AT&T has activated the first 400-gigabit optical connection carrying live internet traffic across the network for customers. This connection between Dallas and Atlanta is believed to be a first in the industry. This isn’t a proof of concept, but a significant upgrade to our production network, built on flexible, low-cost white box hardware.

To get a sense of just how big that pipe is, you could download all 70 episodes of Game of Thrones in high definition in less than 8 seconds over 400G.

‘’The move from a 100G interface to 400G is a milestone for the communications industry, because it means we can continue to stay ahead of the tsunami of data demand we’ve seen over the last decade-plus’’ said Andre Fuetsch, executive vice president and chief technology officer, AT&T. ‘’This accomplishment also speaks to the tremendously collaborative ecosystem we’ve helped foster with key innovators in optical technology, white box hardware, and software-defined networking. Ciena, UfiSpace, Broadcom have brought great ideas and technologies to bear to make 400G a reality.’’

5G is coming fast. We plan to have 5G nationwide in the first half of 2020. And we will begin deploying 400G across our network in 2020. We’ve been planning for this upgrade for a long time, so a large portion of the optical network equipment we’ve been installing over the last year or so can be upgraded to 400G with a simple software , making for a seamless transition.