Cisco Rolls Out 8223 Router with 51.2 Tbps, Powered by In-House Chip (www.techpowerup.com)

Cisco today launched the 8223, a 3RU fixed Ethernet router delivering 51.2 Tbps of throughput and powered by its new in-house Silicon One P200 ASIC — billed as the industry’s highest-density fixed routing system for AI data‑center interconnect. The system packs 64×800G ports, processes over 20 billion packets per second, and can scale to multi-exabit fabrics; it supports 800G coherent optics up to ~1,000 km, deep buffers to absorb massive AI training bursts, and line‑rate encryption with post‑quantum‑resilient algorithms. Cisco emphasizes power and space efficiency, P4-style programmability, and comprehensive observability and security to meet distributed AI workloads and tightening power constraints. For the AI/ML community this matters because cross‑data‑center bandwidth, buffering and low latency are critical bottlenecks for large‑scale training and multi‑site orchestration. The P200’s programmability and availability both as a fixed system and as deployable silicon for modular/disaggregated platforms promises architectural consistency for hyperscalers and enterprises, enabling protocol evolution without wholesale hardware rip‑and‑replace. Initial software support targets SONiC (with IOS XR, NX‑OS forthcoming), positioning the 8223 as a flexible, secure backbone for next‑generation DCI, cloud networking, and AI‑scale deployments.