What DiCon Fiberoptics does

DiCon Fiberoptics is a privately held California photonics company founded in 1986 in Richmond, CA, that designs, manufactures, and markets MEMS-based all-optical fiber optic switching products. The company's underlying technology is a proprietary 3D MEMS platform that has been in continuous development since 1998 and underpins matrix switches ranging from 16x16 to 1024x1024 ports, plus a recently introduced Optical Circuit Switch (OCS) family for AI data centers and a general-purpose platform for photonic device test automation. The portfolio also includes component-level products such as MEMS 1xN switches, Variable Optical Attenuators, tunable and thin-film filters, tap detectors, and a Waveguide Optical Amplifier (WOA), as well as specialty solutions for laser/space communications, Photonic Doppler Velocimetry, quantum, and government/defense applications including MIL-SPEC Common Criteria-certified Secure Switching Units.

The company operates a hardware sales revenue model through direct enterprise sales to large organizations across three primary verticals: telecommunications operators (DWDM and data center interconnect), hyperscale AI data center operators (OCS for leaf-and-spine and AI server torus topologies), and government/defense (avionics-grade secure switching, notably the Boeing P-8A Poseidon program). Pricing is quote-based and not publicly disclosed, with engineering documentation distributed through the company website. The firm is led by founder Ho-Shang Lee (President and CEO), Chief Product Officer Jeff Lee, and VP of Business and Product Development Robert Schleicher; Ben Costello serves as Director of Microtechnology. The company has shipped hundreds of thousands of MEMS devices since 2000, is celebrating 40 years of operation in 2026, and plans to deliver more than 3,000 matrix switch units within calendar year 2026 to meet AI infrastructure demand.

Name

DiCon Fiberoptics

Legal name

DiCon Fiberoptics, Inc.

Website

https://diconfiberoptics.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1986

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

DiCon Fiberoptics designs and manufactures MEMS-based all-optical fiber optic switching systems and components, serving telecommunications operators, hyperscale AI data centers, and government/defense customers with matrix switches up to 1024x1024 ports, OCS products for AI workloads, and MIL-SPEC secure switching.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Richmond

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Optical Switching Systems and Components: Sale of MEMS-based fiber optic switching products including optical matrix switches, optical circuit switches, variable optical attenuators, tunable filters, and photonic device test automation systems. Products sold as hardware systems with varying port counts and configurations for enterprise and defense applications.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

DiCon Fiberoptics designs, manufactures, and markets MEMS-based all-optical fiber optic switches and photonic components. Its portfolio includes high-port-count optical matrix switching systems (OSS), optical circuit switches (OCS) for AI data centers, general-purpose photonic device test platforms (GP800/GP850), and discrete components such as 1xN switches, variable optical attenuators, tunable filters, tap detectors, and waveguide optical amplifiers.

