---

The Molex Teramount deal gives Molex control of a Jerusalem-based silicon photonics packaging specialist at a time when AI data centres are pushing optical links closer to processors and switch ASICs. Molex has confirmed the completion of its acquisition of Teramount Ltd., adding detachable fibre-to-chip connectivity for high-volume co-packaged optics (CPO) and other silicon photonics systems.

Teramount develops passive-alignment optical coupling technology intended to connect optical fibres to silicon photonics chips without the handling and alignment penalties that can complicate production. Its TeraVERSE platform is based on a universal photonic coupler and wafer-level self-aligning optics, giving Molex a field-serviceable interface between fibre and chip-level photonics.

Molex Teramount deal strengthens the CPO stack

CPO is intended to move optical interfaces closer to the high-speed silicon that is generating or switching the data. The argument is straightforward: shorter electrical paths can reduce loss and power consumption, while optical links can carry bandwidth across dense AI and cloud systems more efficiently than long copper traces or front-panel-only optics.

For Molex, the acquisition fills a packaging and serviceability gap in that stack. The company said Teramount will continue as a design and engineering hub in Jerusalem, supported by Molex’s global optical capabilities, and will become part of the Optical Connectivity segment within Molex’s Optical Solutions Business.

AI data centres push optics closer to silicon

The move also fits Molex’s broader push into AI infrastructure interconnects. As previously reported by eeNews Europe when Molex introduced co-packaged copper solutions, hyperscale systems are forcing connector and cable makers to attack signal integrity, reach and power at the package and board level, not only at the rack edge.

The market direction is not limited to Molex. In a separate report, eeNews Europe noted that AI is driving photonics innovation, with LightCounting forecasting CPO revenue of more than $9 billion by 2030 and a sharp rise in silicon photonics content in data centre optics.

Industry publication OPN has reported that TeraVERSE supports assembly tolerances of more than ±30 µm / 0.5 dB for attaching fibre to a silicon photonics chip. That kind of tolerance is important because manufacturability, not only link speed, is one of the obstacles to moving CPO beyond early deployments.

Deal terms not disclosed

Molex did not disclose the financial terms of the transaction. Israeli technology outlet CTech reported in April that the acquisition was valued at approximately $430 million. CTech also reported that Teramount was founded in 2015 by Hesham Taha and Abraham Israel, and that the company had raised $58 million since inception, including a $50 million Series A round in 2025 led by Koch Disruptive Technologies.

The Molex Teramount deal therefore looks less like a simple portfolio add-on than a move to internalise one of the practical building blocks for high-volume CPO. The immediate technical question is how quickly Molex can turn Teramount’s coupling technology into manufacturable, repeatable products for AI clusters, hyperscale cloud systems and future silicon photonics platforms.

---

---