Cailabs Secures €57 Million to Accelerate Growth and Industrial Scale-Up
- Cailabs, a global leader in advanced photonics, strengthens its industrial and international expansion with €57 million in new financing
- The round combines a €37 million financing from the European Investment Bank (EIB) and €20 million investment from Definvest and Fonds Innovation Defense (Armed Forces ministry and Bpifrance), NewSpace Capital, the European Innovation Council (EIC) Fund, Starquest Capital, and CAIVE (Crédit Agricole Ille-et-Vilaine Expansion).
- The financing will support the production scale-up of up to 50 Optical Ground Stations annually by 2027, expand the company’s international footprint, and advance next-generation turnkey laser communications solutions
- The announcement comes on the sidelines of the World Space Business Week in Paris (15-19 September).
Rennes, France — 12 September 2025 — Cailabs, a deep-tech leader in advanced photonics, today announced it has raised €57 million to accelerate its industrial expansion and global growth. The round of structured financing, led by the European Investment Bank (EIB), combines a €37 million financing from the EIB and a €20 million investment from Definvest and Fonds Innovation Defense (Armed Forces ministry and Bpifrance), NewSpace Capital, the European Innovation Council (EIC) Fund, Starquest Capital, and CAIVE (Crédit Agricole Ille-et-Vilaine Expansion).
Ambroise Fayolle, Vice-President at the European Investment Bank, said:
“Space technologies are increasingly important for civilian use as well as for security and defense applications. As the bank of the European Union, the EIB supports Cailabs’ investments in manufacturing capabilities and in research & development of its laser communication technologies. The project is fully aligned with the EIB strategic priorities of security and defense, and technological innovation under its TechEU programme.”
“This funding round reflects our solid fundamentals and the confidence investors have in our strategic vision. It enables us to scale up industrial capabilities and prepare for the next stage of growth” said Jean-François Morizur, Co-founder and CEO of Cailabs
Accelerating Strategic Growth
Access to this structured financing reflects Cailabs’ increasing economic maturity, underpinned by more than 10 Optical Ground Stations (OGS) already under contract.
The proceeds of this financing will support Cailabs’ strategic roadmap, including:
- Scaling up production and strengthening its supply chain, with the goal of producing up to 50 OGS annually by 2027. The company has recently established a new industrial platform capable of assembling and validating up to five stations in parallel.
- Expanding international footprint, building on recent milestones such as the opening of a larger U.S. office, announced by the Governor of Virginia and large overseas contracts.
- Advancing its product offering, including turnkey 100+Gbps solutions, transportable Optical Ground Stations, expanded orbit options…
“Cailabs’ solutions are of strategic importance for France’s sovereignty in Defense and Space,” said Nicolas Berdou, Director of Investments for the funds Fonds Innovation Defense & Definvest.
“We are excited to support Cailabs’ expansion at this pivotal moment for optical communications. The shift is driving significant growth in the space sector, with an ever-increasing impact for mission critical applications and our daily lives,” said Daniel Biedermann, Partner, NewSpace Capital.
“The EIC Fund is happy to be part of this funding round for Cailabs, a pioneering company in photonics. Supporting disruptive innovators like Cailabs is essential to strengthening Europe’s competitiveness in deep tech”, said Svetoslava Georgieva, Chair of the EIC Fund Board.
“Cailabs has developed a decisive technology disruption at the heart of the most dynamic Spacetech industry, and they have cracked the key US market, outperforming local industry leaders. It is a real game changer, and continuing supporting such a unique deeptech company was a no-brainer decision for an historical shareholder such as Starquest,” said Arnaud Delattre, Founding Partner & CEO, Starquest Capital.
About Cailabs:
Cailabs is a global deeptech company with offices in France and the United States. Founded in 2013, it designs, manufactures, and develops photonic solutions for the space, industry, telecommunications, and defense sectors. A global specialist in laser communication, the company has accelerated its growth in the space field with turnkey optical ground stations enabled by atmospheric turbulence compensation technology. This makes it one of the first companies to harness fast, reliable, and low-latency data links across both space and terrestrial networks. www.cailabs.com
About EIB:
The European Investment Bank (EIB) is the long-term lending institution of the European Union, owned by its Member States. The EIB finances investments in eight core priorities that support EU policy objectives. The EIB Group, which also includes the European Investment Fund (EIF), signed nearly €89 billion in new financing for over 900 high-impact projects in 2024, boosting Europe’s competitiveness and security. In France, the EIB Group signed more than 100 agreements in 2024, totalling €12.6 billion. Nearly 60% (69% in France) of annual EIB Group financing supports projects that help fight climate change and improve climate change adaptation. www.eib.org
About EIC Fund
The European Innovation Council Fund from the European Commission is a deep tech investor across all technologies. The EIC Fund aims to fill a critical financing gap, to support companies in the development and commercialisation of disruptive technologies. With its large network of capital providers and strategic partners it shares risk and crowds in market players. eic.ec.europa.eu/eic-fund_en
About NewSpace Capital
NewSpace Capital is a global Private Equity firm that invests in growth-stage companies across the space technology ecosystem. It provides financial support for founders and entrepreneurs working to tackle the greatest problems humanity faces, from the climate crisis to threats to sustained economic and social development. The firm’s focus areas include building and manufacturing components, broadcasting and communication, earth observation, navigation, and emerging segments. By investing in the supply chain and applications segments of the space tech ecosystem, NewSpace taps into a large market with a high number of underinvested and undervalued companies. www.newspace.capital
About Bpifrance
Bpifrance, the public investment bank, finances businesses – at every stage of their development – through loans, guarantees and equity. Bpifrance supports them in their innovation and international projects. Bpifrance now also supports their export activities through a wide range of products. Advice, universities, networking and acceleration programmes for start-ups, SMEs and ETIs are also part of the services offered to entrepreneurs. Thanks to Bpifrance and its 50 regional offices, entrepreneurs have a single, close and effective contact to help them meet their challenges. www.bpifrance.fr
About Starquest
For the past 17 years, Starquest has been dedicated to driving the ecological transition by financing high-impact solutions for decarbonization, resource preservation, and climate change prevention and adaptation—all of which have a direct impact on biodiversity. A pioneer in the Greentech segment, Starquest benefits from a strong position within this ecosystem, providing unrivaled access to a unique pipeline of investment opportunities. With over €400 million in assets under management and with its Protect and CCR-F funds, the firm invests in Series A through D, with tickets ranging from €500k to €15m, supporting companies with strong growth and impact potential. Starquest is majority-owned (51%) by Montefiore Investment, a leading small and mid-cap investor in Europe. www.starquest-capital.com
Media Contacts:
Cailabs
Sonder London
Victoria Pearson | victoria@sonder-london.com
Tel.: +1 646 583 0688 / +44 20 8058 4781
EIB
Andrea Morawski | a.morawski@eib.org
Tel.: +352 691 284 349
Press Office: press@eib.org
BPI France
Sophie Santandrea sophie.santandrea@bpifrance.fr
Tel.: + 33 7 88 09 28 17