Radar · Photonics in United States
Best Photonics Companies in United States
The 586 best Photonics companies in United States in 2026, ranked by funding and momentum. Funding, investors, founders, valuation, tech stack and live signals. Top: Lumentum.
By Riya SenguptaFinancials
586companies tracked
$18.6Bdisclosed funding
3unicorns
268have raised
Ranking the best Photonics companies in the United States by disclosed equity funding and recent momentum, our directory tracks 586 firms carrying $18.6B in total disclosed capital, including three unicorns. The [global photonics market sat at roughly $911.5B in 2023 and is forecast to reach $1,600B by 2033](https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/photonics-market-88194993.html), a 6.11% CAGR driven by biophotonics adoption in healthcare and surging R&D investment. That's a big number. But what I find more telling is the revenue picture underneath it: across 11 validated filers, median revenue runs $89M with 17% YoY growth, and the combined pool clears $3.8B. Coherent Corp. leads with $1.6B in revenue, up 17%, while Ciena Corp. printed $1.4B at a sharper 33% clip. Those aren't funding rounds. That's earned revenue.
So what separates the real earners? Net income tells you. Coherent Corp. posted $226M in net income, 143 times the sector median of $2M. Ciena Corp. added $150M, and Inphi Corp. delivered $99M at 63 times median, despite revenue of $188M growing a remarkable 82% YoY. Silicon photonics fabrication and integrated silicon photonics ICs are the themes pulling coverage higher right now, and deal flow confirms the direction: a recent SWIR imaging acquisition signals consolidation is already underway. If you're mapping this sector, the filings are where the signal lives, as shown in 2019 research on integrated photonic systems at scale.
Sources & further reading
- Silicon Leads Photonics Market by Material with 40.3% Share and GaN Pr
- Photonics Market is expected to reach USD 1179.485 Billion by 2032, at
- Photonics Market Report 2025-2030 [250 Pages & 100 Tables]
Ranked: Best Photonics companies in United States
| # | Company | Disclosed funding | Last round | Employees | Founder | Tech stack | Market signals (1y) | Patents & IP focus | Recent signals |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lumentum Manufacturer of lasers and optical communication products 82Market top 22%Fin. health top 24%Funding top 26%Partners top 31% All 9 signals ▾Markettop 22% Fin. healthtop 24% Fundingtop 26% Partnerstop 31% Newstop 33% Techtop 35% Globaltop 44% Growthtop 50% Moatbottom 38% Market: 7,500 employees (top 5% of Telecom) · Revenue ~$1.6B Fin. health: Revenue ~$1.6B (FY2012) · Net margin 7.8% rank vs industry peers · Fliar Intelligence Index 82/100 | $2.9B | 3 mo ago | 7,500 | — | TurbopackApple iCloud MailNode.js+20 | 35 signals ▲21% Earnings · Contracts · Capital raise | — | 1 expansion |
| 2 | PsiQuantum 🦄 Developer of photon-based universal quantum computers 92Patents top 9%Funding top 13%Innovation top 16%Moat top 22% All 12 signals ▾Patentstop 9% Fundingtop 13% Innovationtop 16% Moattop 22% Newstop 26% Growthtop 27% AItop 28% Talenttop 30% Markettop 35% Partnerstop 41% Techtop 45% Globaltop 50% Patents: 889 patents matched (strict assignee match) · 691 filings since 2022 vs 198 in 2017-21 Funding: Raised $1.3B across 6 rounds · 6 rounds over 7 yrs (0.9/yr) rank vs industry peers · Fliar Intelligence Index 92/100 | $1.3B | 9 mo ago | 213 | Mark Thompson Co-Founder & CTO | Cart FunctionalitySquarespace CommerceSquarespace+22 | 8 signals ▲700% Leadership · Funding · Capital raise | 889 patents Patents concentrated in computing, sensing & instrumentation | 1 launch |
| 3 | Lightmatter 🦄 Developer of photonic interconnects and co-packaged optics for AI infrastructure 87Patents top 10%Funding top 17%Innovation top 18%AI top 18% All 11 signals ▾Patentstop 10% Fundingtop 17% Innovationtop 18% AItop 18% Moattop 22% Talenttop 28% Markettop 40% Techtop 40% Growthtop 43% Globalbottom 42% Newsbottom 21% Patents: 393 patents matched (strict assignee match) · 297 filings since 2022 vs 96 in 2017-21 Funding: Raised $850M across 8 rounds · 8 rounds over 9 yrs (0.9/yr) rank vs industry peers · Fliar Intelligence Index 87/100 | $850M | 20 mo ago | 137 | Darius Bunandar Co-Founder | WordPressApple iCloud MailGoogle Workspace+19 | — | 393 patents Patents concentrated in computing, sensing & instrumentation | 1 internship · 1 partnership · 1 award |
| 4 | Zayo Provider of fiber transport and network connectivity and managed services 89Funding top 16%Market top 22%Fin. health top 27%Global top 28% All 14 signals ▾Fundingtop 16% Markettop 22% Fin. healthtop 27% Globaltop 28% Newstop 31% Partnerstop 32% Techtop 33% Innovationtop 35% Producttop 38% Talenttop 38% Patentstop 44% AItop 45% Growthtop 46% Moattop 47% Funding: Raised $825M across 18 rounds · 18 rounds over 19 yrs (0.9/yr) Market: 2,828 employees (top 8% of Telecom) · Revenue ~$2.6B rank vs industry peers · Fliar Intelligence Index 89/100 | $825M | 11 mo ago | 2,828 2,828 → 4,523 (+60%) · sector median +65% | Steve Smith CEO | WordPressSentryApple iCloud Mail+32 | 21 signals New product · Acquisition · Contracts | 14 patents Integrated vehicle data and charging infrastructure linking telecom networks to EV stations | 1 award |
| 5 | Aeva Provider of LiDAR-based sensors for autonomous vehicles 69Patents top 14%Funding top 22%Innovation top 32%Product top 35% All 12 signals ▾Patentstop 14% Fundingtop 22% Innovationtop 32% Producttop 35% Moattop 35% Growthtop 37% Talenttop 38% Techtop 40% Markettop 45% Fin. healthtop 48% Globalbottom 44% Newsbottom 25% Patents: 433 patents matched (strict assignee match) · 375 filings since 2022 vs 58 in 2017-21 Funding: Raised $560M across 4 rounds · 4 rounds over 9 yrs (0.4/yr) rank vs industry peers · Fliar Intelligence Index 69/100 | $560M | 10 mo ago | 306 306 → 307 (+0%) · sector median +65% | Mina Rezk Co-Founder | DrupalPHPVimeo+27 | — | 433 patents High-resolution FMCW LiDAR with integrated optical power balancing and fiber-tip scanning. | 1 launch · 1 partnership · 1 award |
