Light Trace Photonics
Light Trace Photonics is a Bristol-based integrated photonics company developing detachable fibre-to-chip interconnects and the LightCraft design platform for Co-packaged Optics hardware engineering teams in the quantum computing and AI hardware sectors.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2021
- HeadquartersBristol, United Kingdom
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What Light Trace Photonics does
Light Trace Photonics is a Bristol, UK-based integrated photonics company founded in 2021 that develops detachable fibre-to-chip interconnects for Co-packaged Optics (CPO) hardware engineering teams. The company's core technology eliminates the need for micro-optics, bump-on-carrier, active alignment, and epoxy in photonic chip packaging, enabling repeatable, detachable connections with demonstrated sub-800 mdB loss and under 3 seconds of passive alignment time. The company's stated long-term mission is to deliver 10 mdB loss per connection reliably across 100 million units, with a near-term product target of sub-400 mdB loss with a clear route to 10 million units. Customers and collaborators are described as "world leaders" in quantum computing and AI hardware, though specific end-customer names are not publicly disclosed.
The company operates a B2B enterprise sales motion with quote-based, multi-year contract engagement initiated through a website contact form. Its revenue mechanics are anchored in hardware sales of detachable interconnects, supplemented by the LightCraft Platform — a photonic chip design tool with a component library funded by a £600,000 round led by QantX Ventures in April 2025. The product portfolio extends beyond interconnects to include LightPort (a photonics engineering training platform) and LightBridge (a forthcoming next-generation fibre-to-chip packaging solution). The team of roughly 8 people is anchored by co-founders Dr Jake Biele (CEO) and Dr Dominic Sulway (CTO), both University of Bristol PhD graduates, and is supported by an advisory bench including former GlobalFoundries VP Dr Anthony Yu and Chairman Dr Steve Kitson.
The company has been externally validated through the £50,000 Blavatnik Prize for Innovation (September 2024), an Innovate UK Fast Start Innovation Grant (September 2024), and inclusion of its CTO in the Electro Optics Photonics100 2026 list. The company is headquartered at the Quantum Technology Innovation Centre in Bristol and serves customers in the UK and broader European market.
Light Trace Photonics firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Light Trace Photonics
- Legal name
- Light Trace Photonics Ltd
- Website
- https://ltphotonics.co.uk
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2021
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Light Trace Photonics is a Bristol-based integrated photonics company developing detachable fibre-to-chip interconnects and the LightCraft design platform for Co-packaged Optics hardware engineering teams in the quantum computing and AI hardware sectors.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Light Trace Photonics industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Optical Interconnects
- NAICS
- Electronic Connector Manufacturing (334417), Communication and Energy Wire and Cable Manufacturing (33592), Other Communication and Energy Wire Manufacturing (335929)
- SIC
- Electronic Connectors (3678), Semiconductors & Related Devices (3674)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Fiber-Optic Interconnects (Connectors/Cables/Transceivers Interfaces) (HDAHAOAE)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Active Optical Cables (AOC) & Optical Interconnects (HDAFAEAG), Optical Transceivers (SFP/SFP+/SFP28/QSFP/QSFP-DD/OSFP) (HDAFAEAE), Optoelectronic / Photonics Foundries (Silicon Photonics/LED/Laser) (HDAHACAG), Optoelectronic Receivers & Transceivers (Photodetectors/Optical Modules) (HDAHALAM)
Keywords
Where Light Trace Photonics is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Bristol
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
Light Trace Photonics business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Detachable Fibre-to-Chip Interconnect Products: Sale of detachable fibre-to-chip interconnect hardware solutions for CPO hardware engineering teams, enabling scalable photonic chip packaging.
- LightCraft Design Platform: Platform subscription or license for photonic chip design tools and component libraries targeting quantum and communications sectors.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Multi-year contract | Enterprise Direct Sales |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels5 records
Light Trace Photonics product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Light Trace Photonics designs and manufactures detachable fibre-to-chip interconnects for Co-packaged Optics (CPO) hardware engineering teams. Their interconnect solution enables scalable photonic chip packaging using standard fibre and standard processing, without micro-optics, bump-on-carrier, active alignment, or epoxy. The company also offers the LightCraft platform to accelerate photonic chip design for quantum and communications sectors, and LightPort for photonics engineering training.
Product overview
Light Trace Photonics is a photonics technology company offering detachable fibre-to-chip interconnects as its core hardware product, alongside the LightCraft Platform for photonic chip design acceleration. The portfolio includes LightPort (photonics engineering training) and the forthcoming LightBridge (fibre-to-chip packaging solution). The company focuses on quantum and communications sectors, leveraging expertise in ultra-low-loss integrated quantum photonics.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- LightCraft: A platform to accelerate photonic chip design for sectors including quantum and communications, offering a comprehensive library of components to streamline development and reduce time-to-market.
Products and services
- Detachable Fibre-to-Chip Interconnects Hardware product for CPO hardware engineering teams that provides scalable, detachable fibre-to-chip connections without micro-optics, bump-on-carrier, active alignment, or epoxy. Demonstrated <800 mdB loss with <3s passive alignment time, with company mission targeting 10 mdB loss per connection reliably across 100 million units.
