Business / brief
Startup plans laser network to beam data between data centers
Endeavour Optical Networks has emerged from stealth with seed funding to build a space-based laser communications system it says will be the fastest yet, offering an alternative to undersea fiber cables.
Founded in May, Endeavour Optical Networks (EON) announced its plans today, backed by $10.75 million in seed funding from General Catalyst and Andreessen Horowitz. The company intends to deploy a constellation of laser-equipped spacecraft to link data centers from orbit, a solution aimed at the growing need for high-speed data transfer as hyperscale data centers multiply globally.
The startup's approach targets the vulnerabilities of undersea fiberoptic cables, which are costly to install and hard to repair. Radio-based wireless transmissions lack the bandwidth needed for the massive data flows, according to the company. EON says advances in optical technology and more powerful satellites have made space-to-ground laser communications increasingly practical.
Recent milestones include NASA's use of laser communications to beam data from its latest Moon mission, as well as demonstrations by private space firms York, Kepler, and Cailabs that achieved 2.5 Gbps links between Earth orbit and the ground. EON's co-founders, CEO Charlie Horowitz and CTO Tyler Presser, say the company is targeting a significantly higher starting throughput, though specifics remain undisclosed.
The network aims to handle data at speeds approaching those of undersea fiber, which typically operates at 200 terabits per second or more. Most existing satellite communication systems, including those providing broadband internet, are not robust enough for such capacity, according to EON.