Product overview

DiCon Fiberoptics is a California-based company (founded 1986) specializing in MEMS-based all-optical switching products. The portfolio consists of three main categories: (1) System-level optical switching platforms including OSS (Optical Switching System) for network management and cyber surveillance with configurations up to 1024x1024, OCS (Optical Circuit Switch) for AI data centers with 300x300 and 64x64 models, and GP800/GP850 for photonic device test automation; (2) Specialty solutions for laser/space communications, photonic Doppler velocimetry, and government/defense; (3) Component-level products including MEMS matrix switches, 1xN switches, variable optical attenuators, tunable filters, thin film filters, tap detectors, and Waveguide Optical Amplifiers. The company pioneered MEMS technology in fiber optics in 1998 and has shipped hundreds of thousands of MEMS devices since 2000. Applications span telecommunications, data centers, aerospace/defense, and quantum computing.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• OSS (Optical Switching System) All-optical matrix switching system for dynamic optical network management and cyber surveillance applications, available in configurations from 96x96 to 1024x1024 ports. Sold to telecom operators and government/defense customers.
• OCS (Optical Circuit Switch) Optical circuit switches designed for AI data centers and LLM training servers. Models include 300x300 and 64x64 configurations for leaf-and-spine networks and AI server torus connectivity.
• GP800/GP850 General Purpose Platform General purpose platforms for automating photonic device testing. Supports single-mode, multi-mode, and polarization-maintaining fiber configurations up to 72x72 matrix switches.
• Laser & Space Communications Solutions Specialty optical switching solutions designed for laser and space communications applications.
• Photonic Doppler Velocimetry (PDV) Solutions Optical switching solutions configured for photonic Doppler velocimetry measurements.
• Government & Defense Solutions (Secure Switching Unit) Military-spec, common criteria certified all-optical switching solutions for government and defense applications including avionics, used on Boeing P-8A Poseidon aircraft.
• MEMS Matrix Switch Modules MEMS-based fiber optic matrix switch modules supporting configurations from 8x8 to 32x32 ports for signal routing applications.
• MEMS 1xN Switch MEMS-based 1xN fiber optic switches for signal routing in telecommunications networks.
• Variable Optical Attenuators (VOA) MEMS variable optical attenuators for controlling optical signal power levels in fiber optic networks.
• Tunable Optical Filters Tunable optical filters for wavelength selection in fiber optic systems.
• Thin Film Filters Thin film filter components for Wavelength Division Multiplexing (WDM) applications.
• Tap Detectors Optical tap detectors for monitoring signal power in fiber optic networks.
• Waveguide Optical Amplifier (WOA) Waveguide-based optical amplifier alternative to EDFAs delivering more than 25 dB of gain with reduced ASE noise. Hermetically sealed 3.3mm package for optical communications, PICs, quantum computing, and military applications.

Named customers1 record

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• BoeingcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 18 April 2007DiCon Fiberoptics supplies Secure Switching Units to Boeing for the U.S. Navy's P-8A Poseidon aircraft program. The SSU is an avionics-grade, all-optical, military spec, common criteria certified switching solution for secure fiber optic signal routing. DiCon pursued AS9100 certification as part of the Boeing program. The Secure Switching Unit successfully participated in Boeing's first mission systems test flight on June 8th, 2010 in the T2 aircraft.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Cisco (Acacia Communications): Through Acacia, Cisco supplies coherent optical interconnect modules and high-speed transponders for DCI and AI networking — directly relevant to DiCon's hyperscaler and telecom customer base.
• Broadcom: Supplies optical/photonic ICs, transceivers and switch ASICs for hyperscale data centers and telecom — a key alternative supplier in the optical connectivity stack that DiCon's switches plug into.
• Ciena: Major systems vendor for optical transport, DWDM and DCI networks, integrating photonic line systems and high-port-count optical switches — overlapping with DiCon's OSS platform on telecom customer requirements.
• Molex: Large incumbent manufacturer of fiber optic interconnect products, transceivers and optical modules serving data center, telecom and enterprise customers — overlapping with DiCon's components business across fiber-optic interconnect and switching.

Direct peers

• Accelink Technologies: Chinese optical component and module manufacturer of WDM filters, switches and transceivers for telecom and datacom — overlapping product portfolio with DiCon's component line.
• Lumentum: Leading supplier of photonic devices for optical networks and datacom, including ROADMs, WDM components, lasers and high-speed transceivers used by telecom carriers and hyperscalers — a closely comparable component and module competitor.
• Calient Technologies: Specialist in MEMS-based 3D optical circuit switches for data center, telecom and AI workloads — directly competing with DiCon's OCS and OSS product lines on high-port-count all-optical switching.
• Coherent: Major diversified photonics manufacturer producing optical networking components, switches, transceivers and laser-based subsystems for telecom, datacom and AI infrastructure — overlapping directly with DiCon's optical switching and component portfolio.
• Fujitsu Optical Components: Manufactures optical components and modules including switches, amplifiers and transceivers for telecom and data center applications — closely comparable component-level peer.

Emerging players

• EFFECT Photonics: Emerging player in coherent optical transceivers and integrated photonic systems targeting DCI and 5G — adjacent to DiCon's WDM and OCS roadmap from a different technology angle.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/dicon-fiberoptics

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about DiCon Fiberoptics