Cailabs raises €26 million to push laser-based communications from lab to field

Cailabs, a Rennes based deep-tech company that develops photonic solutions, announced a €26 million Series C funding round on 12 January 2023. The company says the new capital will support rapid expansion of its laser communications business and the industrialisation of optical ground stations. The round was led by Luxembourg growth investor NewSpace Capital and included participation from existing backers such as Definvest, Starquest, Innovacom, Safran Corporate Venture and Crédit Agricole Ille et Vilaine Expansion.

What Cailabs makes and claims

Cailabs develops hardware and subsystems that shape laser light to serve applications across industrial processing, telecommunications and defence. Its offering covers terminal subsystems for space optical communications, optical ground station design, and beam shaping components used in manufacturing and sensing. The company highlights a portfolio of patent families and says it has demonstrated its laser communication terminals in the presence of strong atmospheric turbulence and secured early adopter validation.

Cailabs positions its core IP around beam shaping technology. The company says this approach lets it consolidate terminal subsystems and mitigate turbulence effects sufficiently to operate on the ground. Executives add that the technology can be packaged into products suitable for ground stations and for platforms that operate below the stratosphere such as drones, aircraft and ships.

Funding round and investors

How the company plans to use the money

Cailabs says the immediate use of proceeds will be to recruit 26 employees across technical, commercial and operational functions and to accelerate its product roadmap for optical ground stations and other optical terminals. The company intends to industrialise its laser communication terminal so it can be integrated into ground stations and into mobile platforms such as drones, aircraft, ships and other vehicles operating below the stratosphere.

Context: why laser links are getting attention

Cailabs frames its development as a response to limits in radio frequency networks. As the number of satellites grows, spectrum becomes more crowded and bandwidth hungry applications multiply. Optical links promise higher throughput and harder to intercept transmissions which are appealing for broadband and secure communications.

The emergence of large low Earth orbit satellite constellations and growing demand for space to ground bandwidth is driving investment in ground segment infrastructure. Investors such as NewSpace Capital have been active in growth stage companies that provide components and systems for the new space economy.

Quote from the CEO

Jean-François Morizur, co founder and CEO of Cailabs said that the investment provides resources to solidify the company leadership in optical communication through the atmosphere. He added that as more satellites are launched radio spectrum becomes more crowded and optical communication is required to deliver the promises of the new space era. He also set out immediate plans to hire staff and accelerate development of cutting edge optical ground stations and other optical terminals.

Critical considerations and risks

Claims of having demonstrated performance 'through strong turbulence' and of early adopter validation are important but need independent, reproducible field data to be fully persuasive. Free space optical links can be severely degraded by clouds, precipitation and atmospheric aerosols. That means networks based on laser links require either dense ground station networks in favourable climates or hybrid architectures that can fall back to radio frequency links.

Scaling from laboratory prototypes and small numbers of demonstrations to industrialised products deployed worldwide presents supply chain and manufacturing challenges. Integration into mobile platforms adds requirements for ruggedisation, alignment and thermal stability that are non trivial.

Market adoption will also depend on standardisation and interoperability across satellite operators and ground station providers. Regulatory frameworks for space communications remain more developed for radio frequencies than for optical links which could slow cross border deployment. Competition in this space is growing so successful scaling will depend on cost per bit, reliability and system level partnerships.

What this means for the European innovation ecosystem

Cailabs is an example of European deep tech that has attracted both public and private capital to bridge the so called valley of death between lab prototypes and commercial products. EIC involvement is consistent with EU policy that aims to retain capabilities in strategic technologies and reduce reliance on non European suppliers for critical space and telecom infrastructure.

Public investors such as Definvest link defence priorities with industrial policy and risk tolerant funding. Corporate venturing by groups like Safran signals interest from established aerospace suppliers in optical communications. For the sector to scale in Europe, companies will need not only funding but coordinated demand signals from satellite operators, ground segment integrators and public procurement in fields such as defence and science.

Conclusion

The €26 million round gives Cailabs additional runway to industrialise its beam shaping based terminals and to expand its optical ground station business. The raise illustrates investor appetite for components of the emerging optical space economy. The technical promise is clear but deployment challenges remain. Observers should watch for independent field performance data, customer win rates and the company ability to ship industrial grade hardware at scale.

Funding and timeline summary