Microsoft’s new networking tech can save data centres worldwide millions in electricity bills
A new innovation at Microsoft is expected to save data centres worldwide millions in electricity bills, researchers from the tech giant have said.
Microsoft Research Lab developed a method to rapidly transmit information at scale using cheaper, more temperature-stable microLEDs as an alternative to conventional fibre-optic technologies.
“The researchers expect that it will use about 50% less energy than mainstream laser-based optical cables, based on the team’s lab tests of the new system,” the company said.
The more efficient alternative to data transmission cables is expected to be commercialised with Microsoft’s data centre partners in late 2027, with considerable savings in the cards.
Processor maker MediaTek joined Microsoft in the research and development of the new cables.
MediaTek corporate vice president Vince Hu explained that the innovation was created specifically to be fast-tracked to data centres globally.
“By miniaturising MicroLED technology and integrating it into transceivers that are compatible with current data center equipment, the industry can transition to the new technology seamlessly,” he said.
Instead of lasers, researchers explained that the new technology uses inexpensive, commonly available microLEDs and cables.
Known as “imaging fibre,” these cables look like standard fibre but contain thousands of cores. Imaging fibre cables are already in use in medicine for procedures like endoscopy.
The fibre-optic cables used in data centres currently carry information using light across large distances and at high speeds, but as distances increase, so do energy costs.
Microsoft explained that the new cables largely resolve this limitation.
“MicroLEDs can cover tens of meters, are more reliable than fibre optical cables fed by lasers, which are vulnerable to temperature changes and even dust; and use much less energy,” researchers said.
Doug Burger, technical fellow and corporate vice president at Microsoft Research, said that the breakthrough in the new cables “has the potential to change nearly every aspect of computing infrastructure.”
The company is planning to use the cables to deliver Azure cloud services “in the fastest and most efficient way.”
Microsoft is planning to combine the new microLED cables with another novel technology already in use, known as “Hollow Core Fibre” or HCF, developed in 2025.
Instead of carrying photons in the fibre, HCF carries signals in a hollow core, through air, which allows light to propagate even faster, decreasing latency and increasing speeds.
Microsoft said HCF delivers 47% faster data transmission and around 33% lower latency compared to conventional single-mode fibre over the same distance.
Microsoft partners in South Africa to benefit
Microsoft South Africa launched enterprise-grade data centres in Johannesburg and Cape Town in 2020, and has since seen a surge in Azure adoption across the country.
Cloud computing would quickly become essential for South African companies during subsequent hard lockdowns and disruptions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.
According to a 2022 survey from the International Data Corporation, 80% of local companies said that cloud-based solutions kept their operations alive during the height of the pandemic.
One of Microsoft Azure’s most notable South African partners is Vodacom, which offers Azure-based cloud and enterprise products to its own customers.
In 2024, Vodacom’s parent firm, Vodafone, signed a 10-year, $1.5 billion deal with Microsoft to bring AI and cloud services to more than 300 million businesses and public sector organisations across Africa and Europe.
“Vodafone will accelerate its cloud transformation by modernising its data centres on Microsoft Azure,” the company said.
Amid the deal, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella added, “Together with Vodafone, we will apply the latest cloud and AI technology to enhance the customer experience of hundreds of millions of people and businesses across Africa.”
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