ACC-MSA Completes First Industry Plug Fest, Demonstrating Multi-Vendor Active Copper Cable Interoperability at 200 Gbps Per Lane

Successful event validates interoperability across cable, semiconductor, switch and test equipment vendors as consortium membership continues to expand

SAN JOSE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--OCP GLOBAL SUMMIT – The Active Copper Cable Multi-Source Agreement (ACC-MSA) group, an industry consortium dedicated to advancing interoperable linear Active Copper Cable (ACC) solutions, today announced the successful completion of its first interoperability tests with industry participants. The event brought together nine participating companies and validated interoperability among multiple cable manufacturers, semiconductor suppliers, switches and test equipment platforms. The achievement marks an important milestone in the development of an open, multi-vendor ecosystem for next-generation copper connectivity.

Linear equalizer-based ACC technologies offer significantly lower power consumption, latency and cost as compared to retimed DSP-based active cable solutions and optical solutions in 200Gbps per lane applications. The ACC-MSA supports broad industry adoption by defining interoperability requirements and specifications ensuring multi-source interoperability across networking equipment and copper cable solutions to support the rapidly growing demands of AI, cloud and high-performance computing infrastructure. Co-chaired by MACOM and Semtech, founding members are AMD, Amphenol, Broadcom, Celestica, Ciena, Cisco, Dell Technologies, Google, HPE, Keysight Technologies, Luxshare Technologies, MACOM, Molex, Multilane, NVIDIA, Semtech, and TE Connectivity.

During the event, participants conducted extensive interoperability tests across a range of products and vendors. This event successfully demonstrated that 200G per lane ACC solutions based on ACC-MSA specifications can operate seamlessly in a multi-vendor environment, validating the consortium's approach to creating an open and interoperable ecosystem.

"The successful completion of our first plug fest represents a major milestone for the ACC-MSA and the broader industry," said Marek Tlalka, Co-Chair of the ACC-MSA and Vice President, High Performance Connectivity Product Marketing, MACOM. "Interoperability is fundamental to ecosystem growth. By bringing together cable manufacturers, semiconductor suppliers, networking companies and test equipment providers, we are demonstrating that a robust multi-vendor ACC ecosystem is both achievable and ready to support next-generation AI and data center deployments."

In addition to successful interoperability testing, the ACC-MSA continues to gain momentum across the industry. The consortium recently welcomed seven new member companies, further expanding its representation across the networking, semiconductor, connectivity, and infrastructure sectors. New members include: Accton, ACES, FIT (Foxconn Interconnect Technologies), Lintes, Marvell, TeraSignal, and Zhaolong Interconnect.

“ACCs continue to gain traction in the market as we welcome an expanding group of industry leaders to the consortium,” said Scott Schube, Co-Chair of the ACC-MSA and Vice President, Applications and Business Development, Signal Integrity Products at Semtech. “The addition of these new members strengthens our collective expertise and reinforces our shared commitment to advancing next-generation active copper cable technologies. Together, we are building a broader ecosystem that will accelerate innovation, interoperability, and adoption across the AI and data center markets.”

The continued growth of the consortium reflects increasing industry interest in ACC technology. As demand for AI infrastructure and high-speed networking continues to expand, broad participation from across the supply chain will help accelerate innovation, increase deployment flexibility and foster a thriving multi-vendor ecosystem.

The ACC-MSA plans to continue advancing its specifications, interoperability initiatives and ecosystem development efforts to support the widespread deployment of ACC technology across AI, cloud and high-performance computing environments.

Multiple ACC-MSA member companies will be showing live demonstrations of ACCs in various hardware applications at the OCP Global Summit in San Jose, CA from Oct. 12 – 15, 2026.

About the ACC-MSA

The ACC-MSA is an industry consortium dedicated to defining specifications for linear active copper cables and networking equipment. By enabling interoperability across multiple vendors, the ACC-MSA aims to reduce power, cost and latency while improving performance for high-speed copper interconnects. Founding members include leading companies in networking, semiconductors and cabling. Learn more at https://www.acc-msa.org.