Data storage software company Leil has raised €1.5 million in Seed funding to make hyperscale-level storage infrastructure accessible to enterprises worldwide.
The round was led by Karma Ventures with participation from Specialist VC.
With global data production exceeding 330 million terabytes per day — and expected to triple by 2030 — enterprise storage systems are under mounting pressure. Traditional hard drives are becoming too costly and energy-hungry to keep up, creating a massive opportunity for smarter, more efficient storage technologies.
Leil’s software enables enterprise-scale use of shingled magnetic recording (SMR) drives, a high-density technology that overlaps data tracks like roof shingles to store up to 20% more data per disk than conventional drives. By automating how data is written, moved, and recovered across thousands of drives, the company brings SMR’s hyperscale efficiency to mainstream enterprise environments.
“We founded Leil to make hyperscale storage economics a reality for every enterprise,” said Aleksandr Ragel, co-founder and CEO of Leil. “Our HDD-native approach delivers major cost savings, reduces environmental impact, and ensures critical data remains under our customers’ control.”
Making hyperscale performance accessible
SMR drives have long been limited to tech giants with proprietary systems because they require sequential data writing to prevent corruption. The platform solves this through automation and intelligent data classification — determining what content should stay active and powering down idle drives. The result: up to 70% lower energy consumption, depending on workload.
Ideal for multi-petabyte environments such as national broadcasters, research institutes, public archives, and AI training centers, Leil’s technology is already in production across several of these sectors.
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A sustainable foundation for data growth
Leil operates on a capacity-based subscription model that allows companies to integrate its software gradually, running alongside existing storage systems. The new funding will be used to expand its commercial team, accelerate go-to-market efforts, and advance the product roadmap to support additional use cases in AI, research, and enterprise data management.
“The next wave of AI and scientific innovation is straining under the cost and complexity of storing its own data,” Ragel added. “Leil provides the foundation for a data-intensive future that’s both sustainable and affordable.”
About Leil
Founded in Tallinn, Leil Storage combines high-capacity spinning drives with advanced software to bring hyperscale efficiency to on-premises environments. Its platform enables organizations to manage massive data volumes with lower costs, reduced energy use, and full data sovereignty, bridging the gap between enterprise infrastructure and hyperscale performance.
