Vitrealab raises $11M for PIC-based AR light engines
Series A funding will accelerate the development of Vitrealab’s photonic integrated circuit technology for compact, high-performance AR display systems.
Vitrealab GmbH has raised $11 million in a Series A funding round to accelerate development and industrialisation of its photonic integrated circuit (PIC) technology for augmented reality (AR) display systems.
The investment will support the advancement of the company’s Quantum Light Chip (QLC), designed to enable compact, high-performance laser–liquid crystal on silicon (LCoS) light engines for next-generation AR smart glasses.
Vitrealab’s approach uses PICs to precisely guide and shape coherent laser light, reducing optical losses and overall system complexity while maintaining beam quality and polarisation control.
The architecture enables higher brightness, wider fields of view, and improved power efficiency in lightweight wearable form factors.
The funding round was led by LIFTT Italian Venture Capital and LIFTT EuroInvest, with participation from Constructor Capital, aws Gründungsfonds, Gateway Ventures, PhotonVentures, xista Science Ventures, Moveon Technologies, and Hermann Hauser Investment.
A spin-off from the University of Vienna Quantum Group and a portfolio company of PhotonVentures, Vitrealab is positioning its technology as a scalable platform for consumer AR adoption.
The company previously collaborated with Brilliance B.V. to integrate RGB laser sources into its QLC platform and is shortlisted for a 2026 PRISM Award at SPIE Photonics West in the XR Technology category.
The announcement reflects growing momentum for PIC technologies beyond communications and data centres, as integrated photonics increasingly enables emerging applications in immersive display and spatial computing systems.
