James Anderson on data center
From Coherent | Six Five Media: Beyond the Numbers - Jim Anderson on Coherent’s Next Chapter · · Coherent Corp.
“The best way to add bandwidth in data centers is to use optical networking because photons can transmit data and provide bandwidth orders of magnitude greater than electrical connections. We believe there will be a transition to more optical interconnect links between computing nodes moving forward.”
On , James Anderson, Chief Executive Officer, President & Employee Director at COHERENT CORP, spoke about data center during Coherent | Six Five Media: Beyond the Numbers - Jim Anderson on Coherent’s Next Chapter on Coherent Corp..
About James Anderson
In a February 2025 interview, Coherent CEO Jim Anderson discussed the company's recent financial performance and its role in AI-driven data center growth. He stated that in the company's fiscal second quarter, revenue grew 6% sequentially and 27% year-over-year, with earnings per share increasing 40% sequentially and more than tripling year-over-year. Anderson attributed much of this growth to the data center business, which he said grew 80% year-over-year, driven by demand for optical transceivers that enable networking between computing nodes in AI workloads. He described Coherent's core competence as "harnessing the power of a photon" for three applications: transmitting data, using laser beams to change material properties, and measuring or sensing objects. Anderson also addressed the company's industrial business, which he characterized as a stable market serving semiconductor equipment, OLED screen manufacturing, and medical applications such as microscopes used in Alzheimer's research. He noted that nearly half of Coherent's business is industrial or industrial-related, and that innovations in that area can be applied to data communications, creating a "flywheel effect." Regarding company culture, Anderson said Coherent has a strong culture of innovation at a fundamental physical level, but that the company needs to improve its speed and agility in bringing innovations to market.