PicoJool
PicoJool develops optical chips and modules that replace copper with fiber in AI and supercomputing data centers.
Founded
2024PicoJool develops optical chips and modules that replace copper with fiber in AI and supercomputing data centers.
PicoJool's products are high-bandwidth vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs) and micro-VCSELs for optical interconnect inside AI systems. Its 200G VCSEL line is specified with bandwidth exceeding 37 GHz, alongside quad 100G, quad 200G and 32x50G NRZ micro-VCSEL parts.
Those chips are integrated into massively parallel pluggable modules aimed at scale-up architectures, with stated paths to near-packaged and co-packaged optics. Sampling of chip-level products was planned for the third quarter of 2026, with a high-volume ramp expected in early 2027 and a roadmap covering 800G, 1.6T and 3.2T links.
PicoJool targets the interconnect layer of hyperscale AI data centers, where bandwidth demand is pushing scale-up links beyond what copper can carry efficiently. The company frames its goal as making optical connectivity cost-competitive and manufacturable at scale.
Its stated roadmap extends from 200G per lane to 400G per lane and higher speeds, and it reports working with system startups and hyperscalers on next-generation pluggable, near-packaged and co-packaged optics.
PicoJool's VCSEL designs build on a mature gallium arsenide supply chain rather than newer laser integration routes, which the company says avoids the capacity bottlenecks that constrain competing laser technologies. Its 200G parts claim bandwidth above 37 GHz.
Manufacturing is carried out on external foundry capacity through a partnership with WIN Semiconductor, the leading VCSEL supplier for 3D sensing, with designs and process recipes already transferred. The company positions the result as optical links that are as inexpensive, compact and manufacturable as copper.