The company behind Post-it notes has found an unlikely role in the AI buildout

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    "url": "https://www.cnbc.com/2026/07/21/3m-evolving-into-ai-play.html",
    "title": "The company behind Post-it notes has found an unlikely role in the AI buildout",
    "excerpt": "In this article The industrial conglomerate best known for Post-it notes and Scotch tape has found an unlikely role in the artificial intelligence buildout. 3M has developed a technology called expanded beam optical connectivity that helps hyperscalers deploy fiber-optic networks faster as more demanding AI workloads drive the shift away from traditional copper networking. \"It saves 85% of the installation time for hyperscalers,\" Brown said on CNBC's \" Mad Money \" Tuesday. \"Time is money for hyperscalers.\" Unlike traditional point-to-point fiber connections, 3M's technology spreads light across a wider surface before reconnecting it, making the connections more resistant to dust and vibrations that can disrupt data transmission. Brown said the company has built a significant competitive advantage, with \"100 patents in the space and another 50 pending.\" The technology recently cleared an important milestone after Microsoft certified it for use in its Azure data centers following several years of testing. Brown said 3M is also conducting trials with other hyperscalers while expanding manufacturing capacity. Cramer's Charitable Trust , the portfolio run by CNBC's Investing Club, owns shares of Microsoft. \"So we're building a business here,\" Brown said. \"I'm really excited.\" The expanded beam optical connectivity business remains a relatively small part of 3M's overall business...",
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    "image_url": "https://image.cnbcfm.com/api/v1/image/107293036-1693279131609-gettyimages-1336037507-vcg111344656561.jpeg?v=1768911438&w=1920&h=1080",
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    "recognition": "Certified for use in Azure data centers",
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