Velmenni Raises ₹30 Cr to Bring Li-Fi to India: Lighting the Path to 6G and Secure Connectivity

March 19, 2026

For decades, the invisible airwaves around us—radio frequencies—have been the workhorses of wireless communication. Wi-Fi, 4G, 5G, Bluetooth: all rely on a spectrum that is increasingly congested, interference-prone, and vulnerable to interception.

But what if the very lights in our offices, homes, and streets could also carry the internet? What if a beam of light, invisible to the naked eye, could deliver speeds of 10 Gbps with absolute security?

This is not science fiction. This is the reality being built by Velmenni, a Delhi-based deep-tech startup that has just raised ₹30 crore (approximately $3.3 million) in a pre-Series A funding round to scale its pioneering Li-Fi (Light Fidelity) and Free Space Optics (FSO) technologies .

The round was led by pi Ventures, with significant participation from MountTech Growth Fund-Kavachh and Apekso . This investment is a powerful vote of confidence in a technology that could redefine how we connect, especially in dense urban environments, secure defense installations, and remote locations where fiber is too slow to deploy and radio waves are too unreliable .

The Visionary and the Journey

Velmenni was founded in October 2014 by Deepak Solanki, a visionary entrepreneur incubated at the prestigious Indraprastha Institute of Information Technology (IIIT), Delhi . The company’s name, derived from an Icelandic word meaning ‘smart system,’ reflects its core mission: to build intelligent communication solutions that transcend the limitations of traditional infrastructure .

For the first five to six years of its existence, Velmenni focused intensely on research and development. As Solanki recounted in an interview, building a deep-tech company around unprecedented technology is challenging, particularly when it involves convincing customers to adopt something entirely new . The team persevered, building a robust patent portfolio and developing a deep understanding of optical wireless communication. Today, that patience is paying off.

The Technology: Two Solutions, One Core Innovation

Velmenni has developed two primary solutions that leverage the power of light for data transmission, addressing different market needs.

1. Li-Fi (Light Fidelity): The Indoor Revolution

Li-Fi is envisioned as a transformative alternative or complement to Wi-Fi in indoor environments . The concept is elegantly simple: LED lights are repurposed as wireless access points.

How it Works: A Li-Fi-enabled LED light fixture is connected to an Ethernet cable carrying data. A tiny processor within the light modulates this data at extremely high speeds, causing the LED to flicker in a pattern invisible to the human eye. A USB dongle plugged into a laptop or other device receives this light signal and decodes it back into data .
Energy Efficiency: One of Li-Fi’s standout advantages is its energy efficiency. A single Li-Fi-enabled light panel consumes under 10 watts—comparable to a standard LED bulb—while providing internet connectivity to up to 16 users, effectively functioning as a router that also illuminates the room .
Security by Design: Since light cannot pass through walls, the signal is physically confined to the room. This makes it inherently more secure than Wi-Fi, which radiates radio waves that can be intercepted from outside .

2. FSO (Free Space Optics) / LC Link: The Outdoor Backbone

For outdoor, long-distance communication, Velmenni has developed its LC Link solution, a form of Free Space Optics (FSO) .

How it Works: An LC Link system consists of a transmitter and a receiver placed on towers or rooftops. The transmitter uses high-power LEDs and a specialized lens system to focus a beam of light carrying data towards a receiver located up to 25 kilometers away . The receiver captures this light and decodes the data, effectively creating a high-speed wireless bridge.
Speed and Range: The system can deliver speeds exceeding 10 Gbps, offering a compelling alternative to laying fiber optic cables (which requires costly trenching) or relying on licensed radio spectrum .
Overcoming Environmental Challenges: A critical innovation is Velmenni’s ability to maintain link stability despite environmental factors like rain and fog. The company has developed “adaptive optics and first-of-its-kind multicarrier adaptive modulation” to ensure reliable connectivity even in challenging tropical weather .

