Oledcomm’s NATO DIANA Selection: An Interview with Benjamin Azoulay

Credit to Oledcomm

In a recent interview with LiFi Tech News, Oledcomm CEO Benjamin Azoulay detailed his company's recent selection by the prestigious NATO DIANA (Defence Innovation Accelerator for the North Atlantic) programme.

Chosen from a highly competitive, global pool of over 3,600 applicants, Oledcomm holds the unique distinction of being the only LiFi company selected to address the escalating challenges of electronic warfare (EW) in contested electromagnetic environments. The DIANA application process can take up to 6 months.

The interview provided a deep dive into the lethal realities of modern combat, the physics of optical communication, and Oledcomm’s strategic vision to fundamentally rewrite how allied forces connect on the battlefield.

The Lethal Bottleneck: The Crisis of Radio Frequencies

To contextualize the urgency of Oledcomm’s technology, Azoulay painted a stark picture of the modern battlefield. For decades, militaries have relied on traditional radio frequency (RF) networks for command, control, and communication. However, in near-peer conflicts equipped with advanced signal intelligence (SIGINT) and electronic warfare capabilities, RF has become a severe liability.

Azoulay highlighted a chilling operational reality: adversary forces can now scan the electromagnetic spectrum and precisely geolocate an RF emitter in a matter of seconds. The "kill chain", the time from the moment a soldier keys a radio or a vehicle transmits data to the moment a targeted artillery or drone strike destroys that emitting source, can now be as tragically short as seven seconds. Emitting an RF signal is akin to turning on a flashlight in a pitch-black room; it instantly reveals the user's location to anyone watching.

Simultaneously, allied forces are facing a severe bandwidth crisis. Modern tactical operations centers (TOCs) and frontline commanders require immense amounts of data to maintain situational awareness. Real-time, high-definition satellite imagery, live 4K drone video feeds, and complex algorithmic targeting data must be distributed instantaneously. Traditional RF bands are simply too narrow and congested to move these heavy data loads securely without creating massive, easily trackable electromagnetic signatures.

Credit to Oledcomm

The Optical Revolution: Oledcomm’s Zero-Signature Tactical Bubble

To resolve this dual crisis of security and bandwidth, Oledcomm has developed a revolutionary approach: abandoning radio waves entirely in favour of light. By harnessing a proprietary combination of LiFi (Light Fidelity) and advanced, invisible laser technology, Oledcomm has engineered a robust communication architecture that boasts a true "zero electromagnetic footprint."

Because the system transmits data via the optical spectrum, it does not radiate RF waves. This renders the communication network completely invisible to adversary RF scanners, SIGINT drones, and spectrum analyzers. Furthermore, because light cannot be intercepted unless the physical beam is interrupted, and cannot be disrupted by radio frequency jammers, the system is 100% immune to traditional electronic jamming.

Azoulay explained that Oledcomm’s technology establishes an invisible, highly secure "tactical bubble" with a diameter of up to one kilometer. Within this perimeter, forces can seamlessly share data at massive speeds of 1 Gigabit-per-second (Gbps). Anticipating skepticism regarding optical communications in poor weather, Azoulay emphasised that Oledcomm has engineered the system's hardware and software to maintain strict quality of service (QoS) and data integrity in extreme operational environments. The technology successfully cuts through atmospheric disturbances including heavy rain, snow, dense fog, and severe dust storms, ensuring a continuous link when forces need it most.

Frontline Applications: The LISA and Clovis Systems

During the interview, Azoulay detailed two specific, mission-critical adaptations of Oledcomm’s core technology, each designed to solve unique tactical dilemmas:

1. LISA (Air-to-Ground Optical Link): As unmanned aerial systems (UAS) become ubiquitous, transmitting the intelligence they gather has become increasingly dangerous. LISA is a specialized module engineered to provide secure, undetectable optical links between airborne drones and ground-based command vehicles. It allows forces to gather critical overhead intelligence and stream dense, high-definition ISR (Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance) data directly to the ground without broadcasting either the drone's or the vehicle's position to enemy sensors.

