Ciena Reports Impact of AI, DCI, Cloud Evolution on Wave Services Demand

Ciena, the global leader in high-speed connectivity, has compiled a new report on wavelength services—the first of its kind—that explores the key drivers of the need for high-speed connectivity. The report examines the critical role of wave services in enabling the expansion of interconnected data centres driven by Artificial Intelligence (AI), the growing importance of low latency and data sovereignty for AI workloads, and the build-out of terrestrial and critical submarine network infrastructure. It also highlights the pivotal role of managed optical fibre network (MOFN) business models to expand high-speed connectivity into new geographies and markets.

“As cloud providers scale data centre networks to address AI performance requirements, wave services must also evolve in terms of capacity, coverage, latency, and route diversity,” said Mark Bieberich, Vice President of Portfolio Marketing at Ciena. “Demand for wave services is growing steadily worldwide, as data centre network expansion requires increasingly high-capacity interconnection among various types of network operators and end users.”

Ciena Finds Wave Services Circuits Growing

The total wave services circuits market in the U.S. grew nearly eight percent in 2024 and is projected to grow steadily through 2029, based on research from Vertical Systems Group. It observed an increasing use of wave services for cloud on-ramps, which is demonstrated by the metro geographical scope (41%) along with the dominance of retail customers (58%). The same can likely be true in other parts of the world, like Europe and Asia.

The report also states that from 2024 to 2029, growth in 400G circuits is set to soar, while 100G circuits will see a steady rise, and 10G circuits will experience modest growth.

Wave services are the foundation of most high-capacity networks, particularly when connectivity to or between data centres is involved. High bandwidth, protocol transparency, and low latency are some of their fundamental characteristics. Wave services can either act as end services or support higher-layer services. Based on Dense Wavelength Division Multiplexing (DWDM) technology, they enable massive data-transmission bandwidth over a fiber pair. Currently, wave services are dominated by 100G and 400G connections. There is still a high volume of 10G services deployed, but they are being upgraded to 100G at a steady pace.

Submarine Cable Growth

In addition, Ciena’s report looks at the growth of submarine cables. It highlights that a record 161,100 kilometres of submarine cables are planned to become ready for service (RFS) in 2025, dwarfing the previous high of 121,000 kilometres becoming RFS back in 2001.

“With infrastructure expanding rapidly and resource constraints increasingly shaping growth, anticipating demand has never been more important,” Bieberich added. “Network operators providing wave services can seize this moment by proactively routing new submarine cables to emerging data centers and innovating to address these challenges. Differentiation through greater route diversity, low-latency connectivity, and compelling managed services is key to staying ahead.”

The report provides a thorough analysis of the current industry landscape, evaluating key trends and identifying factors poised to influence the market in the coming years. The report’s forecasting illuminates the path forward, enabling stakeholders to effectively strategise and maintain a competitive edge in their fields.

Read the full Wave Services report here.