Amazon has signed a multi-year, multi-billion-dollar fibre-optic supply deal with Corning to meet demand for next-generation AI data centres.

IT outlet TechRadar reported on Saturday that the deal aims to secure a long-term fibre-optic supply chain needed for Amazon data centres.

Under the agreement, Corning will supply fibre optics tailored to Amazon’s data centre needs. The partnership is expected to expand jobs in manufacturing and construction, and is also likely to affect an expansion of Catawba Valley Community College’s programme to train fibre-optic technicians.

Corning is one of the world’s largest fibre-optic manufacturers. It is a U.S. company and is considered a suitable partner for expanding AI data centre infrastructure because it has advanced fibre-optic technology. Corning shares are up 94.72 percent so far this year.

Amazon has already decided to invest $10 billion, or about 15 trillion won, to build cloud infrastructure in North Carolina. Amazon said its cumulative investment in the area has exceeded $20 billion, or about 30 trillion won, creating 26,000 jobs.

The deal also aligns with a random network graph architecture strategy recently unveiled by Amazon Web Services. The design places cables in a semi-random way to improve bandwidth and stability between servers. It also sharply increases demand for fibre-optic cables and connections. The reason is that as large AI models and data centres scale up, securing stable bandwidth becomes more important.

AWS Chief Executive Matt Garman (맷 가먼) said the deal would create 1,000 new jobs at Corning facilities near Amazon’s data centres. He also said the company plans to provide high-skilled job training for North Carolina residents in fibre optics and fusion splicing.

Not only Amazon but other big tech companies are also accelerating investment in optical communications infrastructure. Nvidia supported the construction of three new Corning optical equipment production facilities and invested up to $3.2 billion, or about 4.82 trillion won, in Corning shares to help raise funds to expand U.S. optical interconnect manufacturing capacity by 10 times.