Marvell Ushers In the 1.6T Era with Expanded Optical DSP Platform Portfolio, Redefining AI Data Center End-to-End Connectivity

Key Terms

optical dsp technical

An optical DSP is a specialized processor that analyzes and corrects data carried by light in fiber‑optic networks: it converts incoming optical signals into digital form, removes distortions and noise, and reconstructs the original information so it can be read reliably. Investors should care because the performance, power use and cost of these chips directly affect how fast and far networks and data‑center links can run, influencing equipment sales, operating expenses and competitive advantage in telecom and cloud infrastructure.

serdes technical

SerDes (short for serializer/deserializer) is an electronic function that converts parallel streams of data into a single fast serial stream and then converts it back, like packing many lanes of traffic into one high-speed highway and unpacking them at the other end. Investors care because SerDes chips and blocks determine how quickly and efficiently devices, data centers and networks can move information; improvements or bottlenecks affect product performance, production costs, and demand across the semiconductor and communications supply chain.

transmit-retimed optics technical

Transmit-retimed optics are high-speed fiber-optic modules that clean up and re-time outgoing digital signals before sending them, reducing distortion and timing errors that build up over long or fast links. For investors, they matter because they improve network reliability and allow faster, longer, or denser data connections in data centers and telecom networks—features that can drive equipment upgrades, higher service capacity, and revenue opportunities for hardware and service providers.

macsec technical

MACsec is a standard way to encrypt and verify data on local Ethernet networks, protecting each packet like a sealed envelope so outsiders cannot read or tamper with it. For investors, MACsec matters because it reduces the risk of costly data breaches and regulatory fines, can be a selling point for networking products and services, and influences a company’s ability to secure enterprise and carrier customers in a competitive market.

telemetry technical

Telemetry is the automatic collection and transmission of measurements from remote devices, systems, or patients to a central system for monitoring and analysis—like a car sending engine, speed and location data back to a dashboard. For investors it matters because telemetry provides real-time evidence of product performance, safety and user behavior, helping assess revenue potential, operational risk, regulatory compliance and whether a product is meeting market demand.

tia technical

A transient ischemic attack (TIA) is a short-lived episode where blood flow to part of the brain is briefly interrupted, causing stroke-like symptoms that typically clear within a day. For investors, a TIA matters because it can signal demand for drugs, devices, diagnostics, hospitals, or preventive care and may influence clinical trial outcomes, regulatory attention, and healthcare spending—think of it as a brief warning light that suggests higher future risk and potential market activity.

Multi-generational, Industry-leading DSPs, Advanced SerDes and Industry’s Broadest End-to-End Connectivity Portfolio Position Marvell as the Driving Force in Next-gen AI Infrastructures

SANTA CLARA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Marvell Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ: MRVL), a leader in data infrastructure semiconductor solutions, today announced a major expansion of its 1.6T optical DSP platform portfolio, advancing the industry’s transition from 800G into 1.6T next-generation AI data center connectivity.

Marvell has a multi-generational history of industry firsts. The company was the first to introduce 200G/lane 1.6T DSPs in 5nm with Marvell® Nova in 2023, followed by the 3nm 1.6T Ara platform in 2024, which increased performance and reduced the power envelope as the demand for 1.6T modules expanded in 2025. Now shipping in mass volume to global customers, Ara is enabling the world’s hyperscalers and cloud providers to deploy 1.6T pluggable connectivity for AI data centers.

Today, Marvell is introducing the next wave of its 3nm 1.6T optical DSP platform portfolio, increasing performance per watt by optimizing separately for each high-volume use case and introducing new capabilities, including:

• Ara T, the first 8x200G transmit-retimed optics (TRO) DSP, delivers improved power efficiency and reduced total cost of ownership in network deployments.
• Ara X, the first 1.6T DSP with advanced link reliability capabilities, enables customers to achieve higher resilience for optical networks.
• Petra, the first 3nm 8x100G to 4x200G gearbox, enables high power efficiency and unlocks new, more flexible infrastructure designs.
• Aquila M, the first O-band-optimized, coherent-lite optical DSP with integrated media access control security (MACsec), adds critical built-in security to next-generation optical links.

