About Us

Laser Focus World is an industry bedrock—first published in 1965 and still going strong. We publish original articles about cutting-edge advances in lasers, optics, photonics, sensors, and quantum technologies, as well as test and measurement, and the shift currently underway to usher in the photonic integrated circuits, optical interconnects, and copackaged electronics and photonics to deliver the speed and efficiency essential for data centers of the future.

Our 80,000 qualified print subscribers—and 130,000 12-month engaged online audience—trust us to dive in and provide original journalism you won’t find elsewhere covering key emerging areas such as laser-driven inertial confinement fusion, lasers in space, integrated photonics, chipscale lasers, LiDAR, metasurfaces, high-energy laser weaponry, photonic crystals, and quantum computing/sensors/communications. We cover the innovations driving these markets.

Laser Focus World is part of Endeavor Business Media, a division of EndeavorB2B.

Laser Focus World Membership

Never miss any articles, videos, podcasts, or webinars by signing up for membership access to Laser Focus World online. You can manage your preferences all in one place—and provide our editorial team with your valued feedback.

Magazine Subscription

Can you subscribe to receive our print issue for free? Yes, you sure can!

Newsletter Subscription

A Laser Focus World newsletter subscription is free to qualified professionals:

The Daily Beam

Showcases the newest content from Laser Focus World, including photonics- and optics-based applications, components, research, and trends. (Daily)

Product Watch

The latest in products within the photonics industry. (9x per year)

Bio & Life Sciences Product Watch

The latest in products within the biophotonics industry. (4x per year)

Laser Processing Product Watch

The latest in products within the laser processing industry. (3x per year)

Get Published!

If you’d like to write an article for us, reach out with a short pitch to Sally Cole Johnson: [email protected]. We love to hear from you.

Photonics Hot List

Laser Focus World produces a video newscast that gives a peek into what’s happening in the world of photonics.

Following the Photons: A Photonics Podcast

Following the Photons: A Photonics Podcast dives deep into the fascinating world of photonics. Our weekly episodes feature interviews and discussions with industry and research experts, providing valuable perspectives on the issues, technologies, and trends shaping the photonics community.

Social Media

Bluesky • Facebook • Instagram • LinkedIn • YouTube

Meet the Laser Focus World Team

Editorial

Sales

Editorial Advisory Board

  • Professor Andrea M. Armani, University of Southern California
  • Ruti Ben-Shlomi, Ph.D., LightSolver
  • James Butler, Ph.D., Hamamatsu
  • Natalie Fardian-Melamed, Ph.D., Columbia University
  • Justin Sigley, Ph.D., AmeriCOM
  • Professor Birgit Stiller, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light, and Leibniz University of Hannover
  • Professor Stephen Sweeney, University of Glasgow
  • Mohan Wang, Ph.D., University of Oxford
  • Professor Xuchen Wang, Harbin Engineering University
  • Professor Stefan Witte, Delft University of Technology
My Watchlist
Indicators
Industrial Laser Index
Markets
Stocks
ETFs
Tools
Markets:
Overview
News
Currencies
International
Treasuries

Private equity looks to Europe as U.S. renewable energy wavers

By: Equities.com
Private equity looks to Europe as US renewable energy waivers

Bain Capital announced a major investment into sustainable data centers in Europe on Wednesday. Under the terms of the deal, Bain will acquire an 80% of AQ Compute, the data center subsidiary of Aquila Group. The transaction will provide Bain with a footprint in renewable powered data center developments including two active projects in Spain and Italy. 

“The European data center sector presents an attractive market opportunity, driven by robust cloud demand, a need for high-performance computing and AI deployments, and data sovereignty across the region,” said Ali Haroon, a partner at Bain Capital. 

The Bain push into European markets for clean and renewable energy projects appears to be part of a larger trend of US-based private investment firms tilting their environmental portfolios towards friendlier jurisdictions. 

According to S&P Global Market Intelligence data, the total invested by private equity in renewable electricity generation was $15 billion spread across over 100 transactions. Notably, the majority of these investments were in European projects, with the portion of capital committed to North American projects declining sharply from 2022. 

Anecdotal evidence suggests that political pushback increasingly is causing U.S. institutional investors to pause renewable energy allocations. This comes at the same time that AI demand for electricity is poised to explode with Goldman Sachs projecting that data center power demand will grow 160% by 2030.

As AI increasingly dominates private technology investment narratives, there are signals that renewable and clean energy projects are having a more difficult time accessing capital. This downshift in sentiment arrives just as, increasingly, capital intensive hardware and infrastructure projects are coming on line. 

Nowhere is the impact of AI on private equity more apparent than in demand for new fossil fuel capacity. 

S&P data lists a total of 47 private equity investments in oil and gas companies in 2024 through mid-August with more than half in North America. At $7 billion, capital committed to these fossil fuel projects exceeded the total for full-year 2022.

While political tensions have caused many endowments, foundations to reconsider renewable allocations – an increasingly diverse investor mix – may tip the scale back in favor of transitional energy. 

According to Pitchbook analysis, total assets under management in the private equity segment will reach $20 trillion by 2028. One of the fastest growing sources of capital for private investment funds are high-net-worth and mass affluent inventors. Currently, retail investors have few options to access private deals. 

Both the Invesco Global Listed Private Equity ETF PSP and ProShares Global Listed Private Equity ETF hold portfolios that provide only indirect exposure via shares of publicly listed private equity managers themselves. That is likely to change in the coming years with several major firms exploring private market access through liquid — small investor friendly vehicles.

More stories we’re tracking at Equities:

LA sues soft drink giants over misleading green messaging 

Los Angeles County charged Coca-Cola KO and PepsiCo PEP in a lawsuit filed Wednesday with misleading consumers about the environmental impact of the packaging of their products. 

“PepsiCo and Coca-Cola—the top plastic polluters in the world—have littered the County of Los Angeles with their plastic bottles and engaged in a disinformation campaign to make consumers falsely believe that purchasing their products in single-use plastic bottles is an environmentally responsible choice,” the complaint states. 

Jango Capital closes second African venture fund

African venture capital firm Janngo Capital announced the final closing of its second fund at $78 million on Wednesday, 20% beyond its initial target. Investors in the closing include the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation and Mastercard Foundation Africa Growth Fund. Janngo garnered headlines with the successful exit from Expensya through an acquisition by European “unicorn”  Medius last year. 

Read more: US trade barriers increase, raising concerns for Chinese renewable power

More News

View More
Why Amazon’s Prime Day May Be the Catalyst for a Year-End Rally
Via MarketBeat
Tickers AMZN
Let the Good Times Roll: 2 Stocks Showing No Signs of Slowing
Via MarketBeat
Topics Artificial Intelligence World Trade
Tickers ATRO INOD META
Café Culture Revival? 3 Stocks to Watch After Chick-fil-A’s Move
Via MarketBeat
Tickers CMG MCD SBUX YUM
Carmakers Step in With Incentives as EV Tax Credit Expires
Via MarketBeat
Topics Economy Government
Tickers F GM TSLA
Buy the Dip? Zillow’s Profit Comeback Meets Market Pressure
Via MarketBeat
Topics Lawsuit
Tickers ZG
Stock Quote API & Stock News API supplied by www.cloudquote.io
Quotes delayed at least 20 minutes.
By accessing this page, you agree to the following
Privacy Policy and Terms Of Service.