For years, the optical interconnect inside the data centre, one of the smallest components in the stack, has been an outsized bottleneck. Every AI model, every hyperscale application, every server cluster ultimately depends on how efficiently data moves across machines. But, the industry standard pluggable transceiver, bulky and power-consuming, has barely evolved at the pace of cloud-scale expansion.
That mismatch is the starting point for Rohin Y and his team at LightSpeed Photonics, who are building what they call the first solderable optical transceiver, a component that is 20 times smaller and five times lower in power consumption than the conventional pluggable version. “We wanted to rethink the interconnect from first principles,” Rohin says. “Not shrink it, reinvent it.”
Their 400 Gbps transceiver, engineered to fit onto a motherboard like any ordinary chip, is being positioned as the “first and only” such product in the global market. Instead of embedding photonics inside the silicon, their architecture keeps it modular—simplifying manufacturing, lowering cost, and dramatically reducing time to market. “We’re a frugal alternative to silicon photonics,” Rohin says. “Others put optics inside the chip; we put it where it’s easier to scale.”
A Market Defined by AI and Power Constraints
The timing could not be more strategic. The world’s data centres, especially those powering AI clusters, are running into severe energy, cooling, and space constraints. Optical interconnects, though critical, are still expensive and cumbersome to integrate. With AI workloads expected to double power consumption every three to four years, the pitch for a smaller, lighter, cooler interconnect is resonating.
The global data centre interconnect market itself is projected to grow into a multi-billion-dollar opportunity, driven by hyperscalers racing to keep up with next-generation AI model demands. But, instead of chasing hyperscalers directly, the company is taking a practical route: OEM partnerships. That means working with players like Supermicro, Quanta, Dell, HP, and Juniper Networks, who already serve the major cloud providers.
“OEMs are the real gatekeepers of data centre hardware,” Rohin says. “If they approve you, the entire market opens.”
The company already has one pilot completed and two more in the pipeline, which will be executed with the fresh infusion of Series A capital.
Business Model
The business model is rooted in a simple, high-volume logic of becoming the go to optical interconnect component for OEMs. The solderable design eliminates custom packaging, reduces touchpoints, and allows the component to integrate directly into server motherboards or network cards.
Co-founder and CTO P V Ramana explained that Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser (VCSEL)–based optical interconnects now command over half of data centre deployments because they consume less energy and are cost-effective.
He added that when these components are packaged as compact, solderable units, they can significantly increase data throughput, simplify PCB design, and help lower both power usage and GPU temperatures.”
Mass manufacturing is expected in 2027, and the company is projecting $30 million in revenue that year, with scaling to follow as OEM partnerships deepen. “We’re pre-revenue, but the ramp after OEM qualification is very steep,” Rohin says.
LightSpeed Photonics operates in a global landscape that includes players like Celestial AI, Ayar Labs, and Ranovus, each tackling data bottlenecks in AI and high-performance computing. While many competitors focus on chip-level or co-packaged photonics backed by significant global investment, LightSpeed takes a different route with a solderable optical module that fits into existing system architectures, offering comparable performance through an alternate integration approach.
The Funding Arc
The company has raised $6.5 million in a pre-Series A round, led by pi Ventures. Other investors participating in this round include 500 Global, Indian Accelerator and returning investors – 8X Ventures & Java Capital and Angels from Bay Area. With this, the company’s total funding stands at approximately $8.5 million, including grants.
“LightSpeed’s high speed optical interconnect product family is engineered to address a major hurdle of data movement in large-scale AI and cloud computing, by delivering significantly faster data transfer, and at the same time drastically reducing energy consumption,” said Manish Singhal, founding partner at pi Ventures.
Singhal said, “Their (LightSpeed’s) innovation allows system upgrades without redesigning entire architectures – a game-changer for hyperscale data infrastructure.”
“We’re excited to back a deep tech team that’s solving a global-scale infrastructure challenge from India,” he added.
“Investors saw we weren’t just building a lab prototype,” Rohin says. “We were solving a real data centre problem at the right time.”
The Series A funds have a focused purpose: executing the pilots and establishing a small R&D facility that accelerates iteration cycles. Beyond this, the company is already planning its next fundraise — $20-25 million, supplemented by 50-60% value add through government incentive schemes.
Building in India, Scaling in the US
The company’s go-to-market strategy is two-pronged. US for technology approval because nearly 40% of the world’s data centres are there, and OEM qualification often begins in Silicon Valley. India and developing economies for volume production – especially the Middle East and emerging markets, which are aggressively building new AI-ready data centre capacity.
“We have certain elements that are centred in Singapore for that reason, and we want to gradually bring that capability on a large scale back to India,” says Rohin.
The US is where data centres are and where early traction happens, but the manufacturing and large-scale impact will eventually shift to India, he adds.
Talent Unavailable?
None of this would be possible without the kind of talent the company has managed to assemble. In deep-tech, especially photonics, the global talent pool is small and India’s is even smaller. Yet, the startup has built a team of specialists in optics, RF, electronics, embedded systems, and manufacturing engineering.
The company has also taken a contrarian view on hiring: instead of scaling headcount aggressively. With a 30-member team, they maintain a tight core of engineers capable of working across disciplines. “We look for engineers who can think beyond their specialisation,” Rohin says. “Deep-tech needs intersectional skills.”
The talent function is also tied to India’s growing deep-tech culture. Universities are producing more optics and hardware engineers than ever before. Meanwhile, large tech companies are no longer the only aspirational employers, startups are also building real hardware and are gaining credibility.
“If AI is the engine, the interconnect is the fuel line,” says Rohin. “And right now, the world needs a better fuel line.”
The next year will be defining for LightSpeed Photonics. Closing the Series A, executing the pilots, setting up the R&D centre, beginning the India manufacturing transition, and preparing for the large funding round. All this while pushing toward OEM qualification will test the company’s technical and operational resilience. Rohin says, “there’s no better time to do it.”
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