NTT (9432) Investor Day 2025 summary

Strategic direction and future plans

• Focus on IOWN (Innovative Optical and Wireless Network) as foundational infrastructure for the AI era, expanding from APN services to optical computing for ultra-high speed, low latency, and low power consumption.

• Roadmap includes PEC-2 commercialization in 2025, progressive deployment of photonics-electronics convergence devices, and chip-level optical communication by 2028, with board, package, and die-level integration by 2032.

• Partnerships with Broadcom and Accton to deliver co-packaged optics (CPO) solutions, including 102.4 Tbps switches, with market launch starting in 2026 and manufacturing scale-up underway.

• Expansion of distributed GPU resources and efficient infrastructure operation through IOWN APN, enabling flexible, high-speed interconnection and optimized power allocation across regional data centers.

• Demonstrated real-world use cases at the Osaka/Kansai Expo, including real-time spatial transmission, AI analysis, and significant power savings.

Financial guidance and market outlook

• AI market projected to grow 20x from 2021, reaching $1.8 trillion by 2030, with data center power consumption expected to double by 2030 compared to 2024.

• The optical interconnect market is projected to reach JPY 7 trillion by 2032, with several million PEC devices needed annually for hyperscaler and AI data center demand.

• Manufacturing capacity for optical engines is being scaled to 5,000 units per line per month, with plans for multiple lines and 24/7 automated production.

• Commercial deployment of opto-electronic converged switches targets 50% power reduction and lower operational costs, with sample releases and demonstrations scheduled throughout 2026.

• Revenue and profitability are expected to rise as mass production ramps up, but specific forecasts remain unquantified due to the nascent market and ongoing customer negotiations.

Technology and innovation highlights

• Optical communication offers dramatic power savings over electrical wiring, especially as transmission distances increase, supporting sustainable data center growth.

• IOWN 2.0 and 3.0 introduce advanced photonics-electronics convergence devices, enabling board-to-board and package-to-package optical connections, with future targets of 0.26 pJ/bit energy efficiency.

• Unique socket-type optical engines allow for flexible, cost-effective maintenance and support a multi-vendor supply chain.

• Demonstrations at the Expo showed computers powered by IOWN 2.0 achieving 1/8 the power consumption of conventional systems.

• Commitment to open standards and multi-vendor ecosystems to ensure scalability, flexibility, and broad industry adoption.