| 6 | Celestial AI Developer of optical interconnect technology for artificial intelligence infrastructure systems 83Funding top 21%Innovation top 25%Growth top 25%Patents top 25% All 12 signals ▾Fundingtop 21% Innovationtop 25% Growthtop 25% Patentstop 25% Moattop 26% Newstop 27% AItop 30% Talenttop 38% Partnerstop 40% Techtop 44% Markettop 48% Globalbottom 39% Funding: Raised $370M across 6 rounds · 6 rounds over 5 yrs (1.2/yr) Innovation: 190 patents (top 25% of patent-holders) · 190 filings since 2022 vs 0 in 2017-21 rank vs industry peers · Fliar Intelligence Index 83/100 | $370M | 15 mo ago | 100 | Preet Virk Co-Founder | Cart FunctionalitySquarespace CommerceSquarespace+18 | 14 signals ▲180% M&A · Contracts · Capital raise | 190 patents Patents concentrated in electrical & electronics | — |
| 7 | Bluebird Network Fiber optic network and data services provider | $285M | 30 mo ago | 119 | — | — | — | — | 1 partnership · 1 expansion |
| 8 | Source Photonics Manufacturer of optical transceivers, components, and subsystems for data and telecommunications | $230M | 30 mo ago | 4,000 | — | WordPressMySQLPHP+18 | — | 56 patents Integrated photonic components for optical communication: modulators, transmitters, phase shifters, WDM systems | — |
| 9 | Ayar Labs 🦄 Developer of optical interconnect solutions for artificial intelligence infrastructure applications 87Funding top 16%Patents top 17%Moat top 22%Talent top 22% All 11 signals ▾Fundingtop 16% Patentstop 17% Moattop 22% Talenttop 22% Innovationtop 23% Newstop 29% Growthtop 30% Techtop 33% Markettop 45% AItop 45% Globalbottom 42% Funding: Raised $216M across 10 rounds · 10 rounds over 10 yrs (1.0/yr) Patents: 375 patents matched (strict assignee match) · 289 filings since 2022 vs 86 in 2017-21 rank vs industry peers · Fliar Intelligence Index 87/100 | $216M | 3 mo ago | 102 102 → 249 (+144%) · sector median +65% | Rajeev Ram Co-Founder | WordPressApple iCloud MailGoogle Workspace+27 | 8 signals ▲100% Funding · Leadership · Capital raise | 375 patents Silicon photonic integration for high‑speed optical I/O, WDM links, and on‑chip optical power delivery | 1 launch · 2 partnerships · 1 award |
| 10 | MACOM Manufacturer of RF, microwave, millimeter wave, and optical networking components | $179M | 17 mo ago | 781 | Stephen Daly CEO | MathJaxMUIVideoJS+11 | — | 52 patents Patents concentrated in electrical & electronics | 1 job opening |
| 11 | nEye Provider of integrated silicon photonic switch for AI computing 55Funding top 17%Talent top 28%AI top 30%Moat top 40% All 7 signals ▾Fundingtop 17% Talenttop 28% AItop 30% Moattop 40% Globalbottom 45% Techbottom 36% Marketbottom 35% Funding: Raised $149M across 3 rounds · 3 rounds over 3 yrs (1.0/yr) Talent: 3 named leaders on record · 3 C-suite/founder profiles curated rank vs industry peers · Fliar Intelligence Index 55/100 | $149M | 2 mo ago | — | Kyungmok Kwon Co-Founder | WebflowGSAPjQuery+7 | — | — | — |
| 12 | Atom Computing Developer of quantum computers using arrays of optically-trapped neutral atoms | $101M | 20 mo ago | 40 | Jonathan King Co-Founder | WordPressApple iCloud MailGoogle Workspace+20 | — | 100 patents Neutral atom quantum computing hardware: atom array assembly, beam control, and error correction | 2 partnerships |
| 13 | NUBURU Developer of high-power blue lasers for welding, additive manufacturing, and materials processing 53Growth top 18%News top 24%Funding top 27%Partners top 32% All 11 signals ▾Growthtop 18% Newstop 24% Fundingtop 27% Partnerstop 32% Patentstop 33% Innovationtop 37% Techtop 42% Talentbottom 49% Globalbottom 48% Marketbottom 33% Fin. healthbottom 25% Growth: Web rank 10,000,000 → 5,000,000 YoY · 10 acquisition/expansion moves in 24 mo News: 29 BI events in 12 mo (of 69 tracked, 10 types) · +142% YoY rank vs industry peers · Fliar Intelligence Index 53/100 | $86M | 6 mo ago | 41 | Mark Zediker Co-Founder & CEO | WordPressMySQLPHP+21 | 29 signals ▲142% Announcements · M&A · Funding | 191 patents Patents concentrated in electrical & electronics | 1 partnership |
| 14 | SiLC Technologies Provider of 4D vision sensing solutions 42Funding top 27%Moat top 39%Growth top 45%Tech top 49% All 7 signals ▾Fundingtop 27% Moattop 39% Growthtop 45% Techtop 49% Marketbottom 40% Globalbottom 38% Newsbottom 22% Funding: Raised $78.6M across 4 rounds · 4 rounds over 6 yrs (0.7/yr) Moat: Editorial + unicorn rating 7/10 · 9 curated direct competitors tracked rank vs industry peers · Fliar Intelligence Index 42/100 | $79M | 21 mo ago | 55 | — | WordPressMySQLPHP+19 | — | — | 2 launchs |
| 15 | Monarch Quantum Manufacturer of integrated photonics systems for quantum computing, sensing, and communication 35Funding top 32%Talent top 38%Tech top 50%Global bottom 48% All 5 signals ▾Fundingtop 32% Talenttop 38% Techtop 50% Globalbottom 48% Marketbottom 31% Funding: Raised $76.0M across 2 rounds · 2 rounds over 1 yrs (2.0/yr) Talent: 2 named leaders on record · 2 C-suite/founder profiles curated rank vs industry peers · Fliar Intelligence Index 35/100 | $76M | 3 mo ago | — | Tim Day Chairman & CEO | WordPress Block EditorWordPressMarker+21 | — | — | 1 partnership |
| 16 | eMagin Leading US manufacturer of OLED microdisplays for diverse applications | $69M | 11 mo ago | 109 | Andrew Sculley President & CEO | SalesforceBootstrapFont Awesome+9 | — | 222 patents Advanced OLED manufacturing: sapphire deposition masks, tandem structures, and high‑resolution display processes | — |
| 17 | Xscape Photonics Developer of photonic chips for high speed connections in data centers and performance computing systems 48Funding top 25%Talent top 28%Growth top 30%Patents top 35% All 10 signals ▾Fundingtop 25% Talenttop 28% Growthtop 30% Patentstop 35% Moattop 43% Innovationtop 44% Newsbottom 49% Globalbottom 40% Techbottom 39% Marketbottom 22% Funding: Raised $57.0M across 4 rounds · 4 rounds over 4 yrs (1.0/yr) Talent: 4 named leaders on record · 4 C-suite/founder profiles curated rank vs industry peers · Fliar Intelligence Index 48/100 | $57M | 3 mo ago | 9 | Keren Bergman Co-Founder | WebflowGSAPjQuery+7 | 3 signals ▲50% Funding | 23 patents Integrated photonic circuits for wavelength‑division multiplexed switching and laser packaging. | 1 job opening |
