How Photonics Could Unlock New Applications

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Intro

On September 30, The Daily AI Show tackles what the hosts call “the great AI traffic jam.” Despite more powerful GPUs and CPUs, the panel explains how outdated chip infrastructure, copper wiring, and heat dissipation limits are creating bottlenecks that could stall AI progress. Using a city analogy, they explore solutions like silicon photonics, co-packaged optics, and even photonic compute as the next frontier.

Key Points Discussed

• By 2030, global data centers could consume 945 terawatt hours—equal to the electricity use of Japan—raising urgent efficiency concerns.

• 75% of energy in chips today is spent just moving data, not on computation. Copper wiring and electron transfer create heat, friction, and inefficiency.

• Co-packaged optics brings optical engines directly onto the chip, shrinking data movement distances from inches to millimeters, cutting latency and power use.

• The “holy grail” is photonic compute, where light performs the math itself, offering sub-nanosecond speeds and massive energy efficiency.

• Companies like Nvidia, AMD, Intel, and startups such as Lightmatter are racing to own the next wave of optical interconnects. AMD is pursuing zeta-scale computing through acquisitions, while Intel already deploys silicon photonics transceivers in data centers.

• Infrastructure challenges loom: data centers built today may require ripping out billions in hardware within a decade as photonic systems mature.

• Economic and geopolitical stakes are high: control over supply chains (like lasers, packaging, and foundry capacity) will shape which nations lead.

• Potential breakthroughs from these advances include digital twins of Earth for climate modeling, real-time medical diagnostics, and cures for diseases like cancer and Alzheimer’s.

• Even without smarter AI models, simply making computation faster and more efficient could unlock the next wave of breakthroughs.

Timestamps & Topics

00:00:00 ⚡ Framing the AI “traffic jam” and looming energy crisis

00:01:12 🔋 Data centers may use as much power as Japan by 2030

00:04:14 🏙️ City analogy: copper roads, electron cars, and inefficiency

00:06:13 💡 Co-packaged optics—moving optical engines onto the chip

00:07:43 🌈 Photonics for data transfer today, compute tomorrow

00:09:14 🌍 Why current infrastructure risks an AI “dark age”

00:12:28 🌊 Cooling, water usage, and sustainability concerns

00:14:07 🔧 Proof-of-concept to production expected in 2026

00:17:16 🌆 Stopgaps vs. full rebuilds, Venice analogy for temporary fixes

00:20:31 📊 Infographics from Google Deep Research: Copper City vs. Photon City

00:21:25 🔀 Pluggable optics today, co-packaged optics tomorrow, photonic compute future

00:23:55 🏢 AMD, Nvidia, Intel, TSMC strategies for optical interconnects

00:27:13 💡 Lightmatter and optical interposers—intermediate steps

00:29:53 🏎️ AMD’s zeta-scale engine and acquisition-driven approach

00:32:23 📈 Moore’s Law limits, Jevons paradox, and rising demand

00:34:15 🏗️ Building data centers for future retrofits

00:37:00 🔌 Intel’s silicon photonics transceivers already in play

00:39:43 🏰 Nvidia’s CUDA moat may shift to fabric architectures

00:41:08 🌐 Applications: digital biology, Earth twins, and real-time AI

00:43:24 🧠 Photonic neural networks and neuromorphic computing

00:46:09 🕰️ Ethan Mollick’s point: even today’s AI has untapped use cases

00:47:28 📅 Wrap-up: AI’s future depends on solving the traffic jam

00:49:31 📣 Community plug, upcoming shows (news, Claude Code, Lovable), and Slack invite

Hashtags

#AItrafficJam #Photonics #CoPackagedOptics #PhotonicCompute #DataCenters #Nvidia #Intel #AMD #Lightmatter #EnergyEfficiency #DailyAIShow

The Daily AI Show Co-Hosts:

Andy Halliday, Beth Lyons, Brian Maucere, Eran Malloch, Jyunmi Hatcher, and Karl Yeh