A letter from the chair: looking ahead to the rest of 2026 and beyond
Hello NoLimit community,
A warm welcome to all our new members, and my thanks to everyone who has contributed to our growth. The mission has not changed: establish the best Ethernet-based high-performance network for AI and HPC workloads. Together we are making real strides toward that goal, and with the first quarter behind us it is a good moment to look back at how far we have come and forward to what is coming.
Looking back
The past six months have been a period of remarkable growth. We began with a foundational vision and ten companies. Today the foundation counts more than 100 members representing a broad cross-section of the technology industry. That expansion is a testament to how important the mission is to the people wrestling with AI and HPC networking every day.
We made significant progress across the physical, link, transport, and software layers: new congestion management schemes, built-in security, and optimized packet delivery, all critical to the most intensive workloads in history. With more than 25 individual projects feeding the upcoming architecture release, we have shaped a finely tuned Ethernet stack that will serve as a solid foundation for everything that follows.
The momentum is undeniable, and it is a direct result of the working group chairs, draft authors, and volunteers. On behalf of the steering committee, thank you.
Looking ahead
- Release of the 1.0 architecture. Next month we will release the fully integrated 1.0 architecture to members, consolidating the individual drafts and laying the groundwork for real-world implementation. It is a key milestone and a reflection of the collaboration behind it.
- Compliance and performance. Alongside the release we will build a robust compliance program so vendors can validate products against the architecture, while continuing to refine performance and explore storage and management.
- Member-ready products. This year will see the first NoLimit-ready products from members. That is the moment this vision enters the mainstream, and it has been a long time coming.
- Member summit and events. A highlight of the year will be the NoLimit Member Summit, bringing collaborators together in person to review achievements, address challenges, and plan the rollout of 1.0. You will also find us at the major industry events; watch this site for dates.
The future of the foundation is bright. As always, our culture encourages collaboration, collegiality, and cross-pollination of ideas across the Ethernet ecosystem. I challenge each of you to help us reach these goals.
In closing
To everyone involved since the beginning, my deepest gratitude. Your work and dedication brought us here, and we are positioned for even greater things in the months ahead. Thank you for your continued support as we work together to make NoLimit the premier networking standard for AI and HPC.
Best regards,
Everett Caldwell
Chair, NoLimit Foundation