Japan tests world's fastest internet connection with 402Tbps: download speeds of 50TB/sec

Face it, we all want the fastest internet connection speed possible... downloading games in just milliseconds sounds like it'll never happen. But now, Japanese researchers have done it: hitting 400Tbps internet connectivity speeds, forming a new world record.

In a new report by Japan's National Institute of Information and Communications Technology, the team reported that they hit speed of a truly insane 402 Terabits per second (402Tbps). The previous records for internet connectivity speeds were breached in October 2023, with 321Tbps, and then back in March 2022, with 226Tbps. 402Tbps is a damn big leap in speeds, which is why they achieved a new world record.

402Tbps works out to an astonishing 50TB/sec download speeds, which no computer on the planet could handle, period. Most systems feature on-board 1GbE ethernet connectivity, allowing for 110MB/sec speeds, while 10GbE can usher in over 1TB/sec (1000MB/sec+). So even with 10GbE ethernet, you're not going to get anywhere near 50TB/sec, and even the fastest Gen5 SSDs are pushing 14GB/sec.

So your ethernet, router, and SSD are nowhere near capable of these speeds... which doesn't make these tests useless, but rather a new world record in internet connectivity speeds. 50TB/sec is enough to download even the biggest games -- like Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 which weighs in at 300GB+ -- in not just a single second, but literally milliseconds. Insanity.

Even the thought of enjoying ultra-fast 1Tbps internet feels out of this world, but 10Tbps... 100Tbps... let alone 402Tbps+ is pure insanity, and I can't wait to see what the future holds. We need upgrades across the board: I/O, SSDs, ethernet standards, and more before we can begin to think about enjoying those 400Tbps+ speeds. Wowzers.