INNOVACOM reinvests in CAILABS as part of a €26 MILLION fund-raising initiative targeting leadership in the optical ground station market
8 December 2022
press release
Paris, 8 December 2022 – Innovacom, which acquired a stake in Cailabs in 2013 during the company’s seed funding stage, is participating in the new funding round launched by the specialist in innovative photonic solutions with a view to supporting the rapid expansion of its laser communications and optical ground station activities.
With the space sector in the midst of a veritable revolution, this new fund-raising initiative led by NewSpace Capital (NSC) with the support of the European Innovation Council (EIC) fund and other existing investors, is intended to further the company’s growth and ascension to the forefront of its market.
Dedicated to supporting innovative tech start-ups that stand out as trailblazers in the environmental, economic and industrial transition, Innovacom is increasing its equity investment in Cailabs by participating, through its Avenir Numérique fund, in the start-up’s new €26 million funding round.
Created in 2013, Cailabs designs, manufactures and develops innovative photonic solutions for the space, industrial, telecommunications and defence sectors. Its success is grounded in a mix of unique optical technologies developed by Cailabs, as well as its team’s proven experience.
Considering the veritable revolution at work in the space sector, with the number of satellites in orbit expected to surpass 100,000 in 2030, laser communications will have to develop significantly to guarantee Earth-space links in spite of the saturation of radio frequencies.
The innovative optical ground station developed by Cailabs was born from the expertise gained through the development of its previous lines of optical products. Incorporating unique atmospheric turbulence compensation technology designed by Cailabs, this ground station opens the door to high-speed, reliable and affordable Earth-space links.
This new funding round is intended to support rapid international business growth for the company.
“We are very proud to see how far of Cailabs has come. The company’s achievements and prominence among the most innovative players in the space sector prove that supporting fundamental research projects can lead to true industrial success stories. As Cailabs looks to the future, we are very pleased to offer our continued guidance”.
said Frédéric Humbert, Partner at Innovacom.
“We appreciate Innovacom’s encouragement over the years, as well as this new expression of confidence. With their continued backing and support, we intend to position Cailabs as a leader on the optical ground station market”, added Jean-François Morizur, co-founder and CEO of Cailabs.
about CAILabs
Created in June 2013, spin-off of the Kastler Brossel Laboratory, CAILabs has developed an innovative technology for processing light beams. Since 2014, it has been marketing innovative products that increase the throughput of optical fibres. In 2015, the Japanese operator KDDI set the world record for optical fibre throughput using CAILabs components, and in 2016 the AROONA solution for LAN optical fibres won numerous innovation awards, including the Huawei Digital-In-Pulse prize. The solutions designed and developed by CAILabs have the potential to reach many other industrial sectors such as aeronautics or additive manufacturing with dedicated applications.
