Edinburgh-based image sensor developer Singular Photonics has secured $2.15 million (£1.6m) in an oversubscribed funding round as it looks to expand its product portfolio and accelerate the development of its next generation of SPAD-based sensors.

The round was led by ACF Investors, with participation from Wren Capital, Cambridge Angels, Scottish Enterprise, Quantum Exponential and Old College Capital.

Singular said the investment will be used to increase its engineering capacity and bring new image sensors to market more quickly, responding to demand from its growing customer base.

The company develops sensors based on single-photon avalanche diodes (SPADs), a technology capable of detecting and timing individual photons rather than simply measuring the intensity of incoming light.

Singular said it has already doubled its full-year 2025 sales during 2026 to date, driven by customer engagements across multiple sectors, including a recent collaboration with instrumentation company Renishaw.

The new funding will support the development of sensors targeting applications across machine vision, industrial automation, physical AI, scientific discovery and medical imaging.

“This has been a phenomenal year for Singular Photonics,” said CEO Shahida Imani. “We’ve already doubled our 2025 sales, we’re approaching break-even, and our customers are telling us exactly what they want from future products. This oversubscribed round means we can respond faster – expanding our sensor portfolio and bringing new features to market on our customers’ timelines, not just our own.”

Tim Mills, Managing Partner at ACF Investors, said the company was positioned to benefit from a shift towards sensors capable of extracting more information directly from light.

“Singular Photonics is an exciting addition to our portfolio, combining world-leading sensor science with genuine commercial promise,” said Mills. “The industry is moving from capturing images to generating actionable insights directly from light itself, and Singular has both the technology and the team to lead that shift. We’re delighted to back them into their next phase of growth.”

Scottish Enterprise has supported the development of Singular’s SPAD technology over several years and also participated in the latest funding round.

“Scottish Enterprise has supported Singular Photonics ambition to develop SPAD-based image sensors over several years,” said Derek Shaw, Director of Company Funding & Investment at Scottish Enterprise. “The Photonics, Quantum, Sensing and Connectivity and Semi-conductors Sector is a key opportunity area for growth for Scotland. Companies such as Singular Photonics can play a vital role in transforming our economy by scaling-up, creating high value jobs and competing internationally.”

Existing shareholders also participated in the round, following the new investors and meeting or exceeding their pre-emption rights.

“In a strong signal of confidence in Singular’s trajectory, existing shareholders followed the new investors into the round, meeting or exceeding their pre-emption rights,” said Singular Photonics Chairman Pete Hutton. “Combined with the appetite shown by new investors, the round was met with robust demand – a clear vote of confidence in the team, the technology and the commercial momentum the company has built.”

Former Arm CTO Joins Board

Alongside the funding announcement, Singular has appointed former Arm CTO Dipesh Patel to its board of directors.

Patel spent 25 years at the semiconductor company, holding a number of general and technical management positions before becoming CTO, where he was responsible for its Research and Digital IT functions.

“Singular Photonics is transforming image sensors from passive imaging devices into intelligent sensing platforms,” said Dr. Patel. “SPADs have long been viewed as highly sensitive photon-counting devices, but Singular is showing the world that a far greater opportunity is now emerging, and I’m looking forward to helping the company capitalise on that opportunity.”

SPAD sensors differ from conventional image sensors by detecting and precisely timing individual photons, potentially allowing imaging systems to capture information that traditional cameras cannot.

Singular is developing SPAD-based image sensors with advanced computation integrated directly onto the chip, allowing information to be analysed at the point where light is detected.

The company said this approach can allow meaningful information to be extracted in real time, while supporting smaller, faster and more efficient systems suited to edge computing and AI-driven applications.

The latest investment will now be used to expand that technology into a wider range of products as Singular looks to capitalise on growing commercial demand for advanced sensing capabilities.