MACOM Technology (MTSI)

RF + photonics semiconductors (MACOM) — RF/microwave + optical chips for data center + defense

AI exposure 27% — derived from reported segment revenue, not asserted.

Where it sits

Connectivity → Optical Components & Photonics · figures rebased to FQ3 FY2026, reported 2026-08-06

MACOM reports by END MARKET rather than by product, which is what makes this placement awkward. Industrial & Defense is the largest at 43% of revenue, so placement rule 2 read literally would file MACOM under analog ICs. But rule 1 says place by what a company makes, and MACOM makes the same RF, microwave and photonic silicon for all three of its markets. Data Center at 32% carries the 50G-to-1.6T optical franchise and the largest forward revenue, so the primary sits there. Resolved by hand against company data; both other legs are tagged secondary at full weight — see placementExceptions.json.

Also tagged: secondary in Silicon Layer → Analog, Logic & Mixed-Signal ICs; secondary in Connectivity → Wireless & Mobile Networks.

Reported segments

• Industrial & Defense (end-market) — 43% of revenue
• Data Center (end-market) — 32% of revenue
• Telecom (end-market) — 25% of revenue

RESOLVED (human + company data): general-purpose RF/microwave/photonic chip maker. B7 Defense STRIPPED (defense rivals are ADI/Qorvo/Skyworks = chip makers, not defense primes). Primary B3 OPTICAL — Data Center (50G-1.6T optics) is largest forward revenue (191mln vs 156 I&D by 2028E) + 21% CAGR + most AI-relevant. B1 Analog secondary (RF/microwave, larger today but declining share, 15% CAGR).

How the 27% is built

• Industrial & Defense (end-market) — 43% of revenue × 5% AI-driven (estimate). Estimate, unchanged. Radar, defense and industrial RF/microwave content has no AI-infrastructure linkage
• Data Center (end-market) — 32% of revenue × 75% AI-driven (estimate). Estimate. Raised from 65 because the FY2026 data-center growth outlook was raised from over 40% to over 60% with ~35% sequential growth guided, and management attributes it specifically to 800G and 1.6T optical connectivity, photodetectors and pluggable-module production — the interconnect layer of GPU clusters. MACOM…
• Telecom (end-market) — 25% of revenue × 5% AI-driven (estimate). Estimate, unchanged. Carrier/metro optical and wireless backhaul demand is largely independent of AI cluster buildouts

Investment read

Moat. Owned RF/microwave and InP photonic fabs — a scarce process asset behind the 1.6T optical ramp — plus design-locked defense and telecom sockets. Contested at the top end by Marvell's InP platform and Coherent, which is what keeps this narrow rather than wide.

Bottleneck / pricing power. Stronger than 'moderate': adjusted gross margin 59.7% in FQ3 2026 with FQ4 guided to 60.0-61.0%, and adjusted operating margin up 630bps YoY to 31.5% as fab utilization ramps. The owned-fab margin thesis is now delivered rather than promised.

Role in the AI stack. The RF/photonic-IC layer for optics + defense.

Connected companies

• Keysight Technologies (KEYS) — MTSI supplies: MACOM foundry PDKs (GaN/GaAs models) integrated into Keysight ADS design software — design partnership
• Analog Devices (ADI) — MTSI competes with: RF/microwave/analog chips — MACOM vs Analog Devices (per company competitor list)
• Marvell Technology (MRVL) — MTSI competes with: data-center optics driver/TIA rivalry — MACOM vs Marvell (Inphi), neck-and-neck in 400G+ analog front-end
• Credo Technology (CRDO) — MTSI competes with: adjacent data-center connectivity — MACOM (drivers/TIAs/lasers) vs Credo (AECs/retimers/SerDes); overlap mainly at optical-DSP margin
• Nokia (NOK) — MTSI supplies: optical/RF components (laser drivers, TIAs) into telecom transport equipment; Nokia not publicly named as a customer
• Coherent (COHR) — MTSI supplies: laser drivers / TIAs / lasers — component supplier into optical-module maker
• Lumentum Holdings (LITE) — MTSI supplies: laser drivers / TIAs / lasers — component supplier into optical-module maker
• Fabrinet (FN) — MTSI supplies: laser drivers / TIAs / lasers — component supplier into optical-module maker
• Microsoft (MSFT) — MTSI supplies: analog/photonic ICs inside optical modules and cables deployed in hyperscale DCs (indirect; no named Microsoft tie)
• Meta Platforms (META) — MTSI supplies: optical-module chips (TIAs/drivers/lasers) reaching Meta indirectly via module vendors; pair not publicly named
• Alphabet (GOOGL) — MTSI supplies: RF/optical components for GOOGL AI data centers
• Amazon (AMZN) — MTSI supplies: optical/RF chips reaching AMZN AI data centers indirectly via transceiver module makers
• Oracle (ORCL) — MTSI supplies: RF/optical chips reaching ORCL AI data centers indirectly via optical module makers
• CoreWeave (CRWV) — MTSI supplies: component-level optical/RF silicon reaching CRWV only via transceiver and system vendors

Others in Optical Components & Photonics

• Coherent (COHR)
• Lumentum Holdings (LITE)
• Corning (GLW)
• Credo Technology (CRDO)

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