Japan's new web velocity document makes as we speak's broadband look historic

Abstract

Japan set a brand new web velocity document at 1.02 petabits per second, about 127,500 GB/s.
The achievement is round 3 million instances sooner than the US common broadband velocity of 288 Mbps.
The NICT used a 19-core optical fiber cable to attain the document velocity, with a diameter of 0.125mm.

Over the previous 20 years, internet speeds have vastly improved because of advances in fiber expertise. Whereas gigabit web is changing into more common within the US, it nonetheless lags behind the speeds lately achieved by researchers in Japan.

In accordance with the Nationwide Institute of Data and Communications Know-how (NICT) in Japan, it has set a brand new world document for web velocity, reaching 1.02 petabits per second over a distance of 1,123 miles. That equals about 127,500 GB/s, and roughly the space between Chicago and Dallas. With that velocity, you possibly can obtain Netflix’s complete streaming library in only one second (by way of CNET). You’d additionally by no means have a problem downloading a 100GB online game ever once more.

Within the US, web velocity is often measured in megabits per second (Mbps). For those who convert Japan’s achievement, it equals roughly 1,020,000,000 Mbps. In accordance with Speedtest, the common mounted broadband web velocity within the US is round 288 Mbps. So, the velocity researchers in Japan have simply reached is greater than 3 million instances sooner.

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How did NICT researchers obtain this?

They used a 19-core optical fiber cable

Japan’s NICT achieved its new web velocity document by creating an optical fiber with 19 cores, built-in right into a cable measuring simply 0.125mm in diameter. This dimension is customary for fiber optic cables used globally, indicating potential for widespread adoption attributable to its compatibility with present community infrastructure, like undersea cables.

“The analysis of ultra-high-capacity transmission utilizing coupled 19-core optical fibers and superior optical amplification has enormously superior the event of expertise for the belief of high-capacity, long-distance optical communication infrastructure sooner or later,” the NICT report states.

This is not the primary time the NICT has damaged a document both. Final 12 months, it shattered the web velocity document with a velocity of fifty,250 GB/s. Now in 2025, it has damaged its document by over double.

With the worldwide demand for increased web bandwidth rising — particularly for cloud storage, AI, and high-quality streaming — the NICT’s breakthrough marks a significant step in addressing the rising want for extra bandwidth. In accordance with Nielsen’s Law, world bandwidth calls for have elevated by 50 % yearly since 1983, indicating that in the future, 1.02 petabits per second could also be wanted.