Mapping the Future of Ethernet

In 2013, the Ethernet world was a mess. Too many speeds, too many acronyms and way too much confusion.

Bob Metcalfe, Ethernet’s founding father, was talking about Terabit Ethernet, and insiders were tossing around terms like 200 Gigabit Ethernet, 400GbE, 2.5GbE, 25GbE and 50GbE like confetti. Meanwhile, most users hadn’t even seen 100GbE in the wild – let alone 10GbE. What was going on?

As president of the Ethernet Alliance, I wanted to cut through the noise. We needed a way to show people not just where Ethernet had been, but where it was going—a roadmap.

Yes, an actual roadmap—not a jargon-filled white paper but a big, beautifully designed poster that people could hold, hang and actually understand – even if they couldn’t refold it.

I hike a lot. I know maps. I’ve made posters. So I pitched the idea: Let’s build a physical map of Ethernet’s future. The result? The 2015 Ethernet Roadmap—an 18-inch-by-24-inch visual journey from 10MbE in 1983 to the terabit dreams of tomorrow.

The road winds from low speeds at the base to blazing fast links at the top. The foundation—100MbE in 1995, GbE in 1998—was familiar territory. From there, we guided people into the bandwidth-hungry world of hyperscale data centers and Internet exchange points.

The roadmap made one thing clear: Terabit Ethernet wasn’t just coming; it was going to take time, standards and serious industry collaboration.

That’s where the roadmap came in. It didn’t just show speeds; it showed applications, interfaces, form factors, PMDs (don’t ask) and how they all fit together. With three square feet on the front and three on the back, there was ample room to pack in timelines, market drivers and technical context. It was chock-full of insight, and people loved it.

What surprised us wasn’t just how many people took interest but who. Analysts, engineers and journalists alike understood it. My press assistant, Melissa Power, said it best: “Everybody gets it. That never happens.”

We made the graphics freely available. They went viral. We saw the roadmap hanging in cubicles, presented in slide decks and used at conferences around the world. It became the centerpiece of our Ethernet Alliance tradeshows and a rallying point for the entire ecosystem.

People love a good map—especially when the terrain is unknown. The roadmap helped us show that Ethernet’s journey wasn’t over. In fact, it was just getting started.

And if someone thinks they can draw a better future? Great. We’ll add it to next year’s roadmap.

Ten years later, the roadmap is still educating and guiding the industry. Long live the Ethernet Alliance Ethernet Roadmap.