As demand for ultra-fast data processing in AI data centers grows, optical communication and optical semiconductor-related stocks are rallying across the board in the Korean stock market. With the performance competition among GPUs and AI accelerators expanding beyond simple computing power to data transmission speed and power efficiency, 'light-based infrastructure' such as optical fibers, optical devices, and silicon photonics has emerged as a new market theme.

Afternoon Stock Price Trends on the 10th

In the afternoon session on the 10th, Daehan Photonic traded at 13,470 won, up 17.54%. It showed strong volatility, reaching as high as 14,220 won during the session, with a trading volume of 37,928,095 shares. Optoelectronics also rose 12.55% to 8,790 won. It soared to 9,640 won intraday, recording a trading volume of 15,438,064 shares.

This upward trend spread across the entire optical communication and optical semiconductor sector. Bit Ssam Electronics traded at 8,550 won (+6.21%), and Seoul Semiconductor at 9,500 won (+6.15%). RF Materials surged 29.27% to 45,050 won, approaching the price limit, while Korea Advanced Materials rose 0.17% to 3,025 won. RFHIC (53,000 won, +9.39%), Seoul Biosys (6,800 won, +12.40%), TNC (14,020 won, +5.18%), FiberPro (13,850 won, +14.18%), and Jaram Technology (21,900 won, +6.83%) also all showed strength.

'From Copper to Light'… Paradigm Shift in AI Infrastructure

Behind this trend lies a structural transformation in AI data centers. In large-scale AI servers, numerous GPUs and AI accelerators must exchange data simultaneously, and as system scale grows, the existing copper-based electrical interconnect method exacerbates power consumption, heat generation, and data transmission bottleneck issues. Consequently, optical communication technology, which transmits data via light rather than electrical signals, is gaining attention as the core of next-generation AI infrastructure.

Market interest is expanding beyond simple optical cables to 'silicon photonics' and CPO (Co-Packaged Optics). Silicon photonics is a technology that combines optical functions—generating, transmitting, and modulating light—using semiconductor manufacturing processes with semiconductor chips. As AI data centers grow larger, the volume of data moving between servers and between GPUs increases explosively, and how quickly and efficiently this data can be transmitted with minimal power determines overall system performance. The shift from existing electrical connections to optical connections is progressing rapidly in the global data center industry, and it is forecast that the adoption of optical technology in data center interconnection networks will increase significantly going forward.

U.S. Policy Support Also Boosts the Optical Semiconductor Market

It has been reported that the U.S. government recently decided to provide $300 million in support for GlobalFoundries' silicon photonics R&D. This demonstrates the growing importance of optical semiconductor technology in the competition over AI data centers and next-generation semiconductor infrastructure. In the domestic stock market as well, the perspective on optical communication companies is broadening from traditional communication network build-out demand to AI data center infrastructure.

Daehan Photonic is a stock drawing interest linked to the expansion of large-scale communication network investments, given its business characteristics centered on optical fibers and optical cables. Expectations that the need for fiber optic-based network construction will expand in the long term due to the increase in data transmission volumes within and between data centers are influencing the entire sector. For optical semiconductor-related stocks such as Optoelectronics, a new growth theme of 'semiconductors that process light' is forming. As data transmission in AI servers shifts from copper-based electrical signals to optical signals, the importance of optical components such as light sources, photodetectors, optical modules, and optical semiconductors increases accordingly.

Investment Caveats: Theme Hype vs. Individual Performance

However, the fact that most related stocks surged significantly today warrants caution. Even if they fall under the same theme of optical communication or optical semiconductors, each company's business structure and revenue proportion directly tied to AI data centers differ. Industry growth expectations should not be equated with the actual performance of individual companies.

A key point to watch going forward is whether the expansion of AI data center investments translates into actual order increases for optical communication equipment, optical fibers, optical modules, and optical semiconductors. The commercialization speed of silicon photonics and CPO, data center investments by global big tech, and transitions in ultra-fast network standards are cited as the major variables that will determine the medium- to long-term trends of related stocks.

For the time being, the movements of optical communication and optical semiconductor-related stocks such as Daehan Photonic, Optoelectronics, Bitgwang Electronics, Bit Ssam Electronics, RF Materials, RFHIC, Seoul Semiconductor, Seoul Biosys, TNC, and FiberPro are likely to attract market attention. However, since quite a few of these stocks have seen significant short-term price movements, verifying company-specific fundamentals, including earnings and orders, is essential.

[This article is provided as reference material for investment decisions and does not recommend the purchase or sale of any specific stock. Stock investments may result in principal loss, and the final judgment and responsibility for investing lie with the investor. This article was written with AI assistance.]