Scala Data Centers in partnership with Lightera and Nokia completed Latin America’s first successful test of hollow core fiber (HCF) technology in what the companies claim is a game changer for the region’s AI development.

Unlike traditional optical fiber, which carries light through a solid glass core, HCF guides signals through an air-filled channel, reducing refraction and allowing data to move closer to the physical speed of light. The result: faster communication and improved energy efficiency.

According to the companies, HCF achieved a 32% latency reduction compared with conventional optical fiber.

“Enabling the first hollow core fiber test in the Americas … positions us at the frontier of what is physically possible in digital performance,” Scala Data Centers CTO Agostinho Villela explained.

The proof of concept took place at Scala’s Tamboré campus in São Paulo, the largest data center complex in the region. It used Lightera’s AccuCore HCF cable and Nokia’s 1830 PSI-M optical transport system powered by the PSE-6 photonic chipset.

The milestone marks a step forward for data center and AI infrastructure in Latin America, where demand for high-performance connectivity and AI capacity is rapidly increasing.

By pushing transmission speeds closer to the physical limits of light, HCF aims to expand the boundaries of current range limitations and provide connectivity between physically distant locations.

The partners say the test demonstrates how HCF could boost workloads that depend on ultra-low latency and high throughput, particularly for applications such as AI model training, financial trading, cloud computing, and gaming.

Nokia’s Felipe Leão, head of optical networks for Latin America, said the successful trial highlights Brazil’s growing role in next-generation infrastructure.

"This milestone demonstrates the critical role of collaboration across the digital ecosystem and underscores the importance of building transport networks capable of supporting next-generation AI workloads and future-proof scalability," Leão said.

Helio José Durigan, SVP for LatAm and EMEA at Lightera, described HCF as a “revolution for latency-sensitive workloads,” noting that the latency gain is equivalent to “São Paulo being digitally 32% closer to Vitória, Espírito Santo.”

The test covered short-range intra-campus connections of between 1.5 and 2.5 kilometers (approximately 0.93–1.55 miles), validating the technology for use between processing modules within the same data center complex.

Looking ahead, the partners plan to extend it to metro- and long-haul applications as range and manufacturing advances mature, with the goal of advancing Scala’s roadmap for an AI-optimized data center network.

Ultimately, the project will seek to expand Latin America’s data center and latency capabilities in the new age of AI. Following the proof of concept, Scala, Lightera, and Nokia plan phased deployments, moving from intra-site and intra-campus use toward full inter-campus connectivity.