Marvell's AI Bet: Will NVLink and UALink Drive Custom Chip Wins?

Core Insights - Marvell Technology (MRVL) is enhancing its position in AI infrastructure by expanding its custom chip capabilities, integrating new components to improve performance and scalability across large-scale systems [1][6] Financial Performance - In Q1 FY26, Marvell reported record Data Center revenues of $1.44 billion, representing a 76% increase year over year, driven by the rapid scaling of custom AI silicon [2][10] - Marvell's forward price-to-sales ratio is 7.36X, which is lower than the industry average of 8.15X [13] Strategic Developments - Marvell partnered with NVIDIA in May 2025 to offer NVLink Fusion technology, enhancing the flexibility of its custom cloud platform silicon for next-generation AI infrastructure [3] - The introduction of a new multi-die packaging solution based on proprietary interposer technology aims to improve die-to-die interconnect efficiency, reduce power consumption, and lower product costs [4] - Marvell launched the Ultra Accelerator Link (UALink) scale-up solution, providing an open-standards-based interconnect platform that enhances compute utilization and reduces latency [5] Competitive Landscape - Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) is advancing its AI solutions through the acquisition of ZT Systems, which will reduce deployment time for hyperscalers [7] - Broadcom (AVGO) reported a 170% year-over-year increase in AI networking revenues, now comprising 40% of its total AI semiconductor revenues, and introduced the Tomahawk 6 switch to enhance AI cluster performance [8] Market Outlook - The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Marvell's fiscal 2026 and fiscal 2027 earnings indicates year-over-year growth of 77.71% and 27.73%, respectively, with recent upward revisions in earnings estimates [16]