In 2023, the wave of AI swept across the globe, leading to an unprecedented technological revolution. This revolution not only profoundly changed the technological landscape but also posed new requirements and challenges for network infrastructure, thereby opening up new development opportunities for the fiber optic cable industry. Against the backdrop of continuous emergence of new technologies and the vigorous development of new industries, the future trends of fiber optic cables and other industry hot topics have attracted much attention. At the recently held 2024 World Fiber Optic Cable Conference, we found answers to these questions.

01 Identify the differences and create innovation points.

In the past decade, with the rapid development of information technology and the continuous upgrading of global communication networks, the demand for the fiber optic cable market has shown a sustained upward trend. To meet the growing market demand, many fiber optic cable companies have been expanding their production capacity. However, in recent years, the growth rate of market demand has slowed down. CRU stated that the fiber optic cable market has cyclical characteristics and is currently in a two-year adjustment transition phase, facing a new trough. But the turning point is not far away; CRU claims that global demand for fiber optic cables will begin to recover next year, expected to grow at an annual rate of 6.2% to 568 million core kilometers, primarily driven by a rebound in the U.S. market, recovery in the European market, and stabilization in the Chinese market.

In the context of a constantly changing market landscape, Zhuang Dan, Executive Director and President of Yangtze Optical Fibre and Cable Joint Stock Limited Company (hereinafter referred to as 'Yangtze'), has profound insights. He pointed out, 'Market changes are the norm; we must accurately identify our differences and strive to create unique innovation points. We must unwaveringly focus on R&D investment, closely monitor the development trends, directions, and potential of new types of optical fibers; effectively meet the diverse needs of customers, and contribute new solutions and high-quality products to the entire industry. Yangtze will also continue to refine its internal capabilities, ensure product quality, and maintain its competitiveness.' Additionally, he clearly stated that Yangtze will always adhere to the philosophy of improving efficiency and reducing costs, such as reducing labor costs through intelligent production and enhancing product quality. At the same time, more technologies will be widely applied in the R&D and manufacturing of new products.

Looking ahead, with the rapid development of technology, the construction of data centers based on generative artificial intelligence technology is booming, which will undoubtedly drive the growth of fiber optic cable demand. CRU predicts that by 2029, the demand for fiber optic cables in this field will account for 11% of total demand. In the face of this opportunity, Zhuang Dan stated, 'In the future, Yangtze will uphold its original intention, continue to innovate, create more advanced, reliable, and high-quality products and solutions, and work hand in hand with industry peers to accelerate the construction of new fiber optic networks in the AI era, jointly drawing a grand blueprint for an intelligent future.'

02 Adhere to innovative development and create a new industrial pattern.

The changes in the market landscape not only bring new reflections for industry development but also prompt enterprises to re-examine their development strategies to adapt to the new market situation, seek new opportunities amid challenges, and promote the sustained and healthy development of the fiber optic cable market. Ao Li, Chief Engineer of the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology, stated that new types of optical fibers are key to enhancing network transmission performance, constructing a high-performance computing network with an all-optical framework: characteristics such as large capacity, low latency, and low loss can effectively enhance interconnect performance. Among them, the large-scale deployment of ultra-low loss optical fibers in China is accelerating, helping to improve transmission capacity and supporting high-speed optical interconnection in computing spaces, with a broad prospect for the future based on fiber optic cables.

Zhuang Dan also mentioned that the surge in data and computing power demand in the era of artificial intelligence accelerates technological progress and industrial upgrading in the fiber optic cable industry. The leap from gigabit to 10-gigabit fixed networks, the generational evolution of mobile networks, the optical interconnection of data centers, and the construction of transoceanic communications urgently require new technologies, new optical fibers, and new networks.

