Tokyo, January 10: NTT's annual R&D Forum, held in Tokyo, unveiled groundbreaking advancements in telecommunications, with a spotlight on the company's Innovative Optical and Wireless Network (IOWN) technology.

Key Points
1. NTT introduces four-stage IOWN roadmap for optical network transformation
2. Photonics and Electronics Convergence device enables faster communication
3. Access Point Network demonstrates significant data transmission speed improvements
4. Technology poised to transform financial and technological industries

The forum highlighted IOWN's potential to revolutionise data transmission with high-speed capabilities, massive capacity, and reduced energy consumption.

Explaining the roadmap for IOWN, Souichiro Usui from NTT said, "IOWN roadmap is constituted by four main categories. Along with optical technological progress, the roadmap is divided into four stages. First of all, IOWN1.0 is a network that connects data centres by optical technology. On the stage of IOWN2.0 optical technology goes into the computer and connects the board to the board in the server. IOWN3.0 is also a technology that connects the package by optical technology. Finally, IOWN4.0 is a technology that connects the inside of chips. In the future, we aim to achieve an economical network infrastructure by distributing data centres across multiple locations and enabling GPU computing across these locations."

Takuro Fujii, another representative from NTT, emphasised the significance of the Photonics and Electronics Convergence (PEC) device.

"We are showcasing the Photonics and Electronics Convergence (PEC) device under the IOWN Initiative. This device converts electrical signals into photonics to facilitate communication. Our research and development efforts aim to transition progressively from long-distance to short-distance communication, moving step by step from PEC-1 to PEC-4. This innovation enables faster data transmission with significantly lower power consumption."

Demonstrating the practical applications of IOWN technology, Takanori Nagai, an official from NTT, explained the benefits of the Access Point Network (APN).

"This booth demonstrates data replication between Japan and Taiwan. Using the Internet, the process takes 2 minutes and 25 seconds. However, with an Access Point Network (APN), it is reduced to just 54 seconds--less than one minute. In the financial industry, a one-minute transaction involves approximately 1.4 million flows. By shortening the duration of these transactions, we can prevent economic losses amounting to several billion yen."

Currently, the first phase of IOWN technology is driving advancements in data centre communication and is expected to play a transformative role in various industries, shaping the future of everyday life.