Ayar Labs at a glance
As of- [1] Latest valuation: Reuters (via SRN News), September 10, 2026
- [2] Equity raised: Sum of the 2 sourced equity rounds in the funding history below (debt, tender offers and rumored rounds excluded), September 10, 2026
- [3] Lead investors: Tech Startups, March 3, 2026
- [4] Founded: Wikidata (retrieved October 4, 2026)
- [5] Headquarters: Ayar Labs (contact page) (retrieved September 27, 2026)
What Ayar Labs does
Ayar Labs develops optical interconnects, chips that move data between processors using light instead of electrical signals, sold as its TeraPHY product for AI systems.[1] The company said it would use the Series E to increase large-scale production and testing capacity for its co-packaged optics.[2]
Ayar Labs profile
written 2026-10-24Ayar Labs makes TeraPHY optical chips that replace copper links in AI systems and raised a $500 million Series E at a $3.75 billion valuation in March 2026.
What Ayar Labs does
Ayar Labs develops optical interconnects, chips that move data between processors using light instead of electrical signals, for AI systems. SiliconANGLE describes its product, TeraPHY, as a replacement of copper links with optical ones that offer greater bandwidth, performance, power efficiency and lower latency.[1],[2]
Ayar Labs places its TeraPHY Optical Engine directly into the ASIC socket of servers, alongside the GPU, an approach known as co-packaged optics (CPO). Verdict reports that the engine is compatible with standard industry manufacturing and packaging processes used by the main accelerator and switch suppliers.[1],[3]
Ayar Labs argues that copper is the constraint on scaling AI systems. In its September 2026 funding release, CEO and co-founder Mark Wade said, "Copper interconnect is becoming the limiting factor for AI scale-up." SiliconANGLE lists three copper problems the company cites: distance limits, power draw and heat.[4],[1]
History
Ayar Labs was founded in 2015. The company issues its releases from San Jose, California, and lists open roles in San Jose, Hsinchu and Bengaluru.[4]
Ayar Labs did not raise significant outside capital until five years after its founding, SiliconANGLE reported, when it received $35 million from outside investors. Interest in optical interconnects then rose with the AI build-out, and some of the company's biggest backers are chipmakers that stand to benefit from bigger clusters of chips.[1]
Ayar Labs is opening a Bengaluru Design Center, according to its September 2026 release. The office is meant to build end-to-end engineering capabilities across silicon product development and complements existing teams in the United States and Hsinchu, Taiwan.[4]
Funding
Ayar Labs closed a $155 million Series D in December 2024, led by Advent Global Opportunities and Light Street Capital. Nvidia, AMD, Intel and GlobalFoundries took part through their investment arms, and VentureTechAlliance, which has a strategic partnership with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., also participated.[2]
SiliconANGLE reported that the Series D brought total funding to $370 million and lifted the valuation beyond the $1 billion mark.[2]
Ayar Labs raised a $500 million Series E in March 2026, led by Neuberger Berman, at a valuation of $3.75 billion, according to Reuters. Total funding reached $870 million after that round.[5],[3]
Ayar Labs said on September 10, 2026 that it had secured an additional $150 million, bringing its total primary capital raised in 2026 to $650 million, and disclosed that Wiwynn made a strategic investment earlier in the year. SiliconANGLE called the raise a Series E extension from an unnamed investor and reported that Ayar Labs had raised just over a billion dollars in outside funding.[4],[1]
Ayar Labs has not disclosed a valuation for the September 2026 extension in the sources reviewed, and its revenue is not disclosed. The last valuation stated by a source remains the March 2026 Series E mark.[4],[1]
People