Real-World Impact: From the Indian Navy to a Power Plant

Velmenni is not a lab-bound experiment. It has a proven track record of real-world deployments that demonstrate the power and reliability of its technology.

1. A Multi-Million-Dollar Defense Deal

Perhaps the most significant validation of Velmenni’s technology is its adoption by the Indian defence sector. The startup has secured a multi-million-dollar deal to deploy its specialized FSO solution across all Indian submarines .

The challenge was acute: submarines in harbour environments face connectivity issues that traditional radio frequency (RF) communication struggles to solve. Velmenni’s light-based solution provides a secure, high-speed link, ensuring seamless communication during critical operations . This project has been supported by three grants from the Ministry of Defence’s flagship iDEX (Innovations for Defence Excellence) programme, underscoring the strategic importance of the innovation .

2. Enabling Private 5G at a GMR Power Plant

In a landmark commercial deployment, Velmenni installed India’s first commercial carrier-grade FSO backhaul link to enable a private 5G network at a GMR thermal power plant in Odisha .

The system has performed exceptionally well, maintaining 99.9% availability for over 18 months in the region’s challenging tropical weather conditions . This deployment proves that Velmenni’s technology is not just a novelty but a reliable, industrial-grade solution.

3. A Growing Global Footprint

Beyond India, Velmenni has executed over 50 live deployments across Southeast Asia and with tier-1 telecom operators in the United States . The company has already secured Europe’s CE safety certification and is awaiting clearance from the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC), which will open the door to even larger markets .

The Investor Perspective: Betting on a Hard Problem

The funding round, led by pi Ventures, a firm known for backing deep-tech startups, is a strong signal that sophisticated investors see immense potential in Velmenni’s approach.

Shubham Sandeep, Partner at pi Ventures, explained the investment thesis: “Velmenni is addressing a hard problem at the intersection of communications and infrastructure. They have demonstrated the ability to translate a new technology into real-world commercial deployments. We believe Velmenni is well-positioned to scale optical wireless communication globally and meet growing worldwide demand for secure, high-capacity connectivity” .

This perspective is echoed by the participation of MountTech Growth Fund-Kavachh, an investor focused on defence and industrial technology, and Apekso .

Why This Matters for India and the World

Velmenni’s progress comes at a pivotal moment for global communications.

1. The 6G Imperative

As the world looks beyond 5G towards 6G, Li-Fi and optical wireless communication are seen as critical components of the future connectivity mix. During his visit to the India Mobile Congress in 2025, Professor Harald Haas, who first introduced the term ‘LiFi’, emphasized that Li-Fi can serve as a “capacity boost” and energy-efficient augmentation for future networks, perfectly complementing 6G ambitions . India’s focus on becoming a leader in 6G technology aligns perfectly with Velmenni’s work .

2. Solving the Spectrum Crunch

The radio frequency spectrum is a finite and increasingly crowded resource. By moving data transmission to the virtually unlicensed and vastly broader light spectrum, Velmenni’s technology offers a way to decongest networks and deliver the high speeds that applications like virtual reality, 8K video streaming, and industrial IoT demand .

3. Sovereign Self-Reliance

Velmenni’s success is a powerful example of the “Made in India” deep-tech ecosystem delivering world-class, strategic technology. Its work with the Indian Navy, supported by iDEX and the Department of Telecommunications, directly contributes to the goal of Atmanirbhar Bharat (Self-Reliant India) in critical defence and telecom infrastructure .

The Road Ahead

With the fresh ₹30 crore capital, Velmenni has a clear path forward. The funds will be used to:

Accelerate commercialization of its patented FSO and Li-Fi solutions .
Build customized solutions for strategic defence and enterprise clients .
Scale operations in international markets, leveraging its CE certification and pending FCC approval .

Deepak Solanki and his team have spent over a decade honing their craft. Now, with strong investor backing, proven deployments, and a global market hungry for secure, high-speed connectivity, Velmenni is poised to illuminate the future of wireless communication—one beam of light at a time.