What HiLight Semiconductor does

HiLight Semiconductor is a fabless semiconductor company founded in 2012 and headquartered at Southampton Science Park in the United Kingdom, with an additional IC design center in Bristol (opened 2015) and regional sales and support offices in Shenzhen (2013), Taipei (2013), and Hamamatsu City (2013). The company designs and supplies analogue and mixed-signal CMOS integrated circuits for high-speed optical communications and networking applications, spanning Transimpedance Amplifiers (TIAs) from 1.25 Gbps to 25 Gbps+, highly integrated 4-in-1 and 5-in-1 transceiver 'Combo' ICs that combine TIA, driver, limiting amplifier, CDR, APD bias controller, and an embedded 8051 microcontroller with non-volatile memory, and next-generation 100 Gbps multi-channel chipsets for QSFP28 SR4 data center modules consuming less than 1.5 W. The company's core technical differentiation is its commitment to pure CMOS process technology — operating at VDD ≤0.9 V versus SiGe at 1.8 V and leveraging high-volume 12-inch wafer manufacturing — which delivers lower power, lower cost, and higher integration than incumbent SiGe-based optical PMD solutions.

The product portfolio addresses four primary end markets: FTTx PON (GPON, XG-PON, XGS-PON, 10G-PON, NG-PON2, BOSA-on-Board), Datacom (SFP+, QSFP28 SR4, AOCs, 25 GbE, 100 Gbps interconnects), Wireless Infrastructure (5G/LTE fronthaul and backhaul at 10–25 Gbps CPRI), and Telecom, plus a customer-specific IC design service. Cumulative shipments exceeded 100 million PMD ICs by September 2021 and 1 million 25 Gbps TIAs by July 2020. HiLight monetizes exclusively through direct B2B semiconductor sales at undisclosed custom pricing based on volume and specifications, with multi-year contracts, supported by evaluation kits, reference design kits, and application engineering for design-in. The company is ISO 9001:2015 certified and has raised over US$26 million in cumulative equity (Series A 2015, Series B 2017 US$6.1M, Series C 2019 US$20M+, led by Atlantic Bridge with Oyster Capital as founding investor) supplemented by EU Horizon 2020 and Innovate UK grants. Key strategic alliances include interoperability partnerships with Broadcom for 10G-PON ONU MAC integration, joint demonstrations with Albis Optoelectronics for APD+TIA co-design, and membership in the OpenEye and 25G-PON MSAs to shape next-generation PAM4 and PON standards.

Name

HiLight Semiconductor

Legal name

HiLight Semiconductor Ltd

Website

https://hilight-semi.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2012

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

HiLight Semiconductor is a UK-based fabless chip company designing pure-CMOS analogue and mixed-signal ICs — TIAs, Combo transceivers, and 100Gbps chipsets — for optical communications OEMs serving FTTx PON, data center, 5G wireless, and telecom markets.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Optical Communication Semiconductors

NAICS

Semiconductor and Related Device Manufacturing (334413), Semiconductor and Other Electronic Component Manufacturing (3344)

SIC

Semiconductors & Related Devices (3674), Computer Communications Equipment (3576)

akta.pro primary industry

Networking & Data Center Silicon (Switch/NIC/DPU/SerDes) (HDAHABAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

Amplifiers & Comparators (HDAHAIAC)

Keywords

• Optical communication ICs
• Transimpedance amplifiers
• PON transceiver chips
• Mixed-signal semiconductors
• Fabless chip design

Headquarters

HQ city

Southampton

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Semiconductor IC Sales: Fabless semiconductor company selling optical communication IC chips including TIAs, drivers, receivers, and transceiver Combo ICs to optical module and equipment manufacturers. Revenue generated from chip sales, evaluation kits, and reference designs.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

HiLight Semiconductor is a fabless chip company that designs and supplies analogue and mixed-signal CMOS integrated circuits for high-speed optical communications and networking applications. Its portfolio includes Transimpedance Amplifiers (TIAs) from 1Gbps to 25Gbps+, highly integrated 5-in-1 and 4-in-1 'Combo' transceiver ICs with embedded microcontrollers and non-volatile memory, directly-modulated LASER/VCSEL drivers, Clock and Data Recovery (CDR) circuits, and 100Gbps multi-channel chipsets for QSFP28 data centre modules. Products are built on a pure CMOS process and sold to optical module and equipment manufacturers serving FTTx PON, Datacom, Wireless Infrastructure, and Telecom markets.

