Wave Photonics Secures £4.5m Funding for Light-Based Chips

UK startup Wave Photonics has recently announced a successful funding round, raising £4.5m ($5.8m) to further develop on-chip photonics designs for quantum technologies, sensors, and datacentre applications. This significant investment will play a crucial role in advancing the company's computational photonics design tools, aimed at reducing the time required to develop photonic devices on standard CMOS process technologies.

The primary goal of this funding is to facilitate the transition of Wave Photonics' technology from a research manufacturing line to a commercial foundry. The company is particularly focused on exploring frontier applications such as quantum technologies and biosensing, where photonics can make a significant impact. By commercializing their design tools, Wave Photonics aims to accelerate the adoption of photonics in various industries.

The seed round was led by prominent investors including the UK Innovation & Science Seed Fund and Cambridge Enterprise Ventures. Additional support came from Redstone QAI Quantum Fund, Kyra Ventures, Parkwalk's University of Cambridge Enterprise Fund IX (UCEF IX), and Deep Tech Labs. Wave Photonics has also secured grants from the EU's EIC fund and Innovate UK, bringing their total funding to an impressive £5.4m ($6.9m).

James Lee, the CEO of Wave Photonics, expressed his enthusiasm about the company's progress, stating, "The team has spent the past few years building and experimentally validating our design technology – it’s exciting to have the resources to begin deploying it to solve real industry problems." This funding will enable Wave Photonics to scale up its operations and drive innovation in the field of photonics.

Based in Cambridge, Wave Photonics is actively engaged in the development of quantum photonic integrated circuits (QPICs) as part of the Quantum Photonic Integrated Circuit PACkaging (QPICPAC) project. Collaborating with Alter Technology TUV NORD UK, Senko Advanced Components, the University of Southampton, and the University of Bristol, the company aims to revolutionize the packaging of photonic chips for applications in quantum computers, encryption systems, and sensors.