This innovative computer design utilizes light instead of electricity, effectively addressing limitations imposed by traditional electronic systems, as detailed in a pre-published study on arXiv.

At its core, the computer employs an optical implementation of a recurrent neural network, utilizing laser pulses for information processing and an optical cavity for memory and computation.

The proposed all-optical neural network performs all operations in the optical domain, eliminating the need for electronic components and enabling significantly faster processing speeds.

Researchers from the California Institute of Technology, NTT Research, and the University of Central Florida have developed a groundbreaking all-optical computer capable of exceeding clock speeds of 100 GHz, which could transform real-time data processing across various industries.

This research is particularly relevant as it tackles the stagnation of computer clock rates, which have plateaued around 5 GHz over the past two decades, limiting real-time processing capabilities.

Moreover, Moore's Law, which predicts the doubling of transistors on microprocessors every 18 months, is facing challenges due to physical limits in transistor size and performance plateau.

Future research aims to integrate this technology into compact systems using advanced materials like thin-film lithium niobate, although scaling it for consumer use presents challenges.

Potential applications for this technology include high-speed telecommunications, ultrafast imaging, and generative AI, which could enhance decision-making capabilities in autonomous vehicles.

Notably, the architecture has potential applications in generative artificial intelligence, capable of generating images without input optical signals by leveraging quantum fluctuations.

The development addresses the von Neumann bottleneck, which has historically limited data transfer speeds between computer memory and processors, thereby slowing the advancement of applications requiring ultra-fast processing.

The principle of Dennard scaling, which aimed to maintain efficiency through smaller transistors, has been hindered by increased power consumption from current leakage in smaller devices.

While the research is currently in the proof-of-concept stage, there is no clear path towards commercialization, as noted in their preprint available on arXiv.