| 18 | Swift Solar Provider of flexible perovskite solar cells 69Growth top 17%Innovation top 20%Patents top 23%Talent top 25% All 10 signals ▾Growthtop 17% Innovationtop 20% Patentstop 23% Talenttop 25% Fundingtop 29% Newstop 30% Moattop 32% Techbottom 42% Globalbottom 40% Marketbottom 30% Growth: 5 acquisition/expansion moves in 24 mo · Fresh capital in last 24 mo Innovation: 63 patents (top 27% of patent-holders) · 50 filings since 2022 vs 13 in 2017-21 rank vs industry peers · Fliar Intelligence Index 69/100 | $42M | 13 mo ago | 19 | Tomas Leijtens Cto | WebflowApple iCloud MailGoogle Workspace+11 | 8 signals Acquisition · Announcements | 63 patents Integrating robust interconnects and moisture barriers for perovskite‑silicon tandem solar modules | 1 job opening |
| 19 | MicroVision Developer of lidar sensors and perception software for various industries | $40M | 20 mo ago | 350 350 → 447 (+28%) · sector median +65% | Sumit Sharma Chief Executive Officer | PlyrVarnishTailwind CSS+9 | 19 signals ▲27% Acquisition · Earnings · Leadership | 957 patents High‑resolution lidar and scanning‑laser imaging systems for automotive and AR/VR | 1 launch · 2 partnerships |
| 20 | Hyperlight Developer of transmitter PICs, chiplets, and packaged modulators for optical networking 50Innovation top 24%Funding top 24%Patents top 26%Talent top 38% All 9 signals ▾Innovationtop 24% Fundingtop 24% Patentstop 26% Talenttop 38% Moattop 44% Growthtop 45% Globalbottom 40% Techbottom 34% Marketbottom 30% Innovation: 105 patents (top 36% of patent-holders) · 90 filings since 2022 vs 15 in 2017-21 Funding: Raised $37.0M across 2 rounds · 2 rounds over 2 yrs (1.0/yr) rank vs industry peers · Fliar Intelligence Index 50/100 | $37M | 2 mo ago | 18 | Kevin Luke Co-founder and Head of Technology Development | Cart FunctionalityPHPLaravel+12 | — | 105 patents Patents concentrated in computing, sensing & instrumentation | — |
| 21 | Lightelligence Developer of optical chips and software solutions for artificial intelligence based computing 78AI top 20%Talent top 22%Funding top 28%Patents top 31% All 11 signals ▾AItop 20% Talenttop 22% Fundingtop 28% Patentstop 31% Moattop 32% Innovationtop 34% Growthtop 35% Markettop 46% Globalbottom 45% Newsbottom 42% Techbottom 41% AI: Classified as an AI company · Holds AI/ML patents (G06N-family CPC) Talent: Analyst team rating 5/5 · 3 named leaders on record rank vs industry peers · Fliar Intelligence Index 78/100 | $37M | 9 mo ago | 200 | John Joannopoulos Co-Founder | Apple iCloud MailMicrosoft 365Tengine+10 | — | 49 patents Photonic processors and optoelectronic computing hardware for high‑speed AI acceleration | — |
| 22 | DermaSensor Developer of an AI-powered skin cancer detection device 64Funding top 25%News top 29%Innovation top 35%Growth top 35% All 12 signals ▾Fundingtop 25% Newstop 29% Innovationtop 35% Growthtop 35% AItop 35% Producttop 35% Moattop 37% Techtop 38% Patentstop 42% Talentbottom 49% Marketbottom 34% Globalbottom 33% Funding: Raised $35.8M across 6 rounds · 6 rounds over 8 yrs (0.8/yr) News: 3 BI events in 12 mo (of 7 tracked, 3 types) · Top themes: Funding, Capital raise rank vs industry peers · Fliar Intelligence Index 64/100 | $36M | 8 mo ago | 24 | Cody Simmons CEO | WordPressBetterDocsSentry+46 | 3 signals Funding · Capital raise | 10 patents Non‑invasive optical spectroscopy for melanoma and skin cancer detection | — |
| 23 | Avicena Developer of microLED interconnects for high-bandwidth communication in AI data centers | $33M | 13 mo ago | 38 | Bardia Pezeshki Founder & CEO | WordPress Block EditorElementorWordPress+25 | 3 signals ▲200% Leadership · Funding | 55 patents Dermatological formulations and neuro‑metabolic therapies for skin and cognitive disorders | — |
| 24 | OLEDWorks Manufacturer of organic light-emitting diode lighting solutions for various applications 82Patents top 14%AI top 15%Funding top 28%Talent top 28% All 12 signals ▾Patentstop 14% AItop 15% Fundingtop 28% Talenttop 28% Innovationtop 30% Growthtop 31% Techtop 31% Moattop 32% Producttop 46% Globaltop 49% Marketbottom 44% Newsbottom 21% Patents: 94 patents matched (strict assignee match) · 58 filings since 2022 vs 27 in 2017-21 AI: Holds AI/ML patents (G06N-family CPC) rank vs industry peers · Fliar Intelligence Index 82/100 | $31M | 11 mo ago | 73 73 → 147 (+101%) · sector median +65% | David DeJoy Co-Founder & Chairman | WordPressApple iCloud MailMicrosoft 365+27 | — | 94 patents Advanced segmented and stacked OLED microdisplays with ESD protection and low-voltage silicon backplanes | 1 launch |
| 25 | PhotoPharmics Developer of non-invasive phototherapy for Parkinson's disease 42Funding top 29%Moat top 32%Growth top 35%Product top 40% All 9 signals ▾Fundingtop 29% Moattop 32% Growthtop 35% Producttop 40% Techtop 42% Patentstop 42% Innovationtop 44% Globalbottom 35% Marketbottom 21% Funding: Raised $29.7M across 11 rounds · 11 rounds over 14 yrs (0.8/yr) Moat: Editorial + unicorn rating 7/10 · IP moat: 31 patents rank vs industry peers · Fliar Intelligence Index 42/100 | $30M | 13 mo ago | 7 | — | WordPressPleskMySQL+26 | — | 31 patents Photonic light‑emitting devices for neuro‑ophthalmic diagnosis and therapy | — |
| 26 | Sigray Fluorescence spectroscopy based molecule analysis solution | $27M | 16 mo ago | 58 | Wenbing Yun Founder & CEO | WordPress Block EditorWordPressMySQL+23 | — | 193 patents Advanced X-ray imaging, microfocus sources, and wavelength-dispersive spectroscopy instrumentation | 1 job opening |
