Generative AI demand pushed the data center Ethernet switch market to record levels in the first half of 2025, according to Crehan Research. Revenues and shipments each rose 25% year-over-year, fueled by rapid adoption of 800GbE switches. Crehan noted that 800GbE is scaling nearly 100 times faster than 400GbE, reshaping how hyperscalers and cloud providers build out AI clusters.
Arista emerged as the top vendor in the branded 800GbE segment, with shipments nearing a 3 million port annualized run rate in Q2 2025. H3C more than doubled its 400GbE shipments on strong demand from Chinese hyperscalers, surpassing 1 million ports in the quarter. Huawei nearly doubled its Ethernet switch revenue sequentially, driven by AI infrastructure and its CloudMatrix 384 AI system.
Crehan said generative AI is accelerating Ethernet adoption curves at unprecedented speeds, creating major quarter-to-quarter share shifts in the highest-performance switching tiers. This dynamic contrasts with prior Ethernet speed transitions, where deployments advanced more slowly.
• Data center Ethernet switch revenues and shipments each up 25% in 1H25
• Generative AI cited as the main driver of 800GbE adoption
• 800GbE adoption nearly 100x faster than 400GbE in branded deployments
• Arista leads 800GbE segment with ~3M port annualized run rate in Q2 2025
• H3C surpasses 1M 400GbE ports in Q2, fueled by China hyperscaler demand
• Huawei nearly doubles Ethernet switch revenue, ties growth to AI systems
“Generative AI has dramatically changed the ramps for new higher Ethernet speeds, driving much steeper and faster adoption curves,” said Seamus Crehan, president of Crehan Research.
🌐 Analysis: The shift to 800GbE highlights how AI workloads are disrupting the usual cadence of Ethernet upgrades, forcing hyperscalers to scale networking fabric far more aggressively than in previous cycles. Arista’s early lead in 800GbE cements its positioning in AI-driven infrastructure, while Chinese vendors H3C and Huawei are accelerating adoption domestically. Cisco, Juniper, and other Western players will need to keep pace as 1.6Tbps Ethernet moves onto roadmaps in 2026.
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