This article dives into how Hyderabad-based startup LightSpeed Photonics is taking on a big headache in modern computing: the energy-hungry data bottlenecks inside AI data centers.
The company just raised a fresh pre-Series A round of $6.5 million, bringing total funding to $8.5 million. They’re building solderable optical interconnects that promise faster, more efficient data movement—without forcing data centers to rip out and redesign their existing hardware.
Why AI Data Centers Need a New Approach to Data Movement
The explosion of artificial intelligence—from platforms like ChatGPT to recommendation engines and autonomous systems—is fueling a wild surge in data-center buildout.
Global demand is shooting up, and India alone could see a five-fold increase in data-center capacity by 2030.
But the physical infrastructure inside these facilities is feeling the heat. Traditional electrical interconnects that move data between chips, boards, and racks just weren’t built for this level of AI workload intensity.
So, data centers are running into hard limits in both performance and energy efficiency. It’s a classic case of the pipes not keeping up with the water.
The Hidden Cost of Electrical Interconnects
Today’s data centers already eat up an estimated 1–2% of global electricity. If things keep going this way, that number’s only headed up.
AI models keep getting bigger and more complex. Just tossing in more servers and GPUs won’t cut it anymore.
The real choke point is data movement—how quickly and efficiently information can zip between processing units. Without a smarter interconnect model, scaling up AI hardware could get painfully slow or just plain too expensive.
LightSpeed Photonics’ Solderable Optical Interconnects
LightSpeed Photonics has a pretty practical solution: optical interconnects that you can solder right onto standard motherboards.
Instead of swapping out the whole compute architecture, they’re upgrading the “plumbing” of data flow at the board level. Their technology uses short-wavelength lasers tucked into compact optical components, mountable just like regular electrical parts.
This lets data travel as light instead of electrons, which brings some serious gains in performance and efficiency.
Key Advantages of LightSpeed’s Approach
Compared with old-school electrical links and even some fancy silicon-photonics stuff, LightSpeed’s design leans into compatibility and thriftiness.
Many silicon-photonics companies bake optics right into the chips, which can be powerful but also pricey and a pain to redesign. LightSpeed offers a board-level fix instead, sidestepping the need for endless chip and system reworks but still delivering optical performance.
From R&D to Global Deployment
The recent $6.5 million pre-Series A round will help LightSpeed push its R&D and speed up its move into international markets.
With this funding, they plan to polish their products, test them in real-world settings, and stake their claim as a key enabler for the next wave of AI data centers.
The startup is still in a pre-revenue phase, but they’re projecting $3 million in revenue in the next fiscal year thanks to initial commercial deals and pilot programs.
Market Focus: US First, Then Emerging Hubs
LightSpeed’s first big target? The United States. Makes sense, since the US holds about 40% of the world’s data centers and leads in AI and cloud infrastructure.
At the same time, they’re getting ready to scale up in other fast-growing regions:
LightSpeed says it’ll start manufacturing in India within two years, aiming to make the country both a major home market and a launchpad for exporting optical interconnect tech.
Solving the Board-Level Bottleneck in AI Systems
CEO Rohin Kumar really drives home the company’s core thesis: AI hardware can’t scale well unless the data-movement bottleneck at the board level gets sorted out. GPUs and AI accelerators keep getting stronger, but if the data pathways between them don’t keep up, the whole system just slows down.
LightSpeed Photonics delivers solderable optical interconnects that fit right into existing architectures. This approach gives AI infrastructure a way to scale without massive energy bills or forcing everyone into disruptive redesigns.
As data centers try to keep up with the demands of ever-bigger AI models, solutions like this could end up being pretty central to performance and sustainability in the digital world.
Here is the source article for this story: LightSpeed Photonics Bets On Optical Tech To Ease AI Data Centre Bottlenecks