It is evident that in the face of new technologies and new industries' new demands on networks, promoting the development of new types of optical fibers is not only an inevitable trend of technological evolution but also a key driving force for pushing the entire industry to new heights. As a global leader in the R&D innovation and manufacturing of optical fiber preforms, optical fibers, cables, and data communication-related products, Yangtze is also shouldering the responsibility of leading the development of new types of optical fibers.

Yangtze is seizing the opportunities presented by the AI wave and, leveraging its deep accumulation and leading position in the field of fiber optic cable technology, has innovatively integrated and launched the i-Fibre series of optical fibers, whose related products feature ultra-large capacity, ultra-low loss, ultra-low latency, integrated sensing, and environmental friendliness. Among them, Yangtze's ultra-low loss G.654.E can significantly enhance transmission distance, making it the first choice for 800G and 1.6T ultra-high-speed transmission in the AI era. Since 2010, Yangtze has been engaged in the R&D of this product, and after 14 years, the technology level of Yangtze's G.654.E optical fiber has reached a global leading position, with deployment exceeding one million core kilometers, and its market share in China remains at the top. Its products have successfully achieved large-scale commercial use in network infrastructure projects of China Mobile, China Telecom, China Unicom, State Grid, as well as in several countries such as the Philippines and Brazil.

For data centers, especially the demand for ultra-large bandwidth high-speed interconnection in intelligent computing networks, Yangtze has launched a new generation of high-end multimode optical fibers such as OM4 Ultra and OM5. Both types of optical fibers are excellent choices for efficient transmission in data centers and have been widely used in many large data centers around the world.

What is even more noteworthy is that Yangtze has been conducting research and development and layout in space division multiplexing optical fibers and hollow core optical fibers for many years, achieving significant breakthroughs. Among them, space division multiplexing optical fibers are a hot and iconic technology for the next generation of submarine cable R&D and have great development potential in high-density scenarios in data centers. Currently, Yangtze has the capability for mass production and preparation, with key raw materials and various production and testing equipment having self-research and self-production capabilities. In 2023, Yangtze, in collaboration with China Mobile Design Institute and China Mobile Shandong Branch, laid a pilot line of multi-core optical fiber with a length of 17.6 km in Jinan, Shandong. This line is the world's first on-site test of four-core and seven-core optical fibers in the same cable and is also the first pilot line of four-core optical fibers in China.

In terms of hollow core optical fibers, Yangtze has completed the establishment of a full set of self-research capabilities for raw materials and has entered the global first echelon. It has leading capabilities in small-batch delivery, construction, splicing, and testing of optical fibers and cables, and actively carries out multi-field cooperation with domestic and foreign operators and data center partners. Since the beginning of this year, Yangtze has actively conducted communication transmission experiments with hollow core optical fibers in collaboration with China Mobile, China Telecom, China Unicom, and State Grid: the single-wave rate of 1.2 Tbit/s in the hollow core optical fiber communication transmission experiment conducted with China Unicom broke the global record for single-wave rate transmission of 10.2 km hollow core optical fibers, achieving a transmission capacity of 32×1.2 Tbit/s; in collaboration with China Telecom, a new record was created for the unidirectional real-time signal transmission capacity of 100.4 Tbit/s over a length of 20 km of hollow core optical fiber, with a capacity-distance product of 2008 Tbit/s∙km; and with State Grid, new attempts and explorations were made in the application verification of long-distance power transmission based on hollow core optical fibers, achieving groundbreaking results in the industry.

While achieving remarkable results in the domestic market, Yangtze Optical Fiber and Cable (YOFC) has never stopped its steps in the international market. So far, YOFC has 8 overseas production bases and more than 50 overseas offices, with products sold in over 100 countries and regions, achieving significant results. Its high-quality optical fiber and cable products have gained widespread recognition and application globally. As Zhuang Dan said, innovation is the main driving force for industry development, while open cooperation is an important driving force for upgrading and iterating product technology in the industry. 'YOFC is committed to connecting optical fibers to every corner of the world. On the road of pursuing light, YOFC will not stop.'

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