NUBURU, a next-generation dual-use Defense & Security platform company, today announced that its recently signed Head of Terms with SunCubes S.r.l. (“SunCubes”) is expected to support a first concrete application case: the joint design of a blue-laser power-beam solution for submarine and underwater environments, with potential integration into SunCubes’ DEEP LIGHT underwater wireless power platform.
NUBURU Partners with SunCubes For Underwater Defense Technology Bringing Blue Laser Tech To The Sea
SunCubes recently announced the award of the DEEP LIGHT project. The project has been recognized and supported by the Italian Navy through the Polo Nazionale della Dimensione Subacquea (“PNS”) as a strategic initiative for the development of national underwater technological capabilities.
Under the planned implementation, NUBURU, through Lyocon S.r.l. (“Lyocon”), its Italian laser-technology factory and photonics center of excellence, is expected to work with SunCubes to design and potentially supply the blue-laser technology layer that can be integrated into the DEEP LIGHT platform, subject to definitive agreements, technical validation, regulatory clearances and applicable customer-program requirements.
SunCubes recognizes the performance advantage that blue-laser technologies can provide in submarine environments. Under the recently signed NUBURU–SunCubes Head of Terms, the two companies are now working to define the requirements of a blue-laser-based solution that could support a new generation of underwater optical power transmission systems.
The strategic value of this first application case is not driven by the initial project size, but by the potential validation of NUBURU’s blue-laser technology quality in one of the most demanding environments for optical power transmission: the underwater domain. Underwater laser power transfer requires blue-laser-source quality, beam stability, optical efficiency, thermal reliability and precise integration with beam-control and safety systems.
NUBURU believes that the combination of its blue-laser technology and Lyocon’s manufacturing and integration capabilities with SunCubes’ technology platform positions the NUBURU group to participate in the industrialization of laser-source solutions for subsea environments, where blue and blue-green optical wavelengths may provide performance advantages for defense and commercial requirements.
SunCubes announced that DEEP LIGHT, developed in partnership with Dualee, was presented and awarded at the PNS Progress Meeting held at the Naval Support and Experimentation Center of the Marina Militare in La Spezia. The project aims to create an underwater laser-based wireless power platform for autonomous underwater systems, enabling contactless recharging and extended operations across civilian, offshore and defense applications.
DEEP LIGHT is designed around an underwater energy distribution architecture based on a high-power laser transmitter and a receiver integrated into autonomous underwater vehicles. The system is intended to operate in the blue-green optical window, optimized for marine propagation, enabling contactless underwater energy transfer over distances of several tens of meters.
Blue-laser technology offers a potential advantage for underwater optical power transmission because blue and blue-green wavelengths can experience relatively lower attenuation in water compared with many other wavelengths, depending on water conditions and system design. As a result, high-quality blue-laser sources may support more efficient underwater power delivery and optical communication in submerged environments.
Within this technological framework, the Head of Terms signed with SunCubes is intended not only to evaluate potential commercial opportunities, but also to support the joint development of next-generation high-performance subsea systems. By combining the blue-laser capabilities of the NUBURU-Lyocon platform with SunCubes’ beam-control and optical power platform, the parties intend to explore efficient and scalable solutions for underwater power transmission and other mission-critical subsea applications.
CDP-Linked Investor Ecosystem Strengthens SunCubes’ Strategic Profile
SunCubes’ investor ecosystem further reinforces the strategic relevance of the collaboration. As disclosed in NUBURU’s Form 8-K relating to the Head of Terms, SunCubes’ current investors include venture capital special purpose vehicles affiliated with CDP Venture Capital SGR S.p.A. (“CDP Venture Capital”). CDP Venture Capital is an Italian venture capital asset manager owned 70% by CDP Equity S.p.A. and 30% by Invitalia S.p.A.; CDP Equity is a holding company of the Cassa Depositi e Prestiti S.p.A. (“CDP”) group.
CDP is Italy’s National Promotional Institution and a joint-stock company under public control. Its majority shareholder is the Italian Ministry of Economy and Finance, which holds 82.77% of CDP, while foundations of banking origin hold the remaining 17.23%. CDP, CDP Equity, CDP Venture Capital and the Italian Ministry of Economy and Finance are not direct parties to the NUBURU–SunCubes Head of Terms.
NUBURU believes this CDP Venture Capital-linked investor ecosystem is strategically important because it aligns SunCubes with Italy’s national innovation and technology-transfer priorities in domains such as robotics, infrastructure, energy transfer, dual-use technologies and maritime applications.
