eyeo raises €40 million to fix the flaw that has kept every camera 70% blind

Key Takeaways
  • Series A funds eyeo's drive to bring seven years of proven nanophotonic science to market as production-ready color-splitting sensors
  • eyeo sensors capture three times more light for smartphones, XR devices, smart cities and more across a $30 billion imaging market
  • Funding round is led by Innovation Industries, with participation from existing investors imec.xpand, Invest-NL Deep Tech Fund, QBIC fund, High-Tech Gründerfonds (HTGF) and Brabant Development Agency (BOM).

Eindhoven (Netherlands), May 11, 2026 – eyeo today announced it has raised €40 million in Series A funding, bringing eyeo’s total funding to €55 million. The round is led by Innovation Industries, with participation from existing investors imec.xpand, Invest-NL Deep Tech Fund, QBIC fund, High-Tech Gründerfonds (HTGF) and Brabant Development Agency (BOM).

eyeo has developed the world’s most advanced nanophotonic color-splitting technology, redefining imaging for consumer, industrial, XR, smart city and mobile applications with color-splitting photonics technology that triples light sensitivity and breaks sensor resolution limits, delivering unprecedented picture quality, color accuracy and resolution.

The fresh funding will accelerate eyeo's sensor design capabilities, deepen its OEM partner ecosystem, and drive commercial deployment across a $30 billion global imaging market.

A new era for imaging: All seven billion image sensors sold each year, across smartphones, autonomous vehicles, XR devices, industrial machines, smart cities and more, share a fundamental flaw: color filters work by rejection, blocking red, green and blue light in turn and discarding 70% of the light in the process.

eyeo's Nanophotonic Color Splitting (NCOS®) technology platform works differently. Instead of filtering light, it splits it: separating light into its colors and guiding every photon directly to the pixel where it belongs. Backed by 26 patents, the NCOS® platform triples light sensitivity and breaks resolution limits. This breakthrough approach unlocks picture quality, color accuracy, resolution, and cost efficiency, which was never-before possible.

Compatible with existing CMOS sensor platforms, eyeo's technology unlocks sub-micron pixels with 3x the light for ultra-compact, high-performance imaging, removing the trade-off between image quality and sensor size that has constrained product design for decades.

From breakthrough science to production-ready sensors: This Series A round marks a decisive step forward in eyeo’s commercialization journey. Building on the foundation established and proven at imec over the last seven years, multiple tier one customer engagements, and successful process integration at a commercial foundry, eyeo is now investing in the full in-house engineering capability required to deliver sensors to customers at volume scale. The funding will be deployed across three strategic priorities:

  • Building a world-class IC and system architecture design team at the Antwerp sensor design center opened earlier this year

  • Developing and releasing next-generation color-splitting image sensors in 3D-stacked CMOS technology

  • Growing sensor sales and commercial partnerships with OEM customers across smart city, industrial, XR and mobile markets worldwide

"Every modern device that sees the world, from smartphones to autonomous systems, is held back by the same 50-year-old constraint. eyeo removes it at the source. Our technology is proven, patented and validated at a commercial foundry, with tier one customers already engaged. This €40 million round gives us what we need to scale."

Jeroen Hoet, co-founder and CEO, eyeo

"eyeo is delivering the kind of foundational breakthrough that redefines an entire category. This is a powerful example of deep-tech innovation driving real structural progress in semiconductors, with implications that extend across the broader technology ecosystem. We’re excited to back this outstanding team and their superior technology, which is truly pioneering in its approach and sets a new benchmark for what’s possible in the field."

Nard Sintenie, Partner Innovation Industries

This operation benefits from the support of the European Union under the InvestEU Fund.


About eyeo

eyeo is redefining imaging with the world’s most advanced nanophotonic color-splitting technology. For the first time, image sensors can capture all incoming light, overcoming the 70% light loss imposed by decades-old color filter technology. Instead of filtering photons, eyeo’s technology guides them directly to individual pixels, unlocking full light sensitivity and native color fidelity in any condition. Compatible with any CMOS sensor platform, eyeo enables sub-0.5-micron pixels for ultra-compact, high-performance imaging where image quality is critical. eyeo is headquartered at High Tech Campus Eindhoven (NL), with a sensor design center in Antwerp (BE).

SOURCE: eyeo.tech

Key Takeaways
  • Series A funds eyeo's drive to bring seven years of proven nanophotonic science to market as production-ready color-splitting sensors
  • eyeo sensors capture three times more light for smartphones, XR devices, smart cities and more across a $30 billion imaging market
  • Funding round is led by Innovation Industries, with participation from existing investors imec.xpand, Invest-NL Deep Tech Fund, QBIC fund, High-Tech Gründerfonds (HTGF) and Brabant Development Agency (BOM).
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Every modern device that sees the world, from smartphones to autonomous systems, is held back by the same 50-year-old constraint. eyeo removes it a...
Jeroen HoetCofounder and CEO
Our technology is proven, patented and validated at a commercial foundry, with tier one customers already engaged. This €40 million round gives us ...
Jeroen HoetCofounder and CEO
eyeo is delivering the kind of foundational breakthrough that redefines an entire category. This is a powerful example of deep-tech innovation driv...
Nard SinteniePartner Innovation Industries
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Jeroen Hoet
Cofounder and CEO
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Nard Sentenie
Partner Innovation Industries
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