Revolutionizing Data Centres: Enabling Sustainable and High-Efficiency Optical Networking

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Founded in 2022 in Eindhoven, Netherlands, Astrape Networks is pioneering innovative solutions for data centre networking with its breakthrough OPTINET system, designed to drastically reduce energy consumption and improve operational efficiency. By eliminating most of the energy-intensive Optical-Electrical-Optical (O-E-O) conversions, the OPTINET system offers up to 60% energy savings, addressing one of the most pressing cost drivers in data centres today. Supported by an initial €1.6M seed funding and an additional €5M expected in 2024, Astrape is on track to scale its development from TRL 5 to market readiness, with plans to capture 3% of the global data centre networking market by 2032. At the heart of Astrape’s offering is the OPTINET system, a hybrid networking switch integrating optical and electronic links for real-time traffic management. This system dynamically adapts to both small and large data flows, making it highly suitable for data centres running AI-applications. With several patents already filed, Astrape’s IP portfolio is poised to expand with six more patents in 2024/2025, further protecting its technological edge. Astrape targets direct sales to large operators such as Google and Equinix and plans to generate significant revenue by 2028 from its OPTINET 16 and OPTINET-S64 products, with projected revenues exceeding €500M by 2029. To achieve large-scale pilot testing, validation, and commercial readiness and bring this innovation to market by 2026, Astrape seeks €2.5M in EIC funding which will be supplemented by private investment. The non-dilutive support from the EIC will boost investor confidence and bridge the current funding gap in the company. The company also requests €7.5M in EIC equity participation in its 2026 Series A round of €15M to support manufacturing, team expansion, and further development. This funding is crucial for reaching key milestones and securing commercial success in the expanding global data centre market.