Taara unveils photonic chip for cable-free 25Gbps links

Taara, a graduate of X, Google's Moonshot Factory, has launched a wireless optical communications platform that moves beam steering and control onto a single silicon photonics chip. It also introduced Taara Beam, the first product built on the new photonic core.

The platform, called Taara Photonics, transmits data through the air using light rather than radio, delivering fibre-like speeds without cables or spectrum licences.

Taara has previously sold free-space optical systems that send narrow beams of light between fixed points. The new product line shifts away from systems that rely on mechanical parts such as mirrors and sensors for alignment and tracking.

Photonic core

Taara Photonics uses optical phased arrays, which steer light electronically by coordinating many tiny emitters. In Taara's design, an integrated photonic module contains more than a thousand miniature emitters arranged in an optical phased array.

Taara described the array as a solid-state steering device that tracks, shapes and steers light with greater precision than earlier approaches. The architecture is intended to reduce size and mechanical complexity while improving reliability and latency.

Taara Beam is the first commercial product built on this platform, delivering up to 25 Gbps over distances of up to 10 kilometres.

The hardware is designed for rapid deployment on existing structures such as rooftops and poles, with installations taking hours rather than the time required to trench and lay fibre.

Network use cases

Taara is positioning Beam for network operators, enterprises and what it calls next-generation data infrastructure. It highlighted urban environments, enterprise campuses, data centre clusters and event venues as likely deployment sites.

In these settings, free-space optical links can provide point-to-point connectivity where fixed lines are unavailable or build work is impractical. Taara also positioned Beam as an option for high-throughput links for wireless networks, including small-cell backhaul mounted on street furniture and fronthaul connections.

Taara said Beam can form high-bandwidth mesh networks and operates in unlicensed optical spectrum, avoiding recurring costs associated with radio spectrum licences.

Installed base

Taara already sells Taara Lightbridge, its earlier-generation system based on beams of light. Taara said Lightbridge is deployed in more than 20 countries.

Taara named Airtel, Digicel, T-Mobile, SoftBank and Liquid as operator users of its technology. It did not disclose revenue figures, contract sizes or deployment volumes for specific customers.

The announcement also signals a greater reliance on silicon photonics, which applies semiconductor manufacturing techniques to optical components. Taara said it has moved core wireless optical communication functions into an integrated circuit that controls light electronically.

Mahesh Krishnaswamy, Taara's founder and CEO, framed the launch as a step away from constraints in earlier connectivity generations.

"Every generation of connectivity has been defined by a physical constraint-copper's speed, fiber's time to deploy, and the scarcity of radio spectrum," said Mahesh Krishnaswamy, Founder and CEO, Taara.

Taara's engineering team said the new module significantly reduces system size compared with earlier designs. Devin Brinkley, SVP of Engineering, focused on integration and faster iteration cycles.

"Silicon photonics allows us to integrate the core functionalities of wireless optical communication into a single module," said Devin Brinkley, SVP of Engineering, Taara. "We've compressed most of the functionality of our previous systems into a photonic module the size of a finger. As the technology matures, it can scale across performance, cost, and size - similar to the exponential pace at which semiconductor platforms evolve."

Taara said it will showcase Taara Beam at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, including a live demonstration of the photonic core by Krishnaswamy on the Game Changers stage. Operators, infrastructure providers and partners can request early access to Taara Beam.