Why NUBURU Blue-Laser Technology Matters
The expected Lyocon contribution directly reflects the industrial logic of the NUBURU–SunCubes Head of Terms. The signed Head of Terms states that the partnership is aimed at integrating NUBURU’s know-how and production capacity in blue lasers and other laser frequency spectra into SunCubes’ product portfolio, where the laser module is one of the core elements. The Head of Terms also identifies laser-based submarine power-beaming, counter-marine drone applications and laser-based data transmission systems among the contemplated development areas.
Lyocon is expected to serve as NUBURU’s laser-source supplier and photonics integration platform to offer a solution that, among other capabilities, may meet the requirements for the DEEP LIGHT application case. Its expected role includes blue-laser source design, supply, optical integration, laser-module engineering, system validation support and potential industrialization pathways for defense and dual-use underwater laser applications.
The Head of Terms expressly contemplates laser-source integration via Lyocon within a Milan-based R&D hub focused on optical engineering, beam-control development, thermal management, AI-assisted engagement logic, system validation and testing. It also provides that directed-energy systems may be industrialized at Italian facilities, including Lyocon in Vigevano and Tekne in Ortona.
Addressable and Serviceable Market: Underwater Autonomy, Subsea Power and Maritime Infrastructure
NUBURU views the Head of Terms signed with SunCubes as an entry point into a broader serviceable market for underwater applications, including autonomous underwater vehicles, subsea sensors, offshore energy inspection, underwater charging infrastructure, naval ISR, port and harbor security, critical subsea infrastructure protection and underwater communications.
Independent estimates indicate that the underlying market is expanding. MarketsandMarkets estimates the autonomous underwater vehicle market will grow from $3.13 billion in 2025 to $4.64 billion by 2030, driven by defense surveillance, offshore energy inspection, deep-sea research and autonomous mapping missions. MarkNtel Advisors estimates the underwater wireless communication market at approximately $2.3 billion in 2024, growing to $4.3 billion by 2030.
NUBURU does not view these markets as direct revenue forecasts. Instead, the Company believes they define the broader addressable and serviceable opportunity where high-quality blue-laser sources, optical power transmission, underwater recharge and laser-based communications may become enabling technologies for longer-duration autonomous subsea operations. The Company’s future serviceable obtainable market, if any, will depend on definitive agreements, technical validation, regulatory clearances, customer procurement and the ability to industrialize qualified systems.
Beyond establishing product development objectives for integrated counter-UAV platforms, the recently signed Head of Terms with SunCubes expands NUBURU’s addressable market into emerging underwater applications that extend beyond the Company’s traditional operating domains. In these applications, NUBURU’s blue-laser technology may offer a differentiated performance advantage, positioning the Company to address mission-critical requirements that conventional laser technologies may not meet as effectively.
Management Commentary
Dario Barisoni, Co-CEO of NUBURU, CEO of Nuburu Defense and Chairman of Lyocon, commented:
“Maritime autonomy and subsea infrastructure protection are becoming strategic priorities for allied markets. The recently signed Head of Terms gives NUBURU and Lyocon a first concrete pathway to work directly on solutions designed for projects awarded to SunCubes and to meet real operational requirements, applying blue-laser technology into the underwater domain where optical power, endurance, ISR and critical-infrastructure protection are converging.”
Paola Zanzola, Executive Director of Lyocon, commented:
“Lyocon’s role is to turn laser-source know-how into reliable, manufacturable systems. The underwater solution required by SunCubes is a strong application case because it requires blue-laser technology that can be integrated into a demanding optical power architecture. This is exactly the type of technical bridge Lyocon is intended to provide for the NUBURU group.”
Strategic Fit with the Head of Terms
The signed Head of Terms between NUBURU and SunCubes provides a framework for industrial, commercial and technological cooperation covering laser power-beaming systems, wireless power transmission for remote battery recharge, secure optical power, non-kinetic counter-UAS applications, Laser Arm systems and related dual-use laser technologies. Lyocon is identified among the NUBURU group permitted users of SunCubes technologies, supporting its expected role as the laser-source and laser-integration platform for the alliance.
The Head of Terms remains subject to definitive documentation, Golden Power clearance, export-control clearance, dual-use authorizations, ITAR or similar compliance requirements where applicable, and other customary conditions. The parties intend to continue working toward long-form agreements governing the investment, industrial cooperation, distribution and commercialization framework.
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