As AI infrastructure scales exponentially, connectivity has become the primary bottleneck of the modern data center, and the solution requires more than a “one-size-fits-all” approach. New, dedicated semiconductor interconnect solutions are required to address the increasing performance, power, design, security and application-specific challenges. With these new 1.6T offerings and an unmatched breadth and depth of expertise—and offering a full connectivity stack including industry-first DSPs, advanced SerDes, switching, interconnects, drivers and TIAs, and the Marvell® RELIANT™ interconnect telemetry platform—Marvell is uniquely positioned to address this demand.

“Marvell pioneered PAM DSP technology, and we continue to lead with advanced SerDes and production-proven 800G platforms. We are now extending that multi-generational product leadership into the 1.6T era,” said Xi Wang, senior vice president and general manager, Connectivity Business Unit at Marvell. “With these new products, Marvell will deliver the performance, power efficiency and manufacturing capacity required to keep up with the explosive growth of next-generation AI data centers.”

“The performance of today’s data centers—powered by hundreds of thousands of GPUs, XPUs and other advanced compute engines—depends on the interconnect technologies that link them together,” said Vladimir Kozlov, founder and CEO at LightCounting. “Marvell DSP products are essential to many high-speed links in modern data center infrastructure, enabling compute resources to operate at peak performance and efficiency. The company’s expanded 1.6T DSP portfolio ensures that data centers can fully maximize their compute investments well into the future.”

Broadest End-to-End Connectivity Portfolio

Marvell delivers the industry’s most comprehensive portfolio of connectivity platform solutions for scale-up, scale-out and scale-across AI infrastructure, with a vast global installed base across hyperscale and cloud deployments and millions of high-speed lanes deployed worldwide.

The Marvell portfolio spans the full data center connectivity stack, including DSPs, SerDes, switching, interconnects, drivers and TIAs to support all systems, devices, links and nodes across the network. The new offerings announced today extend the company’s existing 1.6T portfolio, which includes Marvell Ara, Alaska® and Nova DSPs, its Ethernet PHY platform, the Silicon Photonics Light Engine and the LPO TIA and laser driver chipset.

Marvell also provides supporting system-level technologies such as the Marvell RELIANT interconnect telemetry platform, which helps customers reduce operational complexity and improve network reliability and performance.

Last week, Marvell announced the expansion of its multi-generational 1.6T ZR/ZR+ and coherent DSP technology portfolio, underscoring the company’s commitment to continually deliver the latest scale-up, scale-out and scale-across technologies to drive AI innovation.

Availability

Marvell Ara X, Ara T, Petra and Aquila M DSPs are sampling to customers beginning in Q1 2026.

Marvell will showcase its end-to-end connectivity portfolio at OFC 2026, March 15–19, at the Los Angeles Convention Center in Los Angeles, California. Visit the Marvell booth #1600 to learn how the company is driving the next generation of data center and AI infrastructure.

About Marvell

To deliver the data infrastructure technology that connects the world, we’re building solutions on the most powerful foundation: our partnerships with our customers. Trusted by the world’s leading technology companies for over 30 years, we move, store, process and secure the world’s data with semiconductor solutions designed for our customers’ current needs and future ambitions. Through a process of deep collaboration and transparency, we’re ultimately changing the way tomorrow’s enterprise, cloud and carrier architectures transform—for the better.

Marvell and the M logo are trademarks of Marvell or its affiliates. Please visit www.marvell.com for a complete list of Marvell trademarks. Other names and brands may be claimed as the property of others.

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws that involve risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements include, without limitation, any statement that may predict, forecast, indicate or imply future events, results or achievements. Actual events, results or achievements may differ materially from those contemplated in this press release. Forward-looking statements are only predictions and are subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions that are difficult to predict, including those described in the “Risk Factors” section of our Annual Reports on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and other documents filed by us from time to time with the SEC. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made. Readers are cautioned not to put undue reliance on forward-looking statements, and no person assumes any obligation to update or revise any such forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

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Media Contact:
George Millington
pr@marvell.com

Source: Marvell Technology, Inc.