The Italian Innovative SME raises over €1 million to accelerate growth and revolutionise value-added lighting solutions with LiFi technology 

Italian Innovative SME To Be Srl has closed a capital raise exceeding €1 million, completing two successful funding rounds within just a few months.  

To Be’s disruptive potential in value-added LiFi lighting—utilising LED light to transmit data—has attracted a diverse group of backers, including institutional investors such as AZIMUT ELTIF – Venture Capital ALIcrowd III, and Magic Spectrum, part of CDP Venture Capital’s 5G and IoT Accelerator Network, alongside Zest and Fondazione Compagnia di San Paolo. Joining them were 97 small and medium-sized investors eager to support this bold and innovative venture. 

In July 2024, following To Be’s success in the InnovaCultura programme, organised by Regione Lombardia, Fondazione Cariplo, and Unioncamere Lombardia with support from Cariplo Factory, Fondazione Social Venture Giordano Dell’Amore—a strategic arm of Fondazione Cariplo in impact investing—invested an additional €150,000. This brought To Be’s seed funding total beyond €1 million, marking a pivotal milestone for the company. 

These funds will primarily be channelled into expanding the team and strengthening the company’s organisational structure across multiple domains. The investment will also facilitate strategic partnerships and commercial collaborations with players in the telecommunications sector, system integrators, and leading design firms. Furthermore, To Be plans to allocate resources to initiate its international market entry, starting with Europe.  

"We are witnessing a revolution where the worlds of lighting and information & communication technology converge," said Francesco Paolo Russo, Founder & CEO of To Be Srl. "Once separate, these fields are now intersecting as lighting becomes connected and capable of transmitting data and enabling new services. This marks the dawn of a new era where light evolves into an enabling infrastructure. LiFi Zone is just the first step in a broader vision where light goes beyond illumination to deliver services, data, and information. To Be stands out by offering value-added LED lighting solutions that meet the needs of corporates and public institutions. Unlike traditional lighting companies, our infrastructure incorporates innovative, value-driven software and services, leveraging technologies like LiFi and Visible Light Communication (VLC)." 

Founded in 2016 by Francesco Paolo Russo and Raniero Pani, who brings over two decades of expertise in lighting and home automation, To Be has already established strategic partnerships with industry leaders like Signify (formerly Philips Lighting), multinational telecom firms, and system integrators. The company also raised €75,000 in a pre-seed round in 2022 from Magic Spectrum and secured several public grants by aligning its LiFi solutions with major European funding trends and Italy’s National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR), embracing the missions of ecological, digital, and network infrastructure transitions. 

Future Challenges and Opportunities 

To Be operates across both public and corporate sectors. In the public sphere, its lighting solutions enable services like indoor navigation and LiFi connectivity. For corporates, To Be integrates its technology into innovative office and workplace designs, including meeting rooms and collaborative spaces. 

The company is also developing a unique value proposition for the healthcare sector, where less than 10% of facilities currently utilise LED lighting. With healthcare infrastructure modernisation on the horizon, To Be is working to demonstrate how LED LiFi-VLC systems can provide a competitive and economically viable alternative to traditional lighting solutions with comparable performance.