French startup Cailabs raises $8.8 million to develop optical communications systems for spacecrafts

Cailabs, the French photonics startup developing optical communications systems for spacecraft and other industries, has raised $8.8 million (€ 8 million) to rapidly develop its three main product lines at both an industrial and commercial level. The new funding was led a mix of venture capital firms and the French government. Other backers include the French Armed Forces Ministry and aerospace giant Safran’s venture capital arm, Safran Corporate Ventures, and previous investors Innovacom and Starquest Capital. To date, Cailabs has raised 16.6 million euros.

Founded in 2013, the Rennes, France-based Cailabs designs, manufactures and sells innovative optical components. The company also develops technology that controls the shape of light within optical fibers, enabling a thousandfold increase in data speeds. Bolstered by the confidence of its investors, Cailabs will also use the new funding to accelerate the industrial and commercial development of its three flagship products worldwide, and boost its integration projects and recruit new talent to strengthen its sales and technical teams.

“Cailabs implements unique technologies in the field of photonics, whose military applications are numerous and very promising. It was therefore essential that the Ministry of Defense takes part in this fundraising, via the fund Definvest operated with Bpifrance,” said Florence Parly, French Ministry of Defense, who visited the company earlier today.

Cailabs currently owns a range of disruptive technologies that are the subject of 19 patent families, Cailabs offers four product lines1 serving local networks, industry 4.0 and the aerospace and telecom industries.

“Cailabs has achieved commercial success in networks, and is now facing a massive global deployment challenge, in terms of both production and sales channels. With our Crédit Agricole Innovation and Territory (CAIT) fund, accompanied by its partners from the Crédit Agricole Group, UNEXO and Crédit Agricole Ille et Vilaine expansion, we are providing the company with the means to succeed in this challenge, while continuing to expand the product range of this unique technology platform,” says Julien Cristiani, Partner at Supernova Invest and Director of the CAIT Fund.

Strengthen its commercial presence in North America to boost the network infrastructure of its customers, including factories, military bases, hospitals, universities.
The signing of distribution agreements in 2019 provided Cailabs with an increased commercial presence and unprecedented logistics platform for its expansion projects in North America, where Cailabs made its first sales in 2018.