Explore Ciena's top innovations of 2024, including WaveLogic 6 Extreme, WaveRouter family expansion, and AI-driven network advancements.
As 2024 winds down, it’s the perfect time to look back and reflect on the year. Once again, Ciena has reached new technological milestones and pushed the laws of physics in the networking industry. With advancements in optical, routing, and software technologies that push the boundaries of performance, Ciena has continued to support customers with industry-first solutions.
Here’s a look at our top announcements and news from 2024.
WaveLogic 6 Extreme – 1.6T is here
The arrival of WaveLogicTM 6 Extreme (WL6e) in 2024 was a groundbreaking milestone for Ciena and the industry, delivering 1.6Tb/s coherent optics – an industry first. WL6e is pushing the boundaries of high-capacity networking and empowering cloud and telecom providers to address surging demand for connectivity while improving efficiency.
In 2024, a live field trial with Arelion kicked off a string of news that demonstrated WL6e’s capabilities. Trials and deployments with Telstra, Colt, euNetworks, One NZ, Verizon, Aqua Comms and KT soon followed and showed an array of benefits, global reach, and use cases for WL6e.
The Arelion and Ciena teams after the first 1.6T trial
Already in production and deployment within both the Waveserver and 6500 platforms, WL6e sets new standards for high-performance networking and lays the groundwork for future-proofing networks in the era of AI-driven demand. I’m excited to see what our teams will do with WL6e next.
Expanding the WaveRouter Family with WaveRouter-2 and WaveRouter-7
Building on the 2023 success of the WaveRouter-13, Ciena expanded our WaveRouterTM portfolio with two new coherent routing options—WaveRouter-2 and WaveRouter-7. These additions ensure greater flexibility for metro network operators navigating unique network convergence challenges.
WaveRouter Family: The previously introduced WaveRouter-13,
along with the new WaveRouter-2 and WaveRouter-7
Designed to offer IP-optical convergence with multiple capacity options, these platforms seamlessly scale to meet the demands of modern metro networks while lowering power, space, and cooling requirements. Whether it’s 12Tb/s housing for smaller applications or the robust 24Tb/s configuration, the WaveRouter family now provides tailored flexibility for every use case. Learn more about this dynamic product line on Ciena’s blog here.
Game-changer: 1.6T Coherent-Lite pluggable
September brought the unveiling of Ciena’s WaveLogicTM 6 Nano (WL6n) 1.6T Coherent-Lite pluggable, which is the first offering that brings coherent technology to data center applications. Powered by 3nm CMOS technology, this innovation supports short-reach interconnects, offering an ideal solution for data center campus applications.
Our team in the lab working on the WL6n 1.6T Coherent-Lite pluggable
What drives the need for this type of product? Well, as Ciena’s Helen Xenos explained this year, due to the massive growth in data center interconnects fueled by new AI architectures, new innovative approaches are needed to solve connectivity challenges within and around the data center. This optical innovation enables longer reach, higher capacity optical interconnects, and brings new levels of scale and flexibility for data center designs.
The critical role of AI in shaping tomorrow’s networks
Speaking of artificial intelligence (AI), one thing that was clear this year is that it is revolutionizing industries—networks included. Ciena dove deep into the relationship between AI and networking in our 2024 content series. From a global survey citing that 60% of Communication Service Provider (CSP) and IT engineers expect AI to improve operational efficiency by at least 40% to exploring AI applications in data centers, 2024 was a year where AI possibilities became tangible realities.
Ciena surveyed over 1,500 telecom and IT engineers across the globe about the impact of AI on network traffic growth, operations, and monetization.
Discover how AI unlocks smarter operations, advanced automation, and new revenue streams for CSPs here.
Introducing the Blue Planet Cloud Native Platform
April saw the launch of the Blue Planet Cloud Native Platform, the industry’s only cloud-native OSS. It unifies inventory, orchestration, and assurance applications, empowering CSPs to accelerate their digital transformation.
Blue Planet Cloud Native Platform
The platform’s Kubernetes-based architecture enables CSPs to fully embrace the cloud and AI to automate operations, cut costs, and develop new revenue streams. Already being deployed by pioneering customers globally, the Blue Planet Cloud Native Platform is modernizing OSS infrastructure for a cloud-first era.
Blue Planet momentum and new deployments
This year, Blue Planet achieved significant customer milestones, including deployments with Lumen Technologies, On Net Fibra Colombia, and TDC NET. These deployments are accelerating digital transformation and enabling smarter, automated networks worldwide.
These announcements demonstrate Blue Planet’s momentum in the market and how we are helping operators handle the next wave of digital demands.
Meet Ciena’s Navigator Network Control Suite
T
his year, we also unveiled Navigator Network Control Suite™. Although it isn’t a new product, it warranted a new name. Launched seven years ago as our Manage, Control and Plan (MCP) domain controller, it has provided hundreds of operators worldwide with a single point of control for network and service management, on a scalable, containerized, microservices-based platform. As customer adoption grew, so did the software’s intelligent multi-layer network control capabilities.
Ciena’s Rebecca Smith explained that Navigator NCS enables service providers to optimally operate their multi-layer networks so they can efficiently scale their infrastructure to support growing demand and embrace new business opportunities.
The Navigator NCS news didn’t stop there. We worked with BT Group Research later in the year to demonstrate the value of Navigator NCS’ simplified multi-vendor approach for management of Ciena coherent pluggables in third-party routers within converged networks. 2024 continued to show how Navigator NCS plays a critical role in our solutions.
A path to better broadband
Meeting today’s broadband demands while preparing for the long-term is no small feat. This year, we explored how operators can unlock the full potential of their access networks with Ciena’s broadband solution including, the uOLTs, ONUs, MCMS, vBNG, Navigator NCS and purpose-built routers. Our solution provides the flexibility and scalability operators need to deploy fiber-based broadband cost-effectively and sustainably, regardless of location. Learn more about how we’re laying the groundwork for lasting broadband advancements here.
Ciena’s Broadband Access Solution
Innovative Coherent Routing solutions
Our Coherent Routing solution has continued to lead the way for IP/Optical convergence. Now with over 130 global deployments, Ciena’s Coherent Routing brings together purpose-built routing, leading coherent optics, and intelligent, flexible photonics—all driven by our Navigator Network Control Suite, which enables the visibility and insights you need to optimize network performance and service levels across a multi-layer, multi-vendor environment.
This year, Ciena’s Rafael Francis explained how all the new capabilities we’ve brought to market provide network operators with the ultimate choice in converged networking to cost-effectively and sustainably satisfy network requirements.
Ciena’s Coherent Routing
Advancing networks in 2024 and beyond
This year, Ciena continued to show our commitment to driving innovation and helping our customers power the world’s most adaptive networks—enabling our customers to deliver richer, more connected experiences for all users. From achieving 1.6Tb/s breakthroughs to empowering AI-driven operations, 2024 was a year defined by significant progress.
Looking ahead, we’re excited to continue working with our valued customers and partners across the globe. Stay connected with us for the latest updates as we move into another exciting year!