Product overview

HiLight Semiconductor is a fabless chip company designing and supplying analogue and mixed-signal CMOS integrated circuits for high speed optical communications and networking applications. The product portfolio includes Transimpedance Amplifiers (TIAs) ranging from 1.25Gbps to 25Gbps+ for PIN photodiode and APD applications (SLR10G2, HLR25G0/1, HLR11G0/1, HLR10G0/1, HLR2S50, HLR1M00, HLR2G50, HLR1G00), and highly integrated Transceiver 'Combo' ICs combining multiple functions in single chips (HLC10V0, HLC10P0/1/5/6, HLC12V0, HLC12L0/1/2, HLC28L0). The 5-in-1 Combo ICs integrate limiting amplifier receiver, burst-mode transmitter, laser dual-loop power & extinction ratio control, PWM APD bias controller, and 8051 microcontroller with embedded firmware. The company also offers 100Gbps chipsets (HLR100G & HLV100G) for data centre applications and a comprehensive CMOS Toolkit IP Blocks platform for 1-100Gbps+ designs. Products target FTTx PON, Datacom, Wireless Infrastructure, and Telecom markets.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• CMOS Transimpedance Amplifiers (TIA Family) A portfolio of Transimpedance Amplifiers covering data rates from 1.25Gbps to 25Gbps for PIN photodiode and APD applications, including SLR10G2 (10G APD with noise cancellation), HLR25G0/1 (25G PIN/APD), HLR11G0/1 (10G high sensitivity), HLR10G0/1 (10G), and 1G/2.5G devices for GPON, EPON, GbE, and CPRI applications. Sold to optical module manufacturers for FTTx PON, Datacom, and wireless infrastructure products.
• Combo Transceiver ICs Highly integrated 5-in-1 and 4-in-1 transceiver ICs combining limiting amplifier receiver, burst-mode transmitter, dual-loop laser power & extinction ratio control, PWM APD bias controller, and an embedded 8051 microcontroller with non-volatile memory in a single chip. Includes HLC10V0 (10G VCSEL combo), HLC10P0/P1/P5/P6 (10G PON ONU combos), HLC12V0 (12G VCSEL 4-in-1), HLC12L0/1/2 (12G LASER 5-in-1), and HLC28L0 (25G transceiver). Designed for BOSA-on-Board, SFP+, XFP, and 25GbE modules.
• 100Gbps Multi-channel Chipsets (HLR100G & HLV100G) Highly integrated multi-channel chipsets comprising super low power TIAs, CDRs and VCSEL Drivers enabling QSFP28 SR4 transceiver modules with less than 1.5W total power consumption for 25Gbps and 100Gbps data centre applications. Targets 30% of the global data centre market by 2022.
• CMOS Toolkit IP Blocks A CMOS IP platform comprising reusable IP blocks (TIAs, drivers, CDRs, control and monitoring functions) and customer support tools for designing advanced PMD/PHY ICs from 1Gbps up to 100Gbps+. Licensed to customers to enable their own chip development leveraging HiLight's CMOS building blocks, including for custom/specialty IC applications.

Quantifiable outcome

• 100 million PMD ICs shipped by September 2021
• +4 more outcomes

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Albis OptoelectronicscoreTechnology or Integration · 1 March 2023Joint demonstration partnership promoting 10G APD and CMOS TIA-receiver products. Combined Albis APD10F1 with HiLight SLR10G2 achieving world class sensitivity of -34 dBm (@ BER 1E-3) and -28 dBm (@ BER 1E-12) for 10G-PON ONUs.
• BroadcomcoreTechnology or Integration · 28 October 2021Technical partnership enabling HiLight PMD chipsets (HLC10P5/6 burst 'Combo' transceiver ICs) to interface with Broadcom's popular ONU MAC SoC ICs. Application note provides step-by-step guide covering PMD Combo pin-2-pin compatibility, BOM component count reduction, and optimization of transmitter/receiver optical performance.
• 25G-PON MSAcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 24 May 2021Member of 25G-PON Multi-Source Agreement industry consortium developing next generation PON standards.
• OpenEye MSAcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 21 February 2020Multi-Source Agreement partnership to develop PAM-4 optical links based around HiLight's pure CMOS CDR technology for next generation optical networking.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Broadcom: Dominant supplier of optical PMD/PHY ICs, PON MAC SoCs and high-speed networking silicon. Directly overlaps with HiLight via its 10G-PON ONU MAC and optical transceiver portfolios, and is both a competitor and integration partner of HiLight.
• Coherent (formerly II-VI Incorporated): Vertically integrated photonics and compound semiconductor company with datacom/telecom transceiver IC and component offerings. Competes with HiLight indirectly via integrated optical module solutions.
• Analog Devices (formerly Maxim Integrated): Major analog and mixed-signal IC supplier with a significant optical communications portfolio including TIAs and transceivers. Phyworks (a predecessor of HiLight's Bristol team) originated from Maxim's optical semiconductor group.
• Marvell Technology: Through its Inphi acquisition, Marvell offers high-speed optical interconnect ICs for datacom and telecom. Competes with HiLight in 100G/400G data centre optical modules and DSP-based transceivers.
• Renesas Electronics (formerly IDT): Provides timing, signal conditioning and optical interconnect ICs including PON and datacom solutions. Competes broadly with HiLight in optical networking semiconductor content.

Direct peers

• Source Photonics: Optical transceiver and component supplier for FTTx, datacom and wireless backhaul. Competes with HiLight's customers (and indirectly with HiLight at the module level) in PON and data centre optics.
• Lumentum: Designs and manufactures optical components and photonic ICs for telecom, datacom and 3D sensing. While broader in scope than HiLight, it competes in adjacent optical networking semiconductor and module space.
• Semtech: Supplies analog and mixed-signal ICs for optical communications, including TIAs, laser drivers and CDR-based chipset solutions for datacom and PON. Directly competes with HiLight in fibre optic transceiver ICs.
• MACOM Technology Solutions: Specialist in analog RF, microwave and optical semiconductors including TIAs, laser drivers and CDRs for telecom/datacom. Closest direct competitor to HiLight in optical PMD ICs, particularly in PON and 25G/100G applications.

Regional players

• Mitsubishi Electric (Photonics): Supplies optical communication devices, including laser diodes and photoreceivers, primarily serving APAC telecom and datacom markets. Regionally comparable to HiLight's optical IC portfolio in Japan and broader Asia.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds5 records

Investors4 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about HiLight Semiconductor