On Wednesday, the startup announced it had used Tightbeam<\/a> in two tests. One of them has sustained a 100Gbps internet connection “for many hours in a day” over a 65-kilometer area via Tightbeam systems stationed on two mountaintops in Northern California, despite atmospheric conditions, says Aalyria CEO Chris Taylor.\u00a0<\/p>\n \n (Credit: Aalyria)\n<\/p>\n \u201cThis 65km ground-ground optical link has been operational for several weeks and continues to operate today,\u201d he told PCMag in an email. \u201cOur system is engineered for resilience in dynamic environments\u2014changing turbulence, visibility conditions, wind, etc. Even when there are transient environmental changes, our adaptive optics and tracking algorithms minimize any impact to the end user.”<\/p>\n The second test took Tightbeam out to sea (virtually). Using a ship simulator at the Naval Research Laboratory in Chesapeake, Virginia, Aalyria replicated \u201creal-world conditions at sea, where two gimbals must lock onto each other through unpredictable motion caused by moving water.\u201d (The lab awarded<\/a> Aalyria a $7 million contract in 2023 to develop Tightbeam for the Navy.)<\/p>\n<\/p>\n A video clip of the test shows the laser equipment rotating on an axis, like it\u2019s on a moving ship. Tightbeam sustained “similar speeds for many hours of testing, under a variety of sea state profiles,” Taylor says. “Although there were a few short disruptions during the most stressful motion profiles, reacquisition happened within seconds and throughput was sustained for much of our testing.”<\/p>\n \n (Credit: Aalyria)\n<\/p>\n Aalyria aims to deliver Tightbeam technology for land, sea, air, and even satellite communications. SpaceX\u2019s Starlink is also\u00a0using<\/a>\u00a0lasers to beam 100Gbps connections per link. But for now, it’s confined to satellite-to-satellite communication rather than Earth-to-space.\u00a0<\/p>\n \n Get Our Best Stories!\n <\/p>\n Your Daily Dose of Our Top Tech News<\/p>\n Sign up for our What’s New Now newsletter to receive the latest news, best new products, and expert advice from the editors of PCMag.<\/p>\n Sign up for our What’s New Now newsletter to receive the latest news, best new products, and expert advice from the editors of PCMag.<\/p>\n \n By clicking Sign Me Up, you confirm you are 16+ and agree to our Terms of Use<\/a> and Privacy Policy<\/a>.\n <\/p>\n Thanks for signing up!<\/p>\n Your subscription has been confirmed. Keep an eye on your inbox!<\/p>\n Aalyria is emphasizing that its lasers can be used on the ground, despite changing atmospheric conditions, which can disrupt the beams. \u201cOur current design targets are up to 75km for ground-to-ground and up to 150km for ground-to-air,\u201d Taylor says. “While our recent focus has been on terrestrial and maritime applications, we\u2019re increasingly engaged in applying our atmospheric laser communications expertise to space-relevant scenarios.\u201d<\/p>\n Aalyria may sound similar to another Alphabet company, Taara, which is also using technology from Loon. In March, Taara spun off from Alphabet, becoming its own company with the goal<\/a> of selling its \u201cLightbridge\u201d technology to internet service providers.\u00a0<\/p>\n Recommended by Our Editors<\/p>\n Both companies want to deliver high-speed broadband to places traditional fiber can\u2019t easily reach, such as remote islands and mountainous regions. However, Aalyria\u2019s CEO says his own company is focused on delivering higher-capacity, long-range internet through lasers. In contrast, Taara\u2019s \u201cLightbridge\u201d system has a range<\/a> of up to 20 kilometers while delivering speeds up to 20Gbps.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cYou cannot bring broadband to every user in a community without high-capacity long-range optical links that supply it, such as tech that Aalyria offers, just like you cannot achieve that objective without lower-capacity, more affordable links to distribute data all across that community, such as with Taara\u2019s product,\u201d Taylor says.\u00a0<\/p>\n There\u2019s no word on how much Aalyria\u2019s system costs or when it\u2019ll be commercially deployed. But Taylor tells PCMag: \u201cAalyria\u2019s laser communication terminals have many of the same challenges that most \u2014maybe all\u2014 laser communication systems have. However, through our design process, we believe that we have mitigated many of those challenges.\u201d<\/p>\n Like what you’re reading? Don’t miss out on our latest stories. Add PCMag<\/a> as a preferred source on Google.\u00a0<\/p>\n 5 Things to Know About Starlink Satellite Internet<\/p>\n About Michael Kan<\/p>\n \n Senior Reporter\n <\/p>\n I’ve been working as a journalist for over 15 years\u2014I got my start as a schools and cities reporter in Kansas City and joined PCMag in 2017.<\/p>\n![\"Tightbeam](\"https:\/\/i.pcmag.com\/imagery\/articles\/03TA4h6KR8qwX88nwQXEEuY-2.png\")
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