This is one of the notes I received ( translated from Dutch in English by Groc) from which the podcast was made;
Of course it can never replace the brilliant presentation that Yves gave us in Ghent last week.
But I hope it helps to show the positive vibes which came out of that meeting.
Part 1: The AI Optics Market & The Importance of Integration
Yesterday in Ghent, Yves LeMaitre made an interesting observation about how quickly the AI optics market is evolving.
He referred to the fact that Silicon Valley companies are now investing massively in optical interconnects. For instance, NVIDIA recently announced an investment of approximately $4 billion in the optical supply chain: roughly $2 billion in Lumentum and $2 billion in Coherent.
His point was that there is currently a lot of confusing news circulating in the press because everyone is trying different technologies to make the interconnection between ultra-fast processors (GPUs / XPUs) scalable. The entire industry is experimenting simultaneously with various solutions to enable those extremely high data flows between chips.
What he particularly wanted to emphasize is that speed alone is not the only criterion. According to him, integration will ultimately be the deciding factor.
His words were roughly:
“Think speed, but also think integration.”
In other words: it’s not just about how fast a modulator can operate, but primarily whether that technology can be integrated quickly and efficiently into silicon photonics and existing foundry processes.
According to Yves, this is precisely where Lightwave Logic has a significant advantage: their technology can be integrated into silicon very rapidly.
Summary: The entire industry is investing billions to solve the optical interconnect problem for AI, but true differentiation will likely come from technologies that are not only fast but also easily scalable and integrable into existing silicon ecosystems.
Part 2: Strategic Pivot & Business Model
In Ghent, Yves also gave an interesting explanation regarding Lightwave Logic’s strategic course correction and why the company is organized differently today than it was a few years ago.
He mentioned that the company previously tried to do too much at once. LWLG was working simultaneously on:
Materials
IP and licensing
Silicon photonics chips
Packaging of those chips
This meant their R&D budget was spread across many different activities. According to him, that is difficult to sustain because their competitors are often large corporations with much larger investment budgets.
Therefore, since his arrival, he decided to radically focus the company on what makes LWLG truly unique:
The polymer material
The integration of that material into silicon photonics systems
The goal is not to try to build complete chips or modules themselves, but to provide the technology that others need. According to Yves, this has completely changed the way the company works with customers. They are now positioning themselves more as a:
Material supplier
IP / PDK partner
Technology and integration specialist
He also stated that this strategic shift is truly starting to pay off in 2025, with more progress in the ecosystem and new partnerships.
Interesting detail: He mentioned that during the last capital round, many investors specifically asked about this business model. According to him, many institutional investors find this attractive because companies that primarily provide material + IP often achieve higher gross margins than companies that produce hardware themselves.
Summary: Lightwave Logic does not want to compete with large photonics companies building full products; instead, it aims to provide the key technology that makes those products possible.
Part 3: Technical Progress & Foundry Ecosystem
Yves also gave a fairly in-depth explanation of where Lightwave Logic's real progress lay over the past year.
According to him, two things historically determine the valuation of technology companies:
The speed at which a company can grow.
The ability to generate very high gross margins.
He noted that gross margin is almost a measure of how strongly your technology differentiates itself from the competition. If you have something that is difficult for others to copy, you can generally realize higher margins.
On the technical front, he highlighted two major developments from 2025:
1. Reliability Update: About ten months ago, a reliability update was released. This was crucial for rebuilding credibility around polymer modulators. The company now understands much better why materials might degrade and how that can be controlled. This is reportedly reflected in increased customer interest.
2. The Foundry Ecosystem: Many companies design their own silicon photonics chips but do not have their own wafer fab. Consequently, they must go to specialized foundries. Lightwave Logic enters the process later to integrate the polymer layer onto the chip.
A recurring problem was that many customers have worked with specific foundries for years. When LWLG introduced a new technology, they were often told: "We want to work with you, but only if your technology is compatible with our existing foundry."
Therefore, Yves and Robert Blum (VP Sales & Marketing) have focused heavily on expanding those foundry relationships. Blum has a background at Intel and many connections in both photonics and semiconductor materials. In the second half of 2025, they spent a lot of time opening these foundry channels, as foundries act as gateways to new customers.
So far, they have publicly announced:
Silterra (a silicon photonics pioneer in Malaysia)
GlobalFoundries
Two other foundries they are already working with but have not yet named publicly.
With these partners, they are now conducting "wafer tape-outs," where chips are produced in the foundry and subsequently tested with integrated polymer modulators. His point was that this foundry integration is essential for moving from "technical interest" to "actual commercial programs" with customers.
Part 4: Priorities for 2026 & Future Outlook
Yves concluded his presentation in Ghent with an overview of where Lightwave Logic stands now and the priorities for the coming years.
He first emphasized that the company is not looking only at AI. While AI is the most important driver today, electro-optic polymers could eventually be used in other markets, such as quantum technology and potentially AR/VR applications.
For 2026, he formulated several clear priorities:
Advancing Programs: Moving "Stage-3" programs toward qualification and "Stage-4." These are programs where customers are already developing actual chips using polymer modulators. The next step is converting this technical collaboration into commercial contracts, eventually leading to revenue from material sales and IP/licensing agreements as customers move into production.
Ecosystem Expansion: Expanding the silicon photonics ecosystem so customers can use LWLG technology through their existing partners. This means more collaboration with foundries, packaging partners, and design platforms.
Design Tools (PDKs): He referred to Luceda Photonics, a company providing design tools for photonics chips (whose CEO is based in Belgium). By giving partners access to polymer technology via PDKs (Process Design Kits), many more designers can work with it. Yves views this as a multiplier for their technical sales capacity.
Data Validation: 2026 will be the year they receive more chips back from foundries, allowing them to share more measurement data. This data should confirm claims regarding compact size, low power consumption, and high speed.
Scaling Production: Behind the scenes, they are building production capacity for polymers. In Denver, new staff are being hired and extra equipment is being installed to prepare for future production volumes.
Conclusion: Yves concluded that an enormous amount of work was done in 2024 and 2025 to lay the foundation, and he believes the company is now in a strong position for the next phase toward commercial applications.
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