Funding Round attributes
Ephos, a leader in glass-based photonic chip technology, has raised $8.5 million in a funding round led by Starlight Ventures. Participation also from Collaborative Fund, Exor Ventures, and others. Angel investors Joe Zadeh (former VP at Airbnb), Diego Piacentini (former SVP at Amazon), and Simone Severini (General Manager, Quantum Technologies, AWS) also contributed. The round included non-dilutive funding from the European Innovation Council and NATO’s Defence Innovation Accelerator for the North Atlantic (DIANA).
The funding is set to aid Ephos’s new research and manufacturing facility in Milan which is the the first of its kind - dedicated to producing glass-based quantum photonic circuits. Located in the Milano Innovation District (MIND), the facility is set to enable scalability for the company through both technology and partnerships.
Compared to their traditional counterparts - Ephos's glass-based photonic chips outperform silicon chips with a reduction in signal loss. The technology can also be used in conjunction with quantum computing, AI, and data centers, offering all a more energy-efficient solution. With data center power usage expected to grow by 160% by 2030, Ephos’s innovations address the growing energy demands.
CEO Andrea Rocchetto said, “Securing this funding and opening our Milan facility is a critical milestone for Ephos. Our glass-based photonic chips are set to transform not just quantum computing and AI, but the broader computational infrastructure of the future.”
Kike Miralles, Principal at Starlight Ventures, added, “As AI and quantum advancements challenge the limits of our current infrastructure, Ephos stands out with its ability to significantly reduce signal loss and improve energy efficiency."
