Haylo Ventures

What Haylo Ventures does

Haylo Ventures is a UK-based deeptech venture operator founded in 2023 and headquartered at Tower Bridge House, London. The firm provides both financial investment and hands-on operational support to deeptech portfolio companies in Europe and the United States, building customised multidisciplinary project teams spanning technology and product management, commercialisation, go-to-market, legal, finance and talent, with the stated aim of converting deeptech innovations into commercial successes within a three-year horizon. Its portfolio includes Helio Display Materials, which is commercialising perovskite-based colour-conversion materials built on fundamental patents exclusively licensed from Oxford and Cambridge Universities, and ARtGlass, a provider of wearable AR experiences for cultural-heritage sites, museums, theme parks and attractions.

Haylo Labs, a wholly-owned subsidiary, is the firm's vehicle for the microLED thesis. It invests in and partners with companies across the microLED value chain — epitaxy, wafer processing, mass transfer, colour conversion and system integration — targeting AR/VR, automotive displays, consumer electronics and AI-driven optical computing markets. In August 2025 Haylo Labs acquired Plessey Semiconductors and pledged over £100m into the UK chip ecosystem, forming a strategic partnership with Chinese electronics manufacturer Goertek, with the explicit objective of establishing the UK as a global centre of excellence for microLED and optical computing.

Haylo's revenue model combines venture equity returns on portfolio companies with hardware sales from acquired operating businesses such as Plessey, alongside an implied long-run licensing/royalty opportunity through Helio's perovskite materials. Pricing is not publicly disclosed and no successful exits or revenue figures have been reported. The company self-reports $0m in successful exits and zero years of proven track record, and operates with a headcount of 11–50 across co-founders David Hayes and Claire Valoti and COO Richard Smith.

Name

Haylo Ventures

Legal name

Haylo Ventures Limited

Website

https://haylo.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2023

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Haylo Ventures is a UK-based deeptech venture operator founded in 2023 that provides capital plus hands-on operational teams to portfolio companies across Europe and the US, with a subsidiary (Haylo Labs) building a vertically integrated microLED and optical-computing platform anchored by the 2025 acquisition of Plessey Semiconductors.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Deeptech Venture Capital and Operator Services

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYFSANAHAI

Corporate Innovation & Technology Scouting Units (with investment mandate)

Financial & Insurance/Private Equity & Venture Capital/Corporate Venture Capital (CVC)

SECONDARYFSANACAJ

Telecom, Networking & Infrastructure Growth Equity

Financial & Insurance/Private Equity & Venture Capital/Growth Equity Firms

Keywords

• Deeptech venture operator
• MicroLED display technology
• Venture capital services
• Perovskite display materials
• Semiconductor manufacturing

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Venture Investment and Portfolio Returns: Haylo Ventures generates returns through equity investments in deeptech portfolio companies, providing both capital and operational support to accelerate commercialization within 3-year timeframes.
2. Strategic Acquisitions and Manufacturing: Haylo Labs acquires and scales semiconductor and display technology companies, building manufacturing capabilities in the UK to establish a global centre of excellence for microLED and optical computing.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

Haylo Ventures is a deeptech venture operator that combines equity investment with embedded operational support — building customised project teams covering technology and product management, commercialisation, go-to-market, legal, finance, and talent — to transform deeptech innovations into commercial successes within three years. Through subsidiary Haylo Labs, it specifically accelerates the microLED ecosystem by integrating across epitaxy, wafer processing, mass transfer, colour conversion, and system integration, supported by the acquisition of Plessey Semiconductors and perovskite display materials patents exclusively licensed from Oxford and Cambridge Universities.

