT leads R&D through its NTT Innovative Devices unit, Lawrence noted that adoption beyond Japan is a priority for 2025.
• Photonic Roadmap Milestones:• IOWN 1.0 (APN): End-to-end optical links with zero electro-optical conversion; live in Japan.• IOWN 2.0: Board-to-board optical buses enable server disaggregation; prototypes shown at Osaka Expo.• IOWN 3.0–4.0: Optical signaling between packages and dies inside chips; currently in R&D.• Benefits of Optical Integration:• Up to 100× lower power consumption and cooling requirements.• Disaggregated compute/memory pools with datacenter-scale flexibility.• Elimination of latency/jitter from electronic conversions in WAN and system design.• Ecosystem Support:• IOWN Global Forum includes hyperscalers, telcos, chipmakers, and system vendors.• Focus on open technical specifications and real-world use case development.• Commercialization Outlook:• NTT aims to bring board-level optical tech to market within 1–2 years.• Global rollout of APN services expected in 2025, with further miniaturization underway.