| 27 | Voyant Photonics Manufacturer of 3D sensing chip based on CMOS 42Innovation top 29%Moat top 32%Patents top 33%Funding top 34% All 8 signals ▾Innovationtop 29% Moattop 32% Patentstop 33% Fundingtop 34% Talenttop 38% Techbottom 34% Marketbottom 32% Globalbottom 31% Innovation: 58 patents (top 47% of patent-holders) · 55 filings since 2022 vs 3 in 2017-21 Moat: Editorial + unicorn rating 7/10 · IP moat: 58 patents rank vs industry peers · Fliar Intelligence Index 42/100 | $23M | 3 mo ago | 30 | Chris Phare Co-Founder & CEO | WordPressMySQLPHP+9 | — | 58 patents Integrated photonic beamforming and signal processing for compact FMCW LiDAR systems | — |
| 28 | Spectral Sciences Developer of software and instruments for electro-optical and remote sensing applications | $22M | 12 mo ago | 36 | Lawrence Bernstein Co-Founder | WordPressMySQLPHP+18 | — | — | — |
| 29 | Folio Photonics Platform offering optical data storage solutions for enterprises 35Moat top 31%Funding top 32%Growth top 35%Patents top 50% All 10 signals ▾Moattop 31% Fundingtop 32% Growthtop 35% Patentstop 50% Talentbottom 49% Innovationbottom 47% Techbottom 44% Globalbottom 36% Newsbottom 27% Marketbottom 22% Moat: Editorial + unicorn rating 7/10 · IP moat: 10 patents Funding: Raised $19.6M across 9 rounds · 9 rounds over 12 yrs (0.8/yr) rank vs industry peers · Fliar Intelligence Index 35/100 | $20M | 3 mo ago | 17 | Steven Santamaria CEO | Node.jsVue.jsNuxt.js+7 | — | 10 patents High‑density 3D and multilayer optical data storage technologies | — |
| 30 | UbiQD Developer of low-cost quantum dots for industrial applications 45Funding top 26%Patents top 29%Innovation top 32%Moat top 32% All 10 signals ▾Fundingtop 26% Patentstop 29% Innovationtop 32% Moattop 32% Newstop 39% Talentbottom 49% Techbottom 48% Globalbottom 40% Partnersbottom 35% Marketbottom 31% Funding: Raised $18.4M across 15 rounds · 15 rounds over 10 yrs (1.5/yr) Patents: 65 patents matched (strict assignee match) · 31 filings since 2022 vs 33 in 2017-21 rank vs industry peers · Fliar Intelligence Index 45/100 | $18M | 4 mo ago | 27 | Hunter McDaniel Founder & CEO | WebflowreCAPTCHAHSTS+10 | 3 signals ▲200% Funding · Contracts | 65 patents Patents concentrated in chemistry & materials | 1 launch · 3 expansions |
| 31 | Lightsynq Developer of optical quantum interconnects for quantum computers | $18M | 17 mo ago | — | Bart Machielse Co-Founder & CTO | — | — | — | — |
| 32 | Praevium Research Developer of photonic integrated circuits and opto-electronic devices 19Funding top 35%Talent bottom 49%Tech bottom 47%Global bottom 32% All 5 signals ▾Fundingtop 35% Talentbottom 49% Techbottom 47% Globalbottom 32% Marketbottom 23% Funding: Raised $17.6M across 10 rounds · 10 rounds over 23 yrs (0.4/yr) Talent: 1 named leader on record · 1 C-suite/founder profile curated rank vs industry peers · Fliar Intelligence Index 19/100 | $18M | 11 mo ago | 13 | Vijaysekhar Jayaraman Founder | — | — | — | — |
| 33 | Intelligent Fiber Optic Systems Photonic sensing and computing solutions for diverse industries 10Funding top 37%Talent bottom 45%Global bottom 29%Market bottom 13% All 4 signals ▾Fundingtop 37% Talentbottom 45% Globalbottom 29% Marketbottom 13% Funding: Raised $17.1M across 22 rounds · 22 rounds over 18 yrs (1.2/yr) Talent: 1 named leader on record rank vs industry peers · Fliar Intelligence Index 10/100 | $17M | 13 mo ago | 6 | Behzad Moslehi Founder & CEO | — | — | — | — |
| 34 | Lumileds Manufacturer of LEDs, LED modules, and related lighting system solutions | $15M | 16 mo ago | 450 | Steve Barlow CEO | WordPressMySQLPHP+17 | — | 3,532 patents High‑efficiency LED lighting modules and automotive headlamp optics with advanced packaging | 2 launchs |
| 35 | NODAR Developer of advanced LiDAR sensors for autonomous vehicles 50AI top 15%Patents top 29%Moat top 32%Talent top 35% All 10 signals ▾AItop 15% Patentstop 29% Moattop 32% Talenttop 35% Innovationtop 36% Fundingtop 36% Techbottom 45% Productbottom 45% Globalbottom 36% Marketbottom 21% AI: Holds AI/ML patents (G06N-family CPC) Patents: 39 patents matched (strict assignee match) · 35 filings since 2022 vs 4 in 2017-21 rank vs industry peers · Fliar Intelligence Index 50/100 | $14M | 3 mo ago | 10 10 → 17 (+70%) · sector median +65% | Leaf Jiang Founder & CEO | Cart FunctionalityFramer SitesReact+10 | — | 39 patents Patents concentrated in electrical & electronics | — |
| 36 | Netpreme Developer of memory to compute networking solutions for AI infrastructure systems | $12M | 11 mo ago | — | Zhizhen Zhong Founder & CEO | TurbopackNode.jsRadix UI+12 | — | — | 1 job opening · 1 launch |
| 37 | Adeptrix Developer of bead-assisted mass spectroscopy technology for proteomics | $10M | 13 mo ago | 7 | — | — | — | 29 patents Multiplexed bead-based immunoassay platforms for high-throughput protein/biomarker analysis | 2 launchs |
| 38 | Neurophos Platform that deliver GPU-level performance in a compact, energy-efficient form using optical computing and… 48AI top 18%Patents top 34%Innovation top 35%Funding top 37% All 9 signals ▾AItop 18% Patentstop 34% Innovationtop 35% Fundingtop 37% Moattop 38% Techtop 50% Talentbottom 49% Globalbottom 46% Marketbottom 21% AI: Classified as an AI company · Holds AI/ML patents (G06N-family CPC) Patents: 21 patents matched (strict assignee match) · 18 filings since 2022 vs 3 in 2017-21 rank vs industry peers · Fliar Intelligence Index 48/100 | $10M | 6 mo ago | 5 | Patrick Bowen Co-Founder & CEO | WixSentryApple iCloud Mail+13 | — | 21 patents Optical analog computing hardware using metasurfaces and tunable liquid‑crystal metamaterials | — |
| 39 | Sydor Technologies High tech imaging devices and ballistics testing equipment | $9M | 14 mo ago | 16 | Michael Pavia President & CEO | WordPress Block EditorWordPressMySQL+34 | — | — | — |
| 40 | Laser Photonics Provider of laser marking and engraving systems for photonic production | $9M | 3 mo ago | 23 23 → 55 (+139%) · sector median +65% | — | WordPressApple iCloud MailMySQL+30 | 13 signals ▼57% Earnings · Funding · Acquisition | — | 2 job openings · 1 launch |
| 41 | Uviquity Developer of semiconductor chips generating human-safe far-UVC light for disinfection | $8M | 9 mo ago | — | Brent Fisher Co-Founder | — | — | 12 patents Far‑UV‑C micro‑LEDs and nonlinear solid‑state light sources for germicidal optics | 1 launch |
