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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 says it is sharing demonstration samples with selected prospective customers and plans to announce commercial products in the coming months; independent validation and product specifications have not been disclosed.
PsiQuantum has demonstrated an 8×8 optical circuit switch based on its low-loss silicon photonics platform, reporting laboratory results of 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 products for AI data-center connectivity, while continuing its work on fault-tolerant quantum computers.
The demonstration is the first optical circuit switching system PsiQuantum has publicly disclosed, according to the company. It uses an 8×8 configuration and was developed on a silicon photonics platform the company says it has worked on for nearly a decade for utility-scale quantum computing. PsiQuantum said its laboratory testing produced typical results of 1.2 dB insertion loss, 40 dB crosstalk performance and switching reconfiguration in under 3 milliseconds, without optical amplification.
PsiQuantum said those results exceeded the device’s initial targets. The figures are company-reported test results; the announcement did not include an independent evaluation, detailed test methodology or a comparison against named competing switches. The company is now supplying demonstration samples to selected prospective customers and says it is advancing the platform toward commercial products it expects to announce in the coming months.
The company said its barium titanate, or BTO, integration technology is not required for this demonstration vehicle or its initial planned products. PsiQuantum says it has developed BTO integration at the 300-millimeter wafer scale and uses a 64×64 BTO switch in its quantum systems. It presented that work as a possible route to faster, more advanced future products, rather than a component of the current switch demonstration.
Optical Switching for AI Networks
As AI systems grow, data centers must move data among larger pools of computing hardware. PsiQuantum argues that optical connectivity can help address network constraints as infrastructure scales. Circuit switches can establish optical paths between connections, but the announcement alone does not show how this device performs in a deployed data center or whether it improves overall system capacity, energy use or cost.
The development matters because PsiQuantum is presenting technology made for its quantum-computing program as a potential product for a nearer-term market. If the reported results translate into commercial systems, the company could apply its photonics work to AI infrastructure while continuing its longer-term quantum effort. That prospect remains conditional: customer testing, product specifications and commercial availability are still ahead.
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From Quantum Photonics to Data Centers
PsiQuantum has developed silicon photonics for a stated goal of building fault-tolerant quantum computers at utility scale. The company says those systems have demanding optical performance requirements, and it is now applying its underlying platform to optical circuit switching for AI networks. Its claim that quantum-computing requirements exceed many requirements for AI switching is the company’s characterization, not a comparative assessment supplied with the announcement.
The announcement follows a September 2026 development: PsiQuantum said it 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 available source does not provide further details about the agreement’s terms or its direct connection to the 8×8 demonstration.
“This opportunity exists because we chose to solve the hardest scaling problems at the beginning of our roadmap to utility-scale quantum computing.”
— Victor Peng, PsiQuantum chief executive
Customer Tests and Product Details
The announcement does not identify the prospective customers receiving samples or say whether any have completed testing, placed orders or agreed to use the switch. It also does not give a release date, price, capacity beyond the 8×8 demonstration configuration, manufacturing volumes or detailed operating conditions for the reported measurements. Independent validation of the performance figures was not provided in the source material.
It remains unclear how the switch would integrate with existing data-center networks and what measurable effect it could have on network performance, power consumption or operating costs. PsiQuantum’s broader claims about the relationship between its quantum-computing requirements and AI switching have not been independently compared in the announcement.
Commercial Product Milestones Ahead
PsiQuantum says it will continue sharing demonstration samples with selected prospective customers and developing the platform toward commercial products. The company expects to announce those products in the coming months, but has not provided a specific date. Customer test results, technical product details and availability will indicate whether the laboratory demonstration can progress into a deployable data-center offering.
The company also says the optical-switching work will proceed alongside its effort to build fault-tolerant quantum computers. Further information about the September agreement with the Commerce Department, including how it supports domestic production of optical components, has not been detailed in the supplied announcement.
Key Questions
What did PsiQuantum demonstrate?
It demonstrated an 8×8 optical circuit switch built on its silicon photonics platform. The company reported 1.2 dB insertion loss, 40 dB crosstalk performance and reconfiguration in under 3 milliseconds in laboratory testing.
Are the reported results independently verified?
The source material attributes the measurements to PsiQuantum laboratory testing. It does not provide independent verification or detailed test methods.
Is the switch available to data-center operators?
Not as a disclosed commercial product. PsiQuantum says it is sharing samples with selected prospective customers and expects 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 initial planned products. The company describes BTO integration as a potential path for more advanced future products.
Will this change PsiQuantum’s quantum-computing plans?
The company says it will pursue AI data-center products while continuing its work on fault-tolerant quantum computers. The announcement does not describe a change to that goal.
Source: thequantuminsider.com
