HyLight, the French startup specializing in aerial inspection of critical infrastructure using autonomous hydrogen-powered airships, has raised EUR13 million from Rubio Impact Ventures, DRW and Teampact Ventures, joined by existing investors Y Combinator and Ring Capital.
In four years, its HyLighters have inspected thousands of kilometers across France, flown in several European countries and begun replacing helicopter missions for major infrastructure operators, according to a company press release. “The new funding will now enable HyLight to scale: industrializing its fleet, strengthening its automated data analysis capabilities and deploying a new data infrastructure across Europe to help monitor and protect critical networks and territories,” it continued.
Martin Bocken, co-founder and CEO of HyLight, said: “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.”
HyLight aircraft are already carrying out missions for Enedis, NaTran, Téréga, VINCI and SNCF Réseau to monitor network integrity, detect defects and identify methane leaks. “At 12 meters long, the HyLighter combines the performance of a long-endurance aircraft with the precision of an inspection platform. Electrically powered by hydrogen, it flies with no direct emissions and very low noise levels for up to ten hours, with a target range of 350 kilometers. It can carry up to 10 kg of sensors, including LiDAR, cameras and methane detectors, delivering 1 mm/pixel resolution imaging at an altitude of 25 meters and LiDAR density exceeding 1,000 points per square meter,” continued the company.
“Authorized by the French civil aviation authority (DGAC) and the EASA, the HyLighter flies beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) over critical infrastructure, in rural, suburban and urban environments….Beyond aerial inspection, HyLight turns flight data into decision-making tools that automatically identify and geolocate more than 50 types of defects and vegetation-related risks across power grids, replacing thousands of raw images with precise, actionable information for maintenance teams. As flights become more frequent, this data will build a continuously enriched digital twin of the infrastructure and territories HyLight covers, creating a new layer of multimodal data with future applications in insurance, agriculture and public land management.”
HyLight’s new production facility is now online, with further internalization of strategic component manufacturing underway, targeting up to 15 HyLighters operated simultaneously in 2027, compared to four today. The new funding will support the recruitment of 50 employees across engineering, AI and data, operations, regulatory affairs and business development, and accelerate commercial expansion across Europe — with Germany and the Netherlands as priority markets.
For more information
https://hylight.aero/
(Image: Hylight)