Top Innovators: Lightfleet

Thanks to John Peers and Iain Mackie, data may soon travel through computer systems at the speed of light, reducing power consumption and getting rid of bottlenecks that slow down operations. Peers and Mackie are two of the minds behind development at Lightfleet, a company developing a new optical system that eliminates the need for physical switches in a data stream. The company has replaced the switches and almost all of the snaking electric wires in computer systems with light, which allows data to be almost instantly transferred between data nodes.

In a computer system, information must be passed from processor to processor, and current methods rely on a direct connection. The wires have a maximum capacity and the switch used to route the electrical signals is a potential point of failure that can bring down the entire system.

Lightfleets technology works by sending coded communications through beams of light, bounced off mirrors to receptors. This system can be scaled to handle loads that even high-end systems using optical cables struggle with. In addition, Lightfleet reduces the power required for devices like processors and storage systems. Less power also means less heat, making it cheaper to cool the expensive equipment.

Lightfleet technology is initially being introduced in data centers where performance can be boosted simply by replacing cables and switches. The companys first customer: Microsoft.