Group 1 - The latest investment bank research indicates that network and optical interconnects in AI computing infrastructure remain a critical bottleneck for system expansion, with related vendors expected to benefit from revenue and profit growth [1] - Evercore's channel survey targeting AI engineers has positive implications for Nvidia (NVDA.US), Broadcom (AVGO.US), Astera Labs (ALAB.US), Marvell Technology (MRVL.US), and MACOM Technology Solutions (MTSI.US), reaffirming an "outperform" rating for these companies [1] - The analysis team led by Mark Lipacis confirmed through discussions with 20 AI engineers that connectivity remains a core constraint for AI systems in both supply and speed aspects, with vendors capable of delivering solutions at scale likely to enjoy demand growth in the near future [1] Group 2 - For Nvidia, the company is advancing the co-packaged optical NVLink switch in line with the release schedule of Rubin Ultra, targeting the second half of 2027, although some industry insiders believe it may be delayed until 2028 [1] - Nvidia has developed a 1.6T (terabits per second) digital signal processor (DSP), expected to meet about 50% of its internal demand, with the remainder to be supplied by Broadcom [1] - Broadcom's electro-absorption modulated laser (EML) production capacity is projected to increase from approximately 43-44 million units in 2025 to 50 million units in 2026, while continuous wave (CW) laser capacity is expected to grow from 15-16 million units in 2025 to 30 million units in 2026 [2] Group 3 - Astera Labs is expected to be increasingly recognized as a mature supplier, with Amazon's Trainium-3 anticipated to utilize two out of three SKUs featuring Astera's Scorpio X switch [2] - Marvell Technology is projected to supply all of Google's 1.6T DSP demand, holding a 70% market share in the 800G DSP sector, with Broadcom capturing the remaining 30% [3] - MACOM Technology Solutions is reportedly increasing its market share in the 1.6T photodetector (PD) segment, with a unit price of approximately $2.5-3, significantly higher than the $0.5-0.6 for 800G PDs, and is expected to capture 50-60% of the 1.6T module market [3]