Our story
Photon Bridge was founded in 2020 in Eindhoven to rethink how high-performance photonic systems are built at scale. Drawing on deep experience in the integrated photonics ecosystem, founder Rui Santos identified that monolithic integration, while promising in theory, introduced manufacturing complexity that fundamentally limited yield, reliability, and scalability.
By re-architecting the approach and prioritizing digital photonic solutions, Photon Bridge dramatically reduces manufacturing complexity while enabling higher bandwidth and lower power optical engines. This foundation allows photonic interconnects to scale reliably for next-generation data and communication infrastructure.
Leadership Team
Photon Bridge’s leadership team brings together a rare combination of deep technological expertise and proven business leadership.
With experience spanning photonics engineering, product development, and company building, the team is focused on scaling innovation into robust, deployable solutions.
We turn photonics potential into market reality
Paul Marchal - CEO
Inventor of TSV and Wide-I/O tech behind HBM and modern AI hardware. Deep-tech founder with 10+ years’ startup experience and €35M+ raised to date, leading teams from breakthrough to market.
Rui Santos - CTO
15+ years turning cutting-edge photonics at Smart Photonics and imec into lasers and engines driving today’s data centers and next-gen chips.
John Anderton - CCO
20+ years leading global product and demand teams, turning complex tech into revenue with Tier 1 brands across the semiconductor industry.
Sanjiv Kapoor - COO
20+ years operations experience in various industries among which Rockley Photonics.
Vision
Our vision is be the world’s leading innovator in integrated photonics, bridging the gap between cutting-edge optical technology and scalable, energy-efficient connectivity for the next era of AI and global communications.
We envision a future where every AI datacenter and telecom network runs on optical engines that are low-power, high-density, and affordable at scale.
Mission
Our mission is to redefine photonic integration by uniting the performance of III-V materials with the scalability of silicon, delivering breakthrough optical engines that empower AI datacenters and telecom infrastructure.
We achieve this through pioneering truly unique photonics technology with scalable manufacturing approaches, that accelerate innovation from prototype to widespread deployment.
Advisory Board
Photon Bridge is guided by a strong advisory board that brings together decades of experience from across the photonics and semiconductor industry. Combining deep technical expertise with proven commercial leadership, our advisors help us navigate complex markets, accelerate adoption, and make the right strategic choices as we scale. Their insight ensures Photon Bridge stays closely aligned with real-world industry needs.
Giorgio Anania
Chairman of The Board
Sofia Santos
Faber
Billy McLaughlin
Advisor
Wojtek Smolinski
Vigo Ventures
Vincent Kampenhorst
Innovation Industries
Jurgen Van Eck
BOM
Lisa Verbruggen
Innovation Industries
Xaveer Leijten
Photon Bridge
Investors
Photon Bridge completed a successful investment round in January 2025.
The seed round was led by Innovation Industries and backed by Faber, BOM, and PhotonDelta. This strong investor support reinforces confidence in Photon Bridge’s technology, team, and long-term market potential.
