French startup HyLight, which uses self-flying hydrogen-powered airships to inspect important infrastructure from the air, has raised €13 million in funding. The round was backed by Rubio Impact Ventures, DRW and Teampact Ventures, along with existing investors Y Combinator and Ring Capital.
Martin Bocken, co-founder and CEO of HyLight, stated: “Most power lines are still inspected by helicopter, just as they were fifty years ago. Our HyLighters already do the same job, with greater precision and less risk. This funding takes us from four aircraft to a fleet.”
Founded in 2022, HyLight has already achieved an important milestone. The company designs, builds and operates its own aircraft in France. It also develops software and AI tools that turn collected data into useful insights, helping customers make better decisions.
HyLight’s hydrogen-powered airships have already inspected thousands of kilometres of infrastructure across France. They have also flown in several other European countries. The company is helping major infrastructure operators replace some helicopter-based inspection missions with its airships.
With its new funding, HyLight plans to expand its fleet and improve its automated data analysis technology. It will also build a new data infrastructure across Europe to help monitor and protect important infrastructure networks and surrounding areas.
Helmer Schukken, managing partner at Rubio Impact Ventures, commented: “In HyLight we see a team and a technology with the potential to change how we keep critical infrastructure safe. Today, powerlines, pipelines and railways are still inspected by helicopter, which is expensive, unsafe, polluting and—as workforces age—insufficiently available. HyLight offers a clean and scalable alternative that does the same work reliably, even over densely populated areas, and has the potential to deliver unrivaled cost savings. That means faults are caught earlier, before they become leaks or outages, and the infrastructure we rely on becomes both more dependable and a good deal cleaner. We are glad to back Martin, Josef and Thomas in making this the new standard.”
HyLight is increasing its production capacity, and its new manufacturing facility is now operational. The company is also planning to produce more key components in-house. It aims to have up to 15 HyLighter airships operating at the same time by 2027, compared with four today.
The new funding will help HyLight hire 50 employees across engineering, AI, data, operations, regulatory affairs and business development. The company also plans to expand its business across Europe, with Germany and the Netherlands as its main target markets.
HyLight was founded by Martin Bocken, Josef Rokusek and Thomas Laporte, whose average age is 27. The founders plan to maintain the company’s integrated approach, keeping aircraft engineering, software development, AI and field operations under one roof. This approach helps the company develop its technology and expand its operations more quickly.
