SPhotonix, a rapidly expanding deep-tech startup pioneering next-generation data storage and advanced optics, today announced the successful completion of an oversubscribed $4.5 million pre-seed funding round. The investment is set to power the commercial deployment of its revolutionary 5D optical memory technology, which promises unparalleled data durability and capacity.
The initial capital raise for SPhotonix was led by Creator Fund, a European deep-tech institutional investor focused on university-born frontier startups, and XTX Ventures, the venture capital arm of quantitative trading giant XTX Markets. The round also attracted a collection of high-profile angel investors from the business community.
The core of SPhotonix‘s innovation is the FemtoEtch™ technology, developed over two decades by the company’s CSO, renowned academic Prof. Peter Kazansky. This technology uses femtosecond laser pulses to create nanostructures in fused silica glass, enabling five-dimensional data recording. The crystalline medium has already demonstrated its longevity by storing the human genome and the entire Wikipedia, with the potential to last for billions of years.
The funding, spearheaded by SPhotonix CEO Ilya Kazansky, will be deployed to significantly scale the company’s world-leading Photonics and Engineering teams. A newly operational Swiss-based R&D lab is central to the firm’s ambition to bridge deep scientific innovation with market-ready solutions.
“We’ve had significant interest in our pre-seed round and we are delighted to partner with Creator Fund and XTX Ventures, and others, as we continue our path bridging innovation with commercial success,” said Ilya Kazansky, CEO of SPhotonix. “All of our investors were curated to align with our vision and will support executing our mission of making data storage scalable, durable and cost-efficient for the new generations growing data storage needs.”
The company is capitalizing on two immediate commercial applications: advanced optics and archival data storage. The FemtoEtch™ technology is already being applied to fused silica optics in demanding sectors like microscopy, high-power laser (HPL), aerospace, and semiconductor manufacturing.
The market opportunity for data storage, particularly in cold and archival cloud solutions, is vast and growing. With global data generation having increased by 133% in the past four years, the market for cold data storage is projected to surpass $400 billion by 2030, according to Grand View Research.
Kazansky added, “The funding unlocks our ability to recruit world leading specialists, to innovate through the final TRL stages needed to bring 5D optical to earth and space-borne data centres, picking up on the breakthroughs we’ve recently had with writable and rewritable forms. It’s a really exciting moment in our history.”
Alexandra Ntemourtsidou, General Partner at Creator Fund, commented on the strategic investment: “Today’s data storage needs are putting a huge strain on legacy technologies. Industry must now look towards new storage paradigms. Peter and Ilya bring a rare combination of deep technical rigour and commercial focus; we are thrilled to back them on their mission to bring 5D optical memory technology to market.”
Gabriele Papievyte, Head of XTX Ventures, echoed the sentiment, praising SPhotonix‘s dedication to its unique technology, which has already gained high-profile recognition, including being featured in the film Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning.
The transition of the 5D optical laser fusion technology, invented by Prof. Peter Kazansky, from a proven R&D concept to commercialization is now underway, with SPhotonix poised to announce key partnerships with hyper scalers soon.
💡 Editorial View: A New Paradigm for the Digital Age
The successful pre-seed funding for SPhotonix is more than just a capital raise; it is a validation of two decades of profound scientific research that may fundamentally redefine humanity’s relationship with data. In a world saturated with ephemeral and energy-intensive data solutions, the 5D optical memory crystal offers a singular answer to the challenge of digital preservation. The media’s ability to store massive volumes of data—up to 360TB on a small glass plate—for an estimated 13.8 billion years is not merely an incremental improvement; it is a leap into ‘everlasting’ storage.
The strategic direction of SPhotonix in prioritizing archival and cold storage is particularly astute. This segment of the market, driven by regulatory compliance and the sheer necessity of preserving cultural and corporate legacies, demands solutions that are radically more durable and energy-efficient than tape or hard drives. By leveraging its proprietary FemtoEtch™ technology for both advanced optics and data, SPhotonix demonstrates a clear commercial roadmap and technological versatility. The company is not just building a product; it is pioneering an essential utility for future generations, positioning itself not just as a deep-tech success story, but as a custodian of the world’s burgeoning digital knowledge. Their alignment with top-tier deep-tech investors, Creator Fund and XTX Ventures, underscores the confidence in the technical rigor brought by Prof. Peter Kazansky and the commercial vision driven by Ilya Kazansky.
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