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PsiQuantum has demonstrated an 8×8 optical circuit switch built on its silicon photonics platform, reporting 1.2 dB insertion loss, 40 dB crosstalk performance and reconfiguration in under 3 milliseconds. The company is sharing demonstration samples with selected prospective customers and says commercial products are in development; customer evaluations and product specifications have not been disclosed.
PsiQuantum has announced an 8×8 optical circuit switching demonstration aimed at AI data center connectivity, reporting 1.2 dB insertion loss, 40 dB crosstalk performance and reconfiguration in less than 3 milliseconds. The company says it is sharing samples with selected prospective customers as it develops commercial products, while continuing its work on fault-tolerant quantum computers.
The demonstration vehicle is built on PsiQuantum’s low-loss silicon photonics platform, which the company says it has developed for nearly a decade to support utility-scale quantum computing. PsiQuantum reported that its laboratory tests produced typical insertion loss of 1.2 dB, crosstalk performance of 40 dB and reconfiguration time below 3 milliseconds. The company said the results exceeded its initial targets and were achieved without optical amplification.
PsiQuantum has not described these results as independent testing. They are company-reported laboratory measurements, and the announcement does not provide a detailed test protocol, operating conditions or comparisons with specific competing systems. The company says it is now providing demonstration samples to selected prospective customers and advancing the platform toward commercial products, which it expects to announce in the coming months.
The company also said barium titanate (BTO) integration is not required for the demonstration or its initial planned products. PsiQuantum reports that it has developed BTO integration at 300mm wafer scale and uses a 64×64 BTO switch in its quantum systems. It presents that work as a possible route to faster, more advanced future products, not as a feature of the current demonstration.
Optical Switching for AI Networks
AI data centers connect large pools of computing equipment, and the amount of data moving between systems can constrain how efficiently that infrastructure operates. Optical circuit switches route light between network connections. If a product can meet the needs of data center operators, it could offer another way to manage connectivity as AI deployments grow. PsiQuantum’s announcement matters because it shows the company seeking a near-term commercial application for photonics developed in pursuit of quantum computing.
The reported figures are a demonstration milestone, not proof of deployment readiness. Potential customers would need to evaluate the device in relevant network configurations and assess factors such as reliability, scale, compatibility and total cost. The announcement does not establish how the switch compares with alternatives or whether it has been tested in a live AI data center.
PsiQuantum argues that its quantum-computing requirements have pushed it to develop photonics that can also serve AI infrastructure. That is the company’s rationale for pursuing both markets; the announcement does not provide evidence that sales to data centers will fund or accelerate its quantum program.
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From Quantum Photonics to Data Centers
PsiQuantum’s main stated objective is developing fault-tolerant quantum computers. Its announcement positions the optical switch as an application of the same silicon photonics platform, rather than a replacement for that effort. The company says its work on quantum systems involves demanding optical performance requirements, but it has not supplied a direct, independently verified comparison between those requirements and the needs of AI data center switching.
The announcement follows a September 2026 development: PsiQuantum said it had signed definitive documentation with the U.S. Department of Commerce to accelerate research and development, domestic manufacturability and performance of critical components, including optical switches. The October demonstration adds a specific switching device and reported test results to that broader effort. The source material does not detail how the Commerce agreement relates to the prospective customer samples or planned commercial products.
““As AI computing pushes infrastructure to its limits, we now have an opportunity to put our state-of-the-art technology to work today while continuing toward our ultimate goal: building and deploying the world’s first useful, fault-tolerant quantum computers.””
— Victor Peng, PsiQuantum chief executive officer
Customer Tests and Product Details
Several commercial and technical questions remain open. PsiQuantum has not named the prospective customers receiving samples, said how many devices are being evaluated or disclosed whether customers have reported results. It also has not announced pricing, production capacity, product availability or final commercial specifications.
The reported laboratory results lack public detail about test conditions and measurement methods. The announcement also does not specify how the switch would integrate with existing data center networks, how it performs under sustained operation or how it compares with current switching options. It is not yet clear whether the company’s planned products will retain the demonstration’s reported performance in customer deployments.
Commercial Product Announcements Ahead
PsiQuantum says it is sharing samples with selected prospective customers and expects to announce commercial products in the coming months. Those announcements may clarify the product configurations, availability and intended customer use cases. The company has not provided a specific release date or said when customer evaluations will conclude.
Further details will also be needed to assess the device’s relevance to operating data centers, including performance under customer conditions, manufacturing scale and compatibility with existing infrastructure. For now, the confirmed development is a company-reported 8×8 demonstration and a move toward customer sampling, rather than a disclosed commercial deployment.
Key Questions
What did PsiQuantum announce?
PsiQuantum announced an 8×8 optical circuit switching demonstration for AI data center connectivity. The device is based on the company’s silicon photonics platform, which it developed for quantum computing.
What performance did PsiQuantum report?
The company reported typical laboratory results of 1.2 dB insertion loss, 40 dB crosstalk performance and reconfiguration in less than 3 milliseconds, without optical amplification. These are PsiQuantum-reported results; the announcement does not include independent verification or detailed test conditions.
Is the optical switch commercially available?
No commercial availability date or pricing has been announced. PsiQuantum says it is sharing demonstration samples with selected prospective customers and plans to announce commercial products in the coming months.
Does the demonstration use barium titanate?
No. PsiQuantum says BTO is not required for the demonstration vehicle or its initial planned products. The company describes BTO integration as a possible path to faster, more advanced future products.
Has the switch been deployed in an AI data center?
The announcement does not report a live data center deployment. PsiQuantum says it is providing samples to selected prospective customers, but has not disclosed their identities or any evaluation results.
Source: thequantuminsider.com