| 42 | AdValue Photonics Manufacturer of fiber lasers for materials processing | $8M | 10 mo ago | 22 22 → 22 (+0%) · sector median +65% | — | WordPressMySQLPHP+21 | — | 48 patents Advanced fiber-optic components: polarizers, couplers, infrared fibers, and rare‑earth doped lasers | — |
| 43 | Fjscaler Developer of high-speed communication components and integrated optical solutions | $8M | 6 mo ago | — | Jan Filip CEO | — | — | — | 2 job openings |
| 44 | Bright Silicon Technologies Developer of chip-scale light steering solutions for optical switching 48Patents top 38%Innovation top 45%Funding top 48%Talent bottom 45% All 5 signals ▾Patentstop 38% Innovationtop 45% Fundingtop 48% Talentbottom 45% Globalbottom 33% Patents: 20 patents matched (strict assignee match) · 20 filings since 2022 vs 0 in 2017-21 Innovation: 20 patents (top 70% of patent-holders) · 20 filings since 2022 vs 0 in 2017-21 rank vs industry peers · Fliar Intelligence Index 48/100 | $4M | 3 mo ago | — | Jeffrey Lang Chief Executive Officer | — | — | 20 patents Advanced optical phased‑array steering, alignment, and flexure bearing technologies for high‑performance photonics | 1 launch · 1 award |
| 45 | Polaris Electro-Optics Developer of silicon photonic modulators for data centers, AI, and high-performance computing | $3M | 13 mo ago | — | Jason Sickler Co-Founder & CEO | — | — | — | — |
| 46 | Forward Photonics Manufacturer of high-power laser systems | $3M | 9 mo ago | 9 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 47 | The Shape Sensing Provider of medical device control design, and 3D shape sensing solutions | $3M | 1 mo ago | 5 | — | — | — | 6 patents Fiber-optic shape sensing and birefringence mitigation for distributed 3D curvature measurement | — |
| 48 | AGR Provider of optical sensor-based spectrometers for agricultural applications 5Funding top 44%Global bottom 29%Market bottom 8% All 3 signals ▾Fundingtop 44% Globalbottom 29% Marketbottom 8% Funding: Raised $2.3M across 2 rounds · 2 rounds over 3 yrs (0.7/yr) Global: Single-market focus (United States) rank vs industry peers · Fliar Intelligence Index 5/100 | $2M | 1 mo ago | 3 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 49 | Luxtech Manufacturer of light-emitting diodes | $1M | 7 mo ago | 19 | Sean Darras Founder & CEO | — | — | 26 patents LED lighting modules and integrated illuminated architectural glass systems | — |
| 50 | Seminex Provider of infrared diode lasers | $840K | 7 mo ago | 10 | David Bean Founder & Board Member (former CEO) | HubSpot CMS Hublit-htmllit-element+15 | — | 33 patents Monolithic semiconductor lasers and amplifiers for medical phototherapy and LiDAR sensing | — |
Top 12 Photonics companies in United States
#1
Public · Milpitas, California · founded 2015 · 7500 employees$2.9Braised▾
Public · Milpitas, California · founded 2015 · 7500 employees
Manufacturer of lasers and optical communication products. Its product portfolio includes components for optical communication, commercial lasers, and diode lasers. The component of optical communication includes DWDM, transceivers, SDN element, ROADMs, amplifiers, passive components, pump lasers, and submarine components. Its portfolio of commercial lasers includes Q-Switched lasers and low-power CW lasers. It also offers edge-emitting diode lasers, fiber-coupled diode lasers, and VCSELs.
Fliar Intelligence Index™ 82how this company ranks against its industry peers
Market
top 22%Fin. health
top 24%Funding
top 26%Partners
top 31%News
top 33%Tech
top 35%Market: 7,500 employees (top 5% of Telecom) · Revenue ~$1.6B · Top-5,000,000 web property
Fin. health: Revenue ~$1.6B (FY2012) · Net margin 7.8% · Revenue +21% YoY
Funding: Raised $2.9B across 2 rounds · 2 rounds over 7 yrs (0.3/yr) · Last round Post IPO (Mar 2026)
Audience (LinkedIn): 86k LinkedIn followers — 10.9% of this cohort's audience
Activity (LinkedIn): 1 expansions announced in 12 mo
Funding rounds
- Mar 2026Post IPO$2B
- Dec 2019Post IPO$900M
Investors
Nvidia, Cottonwood Technology Fund
Tech stack
Amazon AlbAmazon CloudfrontAmazon Web ServicesApple Icloud MailBugherdCloudflare
#2
Series E · San Jose, California · founded 2015 · 102 employees$216.5Mraised▾
Series E · San Jose, California · founded 2015 · 102 employees
Developer of optical interconnect solutions for artificial intelligence infrastructure applications. The company provides optical I/O chiplets and light sources for enhanced bandwidth and power efficiency. These solutions aim to improve the performance and scalability of AI and high-performance computing systems. The company's products are intended for use in data centers and other advanced technology applications.
Fliar Intelligence Index™ 87how this company ranks against its industry peers
Funding
top 16%Patents
top 17%Moat
top 22%Talent
top 22%Innovation
top 23%News
top 29%Funding: Raised $216M across 10 rounds · 10 rounds over 10 yrs (1.0/yr) · Last round Series E (Mar 2026)
Patents: 375 patents matched (strict assignee match) · 289 filings since 2022 vs 86 in 2017-21 · Latest publication 2026
Moat: Editorial + unicorn rating 8/10 · IP moat: 375 patents · Unicorn
Audience (LinkedIn): 30k LinkedIn followers — 3.8% of this cohort's audience
Activity (LinkedIn): 1 product launches · 2 partnerships · 1 awards (incl. NVIDIA) announced in 12 mo
Funding rounds
- Mar 2026Series E$500M
- Dec 2024Series D$155M
- May 2023Series C$25M
- Apr 2022Series C$130M
Founders & team
Investors
Lockheed Martin, GF, Founders Fund, Intel Education Accelerator, Playground Global, VentureTech Alliance
Tech stack
Alpine.JsApple Icloud MailCdnjsCloudflareCloudflare Bot ManagementCloudflare Browser Insights
#3
Series E · Palo Alto, California · founded 2015 · 213 employees$1.3Braised▾
Series E · Palo Alto, California · founded 2015 · 213 employees
Developer of photon-based universal quantum computers. It uses photonic technology to develop error-corrected general-purpose quantum computers. It has applications in drug discovery, personalized medicine, artificial intelligence, and materials sciences.
