Optics Monthly · September 2026
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CIOE Fuels NPO Buzz, Fiber and AR Pick Up Speed
This issue covers September 1–30, 2026. The main thread in September was the optical interconnect debate sparked by CIOE: Tencent, LightCounting and others sparred over NPO versus pluggable approaches; Huawei partnered with the Xi'an Institute of Optics on AI+Optics, with the Ascend 960 supernode adopting NPO; and Largan went on a land-buying spree to bet on CPO fiber arrays. The fiber industry saw both volume and prices rise: AT&T signed a long-term deal with Corning worth over $3 billion, Hengtong Optic-Electric planned a 6.636 billion yuan placement, and Xinkong Guanglian cut hollow-core fiber loss to 0.043 dB/km. In consumer optics, Meta unveiled 100-gram VR glasses and pushed Ray-Ban Display into international markets, while INMO AIR3 was recalled over overheating. In research, SIOM achieved absolute wavefront measurement of an EUV source for the first time and published a flurry of results in metasurfaces, ultrafast lasers and optical computing.
NPO and Optical Interconnect
In this sectionTencent expects NPO to ramp up quickly and OCS to reach scale deployment; Chinese optical transceiver makers showcased NPO products en masse at CIOE, while LightCounting cautions that pluggables remain the mainstay. Huawei teams up with the Xi'an Institute of Optics and Precision Mechanics, and Largan bets on CPO fiber arrays.
Tencent's Zou Xianneng: NPO to Ramp Up Quickly, OCS Poised for Large-Scale Deployment
Tencent's Zou Xianneng said at the CIOE forum that NPO will ramp up quickly and OCS is poised for large-scale deployment.
CIOE 2026 Observations: Why NPO Has Become the Optimal Choice for Cloud Giants
The 27th CIOE drew nearly 190,000 visits over three days, up 32% year on year. NPO (near-package optics) products from major domestic optical module makers made a collective appearance. NPO moves the optical engine from the switch front panel to near the ASIC package without soldering it to the switch chip, balancing power consumption and serviceability.
LightCounting: NPO Is Hot, but Pluggables Still Dominate the Market
LightCounting's latest quarterly report says NPOs dominated much of the discussion at the recent CIOE, much as the industry's enthusiasm for LPOs a few years ago. Yet sales of retimed pluggable optical modules continue to hit new highs, with Ethernet optical modules accounting for the bulk of overall sales.
OFweek Optics · NewsOptics industryOptics and AISep 21Huawei Teams Up with Xi'an Institute of Optics and Precision Mechanics on AI+Optics; Ascend 960 SuperPod Uses NPO
Huawei and the Xi'an Institute of Optics and Precision Mechanics have signed a strategic cooperation agreement, with AI+optics as a core focus. Huawei has pledged to prioritize computing resources and AI teams for the effort. Earlier, on September 17, Huawei unveiled the Ascend 960 superpod using near-package optics (NPO) at Huawei Connect 2026, employing 5,500 in-house Hi-ONE optical engines.
OFweek Optics · NewsOptics industryOptics and AISep 23Largan Buys Land Seven Times in Three Months for a Total of RMB 8 Billion, Betting on CPO Fiber Arrays
On September 17, Largan spent RMB 1.172 billion to acquire about 2,259 ping of land and 3,695 ping of buildings in Nantun, Taichung. It was the company's seventh real estate deal since late June, bringing the total to RMB 8.078 billion. Chairman Lin Enping confirmed in July that the company had won its first customer order for fiber arrays, with the land purchases paving the way for mass production in 2027.
Fiber Industry Expansion
In this sectionAT&T signs a fiber and cable deal with Corning worth more than $3 billion; Hengtong Optic-Electric plans a 6.636 billion yuan private placement for next-generation fiber and AI optical interconnect; Xinkong Guanglian cuts hollow-core fiber loss to 0.043 dB/km and moves into commercialization.
AT&T and Corning Sign Multi-Year Optical Fiber and Cable Supply Agreement Worth Over $3 Billion
AT&T announced a multi-year optical fiber and cable supply agreement with Corning with a total contract value of more than $3 billion. Corning will continue delivering fiber and cable for AT&T's home broadband expansion. AT&T said average monthly traffic per fiber user has surpassed 1TB, five times the 2016 level.
Hengtong Optic-Electric Plans to Raise 6.636 Billion Yuan for Next-Generation Fiber and AI Optical Interconnect
Hengtong Optic-Electric released a private placement plan to raise up to 6.636 billion yuan for next-generation optical fiber R&D and production, construction of high-end optical new materials in Inner Mongolia, and advanced AI optical interconnect projects, with no more than 35 targeted investors.
Hangzhou Institute of Optics · Industry TrendsFirst-partyOptics industrySep 4Xinkong Guanglian Hollow-Core Fiber Loss Cut to 0.043 dB/km
Xinkong Guanglian's hollow-core fiber has a loss of about 0.043 dB/km at 1550 nm, with fiber adapter insertion loss as low as 0.5 dB, marking its entry into commercialization.
AR/VR Glasses
In this sectionMeta unveils 100-gram VR glasses, and Ray-Ban Display goes international; CIOE's AR optics spotlight mass production, thin-and-light design and color, while the metalens commercialization path grows clearer; INMO AIR3 recalled over temple overheating.
AuganixOptics industryOptics and AISep 24Meta Unveils 100 g VR Glasses, Priced at $1,300 and Arriving Spring 2027
Meta has unveiled the 100 g Meta VR Glasses, powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon Reality Elite processor with a separate compute unit. They are slated for launch in spring 2027 at $1,300.
