MaxLinear (MXL) Citi’s 2026 Global TMT Conference summary

Company overview and market positioning

• Focus has shifted to data center and infrastructure, now over 50% of revenues, with strong traction in optical and storage accelerators.

• Product mix is evolving, with 800G products now dominant and 1.6T ramping up for mid-next year, supported by new launches like Rushmore and Washington TIA.

• Technical differentiation includes lower power consumption and a broadened portfolio, with increased systems expertise and proximity to hyperscalers.

• Customer base is broad, with no single dominant client, and efforts to increase share among both data center and module customers.

• Market share aspirations target 20-25% within a few years, leveraging supply chain innovation and diversification, including a strategic move to Samsung for advanced nodes.

Growth drivers and product evolution

• Raised guidance for optical data center revenue due to market growth, increased share, and new customer wins, with visibility supported by strong order forecasts and long lead times.

• ASPs rise with each technology transition (400G to 800G to 1.6T and beyond), with higher value content in TIAs, drivers, and SerDes, especially as architectures evolve.

• Transition to NPO/CPO architectures is expected to increase product content and ASPs, offsetting any risk from reduced DSP reliance.

• Panther storage accelerator business is doubling annually, driven by CPU offload needs and new partnerships, notably with AMD, and is expected to continue strong growth.

• New products like retimers and next-gen solutions (Big Sky for 3.2T) are set to fuel growth through 2027 and 2028.

Supply chain and manufacturing strategy

• Maintains multiple foundry relationships for supply diversity, recently adding Samsung to reduce reliance on TSMC and secure advanced node capacity.

• Secures capacity through a mix of prepayments, letters of credit, and close technical collaboration with foundries to improve throughput.

• Strong, long-term foundry relationships and technical partnerships help ensure supply can scale with demand.