The Innovative Optical and Wireless Network (IOWN) Global Forum has just celebrated the fifth anniversary of its founding.

By now, you may be aware of the three foundational advantages of IOWN:

But did you know what key breakthrough made the IOWN initiative possible?

The Breakthrough

The technological foundation for IOWN was laid down in 2019, when NTT announced a huge step forward in photonics-electronics convergence technology. As detailed in the recently published "The Identity of IOWN," NTT was able to develop the world's first ultra-low-power optical modulator and transistor through the use of photonic crystal structures. The new devices made possible a shift from electrical to optical signals not only in networks, but also between and within chips. This then allowed the creation of an All-Photonics Network (APN) and laid the groundwork for future optical computing.

Optical Computing

Although the concept of using light instead of electricity in computing dates back to the 1960s, technical challenges, notably when it came to device size and energy usage, made it impractical for decades. What NTT accomplished in 2019 can be seen as the first realistic step toward fully optical networks and systems.

As NTT were able to show in their 2019 paper to the British scientific journal Nature Photonics, the 94% reduction in power consumption they achieved came through the development of ultra-thin, membrane-type photonic devices that could be integrated into systems while only using a small fraction of the power of earlier technologies.

Becoming a Global Standard

But while NTT brought the concept of IOWN to life, it was clear that the initiative was too vast for any one company to realize alone. Remembering the way in which the popular i-mode wireless internet service became an isolated, Japan-only standard twenty years earlier, NTT knew that international partners were vital to helping IOWN gain traction globally. That understanding led to the founding of the IOWN Global Forum just seven months after the initial paper, in January 2020, in collaboration with founding partners Intel and Sony (now the Sony Group).

A Partnership of Equals

Based in the United States to ensure broad global participation, the Forum works to promote cross-industry cooperation to bring the IOWN vision to life. From humble beginnings, it has grown over the past five years to now feature members including Microsoft, Orange, Intel, Samsung, NVIDIA, Chunghwa Telecom, Cisco, Nokia, Oracle, KDDI, and many others. From an initial goal of five member companies in the first year and thirty by the second, it actually reached thirty-nine in year one and eighty-eight in year two. By April 2025, over 160 organizations had joined. The Forum also works with national research institutions and leading universities, such as the University of Tokyo and Tohoku University.

Members represent a wide range of sectors, including telecommunications, semiconductors, software, data centers, finance, transportation, chemistry, and broadcasting. The Global Forum believes that achieving scale is vital to the future of the IOWN initiative. Even with the best technology, success depends on wide adoption. A diverse, global membership allows the Forum to support knowledge sharing, reduce development costs, and promote standardization.

Although NTT continues to play a key role, such as with their work toward commercializing PEC-3, a chip-to-chip optical link, by 2029, the Forum is designed to be much more than a showcase for the company's technologies. It is a shared global effort.

Just the Beginning

This year, the IOWN Global Forum proudly marked its fifth anniversary at Ericsson's headquarters in Stockholm. The event was attended by members, the public, and the press, and showed just how far the initiative has come. Realizing the full potential of IOWN requires a partnership that is international, open, and inclusive. Through the Forum, IOWN is positioned to reach the world.

Unlimited Innovation for a Global Sustainable Society by IOWN

Daniel O'Connor

Daniel O'Connor joined the NTT Group in 1999 when he began work as the Public Relations Manager of NTT Europe. While in London, he liaised with the local press, created the company's intranet site, wrote technical copy for industry magazines and managed exhibition stands from initial design to finished displays.

Later seconded to the headquarters of NTT Communications in Tokyo, he contributed to the company's first-ever winning of global telecoms awards and the digitalisation of internal company information exchange.

Since 2015 Daniel has created content for the Group's Global Leadership Institute, the One NTT Network and is currently working with NTT R&D teams to grow public understanding of the cutting-edge research undertaken by the NTT Group.