Ayar Labs is led by CEO and co-founder Mark Wade, according to its September 2026 release. Sankara Venkateswaran, vice president of silicon engineering, was hired earlier in the year and oversees the new Bengaluru Design Center, and Arun Balachandar, senior director of engineering, serves as site lead.[4]
Customers and partners
Ayar Labs is working with Wiwynn, a Taiwanese data center infrastructure company that also invested in it, to deliver optically connected, rack-scale AI systems for hyperscale workloads. SiliconANGLE says the systems use Ayar Labs' SuperNova remote light source technology to integrate directly into Wiwynn's rack-level server architecture.[1]
Ayar Labs names AMD, Applied Ventures, MediaTek, NVIDIA and VentureTech Alliance as strategic investors in its company description, and its September 2026 release lists Alchip, AMD, Intel, MediaTek and NVIDIA alongside Wiwynn as strategic backers.[4]
Ayar Labs competes with other optical interconnect startups. SiliconANGLE's December 2024 coverage named Lightmatter, Lightium and Xscape Photonics, and called Lightmatter one of Ayar Labs' biggest rivals.[2]
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Recent changes
- Sep 11, 2026Sep 11, 2026Ayar Labs Adds $150M, Tops $650M For 2026 Pulse story
- Sep 10, 2026Sep 10, 2026Raised $150M Series E extension SiliconANGLE
- Sep 10, 2026Sep 10, 2026IPO $225M at $5B+ Reuters (via SRN News)
- Sep 10, 2026Sep 10, 2026Valuation rose from $3.75B to $5B+ Reuters (via SRN News)
- Mar 3, 2026Mar 3, 2026Raised $500M Tech Startups
Earlier changes (2)
- Mar 3, 2026Mar 3, 2026New investor: Neuberger Berman Tech Startups
- Mar 2026Mar 2026First reported valuation: $3.75B Reuters (via SRN News)
Funding history
3 equity events · newest first · sources dated per row| Date | Round | Amount | Valuation | Lead investors | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 10, 2026 | Secondary salenot counted: no new capital | $225M | $5B+post-money | — WithAntero Peak Group at Artisan Partners | Reuters (via SRN News) |
| Sep 10, 2026 | Series E extension | $150M | — | — | SiliconANGLE |
| Mar 3, 2026 | Funding round | $500M | — | Neuberger Bermanunverified | Tech Startups |
Equity only. “Equity raised” above sums the rounds with a dated, linked source; rumored rounds, tender offers and secondary sales are listed but not counted, and debt financing is listed separately.
How Ayar Labs has been funded
In December 2024 Ayar Labs raised a $155 million Series D led by Advent Global Opportunities and Light Street Capital, with Nvidia, AMD and Intel participating, which took its valuation past $1 billion.[3] On March 3, 2026, Ayar Labs said it had raised a $500 million Series E led by Neuberger Berman at a $3.75 billion valuation, bringing total funding to $870 million, Reuters reported.[4],[2] New Series E investors included ARK Invest, Qatar Investment Authority, Insight Partners, MediaTek and 1789 Capital.[2] On September 10, 2026, Ayar Labs added $150 million, bringing the primary capital it raised in 2026 to $650 million, and disclosed a strategic investment from Taiwan's Wiwynn.[5],[6] After that extension, SiliconANGLE reported, the company had raised just over $1 billion in outside funding.[1]
Investors and their roles
- The company was founded in 2015, is led by CEO and co-founder Mark Wade, and is based in San Jose, California, with engineering roles in Hsinchu and Bengaluru.[5]
Investors
Latest Pulse
- Oct 14, 2026Salience Labs Raises $125M For Photonic AI NetworkingSalience Labs has closed an oversubscribed $125 million Series B led by Bullhound Capital to scale its photonic optical-switching chips for AI datacenter networking, with AMD Ventures and Intel Capital joining as new investors.→
- Oct 2, 2026CScale Exits Stealth With $145M For AI Data CentersCScale exited stealth with a $145 million Series C from Atreides Management, Valor Equity Partners, and Premji Invest to build optical interconnects for AI data centers, bringing its total funding to $188 million, the company said.→
