INLEAP Photonics raises €20 million to scale laser-based drone defence

Hanover, 1 September 2026 - German deep-techcompany INLEAPPhotonics has closed a seed funding round led by UVC Partners, securing approximately €20 million in total for laser-based drone defence. Other investors from Germany and across Europe include HTGF (Germany), Balnord(Poland), Sentris (Estonia) and Scale Capital (Denmark).

The funding round comes at a time of growing urgency.Recent incidents, including the drone attack at Leipzig/Halle Airport,demonstrate the immediate and real threat posed by unmanned aerial vehicles tocritical infrastructure. The demand for effective, safe and sovereign counter-drone systems has never been higher.
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INLEAP Photonics addresses this need with efficient and safe laser-based drone defence solutions and is already working with customers and partners including the German Federal Ministry of Defence (BMVg)and the Bundeswehr Cyber Innovation Hub. The recently announced strategic partnership with STARK Defence further underlines the growing demand forsovereign, operationally proven C-UAS (Counter-Unmanned Aircraft Systems)developed in Germany.

In response to strong market demand, INLEAP Photonics will use the new capital to expand its production and testing capacity andc ontinue growing its team.

"Our technology has reached the market and we are seeing strong order intake. We are now investing in manufacturing, quality assurance, sales and service to meet demand and deliver our systems at greaterscale," says Dr.-Ing. Marius Lammers,CEO and founder of INLEAP Photonics. "We will establish INLEAP Photonics as a leading European provider of laser effectors."

UVC Partners leads seed funding round

UVC Partners is the lead investor in the new financinground. The investor base has also been expanded to include new backers such asBalnord, Scale Capital and Sentris, bringing additional expertise and networksto support INLEAP Photonics' expansion across Europe.

"Drone defence is no longer a purely military issue.Airports, energy facilities and data centres require the same level of protection as defence installations. INLEAP Photonics is the only team whose technology meets the requirements of both environments: eye-safe for civilian use and robust enough for deployment in conflict zones. For us, this dual-use capability is the key lever for scaling," says Amanda Birkenholz, Partner at UVC Partners.

Poland and the Baltics: INLEAP's next frontier

Among the new investors in the round is Balnord, a venture capital fund backing frontier and dual-use technologies across the Baltic Sea region and Northern Europe. For Balnord, the investment in INLEAP marks a first step in building the company's presence in the region: Poland, the Nordics and the Baltics represent some of the most urgent markets for sovereign drone defense, driven by the security environment on NATO's northeastern flank and growing procurement activity from both military and civilian operators of critical infrastructure.

"Steering a high-energy laser beam at this speed and precision is one of the hardest problems in applied optics, and the INLEAP founders solve it from a rare foundation: the Laser Zentrum Hannover pedigree combined with deep roots in industrial laser manufacturing. We're backing this team to become a European market leader -- building on their strong position in Germany and opening up the Northeast Corridor (Poland, the Nordics and the Baltics), where the need is most urgent. Companies like INLEAP are how Europe keeps its optics and photonics talent and maintains the industrial base its global competitiveness depends on." comments Aleksander Dobrzyniecki, General Partner at Balnord

Funding to accelerate series production, development and market expansion

With the proceeds from the seed round, INLEAPPhotonics will accelerate the scaling of its technology for defence applications and the protection of critical infrastructure.

"Moving into series production requires more thansimply adding capacity. Every unit must be manufactured, tested and acceptedunder the same defined conditions. This is why we are investing in standardisedassembly and testing processes, rigorous quality assurance and reliable supplychains," says Dr.-Ing. Felix Wellmann, CTO and founder ofINLEAP Photonics.

Specifically, the capital will be invested in the following areas:
- Scaling series production: Establishing and standardising manufacturing and testing processes for INLEAP® FASTLIGHT® HELD and INLEAP® FASTLIGHT®SHIELD®
- Research and development: Further development of the core technology,particularly its eye-safe operating principle. This enables INLEAP® FASTLIGHT®SHIELD® to be deployed in urban and safety-critical environments anddifferentiates the system from all other solutions on the market.
- Sales and service: Expanding sales, customer support and market presence in Germany andacross Europe. Further locations are planned in Germany and other European countries to intensify cooperation with public-sector customers and security-relevant organisations such as the Bundeswehr and to reach prospective customers more quickly.
- Quality assurance and certifications: Developing and implementing the required processes, evidence and certifications for reliable deployment in industrial and security-critical environments.

Laser systems technology for different operational scenarios

INLEAP Photonics develops and supplies high-precision,ultra-fast laser beam steering systems. INLEAP® FASTLIGHT® SHIELD® hasbeen developed for controlled and eye-safe drone defence. The laser effector neutralises drones within seconds by precisely targeting identified weak points. The system is intended for military applications as well as civilian and critical infrastructure environments. INLEAP® FASTLIGHT® HELD (High Energy LaserDrone) is a system for laser-based drone defence on an unmanned ground platform and extends the range of applications for mobile C-UAS scenarios. It is based on the same technological foundation and combines the laser effector with a compact,all-terrain UGV platform (Unmanned Ground Vehicle) and a C-UAS software platform. The new funding will enable INLEAP Photonics to further develop and scale both product lines.

About INLEAP Photonics

INLEAP Photonics is a high-tech company that produces and markets ultra-fast, precise laser beam steering systems. The companyfocuses in particular on two application areas: increasing the efficiency of industrial laser-based manufacturing processes and enabling safe, controlled drone defence to protect people and critical infrastructure. INLEAP Photonics was founded as a spin-off from LaserZentrum Hannover e. V. and combines industrial robustness with leadingexpertise in optics and laser systems technology. Further information isavailable at: https://www.inleap-photonics.com.