Viavi on the pressure of pacing optical testing with AI demandsViavi on the pressure of pacing optical testing with AI demands

Increased demand for AI workloads and the ramp up in manufacturing of 800G and 1.6Tbit/s optical equipment creates new challenges for testing vendors.

At a Glance

  • How AI demand is impacting optical testing in the data center. (04:49)
  • How vendors developing 800G and 1.6Tbit/s optical equipment in parallel impacts the testing market. (07:55)
  • Using AI to bridge the skills shortage gap in the test equipment market. (19:57)

Matt Adams, PLM, Fiber Optics Production and Lab Test for Viavi, joins the podcast to discuss the challenges testing equipment vendors face in the data center. 

Increased demand for AI workloads and the ramp up in manufacturing of 800G and 1.6Tbit/s optical equipment creates new challenges for testing vendors. Adams explains how Viavi approaches those challenges and how AI can also be used to bridge the skills shortage gap for testing companies. 

Click on the caption button for a lightly edited transcript. 

Here are a few topics we covered:

  • Background on Adams and his role at Viavi. (02:38)

  • How AI demand is impacting optical testing in the data center. (04:49)

  • How vendors developing 800G and 1.6Tbit/s optical equipment in parallel impacts the testing market. (07:55)

  • How to address fiber contamination. (12:04)

  • Challenges in manufacturing optical equipment to meet demands from hyperscalers and AI. (13:55)

  • Using AI to bridge the skills shortage gap in the test equipment market. (19:57)

About the Authors

Kelsey Ziser

Senior Editor, Light Reading

Kelsey is a senior editor at Light Reading, co-host of the Light Reading podcast, and host of the "What's the story?" podcast.

Her interest in the telecom world started with a PR position at Connect2 Communications, which led to a communications role at the FREEDM Systems Center, a smart grid research lab at N.C. State University. There, she orchestrated their webinar program across college campuses and covered research projects such as the center's smart solid-state transformer.

Kelsey enjoys reading four (or 12) books at once, watching movies about space travel, crafting and (hoarding) houseplants.

Kelsey is based in Raleigh, N.C.

Phil Harvey

Editor-in-Chief, Light Reading

Phil Harvey has been a Light Reading writer and editor for more than 18 years combined. He began his second tour as the site's chief editor in April 2020.

His interest in speed and scale means he often covers optical networking and the foundational technologies powering the modern Internet.

Harvey covered networking, Internet infrastructure and dot-com mania in the late 90s for Silicon Valley magazines like UPSIDE and Red Herring before joining Light Reading (for the first time) in late 2000.

After moving to the Republic of Texas, Harvey spent eight years as a contributing tech writer for D CEO magazine, producing columns about tech advances in everything from supercomputing to cellphone recycling.

Harvey is an avid photographer and camera collector – if you accept that compulsive shopping and "collecting" are the same.

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