Fliar Intelligence Index™ 92how this company ranks against its industry peers
Patents
top 9%Funding
top 13%Innovation
top 16%Moat
top 22%News
top 26%Growth
top 27%Patents: 889 patents matched (strict assignee match) · 691 filings since 2022 vs 198 in 2017-21 · Latest publication 2026
Funding: Raised $1.3B across 6 rounds · 6 rounds over 7 yrs (0.9/yr) · Last round Series E (Sep 2025)
Innovation: 889 patents (top 1% of patent-holders) · 691 filings since 2022 vs 198 in 2017-21 · Deep-tech classification: Tech Hardware
Audience (LinkedIn): 85k LinkedIn followers — 10.7% of this cohort's audience
Activity (LinkedIn): 1 product launches announced in 12 mo
Funding rounds
- Sep 2025Series E$1B
- May 2025Series E$22M
- Apr 2024Series E$614.1M
- Apr 2024Conventional Debt—
Founders & team
Investors
M12, Atomico, Founders Fund, Redpoint Ventures, BlackRock, Playground Global
Tech stack
Amazon Web ServicesAngularApple Icloud MailCart FunctionalityCdnjsCloudflare
#4
Series C · Emeryville, California · founded 2020$148.5Mraised▾
Series C · Emeryville, California · founded 2020
Provider of integrated silicon photonic switch for AI computing. It is designed to support data center infrastructure, for AI, machine learning, and high-performance computing systems. Its product, the SuperSwitch, is a fully integrated silicon photonic switch that addresses critical communication bottlenecks in data centers by enabling direct optical connections among multiple GPUs and memory units.
Fliar Intelligence Index™ 55how this company ranks against its industry peers
Funding
top 17%Talent
top 28%AI
top 30%Moat
top 40%Global
bottom 45%Tech
bottom 36%Funding: Raised $149M across 3 rounds · 3 rounds over 3 yrs (1.0/yr) · Last round Series C (Apr 2026)
Talent: 3 named leaders on record · 3 C-suite/founder profiles curated
AI: Classified as an AI company · Product described with: machine learning
Funding rounds
- Apr 2026Series C$80M
- Apr 2025Series B$58M
- Aug 2023Series A$10.5M
Founders & team
Investors
CapitalG, M12, Micron, Nvidia, Socratic Partners, Tianjin TEDA Technology Investment
Tech stack
CloudflareGoogle Font ApiGoogle Hosted LibrariesGsapHstsHttp/3
#5
Series C · San Diego, California · founded 2025$76Mraised▾
Series C · San Diego, California · founded 2025
Manufacturer of integrated photonics systems for quantum computing, sensing, and communication. The company provides modular platforms integrating lasers, modulators, detectors, fiber optics, and control systems. These systems enable state preparation, measurement, cooling, trapping, manipulation, and coherent control of quantum states. The company aims to accelerate development cycles for quantum technology.
Fliar Intelligence Index™ 35how this company ranks against its industry peers
Funding
top 32%Talent
top 38%Tech
top 50%Global
bottom 48%Market
bottom 31%Funding: Raised $76.0M across 2 rounds · 2 rounds over 1 yrs (2.0/yr) · Last round Series C (Mar 2026)
Talent: 2 named leaders on record · 2 C-suite/founder profiles curated
Tech: 24 technologies across 4/8 capability areas · Cloud: Fastly · Devops: Nginx, Varnish
Audience (LinkedIn): 6k LinkedIn followers
Activity (LinkedIn): 1 partnerships (incl. Infleqtion) announced in 12 mo
Funding rounds
- Mar 2026Series C$55M
- Dec 2025Series B$21M
Founders & team
Investors
Serendipity Capital, 55North, Global Innovation Labs
Tech stack
Core-JsFastlyGodaddyGoogle AnalyticsGoogle Tag ManagerGravity Forms
#6
Acquired · Boulder, Colorado · founded 2007 · 2828 employees$825Mraised▾
Acquired · Boulder, Colorado · founded 2007 · 2828 employees
Provider of fiber transport and network connectivity and managed services. Operations include the delivery of dark fiber, wavelength capacity, and private network infrastructure. Additional offerings consist of internet access, ethernet, and cloud integration services. Security features include protection against distributed denial of service attacks and managed firewall configurations. Communication tools include voice solutions and unified collaboration platforms. Infrastructure support extends to wireless connectivity and satellite backup options for business continuity.
Fliar Intelligence Index™ 89how this company ranks against its industry peers
Funding
top 16%Market
top 22%Fin. health
top 27%Global
top 28%News
top 31%Partners
top 32%Funding: Raised $825M across 18 rounds · 18 rounds over 19 yrs (0.9/yr) · Last round Grant (prize money) (Jun 2025)
Market: 2,828 employees (top 8% of Telecom) · Revenue ~$2.6B · Top-5,000,000 web property
Fin. health: Revenue ~$2.6B (FY2020) · Net margin 18.0% · Revenue -1% YoY
Audience (LinkedIn): 96k LinkedIn followers — 12.2% of this cohort's audience
Activity (LinkedIn): 1 awards announced in 12 mo
Funding rounds
- Jun 2025Grant (prize money)—
- Aug 2024Grant (prize money)$27.8M
- Dec 2020Grant (prize money)—
- Mar 2019Post IPO—
Founders & team
Investors
American Rescue Plan Act, CoBank, SunTrust Bank, Royal Bank of Canada, Morgan Stanley, Battery Ventures
Tech stack
Amazon Web ServicesApache Http ServerApple Icloud MailAutomatic.CssBricksCloudflare
#7
Series A · New York City, New York · founded 2022 · 9 employees$57Mraised▾
Series A · New York City, New York · founded 2022 · 9 employees
Developer of photonic chips for high speed connections in data centers and performance computing systems. The company's chips connect various computing elements by using photonics to reduce power consumption, enabling businesses and research institutions with faster, more energy-efficient data processing.
Fliar Intelligence Index™ 48how this company ranks against its industry peers
Funding
top 25%Talent
top 28%Growth
top 30%Patents
top 35%Moat
top 43%Innovation
top 44%Funding: Raised $57.0M across 4 rounds · 4 rounds over 4 yrs (1.0/yr) · Last round Series A (Mar 2026)
Talent: 4 named leaders on record · 4 C-suite/founder profiles curated
Growth: Web rank 50,000,000 → 10,000,000 YoY · Fresh capital in last 24 mo
Audience (LinkedIn): 10k LinkedIn followers
Hiring (LinkedIn): 1 hiring post in 12 mo (public) · hiring: PIC Test Lead, Control & Test Engineer
Funding rounds
- Mar 2026Series A$37M
- Oct 2024Series A$44M
- Aug 2023Seed$3M
- Aug 2022Seed$10M
Founders & team
Investors
Altair, IAG Capital Partners, Cisco Investments, Fathom Fund, Life Extension Ventures, Nvidia
Tech stack
CloudflareGoogle Font ApiGoogle Hosted LibrariesGoogle WorkspaceGsapHsts
#8
Public · Mountain View, California · founded 2016 · 306 employees$560Mraised▾
Public · Mountain View, California · founded 2016 · 306 employees
Provider of LiDAR-based sensors for autonomous vehicles. It produces sensors with camera-grade precision that can identify reflectivity, velocity, and length and produces lidar technology solutions for autonomous machine designs and perception sensing technology. It also provides perception software incorporated in customized LiDAR-on-chips. Its features comprise object categorization, localization, risk detection, real-time monitoring, and road boundary recognition.
