Overview: Natcast is seeking public input on a potential research program on co-packaged optical engine development.

Background: The rapid expansion of AI models and workloads is outpacing the capabilities of traditional electrical interconnects. This program aims to integrate optical transceivers directly into physical packages to reduce power consumption, improve signal integrity, and enhance bandwidth density for AI and high-performance computing (HPC) infrastructure scale-up.

Objective: This RFI seeks input from stakeholders to set R&D priorities for co-packaged optical engines aimed at scaling AI and HPC infrastructure. We invite industry, academia, and research partners to identify gaps in standards, challenges in prototyping, and barriers to commercialization. We also seek suggestions on how the NSTC can foster collaboration in design, integration, co-development, and technology transfer. This RFI is not focused on replacing on-chip wires, nor on optical connector or transceiver technologies that operate outside the package (e.g., pluggable optics or board-level interconnects).

Who should respond: This RFI seeks inputs from a broad range of organizations that may benefit from such a research program: foundries, outsourced semiconductor assembly and test (OSATs), integrated device manufacturers (IDMs), fabless semiconductor companies, end users, materials suppliers, equipment vendors, academia, startup companies, small businesses, technology incubators, government labs, federally funded research and development centers (FFRDCs), university applied research centers (UARCs), the defense industrial base, and other commercial semiconductor companies and cloud service providers (CSPs).

Deadline for submissions: Tuesday, July 29, 2025, at 5:00 p.m. ET

Questions? Please email [email protected].