Abstract: The present disclosure generally relates to improving the efficiency of a network switching fabric. Some aspects of the present disclosure relate to an apparatus that includes: multiple ports configured to interface with multiple hardware accelerators; multiple multiplexers configured to communicate with the ports via multiple input channels; multiple demultiplexers configured to communicate with the ports via multiple output channels; a first router coupled to the multiplexers and the demultiplexers via a set of header channels, the first router configured to route header portions of one or more messages; and a second router coupled to the multiplexers and the demultiplexers via a set of data channels, the second router configured to route data portions of the one or more messages.