• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to footer

Venture Capital Matters

#VentureCapital: VC meets social media

  • Pitch a Startup
  • Market Reports
  • Technologies
    • Technology Events
  • Domain Names for Startups
  • About
  • Contact

Folio Photonics Raises $8 Million in Seed Funding Round: Archival Data Storage Start-Up Poised to Disrupt Industry with Modern Optical Solution

May 21, 2019 By 3v.org Leave a Comment

Folio Photonics, developing a new standard in optical solutions for data storage, today announced that it has closed an $8 million seed funding round led by Refinery Ventures. Pavey Investments and Capital One Partners also participated in the round. The investment will be used to further drive partner engagements, beta customer acquisition, product development and general corporate growth.

Digital data is growing at a stunning pace, leaving companies with an enormous storage problem. In the last 10 years, worldwide data has increased from 0.9 zettabytes to 33 zettabytes (1 zettabyte = 1 trillion gigabytes), and is predicted to hit 175 zettabytes by 2025[1], presenting companies with a difficult decision – delete or add capacity.

Deleting data isn’t a viable solution, as data is essential in driving innovation and competitive advantage. Additionally, companies are tasked with keeping data longer due to regulatory retention requirements, and advancements in analytic tools demand larger data sets. In today’s environment, companies require a solution that not only stores data for long periods of time, but can do so economically.

“We founded Folio Photonics to address a rapidly growing problem – archival data storage,” said Kenneth D. Singer, PhD, the company’s founder and chief innovation officer.

“Data,” said Steven Santamaria, the company’s CEO, “is one of the most valuable and competitive assets companies retain, and existing solutions such as HDDs and magnetic tape cannot economically meet the demands of today’s data-driven environment. Companies need a high-capacity solution that provides quick access to data at a low-cost. We have a deep understanding of today’s data requirements and have developed a solution to meet customer needs.”

Unlike existing archival storage solutions, Folio Photonics’ terabyte-scale multilayer DataFilm Disc™ delivers an extremely long shelf-life, small environmental footprint and low total cost of ownership.

The product emerged from Singer and his collaborators’ laboratories at Case Western Reserve University’s National Science Foundation Center for Layered Polymeric Systems in Cleveland. The invention involves the design of a multilayer film capable of being written with existing Blu-Ray laser technology and produced in a highly scalable roll-to-roll process. The initial disc offering will have a capacity near one terabyte per side with plans to deliver 10 terabytes per disc. Based on the long life, high capacity, and robust product road map, Folio Photonics anticipates driving the cost of archival data storage significantly below the competition. (For more information regarding Folio Photonics annual archival acquisition projections, please see A Roadmap for Cost Containment in Data Archiving.)

As part of today’s announcement, Tim Schigel, managing partner of Refinery Ventures, and Joe Taylor, former chairman and CEO of Panasonic Corp. of North America, have joined Folio Photonics’ Board of Directors. Taylor’s experience in successfully transforming Panasonic Corp.’s business from consumer electronics products to B2B solutions, combined with Schigel’s deep knowledge of leading hypergrowth companies bring a unique set of strengths to Folio Photonics.

“I meet with hundreds of companies a year, and the minute I met with Steve and Ken, I knew there was something different,” Schigel said. “It’s rare to find not only a new technology that is a true disruption to an existing industry, but an executive team that understands how to build, grow and scale a disruptive company. I’m confident Folio Photonics will change the archival data storage industry, bringing a powerful, economic option to a growing problem.”

“I’ve never seen anything close to Folio Photonics’ ability to drive down archival storage costs,” Taylor said, “and I’m thrilled to be part of the journey.”

About Folio Photonics
Folio Photonics, founded in 2012 as a spin-off from Case Western Reserve University and its National Science Foundation Center for Layered Polymeric Systems, is redefining archival data storage with its modern optical solution. Folio’s Data Film Disc™ (DFD) uniquely combines high capacity, long life with backwards compatibility and minimal environmental requirements – power and cooling – to create the industry’s lowest priced storage solution for initial acquisition costs and total ownership. Folio Photonics’ technology is poised to handle tomorrow’s archival storage, today. Learn more at www.foliophotonics.com.

Related

Filed Under: PR

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Footer

Recent Posts

  • Blockchain co Starkware raises $100m at $8b valuation
  • FreshCut Secures $15M Funding to Accelerate Transformation of Web3 Gaming Content Ecosystem
  • Thought Machine Raises $160m in Series D Funding Round – Doubling Valuation to $2.7bn and Accelerating Plans to Bring World’s Banks Onto Cloud Technology
  • Foundational Skills Checklist
  • LucidLink Raises $20 Million in Series B to Solve Remote Collaboration Challenges for Global Creative Teams
  • Storyblok Raises $47M Series B Led by Mubadala Capital and HV Capital to Make Headless Content Management the New Standard
  • A bridge between Web2 and Web3
  • Fresh Technology Inc. Closes $7 Million Series A to Drive Innovation in Modern Restaurant Kitchens
  • SoftBank will be cutting its startup investments by 50-75% through March 2023
  • Paddle, which provides a billing backend for SaaS companies, raises a $200M Series D

Media Partners

  • VPNW
  • S3H
  • OPINT
  • Press Media Release
  • OSINT
  • Digital Market
  • Briefly

Media Partners

  • Technology Conferences
  • Event Sharing Network
  • Defense Conferences
  • Cybersecurity Events
  • Event Calendar
  • Calendarial
  • Opinion
  • Venture Capital

Copyright © 2018 3V.org

Technologies, Market Analysis & Market Research Reports

We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
Do not sell my personal information.
Cookie SettingsAccept
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
SAVE & ACCEPT