Micas Networks Accelerates Open Networking to Meet AI Demands at OCP 2024

SAN JOSE, Calif., Oct. 08, 2024 — The open networking movement is having a moment. Marking a triumphant return to the place where innovation thrives, Micas Networks – an innovative open networking solutions provider – will be at next week’s Open Compute Project^® (OCP^®) Global Summit to showcase its full portfolio of open networking switches for edge, core and cloud deployments – and bring the future of networking to the forefront.

Following last year’s preview, Micas’ next-generation 51.2 Tb/s (51.2T) co-packaged optics (CPO) switch system – the industry’s first – developed in partnership with Broadcom, is now shipping and has been delivered to several tier-one hyperscalers and OEMs for trial purposes. OCP 2024 finds Micas thriving as it continues to innovate and expand its offerings, embracing the rapid evolution of the networking landscape. With a focus on agility and reliability, Micas is poised to lead the charge in meeting the growing demands of AI-driven applications and data-intensive workloads. The recent appointments of Mitch Galbraith as COO and Andrew Qu as CTO underscore Micas’ commitment to growth. Mitch’s operational expertise spans both startups and public companies, where he held executive positions at Ziff Davis and Yahoo. With deep experience at Cisco, Brocade and Tencent, Andrew’s technological vision will enhance innovation and efficiency, solidifying Micas’ role as a pioneering force in the open networking space.

Key to Scaling AI Applications – Speed

In the age of AI, supporting advanced workloads requires high-bandwidth, low-latency switches, robust network management solutions, and a shift to higher-speed Ethernet standards like 400GbE or 800GbE. Connectivity – and particularly Ethernet switching – plays an increasingly vital role in facilitating AI-driven environments. These elements are crucial to meet the intense performance requirements of AI training and inference tasks, such as ChatGPT-4 or Llama 3.2.

Micas tackles these connectivity challenges head-on. Its offerings include white box switches powered by the versatile, open-source Software for Open Networking in Cloud (SONiC) network operating system. Micas’ advanced network switch technology, which offers terabit speeds and CPO capabilities, is crucial in enabling real-time decision making, reducing network congestion, and delivering a superior experience for LLM (Large Language Model) agents. With Micas’ solutions, AI applications can scale effortlessly, enabling networks to adapt to the substantial data processing needs of machine learning models and real-time AI workloads – all while ensuring cost efficiency and reliability.

Micas at OCP: Booth Demonstrations

Micas offers a full lineup of products, including high-performance, power-efficient data center switches, a cutting-edge network operating system, transceivers and cables. Demonstrations will be given in the Micas booth #A5 on the show floor at the San Jose Convention Center from October 15-17 and include:

• Tomahawk 5 + CPO Switch Interoperation: Live demonstration of power-efficient data center switches from Micas incorporating the Broadcom TH5-Bailly (BCM78909) Co-packaged Optics (CPO) platform and 51.2 Tb/s Tomahawk 5 Ethernet switch silicon. The industry’s first commercial white box system using Broadcom 51.2T CPO delivers 64 800G optical ports (2x FR4) with 30% less power.
• Micas Switch + Server in Rack [100G to 400G Conventional Data Center Network Architecture]
• Transceivers [Micas Networks Transceivers for Data Center Switches]
• Next generation 100T switch preview
• Introduction to Broadcom SONiC

Micas at OCP: Speaking Sessions

Micas will present two educational sessions at OCP:

“From AI to Infrastructure: Empowering the Future of Data Centers”
Tuesday, October 15 at 4:15 p.m.
SJCC – Concourse Level – 210BF
Presenters: Mitch Galbraith, COO of Micas Networks, and Andrew Qu, CTO of Micas Networks

As AI models like ChatGPT-4 and Llama 3.2 require increasing computational power, the need for advanced infrastructure has never been more critical. This talk will explore how AI-driven demands are reshaping data centers and networks, with a focus on the growing role of real-time decision-making and minimizing network congestion. An update on Micas Networks and its solutions will also be provided.

“Accelerate Your AI Results with Open Networking Solutions from Micas”
Wednesday, October 16 at 1:10 p.m.
SJCC – Concourse Level – Expo Hall Stage
Presenters: Jason Pan, VP of Business Development, Micas Networks; Daniel Pfeiffer, COO & VP Partnerships of OrionVM; and Dave Driggers, Chief Technology Officer at Cirrascale Cloud Services

Pan, Pfeiffer and Driggers will share their experiences in deploying SONiC and white box switches in their GPU clusters.

“The rapid growth, quick turnaround demands, and rising costs in future data centers call for innovative solutions to boost efficiency and scalability,” said Galbraith. “Micas is more than up to the task with a robust lineup of open networking switches that offer high bandwidth, low latency, and advanced management features. Our solutions help data centers adapt quickly, optimize costs, and seamlessly integrate new technologies, making Micas a key partner for organizations navigating today’s dynamic networking landscape.”

For more information, visit www.micasnetworks.com or follow the company on LinkedIn.