When was Thorlabs founded?

Thorlabs was founded in 1989 and raised its 1st funding round 25 years after it was founded.

Where is Thorlabs located?

Thorlabs is headquartered in Newton, United States. It is registered at Newton, New Jersey.

Who is the current CEO of Thorlabs?

Alex Cable of Thorlabs. They have also founded 1 company.

How many employees does Thorlabs have?

As of Apr 30, 2026, the latest employee count at Thorlabs is 1527.

Is Thorlabs a funded company?

Thorlabs is a funded company, having raised an undisclosed amount across 2 funding rounds to date. The company's 1st funding round was a $***** Grant (prize money) round, raised on Jan 01, 2014.

When was the latest funding round of Thorlabs?

Thorlabs' latest funding was a $***** Grant (prize money) round on 2015, with participation from 1 investor.

Where does Thorlabs rank among its competitors?

Thorlabs ranks 3rd amongst 39 active competitors, of which 4 are funded. It stands 6th in terms of total funding among its competitors. The most recent competitor to raise funding was AIM Photonics, which secured $321M in Oct, 2021.

Who are the top competitors of Thorlabs?

Thorlabs' top competitors include Hamamatsu Photonics, AIM Photonics and Freedom Photonics. Among them, AIM Photonics secured the most recent funding round in October, 2021.

Thorlabs - 2026 Company Profile, Team, Funding & Competitors

Thorlabs is a funded company based in Newton (United States), founded in 1989 by Alex Cable. It operates as a Photonics products and solutions provider, accelerating scientific research and product development. Thorlabs has raised an undisclosed amount in funding. The company has 39 active competitors, including 4 funded and 6 that have exited. Its top competitors include companies like Hamamatsu Photonics, AIM Photonics and Freedom Photonics.

Company Details

Photonics products and solutions provider, accelerating scientific research and product development. The company pioneers photonics technologies, offering an extensive portfolio of photonics components, instruments, and systems. They design and manufacture solutions for imaging, optomechanics, motion control, optics, fiber, and light applications. Their vertically integrated capabilities enable in-house design, prototyping, testing, and manufacturing of both catalog and custom solutions. They are committed to driving positive change in the photonics industry and supporting scientific innovation through partnerships, education, and sustainable business practices. The company values respect, trust, innovation, accountability, and empathy, fostering a dynamic environment where employees are valued and contributions are appreciated. They offer software downloads, technical resources, and support documents. The website offers login, account creation, search functionality, and a shopping cart.

Website: www.thorlabs.com/
Social
Phone Number: +1 **********
Registered Address: Newton, New Jersey

Key Metrics

Founded Year

1989

Location

Newton, United States

Stage

Funding Raised

Latest Funding Round

Grant (prize money), 2015, $*****

Investors

Europa

Ranked

3^rd among 39 active competitors

Employee Count

1,527 as on Apr 30, 2026

Investment & Acquisitions

Praevium Research & 5 more

Similar Companies

Hamamatsu Photonics & 37 more

View Thorlabs' full profile

Thorlabs is associated with 1 legal entity given below:

Legal Entity Name	Date of Incorporation	Revenue	Latest Employee Count	Documents
THORLABS, INC CIN: 222873153 , United States, Active	Dec 31, 1999	-	1734 (As on Dec 31, 2024)	-

Thorlabs has raised funding over 2 rounds. Its first funding round was on Jan 01, 2014. Its latest funding round was a Grant (prize money) round on 2015 for $*****. 1 investor participated in its latest round. Thorlabs has 1 institutional investor.

Here is the list of recent funding rounds of Thorlabs:

Date of Funding	Funding Amount	Round Name	Post-Money Valuation	Revenue Multiple	Lead Investors	Other Investors
2015	5420	Grant (prize money)	3529	6826	3691	8209
Jan 01, 2014	8218141	Grant (prize money)	2906416	6637522	6095822	Europa

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View details of Thorlabs's funding rounds and investors

The founders of Thorlabs is Alex Cable. Alex Cable is the CEO of Thorlabs.

Here are the details of Thorlabs' key team members:

Alex Cable: Founder & CEO of Thorlabs.
Contact Info: 1 email address

View details of Thorlabs's Founder profiles and Board Members

Thorlabs' employee count trend

Thorlabs has 1,527 employees as of Apr 26. Here is Thorlabs's employee count trend over the years:

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Top competitors of Thorlabs include Hamamatsu Photonics, AIM Photonics and Freedom Photonics. Here is the list of Top 10 competitors of Thorlabs, ranked by Tracxn score:

Rank	Company Details	Short Description	Total Funding	Investors	Tracxn Score
1st	Hamamatsu Photonics 1953, Hamamatsu (Japan), Public	Manufacturer of optical sensors, components, cameras, light sources, and systems	-	Europa	49/100
2nd	AIM Photonics 2015, Albany (United States), Funding Raised	Provider of silicon photonics manufacturing, design enablement, prototyping, testing, and packaging	-	Defense.gov, SUNY	48/100
3rd	Thorlabs 1989, Newton (United States), Funding Raised	Photonics products and solutions provider, accelerating scientific research and product development	-	Europa	42/100
4th	Freedom Photonics 2005, Santa Barbara (United States), Acquired	Manufacturer of photonic components, modules and subsystems	-	OSTI, United States Department of Agriculture	44/100
5th	Teem Photonics 1998, Grenoble (France), Series C	Provider of a suite of photonic products	$31M	Generis Capital Partners, Baker Capital & 7 others	42/100
6th	Ocean Insight 1992, Largo (United States), Acquired	Manufacturer of a suite of photonics products	-	-	40/100
7th	SiFotonics Technologies 2004, Woburn (United States), Series B	Provider of silicon photonics components and ICs	$30M	UMC Capital, ID Ventures America & 1 others	40/100
8th	Leonardo 2018, Arlington (United States), Unfunded	Pump diode solutions for advanced targeting systems	-	-	40/100
9th	Flawless Photonics 2017, Mountain View (United States), Seed	Developer of ZBLAN based optical fibers	$2.08M	-	40/100
10th	NextLens 2017, Dietikon (Switzerland), Unfunded	Manufacturer of tunable lenses, beam steering mirrors, and laser speckle reducers	-	-	36/100

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Thorlabs has not made any investments yet. Thorlabs has made 6 acquisitions.

Here is the list of latest three $acquisitions:

Filter this list

Date of Investment/Acquisition	Type	Company Name	Founded Year	Location
Jan 2025	Acquisition	Praevium Research	2001	Goleta (United States)
Jan 17, 2023	Acquisition	JML Optical	1972	New York City (United States)
May 03, 2019	Acquisition	Cirtemo	2011	Columbia (United States)