- Oct 1, 2026Volantis Raises $88M To Build Photonic AI ChipsVolantis raised an $88 million Series A led by angel investor Lachy Groom and Abstract Ventures to commercialize a photonic chip architecture aimed at AI inference memory and bandwidth bottlenecks.→
- Sep 30, 2026CScale Exits Stealth With $145M for AI Optical LinksCScale emerged from stealth with $145 million in Series C funding -- $188 million raised in total, including backing from Nvidia and Intel Capital -- to build optical interconnects for gigawatt-scale AI data centers.→
- Sep 11, 2026September's Megadeals Already Top $8 BillionSix companies -- The Boring Company, Cognition, Positron AI, Mach Industries, Harvey, and Ayar Labs -- have absorbed more than $8 billion in the first ten days of September, almost all of it into physical AI infrastructure and applied AI.→
- Sep 11, 2026Ayar Labs Adds $150M, Tops $650M For 2026A $225 million secondary sale priced the optical-interconnect chipmaker above $5 billion, a 33% markup from its March valuation, as it races to reach high-volume manufacturing.→
- Sep 2, 2026iPronics Raises $125M for AI Data-Center OpticsSpanish photonics startup iPronics raised $125 million co-led by Maverick Silicon and Light Street Capital, with Nvidia joining as a strategic investor, to scale optical circuit switches that reconfigure AI data-center networks in sub-millisecond time.→
- Aug 9, 2026Chip Startups Raised $10.7B In 2026 Through Early JuneSemiconductor startups raised around $10.7 billion in seed-through-pre-IPO rounds in 2026 as of June 10, according to Crunchbase News, led by Cerebras' $1 billion pre-IPO round and $500 million raises by MatX, Ayar Labs and Etched; Etched raised again in July at a $10.3 billion valuation.→
Coverage Timeline
newest firstAll Coverage
FUNDING
September's Megadeals Already Top $8 Billion
Six companies -- The Boring Company, Cognition, Positron AI, Mach Industries, Harvey, and Ayar Labs -- have absorbed more than $8 billion in the first ten days of September, almost all of it into physical AI infrastructure and applied AI.
BY THE NUMBERS
Ayar Labs Adds $150M, Tops $650M For 2026
FUNDING$150M add, $5B valuation
Ayar Labs Adds $150M, Tops $650M For 2026
A $225 million secondary sale priced the optical-interconnect chipmaker above $5 billion, a 33% markup from its March valuation, as it races to reach high-volume manufacturing.
DEEP DIVE
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Ayar Labs FAQ
What is Ayar Labs's valuation?
On March 3, 2026, Ayar Labs said it had raised a $500 million Series E led by Neuberger Berman at a $3.75 billion valuation, bringing total funding to $870 million, Reuters reported.[4],[2]
How much has Ayar Labs raised?
On September 10, 2026, Ayar Labs added $150 million, bringing the primary capital it raised in 2026 to $650 million, and disclosed a strategic investment from Taiwan's Wiwynn.[5],[6]
Who invested in Ayar Labs?
In December 2024 Ayar Labs raised a $155 million Series D led by Advent Global Opportunities and Light Street Capital, with Nvidia, AMD and Intel participating, which took its valuation past $1 billion.[3]
Who founded Ayar Labs?
Ayar Labs was founded in 2015, is led by CEO and co-founder Mark Wade, and is based in San Jose, California, with engineering roles in Hsinchu and Bengaluru.[5]
What does Ayar Labs do?
Ayar Labs develops optical interconnects, chips that move data between processors using light instead of electrical signals, sold as its TeraPHY product for AI systems.[1]
When was Ayar Labs founded and where is it based?
Ayar Labs was founded in 2015 and is headquartered in San Jose, California, USA, according to Wikidata and Ayar Labs (contact page).
References
researched 2026-10-23Sources & methodologyshow
Where these figures come from
- SiliconANGLEmajor outlet1 fact
- Reuters (via SRN News)Value Add VC data2 facts
- Tech StartupsValue Add VC data1 fact
Figures are labelled Reported (a source states it), Estimated, Derived (computed from other facts) or Rumored (in talks / unconfirmed). Rumors never replace a confirmed figure. Each figure keeps its own as-of date; history is preserved rather than overwritten.