Silicon Valley optical wireless communications startup Light Links has raised $6 million in pre-seed funding to scale production and expand deployments of its Wi-OW technology. The round was led by Outlander, with participation from Anorak, Output Capital, Mana, Crosscourt, and other defense and dual-use investors. Founded in 2024, the Campbell, California-based company is developing wireless networks that transmit data through infrared light rather than radio frequencies.
Optical Wireless Technology
Wi-OW transmits data using diffused infrared laser light that reflects from walls and ceilings, allowing connected devices to communicate even when there is no direct line of sight between them. By operating outside crowded radio spectrum, the technology is designed to avoid many of the interference, congestion, and reliability challenges associated with Wi-Fi, private 5G, and other radio-based networks, while keeping signals contained within the physical environment. Light Links says each connected device receives a guaranteed transmission window, creating a more predictable network for applications where connectivity failures or unpredictable delays can disrupt critical operations.
The system is designed to integrate with existing infrastructure without requiring major operational changes, using components already produced at scale for global fiber-optic networks and connecting through standard Ethernet interfaces. According to Light Links, Wi-OW can deliver symmetrical throughput of up to 25 gigabits per second while maintaining round-trip latency measured in microseconds, combining wireless flexibility with performance closer to wired fiber connections. Founder and CEO Firouz Vafadari said conventional wireless networks increasingly struggle with the demands of robotics, autonomous systems, and other applications that depend on rapid and dependable communication between machines.
Industrial Automation Applications
Industrial automation represents one of the company's main target markets as factories and warehouses introduce larger fleets of robots, autonomous vehicles, sensors, and physical AI systems that must communicate with centralized computing infrastructure in near real time. Light Links argues that existing wireless standards were primarily designed around best-effort data transmission rather than deterministic communications, making network congestion and variable latency particularly problematic when connected machines need responses within milliseconds. The company has already validated Wi-OW with a Fortune 50 customer, where its optical networking technology is now being used to replace Wi-Fi in live operations, according to the announcement.
Defense and Secure Communications
Defense is another priority because conventional radio transmissions can reveal a user's location and remain vulnerable to jamming, spoofing, interception, and restrictions on electromagnetic emissions in sensitive environments. Since Wi-OW carries information using light rather than radio frequencies, Light Links says there is no conventional RF signal for an adversary to detect or disrupt, potentially supporting communications in contested environments and locations subject to stringent electromagnetic safety requirements. The company is also developing optical identification technology for drone platforms, extending its technology toward unmanned defense systems where secure and resilient communications can be operationally critical.
Light Links plans to use the funding to increase production and broaden deployments across industrial and defense markets. The company is positioning optical wireless networking as an alternative for environments where conventional radio technologies face limits in reliability, latency, or security. The new capital will support its effort to turn early deployments into a scalable commercial platform.