Scientists say they've eliminated a major AI bottleneck — now they can process calculations 'at the speed of light'

An illustration of a brain in a futuristic, digital style.

Scientists have developed a foundational architecture for next-generation optical computing — using light rather than electricity to power chips — that could revolutionize how artificial intelligence (AI) models are trained and executed.

At the heart of large language models (LLMs) and those based on deep learning lies a weighted organization structure called a “tensor” that works like a filing cabinet with sticky notes indicating which drawers are the most used.