Goldman Sachs: AI Server Rack Expansion Drives Optical Module Upgrades, 1.6T+ Shipment Forecasts Raised by 29% to 61%

Goldman Sachs released a report on the global optical module industry, significantly raising its market value forecasts for 2026–2028 to $68 billion, $131 billion, and $148 billion, respectively. The growth is primarily driven by the transition to rack-level AI and ASIC servers, increased optical module usage per GPU, and a shift toward 1.6T and 3.2T specifications. Silicon photonics is becoming the mainstream technology due to cost advantages, with penetration in 800G+ modules expected to reach 74% by 2028. The firm highlighted beneficiaries across the sup