Last Updated: 14 May 2025
Avicena has closed a $65 million Series B funding round to accelerate the development of its microLED-based optical interconnects. The round was led by Tiger Global, with participation from SK hynix, Maverick Silicon, Prosperity7 Ventures, Venture Tech Alliance, Cerberus Capital Management, Hitachi Ventures, and Lam Research.
With this new round, Avicena’s total funding has reached $120 million. The company plans to use the capital to scale operations and bring its first commercial products to market. CEO Bardia Pezeshki described the round as “highly oversubscribed,” emphasizing growing interest in the company’s approach to tackling energy and performance challenges in AI systems.
As artificial intelligence reshapes computing, there’s a growing need for faster, more efficient data transfer within datacenters. Avicena’s LightBundle™ technology, based on arrays of GaN microLEDs, directly addresses these needs by offering lower power consumption and higher bandwidth density compared to traditional laser-based links.
“Avicena’s unique technology has transformative potential for improving the bandwidth and reducing the power consumption of AI computing systems.”
Rohit Iragavarapu, Partner at Tiger Global
According to Rene Do of SK hynix, energy-efficient optical interconnects are now critical for building scalable, disaggregated memory fabrics. Avicena’s microLED approach is seen as a promising alternative to laser optics, especially for long-reach, low-power applications.
Avicena will use the new funds to grow its team and ramp up production of LightBundle. The technology integrates directly with CMOS chips and uses multi-fiber cables to enable faster and more reliable communication between processors and memory modules.
The company is focused on building the infrastructure needed to support the next generation of AI supercomputers and datacenters, particularly as demand for larger AI models continues to rise. Its interconnects offer a viable path to scaling performance without pushing energy consumption beyond sustainable limits.
Founded in Sunnyvale, California, AvicenaTech Corp. is developing a next-gen optical interconnect platform designed for use in AI/ML, high-performance computing, 5G, sensors, and aerospace. The company’s LightBundle technology enables system designers to disaggregate compute and memory, helping boost system throughput while minimizing latency and energy usage.
Led by founder and CEO Bardia Pezeshki, Avicena is positioning itself as a key enabler of more sustainable AI infrastructure. Its team is composed of experts in optics, semiconductors, and systems design, working to commercialize a product that sits at the intersection of performance and efficiency.
In addition to Tiger Global and SK hynix, other returning and new investors include Maverick Silicon, Prosperity7 Ventures, Venture Tech Alliance, Cerberus Capital Management, Hitachi Ventures, and Lam Research.
Several investors expressed enthusiasm for the company’s approach to AI interconnects, citing both the growing need for power-efficient infrastructure and the scalability of microLEDs as a hardware platform.