2. CLOVIS (Vehicle-to-Vehicle Mesh Networking): When armored units halt to establish a tactical command post, they must rapidly share high-bandwidth data. Historically, this required soldiers to physically exit their heavily armored vehicles to manually connect fiber optic cables—a highly dangerous, time-consuming task, particularly while under enemy fire or operating in CBRN (Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear) contaminated zones. CLOVIS eliminates this physical risk entirely. It allows mechanized forces to automatically establish an invisible, secure LiFi mesh network between multiple vehicles in under five minutes, keeping soldiers safe behind their armor while providing fiber-optic-like speeds.

Credit to Oledcomm

Forged in the Field: Rigorous Testing and Rapid Iteration

To survive the brutal realities of frontline combat, the LiFi hardware had to undergo a radical physical evolution. Early prototypes, while successfully proving the underlying physics of the optical links, revealed vulnerabilities to the intense kinetic shocks generated by tracked armoured personnel carriers (APCs) and main battle tanks traversing uneven terrain at high speeds. In response, Oledcomm's engineering teams worked side-by-side with military operators to fundamentally redesign the protective casings and optical mounts. The resulting fourth-generation nodes are heavily ruggedized, using advanced shock-absorbing materials and specialized environmental seals. These upgrades prevent the intrusion of fine dust, thick mud, and freezing rain, ensuring the optical transceivers maintain perfect alignment even during violent, high-impact maneuvers.

Beyond the physical hardware, the software architecture driving the LiFi mesh networks underwent equally intensive scrutiny. Soldiers operating in high-stress, life-or-death combat environments cannot afford the time to troubleshoot complex networking protocols. Direct feedback from the 7th Armored Brigade operators highlighted the absolute necessity for a seamless, "plug-and-play" user experience. Consequently, Oledcomm significantly automated the network discovery and self-healing processes. If an armored vehicle shifts position and briefly breaks a line-of-sight connection, the system's software now instantaneously reroutes the data packets through adjacent nodes in the mesh network. This guarantees uninterrupted, high-speed communication without requiring a single manual intervention from the vehicle's crew.

This unprecedented level of collaboration between a commercial tech innovator and active-duty military units has dramatically shortened Oledcomm’s development cycle. By bypassing traditional, sluggish defense procurement timelines and adopting a highly agile, iterative approach, the company has been able to push critical updates directly to the field in a matter of weeks rather than years. Azoulay emphasized that this continuous, tight-knit feedback loop, bridging the gap between the end-users in the mud and the engineers in the laboratory, is the true cornerstone of Oledcomm's rapid deployment and unwavering tactical reliability.

Credit to Oledcomm

NATO Integration and the 12-Month Strategic Vision

Looking ahead, Oledcomm’s integration into NATO's broader defensive infrastructure is moving at an accelerated pace. Azoulay revealed that the company has been selected to participate in a massive NATO operational experiment (OPEX) codenamed DIVAX, which will take place in Riga, Lithuania. Backed by the extensive testing, validation, and capital resources of the NATO DIANA program, Oledcomm is currently undergoing the rigorous administrative and technical processes required to achieve full NATO accreditation for handling classified defense networks.

Azoulay concluded the interview by outlining Oledcomm’s ambitious 12-month strategic roadmap. The company is actively executing a major pivot: transitioning from a specialized hardware product manufacturer to a comprehensive, end-to-end secure network provider.

Their ultimate vision is the realization of a fully integrated multi-domain operations (MDO) architecture. By successfully linking low-earth orbit satellites, reconnaissance drones, armored ground vehicles, and individual dismounted soldiers entirely through an invisible, jam-proof web of light, Oledcomm aims to fundamentally alter the tactical landscape. Finally, to meet the anticipated surge in international demand and to secure the vulnerabilities of the global military supply chain, Azoulay confirmed plans to establish strategic partnerships with local defense manufacturers, ensuring these critical optical technologies are produced directly and securely within allied NATO nations.