Astera Labs to Acquire aiXscale Photonics

Deal is expected to help enable scale-up photonic chiplets in AI Infrastructure 2.0 and accelerate Astera Labs’ deployment of rack-scale solutions

SAN JOSE, Calif.—October 22, 2025—Astera Labs, Inc. (Nasdaq: ALAB), a leader in semiconductor-based connectivity solutions for rack-scale AI infrastructure, today announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire aiXscale Photonics GmbH. The acquisition is expected to help enable Astera Labs to develop photonic scale-up solutions by combining aiXscale’s fiber-chip coupling technologies with Astera Labs’ connectivity and signal processing portfolio. The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions.

The evolution to AI Infrastructure 2.0 demands scale-up connectivity solutions that meet aggressive speed, power, and reliability requirements while facilitating high volume, rack-scale integration. As the AI industry prepares for the next wave of infrastructure requirements, optical connectivity is critical to supporting the massive bandwidth needs of scale-up systems with hundreds of AI accelerators. Photonic chiplets represent one of the key enabling technologies to deliver the performance and efficiency required for advanced AI infrastructure.

“The transition to AI Infrastructure 2.0 demands purpose-built optical solutions that can handle the complexity and capacity needs of future scale-up networks,” said Sanjay Gajendra, COO and president of Astera Labs. “This acquisition will bring critical talent and advanced photonic technology that, when combined with our fabric switch and signal conditioning expertise, will unleash the full potential of rack-scale AI deployments.”

“Our optical I/O precision glass coupler technology has been developed specifically to solve the key challenge of efficiently coupling light between photonic integrated circuits and optical fibers in high-density applications,” said Jeremy Witzens, CEO and co-founder of aiXscale Photonics.

“Joining Astera Labs will allow us to deploy and scale this technology as part of a comprehensive photonic solution that will help define the future of AI infrastructure connectivity,” said Florian Merget, co-founder of aiXscale Photonics.

About Astera Labs

Astera Labs (NASDAQ: ALAB) provides rack-scale AI infrastructure through purpose-built connectivity solutions grounded in open standards. By collaborating with hyperscalers and ecosystem partners, Astera Labs enables organizations to unlock the full potential of modern AI. Astera Labs’ Intelligent Connectivity Platform integrates CXL®, Ethernet, PCIe®, and UALink™ semiconductor-based technologies with the company’s COSMOS software suite to unify diverse components into cohesive, flexible systems that deliver end-to-end scale-up, and scale-out connectivity. Discover more at www.asteralabs.com.