Near-packaged optics (NPO) gains ground as the industry hedges against CPO's growing pains — analysts say volume for NPO products will extend until the end of the decade

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SemiAnalysis made the case for near-packaged optics (NPO) in a three-part thread posted to X on August 10, describing the architecture as an interim solution for the industry's transition from pluggable transceivers to true co-packaged optics (CPO) and crediting it with three advantages: field-replaceable modules, a failure blast radius confined to a single socketed unit, and simpler assembly, since the optical engine is packaged separately from the switch ASIC.

NPO is the architecture that stands to gain if that pessimism proves right, with Broadcom having shown a 3.2T VCSEL-based NPO product line at OFC 2026 in March, and six connector and optics firms forming a standards group the same week to define a common socket for this class of device.