Communications equipment new orders rise 40% year over year amid AI infrastructure boom

The AI buildout has a hardware problem, and right now, hardware suppliers are very happy about it. New orders for US-manufactured communications equipment surged 43.1% year over year in July 2026, according to US Census Bureau data, pushing the year-to-date increase to 35% through the same month. The category covers the physical plumbing of the internet: high-speed optical networking gear, routers, and fiber optic components that move data at the scale AI workloads demand. What is actually driving the orders Industry research from Dell’Oro Group identifies AI-driven data centers as the primary catalyst for telecom equipment revenue growth, now outpacing investment in traditional 5G infrastructure. Global telecom equipment revenues grew 5% year over year in the first half of 2026, with nearly all of that growth attributable to AI data center connectivity. Core capital goods orders rose 3.3% in March 2026 alone. That was the largest single-month gain in that category since 2020. Computers and electronic products led the charge, reflecting AI infrastructure as the organizing principle behind corporate capital allocation. Company-level results confirm the macro picture Keysight Technol...