CAILabs, Université Pierre et Marie Curie
The Problem: Our ever-rising use of the Internet is putting pressure on optical networks, with demand for bandwidth growing at 20 to 90 per cent a year. For cloud applications to grow, we need new ways to get more data down optical fibres.
The Answer: CAILabs uses ‘multi-plane light conversion’ technologies, protected by three patent families, to design optical components that manipulate the shape of coherent light, allowing optical fibres using the technology to carry more data. With its technology, CAILabs helped Japan’s KDDI, the country’s second biggest telecoms firm, break the world record for fibre capacity, as reported this year.
The Company: The two-year-old French company is a 14-person start-up currently selling optical components to the R&D labs of major phone companies. It is preparing to expand its reach with the launch of a local area network solution for wider use. CAILabs raised €1.1 million in a first-round of venture capital funding in late 2013, and a further €450,000 at the start of 2015. Another round is planned later this year. The CEO is founder-inventor Jean-Francois Morizur.
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