- LightCraft Platform Platform to accelerate photonic chip design for quantum and communications sectors, offering a comprehensive library of components to streamline development and reduce time-to-market.
- LightPort Training platform for developing the next generation of photonics engineers.
Quantifiable outcome
- <800 mdB fibre-to-chip loss demonstrated with repeatable, detachable connections
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Light Trace Photonics
Customer profileNamed customers2 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Light Trace Photonics technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
Light Trace Photonics partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Two partnerships are on record, tiered minor.
- Anthony YuminorFormer VP of GlobalFoundries Silicon Photonics Product Management, now Lead Advisor providing semiconductor industry expertise and leadership guidance.
- Digital CatapultminorLight Trace participated in Digital Catapult's Integrated Photonics Bootcamp to drive innovation across sectors.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Light Trace Photonics competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Dust Photonics: Dust Photonics develops silicon photonics CPO interconnect solutions targeting AI and data centre applications — the most direct fibre-to-chip and CPO peer to Light Trace, with overlapping customer set and comparable architecture ambitions.
- EFFECT Photonics: EFFECT Photonics builds highly integrated optical systems with coherent and direct-detect transceivers based on photonic integrated circuits. Comparable to Light Trace in serving fibre-to-chip connectivity for telecom/datacom with photonic integration.
- PsiQuantum: PsiQuantum is building a large-scale photonic quantum computer using silicon photonics and requires ultra-low-loss fibre-to-chip connections at scale — making it both a potential Light Trace customer and a comparable builder of photonic-chip-based systems.
Emerging players
- Xscape Photonics: Xscape Photonics develops photonic interconnect technology for AI compute fabrics. An emerging CPO peer with overlapping end-customers (AI hardware) and a similar silicon-photonics-based fibre-to-chip thesis.
- Lightmatter: Lightmatter builds photonic processors and interconnects for AI data centres. Comparable as an emerging silicon-photonics company targeting AI hardware customers with photonic chip-to-chip and fibre interfaces.
- Celestial AI: Celestial AI develops a Photonic Fabric architecture interconnecting compute and memory using integrated photonics. Overlaps with Light Trace on the fibre-to-chip interconnect problem for AI compute.
Others
- GlobalFoundries: GlobalFoundries offers a silicon photonics foundry platform (GF Fotonix) widely used for photonic chip manufacturing. Light Trace's lead advisor Dr Anthony Yu is a former VP there, making GlobalFoundries an enabling foundry peer rather than a direct competitor.
Broad incumbents
- Intel (Silicon Photonics): Intel has a long-standing silicon photonics programme (including integrated optical transceivers and CPO research). A broad incumbent competing in the same CPO/photonic interconnect space but as part of a much wider portfolio.
- Broadcom: Broadcom is a leading supplier of optical components and is actively developing CPO solutions for hyperscale data centres. A broad incumbent and potential competitor to Light Trace in the CPO interconnect market.
- Marvell Technology: Marvell is a major supplier of optical DSPs and is investing heavily in CPO silicon photonics platforms. Competes broadly with Light Trace in CPO interconnect architectures for AI infrastructure.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Light Trace Photonics social profiles
Digital presenceLight Trace Photonics financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Light Trace Photonics leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles8 records
Light Trace Photonics funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds2 records
Investors2 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Light Trace Photonics M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Light Trace Photonics
What does Light Trace Photonics do?
Light Trace Photonics designs and manufactures detachable fibre-to-chip interconnects for Co-packaged Optics (CPO) hardware engineering teams. Their interconnect solution enables scalable photonic chip packaging using standard fibre and standard processing, without micro-optics, bump-on-carrier, active alignment, or epoxy. The company also offers the LightCraft platform to accelerate photonic chip design for quantum and communications sectors, and LightPort for photonics engineering training.
Is Light Trace Photonics a public or private company?
Light Trace Photonics is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Light Trace Photonics founded?
Light Trace Photonics was founded in 2021. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Light Trace Photonics based?
Light Trace Photonics is headquartered in Bristol, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does Light Trace Photonics make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Detachable Fibre-to-Chip Interconnect Products are the primary driver. The others are lightCraft Design Platform.
Who are Light Trace Photonics's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Dust Photonics, EFFECT Photonics and PsiQuantum. Emerging players are Xscape Photonics, Lightmatter and Celestial AI. GlobalFoundries is listed as an others. Broad incumbents are Intel (Silicon Photonics), Broadcom and Marvell Technology.
Does Light Trace Photonics have an API?
No public API is recorded for Light Trace Photonics.
What industry is Light Trace Photonics in?
Light Trace Photonics's product category is Optical Interconnects. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HDAHAOAE, Fiber-Optic Interconnects (Connectors/Cables/Transceivers Interfaces), with a secondary code of HDAFAEAG, Active Optical Cables (AOC) & Optical Interconnects. Its NAICS code is 334417 and its SIC code is 3678.