Flexcompute Launches PhotonForge Connector for Cadence Virtuoso Studio, Advancing Integrated Photonic Design Workflows for AI Data Centers

Flexcompute's PhotonForge Connector integrates GPU-accelerated multiphysics simulation directly into the Cadence Virtuoso Studio environment, enabling two-way photonic design workflows for AI data center infrastructure.

BOSTON, March 19, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Flexcompute, the physics company, announced the launch of the PhotonForge Connector for Cadence Virtuoso Studio, integrating its GPU-accelerated photonic simulation technology into the Cadence Electronic-Photonic Design Automation (EPDA) ecosystem. The connector enables engineers to move seamlessly between photonic layout and high-fidelity multiphysics simulation within a unified two-way workflow.

As AI computing continues to scale, data centers are facing growing communication bottlenecks. Electrical interconnects struggle to keep pace with the bandwidth and efficiency demands of large-scale workloads, driving the adoption of silicon photonics as a critical technology.

Designing these photonic devices requires accurate modeling of complex electromagnetic, thermal, and electrical interactions. Yet traditional workflows often require engineers to reconstruct device layouts inside simulation environments, slowing iteration cycles and introducing inconsistencies between design and analysis.

This integration removes this gap. Engineers can automatically convert device layouts into simulation-ready 3D models, run GPU-accelerated FDTD, mode, charge, and heat simulations, and return validated results to their Cadence design environment, all with native foundry process design kit (PDK) support. This two-way workflow enables teams to explore design variations faster, run parametric sweeps and optimization, and compute S-matrices while maintaining the physical accuracy required for photonic devices used in AI data centers.

"The industry's leading hyperscalers are heavily investing in co-packaged optics to address the growing I/O bandwidth demands of AI infrastructure," said Prashanta Kharel, PhD, Technology Strategist at Flexcompute. "Designing these systems requires solving extremely complex multiphysics problems, and GPU-accelerated simulation enables engineers to model and optimize these devices at the scale modern photonic systems require."

"The addition of Flexcompute to the Photonic Virtuoso Studio and Spectre Simulation ecosystem strengthens the capabilities available to our customers," said Gilles Lamant, distinguished engineer and Virtuoso platform architect at Cadence. "This collaboration allows designers to access advanced simulation features directly within their photonic workflows, improving both productivity and validation accuracy."

Flexcompute's photonic simulation technology is already used by leading photonics foundries and research institutions, including GlobalFoundries, Imec, AIM Photonics, and Fraunhofer HHI.

This development reflects Flexcompute's broader strategy to build an open engineering ecosystem where leading design platforms and advanced physics simulation work together. By collaborating with industry leaders like Cadence, Flexcompute is helping innovative companies push the boundaries of photonic device design and accelerate the technologies powering AI data center infrastructure.

Media Contact

Steve Defibaugh: [email protected]

SOURCE FlexCompute Inc.