Fliar Intelligence Index™ 69how this company ranks against its industry peers
Patents
top 14%Funding
top 22%Innovation
top 32%Product
top 35%Moat
top 35%Growth
top 37%Patents: 433 patents matched (strict assignee match) · 375 filings since 2022 vs 58 in 2017-21 · Latest publication 2026
Funding: Raised $560M across 4 rounds · 4 rounds over 9 yrs (0.4/yr) · Last round Post IPO (Jul 2025)
Innovation: 433 patents (top 16% of patent-holders) · 375 filings since 2022 vs 58 in 2017-21 · 1 new-product event in 24 mo
Audience (LinkedIn): 51k LinkedIn followers — 6.5% of this cohort's audience
Activity (LinkedIn): 1 product launches · 1 partnerships · 1 awards (incl. Aeva) announced in 12 mo
Funding rounds
- Jul 2025Post IPO$50M
- Jan 2021Post IPO$200M
- Dec 2019Series A—
- Oct 2018Series A$45M
Founders & team
Investors
Porsche Se, Sylebra Capital, Lux Capital, Canaan, LG Innotek, Next47
Tech stack
Acquia Cloud PlatformAcquia Cloud Site FactoryAdobe AnalyticsAdobe Experience Platform Identity ServiceAdobe Experience Platform LaunchAhrefs
#9
Public · Centennial, Colorado · founded 2015 · 41 employees$86.2Mraised▾
Public · Centennial, Colorado · founded 2015 · 41 employees
Developer of high-power blue lasers for welding, additive manufacturing, and materials processing. The company provides blue lasers that interact efficiently with copper, aluminum, silver, nickel, and other metals. Its lasers deliver power with galvo scanner compatibility, enabling high-speed welding with a large process window and micron-scale depth control. The company offers direct-to-scanner and fiber-delivery-to-scanner product lines for applications including consumer electronics, battery manufacturing, e-mobility, and medical devices.
Fliar Intelligence Index™ 53how this company ranks against its industry peers
Growth
top 18%News
top 24%Funding
top 27%Partners
top 32%Patents
top 33%Innovation
top 37%Growth: Web rank 10,000,000 → 5,000,000 YoY · 10 acquisition/expansion moves in 24 mo · Fresh capital in last 24 mo
News: 29 BI events in 12 mo (of 69 tracked, 10 types) · +142% YoY · 13 high-value events (IPO/M&A/funding/contracts) in 12 mo
Funding: Raised $86.2M across 9 rounds · 9 rounds over 11 yrs (0.8/yr) · Last round Post IPO (Dec 2025)
Audience (LinkedIn): 3k LinkedIn followers
Activity (LinkedIn): 2 partnerships (incl. Maddox Defense) announced in 12 mo
Funding rounds
- Dec 2025Post IPO$23.2M
- Aug 2024Post IPO$648K
- Apr 2024Post IPO$3M
- Jun 2023Post IPO$7.9M
Founders & team
Investors
Anzu Partners, GRAPHA-Holding
Tech stack
A3 Lazy LoadAnimate.CssBugherdCdnjsCloudflareCloudflare Bot Management
#10
Series C · Cambridge, Massachusetts · founded 2018 · 18 employees$37Mraised▾
Series C · Cambridge, Massachusetts · founded 2018 · 18 employees
Developer of transmitter PICs, chiplets, and packaged modulators for optical networking. The company manufactures known-good-dies (KGD) on the TFLN Chiplet platform suitable for PAM/IMDD and coherent applications. It offers intensity modulation/direct detection (IMDD) PICs for pluggable transceivers and dual-polarization IQ (DPIQ) transmitter PICs for DCI and long-haul communications. Additionally, the company provides customized transmitter chiplets tailored for specific integration schemes and applications, along with packaged electro-optic amplitude, phase, and IQ modulators. The company's products cater to AI, Datacom, Telecom, test and measurement, quantum systems, and emerging applications. It also offers custom development partnerships and multi-project wafer (MPW) runs.
Fliar Intelligence Index™ 50how this company ranks against its industry peers
Innovation
top 24%Funding
top 24%Patents
top 26%Talent
top 38%Moat
top 44%Growth
top 45%Innovation: 105 patents (top 36% of patent-holders) · 90 filings since 2022 vs 15 in 2017-21 · Deep-tech classification: Tech Hardware
Funding: Raised $37.0M across 2 rounds · 2 rounds over 2 yrs (1.0/yr) · Last round Series C (Apr 2026)
Patents: 105 patents matched (strict assignee match) · 90 filings since 2022 vs 15 in 2017-21 · Latest publication 2026
Audience (LinkedIn): 8k LinkedIn followers
Activity (LinkedIn): 1 product launches · 2 partnerships (incl. United Microelectronics Corporation (UMC) and Wavetek) announced in 12 mo
Funding rounds
- Apr 2026Series C$53M
- Sep 2024Series B$37M
Founders & team
Investors
Summit Partners, Xora Innovation, Foothill Ventures, UMC Capital, Engine Ventures
Tech stack
AosBootstrapCart FunctionalityFont AwesomeGoogle AnalyticsHubspot
#11
Series A · Solon, Ohio · founded 2012 · 17 employees$19.6Mraised▾
Series A · Solon, Ohio · founded 2012 · 17 employees
Platform offering optical data storage solutions for enterprises. It provides optical storage units such as disc storage, HDD, file, block, object storage and more. It includes features such as creating dynamic multi-layer write and read capabilities,It uses a proprietary drive with a optical pickup unit to track through layers.
Fliar Intelligence Index™ 35how this company ranks against its industry peers
Moat
top 31%Funding
top 32%Growth
top 35%Patents
top 50%Talent
bottom 49%Innovation
bottom 47%Moat: Editorial + unicorn rating 7/10 · IP moat: 10 patents
Funding: Raised $19.6M across 9 rounds · 9 rounds over 12 yrs (0.8/yr) · Last round Series A (Mar 2026)
Growth: Fresh capital in last 24 mo
Funding rounds
- Mar 2026Series A$6M
- Aug 2025Series A$2.6M
- Jan 2022Series A$5.2M
- Jan 2020Seed$250K
Founders & team
Investors
Refinery, Capital One, Pavey Investments, National Science Foundation, GLIDE, Innovation Fund America
Tech stack
AosCloudflareCore-JsGoogle Font ApiGoogle WorkspaceHttp/3
#12
Series A · New York City, New York · founded 2017 · 30 employees$23Mraised▾
Series A · New York City, New York · founded 2017 · 30 employees
Manufacturer of 3D sensing chip based on CMOS. It creates LIDAR-based sensor chips solutions for 3D sensing. It provides a range of imaging sensors for multiple applications. The image sensors offered by the company caters to multiple applications including cars, drones, robots, factories, your home, and mobile phones.
