Broadcom Says Co-Packaged Optics May Fit Scale-Out Networks Better Than Scale-Up Systems
Co-packaged optics, often called CPO, has become one of the most talked-about technologies in data center networking, especially as artificial intelligence workloads push infrastructure to new limits. But according to Broadcom Senior Vice President and General Manager of the Core Switching Group, Asad Khamisy, CPO may not be the perfect solution for every networking challenge.
Speaking at the Semicon Taiwan 2026 master forum, Khamisy said that co-packaged optics is not necessarily the best answer for scale-up networking. Instead, he suggested that the technology may be better suited for scale-out environments, where large numbers of systems need to communicate efficiently across broader data center networks.
The distinction is important as AI clusters continue to grow. Scale-up networking typically focuses on tightly connecting processors, accelerators, or components within a smaller system or rack-level environment. In these scenarios, ultra-low latency, high bandwidth, and extremely close integration are critical. Scale-out networking, on the other hand, connects many systems across a larger data center fabric, allowing workloads to expand by adding more servers, switches, and compute nodes.
CPO is designed to bring optical components closer to the switching silicon. By placing optics near the chip, the technology can reduce electrical signal loss, improve power efficiency, and support higher bandwidth connections. These advantages make CPO attractive for next-generation data centers, particularly those supporting AI training, high-performance computing, cloud services, and massive-scale networking.
However, Khamisy’s comments highlight a more practical view of where the technology makes the most sense. While CPO can help solve power and bandwidth issues, scale-up networking may require different design priorities. In tightly coupled systems, factors such as latency, reliability, serviceability, and ecosystem readiness can be just as important as raw bandwidth or energy savings.
For scale-out networks, the case for co-packaged optics appears stronger. As data centers expand, traditional pluggable optical modules can face power and density limitations. CPO could help operators move more data across larger networks while keeping energy consumption under control. This is especially relevant as AI infrastructure demands faster communication between thousands of GPUs, accelerators, and servers.
Broadcom’s position suggests that the future of data center networking will not rely on a single technology for every use case. Instead, different architectures may require different optical and electrical interconnect strategies. Pluggable optics, linear drive optics, co-packaged optics, and other emerging technologies could all play roles depending on the deployment model.
The discussion also reflects a broader industry challenge: balancing performance with cost, reliability, and operational complexity. Data center operators need faster networks, but they also need solutions that can be deployed, maintained, and upgraded efficiently. CPO promises major gains, but its adoption will depend on whether it can meet real-world requirements beyond laboratory performance.
As AI workloads become more demanding, networking is becoming one of the most critical parts of the data center. Faster chips alone are not enough if the network cannot move data quickly and efficiently between them. This is why technologies like co-packaged optics are receiving so much attention from semiconductor companies, cloud providers, and infrastructure builders.
Khamisy’s remarks at Semicon Taiwan 2026 add a valuable perspective to the ongoing conversation. Rather than presenting CPO as a universal replacement for existing optical solutions, Broadcom appears to be positioning it as a technology with specific strengths. In particular, its advantages may be most compelling in scale-out networking, where bandwidth density and power efficiency are becoming urgent priorities.
The message is clear: co-packaged optics has a promising future, but its best role may be in helping large data centers scale outward more efficiently, rather than serving as the default choice for every scale-up architecture. As the AI era continues to reshape computing infrastructure, choosing the right networking technology for the right environment will be essential.
