PhotonDelta sees AI driving over $18 billion in disclosed integrated photonics deal activity (2024-26)
SOXX•PhotonDelta reviewed about 90 transactions and ecosystem developments from 2024 to 2026, finding more than $18 billion in disclosed integrated photonics activity. About 98% of disclosed M&A value and all disclosed strategic investment were AI-related.
1. AI drives deal activity
PhotonDelta's analysis identified scaling and urgency as defining themes for integrated photonics, driven by AI infrastructure bandwidth and power constraints. Including coherent optical transport, about 98% of disclosed M&A value was AI-related, while disclosed strategic investment was 100% AI-related. Funding rounds were about 60% tied to AI and 40% supporting non-AI photonics applications. The report pointed to tighter coordination across the stack to secure capacity, reduce dependency, improve power efficiency and speed qualification for volume deployment.