Fliar Intelligence Index™ 42how this company ranks against its industry peers
Innovation
top 29%Moat
top 32%Patents
top 33%Funding
top 34%Talent
top 38%Tech
bottom 34%Innovation: 58 patents (top 47% of patent-holders) · 55 filings since 2022 vs 3 in 2017-21 · Deep-tech classification: Tech Hardware
Moat: Editorial + unicorn rating 7/10 · IP moat: 58 patents · 10 curated direct competitors tracked
Patents: 58 patents matched (strict assignee match) · 55 filings since 2022 vs 3 in 2017-21 · Latest publication 2026
Audience (LinkedIn): 8k LinkedIn followers
Activity (LinkedIn): 1 product launches · 1 awards announced in 12 mo
Funding rounds
- Mar 2026Conventional Debt$1M
- Jul 2023Series A$3.2M
- Feb 2021Series A$15.5M
- Jul 2019Seed$4.3M
Founders & team
Investors
Contour Venture Partners, LDV Capital, DARPA, Neu Venture Capital, UP.Partners, Entrepreneurs Roundtable Accelerator
Tech stack
Contact Form 7Core-JsGoogle WorkspaceJqueryJquery MigrateMysql
Funding & investor landscape
$18.6Btotal disclosed funding
270companies funded
1,305disclosed rounds
4rounds last 90 days
Most active investors
Intel Capital11 rounds
New Enterprise Associates8 rounds
Notable founders
Rajeev Ram
Co-Founder · Ayar Labs
Milos Popovic
Co-Founder · Ayar Labs
Mark Thompson
Co-Founder & CTO · PsiQuantum
Terry Rudolph
Co-Founder · PsiQuantum
Kyungmok Kwon
Co-Founder · nEye
Tae Seok
Co-Founder & CTO · nEye
Tim Day
Chairman & CEO · Monarch Quantum
Eric Takeuchi
Chief Commercial Officer · Monarch Quantum
Steve Smith
CEO · Zayo
Keren Bergman
Co-Founder · Xscape Photonics
Michal Lipson
Co-Founder · Xscape Photonics
Mina Rezk
Co-Founder · Aeva
Prism market signals · United States · country-scoped Prism corpus, 11,143,665 docs
Market landscape — 10 sub-themes by coverage
Share of Photonics coverage by sub-theme.
Regulatory-risk over time rising
Funding & growth over time
funding rising · growth rising
RESEARCH SIGNALS · United States
How research on Photonics & Optoelectronics is moving in the United States
A read on the academic research around Photonics & Optoelectronics — which themes are gaining ground, the institutions and researchers driving them, and how the tone is shifting. Based on 8,187 United States-affiliated papers.
research sentiment over time
200820162026
enthusiastic · positive · guarded tone
Tone is overwhelmingly optimistic and intensifying — the enthusiastic (strongly-positive) share moved 55% → 66% across 2008–2026.
top research entities
- Stanford University214
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology198
- Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory171
- Georgia Institute of Technology164
- Purdue University West Lafayette150
leading researchers
Freederia AI Researcher · Donal P. Finegan · R. Docherty · S. J. Cooper · A. Vamvakeros · Prashant V. Kamat · Anonymous · Mietek Jaroniec
▲
Breakthroughs4,493 · 55%
▲ 47%→57% share
▲1.2× share momentum0 median citations85% since 2021mostly methods-led
Perovskite-structure research is surging — papers rose from 46 to 234, now anchoring the breakthroughs segment's expanding 57% field-share.
rising sub-themes (early→recent)
- Fabrication19→275
- Laser14→203
- Perovskite (structure)46→234
- Heterojunction26→197
- Polarization (electrochemistry)7→150
Newly emergingOptical fiber 0→72 · Lithium niobate 0→38 · Multiplexing 0→37
Landmark Graphene-Based Ultracapacitors · 8,262 cites
◆
Advancements2,537 · 31%
31%→31% share
▲1.0× share momentum0 median citations83% since 2021mostly empirical
Detector research newly emerged at 71 papers, signaling fresh advancements momentum in photonics device characterization.
rising sub-themes (early→recent)
- Fabrication14→141
- Laser7→134
- Electrode10→95
- Transistor11→95
- Thin film6→86
Newly emergingDetector 0→71 · Thermal 0→62 · Epitaxy 0→43
Landmark Large-Area Synthesis of High-Quality and Uniform Graphene Films on Copper Foils · 11,049 cites
▼
Concerns445 · 5%
▼ 6%→5% share
▼0.8× share momentum0 median citations79% since 2021mostly empirical
Reliability concerns in semiconductors are newly emerging alongside thermal issues, flagging durability gaps as fabrication scales from 3 to 23 papers.
rising sub-themes (early→recent)
- Perovskite (structure)10→33
- Fabrication3→23
- Laser2→21
- Transistor1→18
- Heterojunction2→15
Newly emergingElectrode 0→16 · Reliability (semiconductor) 0→15 · Thermal 0→12
Landmark Luminescent metal–organic frameworks · 4,884 cites
RESEARCH HOTSPOTS · United States
Where photonics is researched across United States
Location clusters by institution affiliation — each city's volume, stance tone, and a quick read on its hot topic, what's advancing, the opening opportunity, and the main concern.
SF Bay Area478 · +0.70
Boston420 · +0.73
Los Angeles256 · +0.64
New York233 · +0.66
Chicago190 · +0.62
Atlanta180 · +0.65
Ann Arbor122 · +0.66
Austin118 · +0.67
Philadelphia86 · +0.73
Seattle84 · +0.66
PATENT SIGNAL · United States
Who's filing photonics patents in the United States
United States photonics patent filing is cooling — 101,098 filings from 8,000 assignees (2016–2025), led by 3M Innovative Properties, Corning, Commscope Technologies; annual filings 9203→8562.
101,098 filings8,000 assigneespeak 11462/yr2016–2025
filing momentum (YoY 2016–2025)
top patent filers
- 3M Innovative Properties5571
- Corning5268
- Commscope Technologies3962
- Apple3437
- ADC Telecommunications2925
- Magic LEAP2911
- Intel2714
- E INK2595
Common questions
How many Photonics companies are there in United States?
Radar tracks 586 indexable Photonics companies headquartered in United States that meet our profile-completeness bar.
What is the total funding raised by Photonics companies in United States?
The Photonics companies in United States on this list have raised a combined $18.6B in disclosed equity funding across 270 funded companies.
Which is the highest-funded Photonics company in United States?
Lumentum is the highest-funded Photonics company in United States, with $2.9B in disclosed equity funding.
How many Photonics companies in United States are funded?
270 of the 586 Photonics companies in United States on this list have disclosed at least one equity funding round.
How many Photonics unicorns are there in United States?
3 Photonics companies in United States on this list are valued at $1B or more.
Who are the top investors in United States Photonics companies?
The most active investors in United States Photonics companies on this list include National Science Foundation, OSTI, HHS, Europa, America’s Seed Fund.
Riya SenguptaFinancials
Riya reads income statements for fun. She covers the real money in a sector — revenue, growth, who actually earns — and never met a vague claim she didn't want a number for.