Product overview

Haylo Ventures operates as a deeptech venture operator offering a unified platform of investment and hands-on operational support services. The core offering consists of Haylo Ventures (parent venture operator) and its subsidiary Haylo Labs (microLED ecosystem accelerator). Haylo Labs has acquired Plessey Semiconductors to build manufacturing capabilities. The portfolio includes Helio Display Materials (perovskite display materials from Oxford/Cambridge) and ARtGlass (AR experiences for cultural sites), which benefit from the broader venture operator infrastructure and strategic investment network.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Haylo Ventures Deeptech Venture Operation Services Equity investment plus hands-on operating support — building customised project teams covering technology, product, commercialisation, go-to-market, legal, finance, and talent — offered to deeptech engineering and science-based portfolio companies in Europe and the US, with a target of transforming deeptech innovations into commercial successes within three years.
• Haylo Labs MicroLED Ecosystem Acceleration Strategic investment and partnership programme focused on companies solving key technical challenges across the microLED and optical computing value chain — epitaxy, wafer processing, mass transfer, colour conversion, and system integration — targeting AR/VR, automotive displays, consumer electronics, and AI-driven computing markets.
• Plessey Semiconductors MicroLED Manufacturing UK-based semiconductor manufacturing capability acquired by Haylo Labs in 2025, delivering microLED technology for AR/VR and optical computing applications and supporting Haylo's goal of establishing a global centre of excellence for microLED and optical computing.

Quantifiable outcome

• Transform visionary Deeptech into breakaway commercial successes within 3 years
• +1 more outcomes

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Plessey SemiconductorscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 20 August 2025Haylo Labs acquired Plessey Semiconductors to supercharge the UK's role in the future of AR/VR and optical computing. The acquisition brings together technical expertise, manufacturing scale, and strategic investment to overcome critical bottlenecks in the microLED ecosystem.
• GoertekminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 20 August 2025Partnership with Chinese firm Goertek as part of the semiconductor acquisition deal, amid geopolitical industry challenges. Goertek is a strategic partner in the microLED ecosystem development.
• Oxford UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSource of fundamental patents exclusively licensed for perovskite-based materials for colour conversion technology. Helio Display Materials builds on these patents to develop materials for brighter, more colourful and lower power displays.
• Cambridge UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSource of fundamental patents exclusively licensed for perovskite-based materials for colour conversion technology. Helio Display Materials builds on these patents to develop materials for brighter, more colourful and lower power displays.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• DCVC (Data Collective): Deeptech venture firm focused on computational, materials, and engineering breakthroughs. Comparable to Haylo in backing science-based companies that require long development timelines and operational hand-holding to reach commercialization.
• Lux Capital: Deeptech-focused venture firm that invests across hard tech, semiconductors, and advanced computing with operational support to portfolio companies. Highly comparable to Haylo's model of backing deeptech commercialisation in Europe and the US.
• Playground Global: Deeptech and advanced hardware venture firm that combines capital with deep technical operating support. Closely parallels Haylo's venture-operator approach to scaling frontier technology companies, especially in semiconductors and optics.
• SOSV / HAX: Venture operator running multiple accelerator programs (including HAX for hardware) that provides both capital and intensive in-house operational support to deeptech startups. Highly analogous to Haylo's stated 'we do the work' model.

Broad incumbents

• Intel Capital: Corporate venture arm of Intel with deep exposure to semiconductor, display, and optical computing startups. Comparable as a large incumbent capital provider that Haylo Labs may compete against for strategic partnerships.
• Samsung Ventures: Corporate venture arm of Samsung that invests heavily in display, AR/VR, and semiconductor startups globally. Relevant as a strategic capital source competing for the same microLED and AR/VR portfolio companies.
• Founders Fund: Large, established venture firm with significant deeptech exposure across aerospace, semiconductors, and advanced computing. Comparable as a deeptech capital provider, though it operates with a more passive investor posture than Haylo.
• Applied Ventures (Applied Materials): Corporate venture arm of semiconductor equipment leader Applied Materials, investing across the display and semiconductor manufacturing value chain. Comparable as a strategic capital and partnership counterparty in the microLED ecosystem.

Regional players

• BMW i Ventures: Corporate venture arm of BMW focused on automotive technology, including advanced display and AR-related investments. Comparable as a strategic capital partner that targets automotive display use cases overlapping with Haylo Labs' automotive segment focus.

Emerging players

• Helio Ventures: Early-stage deeptech venture firm backing science and engineering startups in Europe. Comparable as a smaller, emerging deeptech venture operator addressing similar European deeptech commercialisation gaps.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/hayloventures

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A1 record

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Haylo Ventures