Inside AI Servers: The Growing Role of High-Speed Cable Assemblies

AI servers are becoming more powerful and increasingly complex. A single system may integrate GPUs, CPUs, NVMe SSDs, PCIe switches, NICs and other high-speed components within a limited space.

As data rates continue to increase, internal cable assemblies are becoming an increasingly important part of server design.

High-Speed Connections Inside AI Servers

Internal cable assemblies are commonly used to connect different high-speed components, such as:

• PCIe switches and GPUs
• Motherboards and riser cards
• PCIe switches and NVMe storage
• NICs, DPUs and other I/O modules

Compared with long PCB traces, cables can provide greater flexibility for system layout and component placement.

However, at higher data rates, cable assemblies are no longer simply connections between two components. Their electrical performance can directly affect the overall signal path.

What Matters for High-Speed Cable Assemblies?

For AI servers and other high-performance computing systems, several factors need to be considered during cable design:

Impedance control – Maintaining the required differential impedance throughout the cable assembly.

Signal loss – Cable length, conductor design and connectors can all affect insertion loss.

Crosstalk and shielding – High-density server environments require proper cable construction to minimize interference.

Pair skew – Differential pairs need controlled length matching to maintain signal timing.

These factors become increasingly important for applications involving PCIe Gen5, Gen6 and other high-speed interconnects.

Customized Internal Cable Assemblies

Every AI server platform has different mechanical and electrical requirements. Cable length, connector type, pin assignment, routing direction and shielding may all need to be customized for a specific system.

We manufacture customized high-speed cable assemblies for AI servers and high-performance computing equipment, including:

• MCIO 38-pin cable assemblies
• MCIO 74-pin cable assemblies
• PCIe internal cables
• NVMe and storage interconnect cables

We can manufacture according to customer drawings, specifications and application requirements.

As AI servers continue to increase in computing density and bandwidth, internal high-speed interconnects will play an increasingly important role in overall system design. A properly designed cable assembly is not simply a connection—it is part of the complete high-speed signal path.