VitreaLab GmbH

VitreaLab GmbH is an Austrian integrated optics company based in Vienna, founded in 2018 with the stated mission to disrupt the display industry through a new kind of laser waveguide technology. The company develops and manufactures high-quality display components for augmented reality (AR) glasses, operating its own cleanroom, proprietary fabrication processes and a thorough quality inspection system. Its core offering is a laser-LCOS light engine built on a proprietary photonic integrated circuit called the Quantum Light Chip (QLC). Light engines are, together with waveguides, the components responsible for creating images in AR glasses, and they must be lightweight, extremely compact and ultra-bright for everyday use. VitreaLab positions its light engine architecture to push the limits of AR display performance while remaining compact and power-efficient, targeting high brightness for daylight use, ultra efficiency for more than one day of battery life, clear image quality without coherence artifacts, miniaturization to fit small glasses, and low cost for the mass market. The Quantum Light Chip is a photonic integrated circuit that enables control of laser light on the micro-scale. Each chip contains hundreds of precisely fabricated low-loss optical waveguides interfaced with nano-imprinted micro-optics and multiple RGB laser diodes to create a uniform, collimated and polarized light source. Because the QLC emits highly collimated and already-polarized light, the optical path of the light engine can be exceptionally efficient compared with LED-based illumination, which suffers broader emission angles and requires polarization. A local illumination technology divides the chip into distinct zones, each powered by its own set of RGB laser diodes, so that only the LCoS surface needed for the image is illuminated. An integrated despeckler eliminates laser coherence artifacts known as speckle. The chip is built on standard display glass, which the company says makes manufacturing highly scalable and low cost, and its laser wavelengths enable a color gamut of more than 99% of Rec.2020. VitreaLab is led by co-founders Dr. Chiara Greganti (Chief Executive Officer) and Dr. Jonas Zeuner (Chief Technology Officer), supported by a business development team and dedicated light engine and waveguide engineering teams. The company has received recognition in the photonics community, including winning the SPIE Photonics West Startup Challenge in 2022, being named a Born Global Champion by WKO Austria in 2023, participating in a SPIE AR/VR/MR fireside chat in 2024, being listed in The Photonics 100 in 2025, and being named a SPIE Prism Awards finalist for 2026. It markets itself to investors and partners as a supplier of scalable light engine technology for the emerging AR smart glasses market.

VitreaLab GmbH was founded in 2018 in Vienna, Austria, with the mission to disrupt the display industry with a new kind of laser waveguide technology. From its base in Vienna, the company set out to develop and manufacture high-quality display components for augmented reality glasses, building its own cleanroom, proprietary fabrication processes and a thorough quality inspection system. The company's technical foundation is the Quantum Light Chip (QLC), a photonic integrated circuit that enables the control of laser light on the micro-scale. Each chip contains hundreds of precisely fabricated low-loss optical waveguides interfaced with nano-imprinted micro-optics and multiple RGB laser diodes to create a uniform and collimated light source. This polarized laser light enables an exceptionally efficient illumination of an LCoS panel, and the narrow-band spectrum of laser light provides a wide color gamut. The base material of the chip is standard display glass, which the company says makes the manufacturing process highly scalable. VitreaLab's light engine architecture combines ultra-bright laser light with high-quality LCoS display panels. The company states that light engines, together with waveguides, are responsible for creating high-quality images in AR glasses and must be lightweight, extremely compact and ultra-bright for everyday use. Its design goals include high brightness for daylight use, ultra efficiency for more than one day of battery life, clear image quality without coherence artifacts, miniaturization to fit small glasses, and low cost for the mass market. A local illumination technology divides the Quantum Light Chip into distinct zones, each powered by its own set of RGB laser diodes, so that only the LCoS surface needed for the image is illuminated. An integrated despeckler eliminates coherent artifacts known as speckle, a common problem in laser-based imaging. By the early 2020s the company had begun to attract recognition in the photonics and AR/VR communities. In 2022 it won the SPIE Photonics West Startup Challenge, and its CTO Dr. Jonas Zeuner was a keynote speaker at OPIE'22. In 2023 it received the Born Global Champion award from WKO Austria. In 2024 Dr. Chiara Greganti was a nominee and the company participated in a fireside chat at SPIE AR/VR/MR. In 2025 VitreaLab was listed in The Photonics 100, and it was named a finalist for the SPIE Prism Awards in 2026. The company is led by its two co-founders: Dr. Chiara Greganti as Chief Executive Officer and Dr. Jonas Zeuner as Chief Technology Officer. It has built out a business development function with a VP of Business Development, advisors, a manager and a marketing manager, alongside dedicated light engine and waveguide engineering teams staffed by photonics engineers. VitreaLab describes itself as an English-speaking team that values diversity and independent thinking, and it actively seeks partners and investors for its AR display technology.

• 2026

  Named a finalist for the SPIE Prism Awards.

• 2025

  Listed in The Photonics 100.

• 2024

  Dr. Chiara Greganti was a nominee and the company participated in a fireside chat at SPIE AR/VR/MR.

• 2023

  Received the Born Global Champion award from WKO Austria.

• 2022

  Won the SPIE Photonics West Startup Challenge.

• 2022

  Dr. Jonas Zeuner was a keynote speaker at OPIE'22.

• 2018

  VitreaLab founded in Vienna, Austria, with the mission to disrupt the display industry with a new kind of laser waveguide technology.

Developer and manufacturer of compact, efficient, high-brightness laser-LCOS light engines and photonic integrated circuits for AR smart glasses, targeting scalable, low-cost mass-market AR display components.

• Laser-LCOS light engine

  A compact, power-efficient light engine for AR glasses combining ultra-bright laser light with high-quality LCoS display panels, designed for high brightness, >1 day battery life, clear image quality without coherence artifacts, small size and low cost.

• Quantum Light Chip (QLC)

  A proprietary photonic integrated circuit containing hundreds of low-loss optical waveguides interfaced with nano-imprinted micro-optics and multiple RGB laser diodes, producing a uniform, collimated and polarized light source. Built on standard display glass for scalable manufacturing; enables a color gamut of >99% of Rec.2020.

• Local illumination technology

  Divides the Quantum Light Chip into distinct zones, each powered by its own set of RGB laser diodes, so that only the LCoS surface needed for the image is illuminated, significantly enhancing overall light engine efficiency.

• Integrated despeckler

  Eliminates coherent artifacts known as speckle, a common problem in laser-based imaging, providing perfect images.

1. 1vitrealabvitrealab.com
2. 2vitrealab — Aboutvitrealab.com
3. 3vitrealab — Light Enginevitrealab.com
4. 4vitrealab — Technologyvitrealab.com
5. 5VitreaLab GmbH — Wikidatawikidata.org