UploadVR (Glasses & Hardware)Optics industryOptics and AISep 28Meta Ray-Ban Display Launches Internationally, With Online Ordering and New Features
At Connect 2026, Meta announced that Meta Ray-Ban Display will go on sale outside the US, with online ordering that requires no in-store fitting, plus new features including third-party app discovery and navigation improvements.
OFweek Optics · NewsOptics industryOptics and AISep 24CIOE 2026 AR Optics Review: Mass Production, Slim Design and Color Emerge as Key Themes
At the 27th CIOE and SIVA 2026, the key themes for VR/AR optics centered on mass production, slim design and color displays for AR glasses. The article summarizes show trends, noting that 4-inch, 6-inch and other semiconductor wafers were everywhere, serving as a way to demonstrate mass-production capability.
OFweek Optics · NewsOptics industryOptics and AISep 18Eye Tracking, ToF, AI Glasses: The Commercialization Path for Metalenses Gradually Clears
A VR Tuoluo article notes that metalenses had a noticeably higher profile at CIOE 2026, where NIL Technology showcased metaEye for AR/VR eye tracking. The article maps the commercialization path for metalenses in eye tracking, ToF and AI glasses.
OFweek Optics · NewsOptics and AISep 29INMO AIR3 recalled in US and Canada over overheating temples, putting smart glasses thermal design to the test
The US CPSC and Health Canada issued a recall on September 24 after the left temple of INMO AIR3 smart glasses could overheat during prolonged use. INMO has received 10 overheating reports, including burning sensations on the face and left ear. The recall covers about 1,643 pairs in the US and about 120 in Canada, with free repairs and system updates offered as the remedy.
SIOM Results
In this sectionThe Shanghai Institute of Optics and Fine Mechanics achieves absolute wavefront measurement of an EUV source for the first time, and reports progress in free-electron wave-packet-programmed light sources, nanoimprinted anti-reflective metasurfaces, few-cycle pulse compression and control of solid-state high-harmonic generation.
SIOM · Research UpdatesFirst-partyOptics industrySep 15SIOM Achieves First Absolute Wavefront Measurement of an EUV Light Source
SIOM and Harbin Institute of Technology have used a photon sieve to achieve the first absolute wavefront measurement of an EUV light source, solving a long-standing challenge in absolute wavefront metrology for extreme-ultraviolet and soft X-ray sources.
SIOM · Research UpdatesFirst-partyOptics industrySep 30SIOM proposes programming coherent and quantum light sources with free-electron wave packets
Researcher Tian Ye and Academician Li Ruxin's team at the Shanghai Institute of Optics and Fine Mechanics (SIOM), together with Researcher Pan Yiming of ShanghaiTech University and others, have proposed a new mechanism that uses the quadratic phase accumulated during the propagation of free-electron quantum wave packets to simultaneously achieve selectable high-harmonic bunching and synthesis of non-classical quantum light sources, linking quantum state control, high-harmonic radiation and quantum light synthesis.
SIOM · Research UpdatesFirst-partyOptics industrySep 24Shanghai Institute of Optics and Mechanics Uses Nanoimprint Lithography to Fabricate Large-Area, Wide-Angle, Broadband Antireflective Metasurfaces
A team from the High-Power Laser Component Technology and Engineering Department at the Shanghai Institute of Optics and Mechanics used nanoimprint lithography to fabricate large-area, double-sided fused-silica nanopillar metasurfaces, achieving broadband, wide-angle antireflection from the visible to the near-infrared, along with good high-temperature stability and laser damage tolerance.
SIOM · Research UpdatesFirst-partyOptics industrySep 22SIOM Achieves High-Power Few-Cycle Pulse Compression with Dispersion-Engineered Multi-Pass Cell
A team from the State Key Laboratory of Ultra-Intense Laser Science and Technology at the Shanghai Institute of Optics and Fine Mechanics (SIOM) has achieved few-cycle nonlinear pulse compression in a dispersion-engineered folded multi-pass cell, producing high-power few-cycle ultrafast laser pulses. The results were published in Optics Letters.
SIOM · Research UpdatesFirst-partyOptics industrySep 22SIOM Achieves Fully Optical Arbitrary Control of Chirality and Ellipticity in Solid-State High-Harmonic Generation
A team from the State Key Laboratory of Ultra-Intense Laser Science and Technology at the Shanghai Institute of Optics and Fine Mechanics (SIOM) has achieved, for the first time, fully optical arbitrary control of chirality and ellipticity in solid-state high-harmonic generation through dynamical symmetry engineering and quantum geometric phase manipulation.
Frontier Optical Research
In this sectionSuspended metasurfaces speed up mid-infrared modulation; dual-comb ghost imaging meets deep learning; quantum entanglement pushes spectroscopy to the single-molecule level; optical skyrmions hold their topology in atmospheric turbulence.
Optics & Photonics NewsOptics industrySep 16Suspended Metasurfaces Speed Up Mid-Infrared Modulation
Researchers from Switzerland, China and Russia fabricated a 1 cm² chip wafer containing 49 silicon metasurfaces for high-speed modulation of mid-infrared lasers.
Light: Science & ApplicationsOptics industryOptics and AISep 16Hyperspectral Dual-Comb Computational Ghost Imaging Reconstructed by Deep Learning
A paper in Light: Science & Applications combines dual-comb spectroscopy with computational ghost imaging and uses deep-learning reconstruction to achieve hyperspectral imaging.
Optics & Photonics NewsOptics industrySep 3Quantum Entanglement Extends Spectroscopy to Single Molecules
Entangling molecular ions with atoms to form a 'Schrödinger's cat' state makes spectroscopy sensitive down to single molecules.
Optics & Photonics NewsOptics industrySep 1Optical Skyrmions Can Resist Atmospheric Turbulence
Researchers at the University of the Witwatersrand have shown that topological light (skyrmions) maintains its topological structure in atmospheric turbulence, benefiting free-space optical communications.