Magic Leap Secures $542m in Funding from Google, Qualcomm and others

magic leapGoogle and Qualcomm are among the lead investors in a $542m (£337m) round of funding for virtual reality company Magic Leap, which aims to push the technology beyond its current limits.

With augmented reality a growing market and Facebook purchasing VR company Oculus for £2bn, virtual reality display has been making headlines all year. With its Series B funding round, Magic Leap, a VR startup, has attracted investment from Google, Qualcomm, Legendary Entertainment, Vulcan Capital and a number of other high profile investors.

The proceeds of the funding round will be used to accelerate product development, release software development tools, expand its content ecosystem and commercialise its proprietary mobile wearable system, which has yet to be revealed to the public.

Along with the investment, Sundar Pichai, senior vice president of Android, Chrome and apps at Google will be joining the board of directors, with Dr Paul E Jacobs, executive chairman of Qualcomm and Don Harrison, vice president of corporate development at Google also joining the board as observers. There were rumours recently that Google would be attempting to acquire the company, and while it does appear it will be having a hands-on presence in its role as an investor, so far the company remains independent.

“We are excited and honoured to have such an extraordinary group of investors to help us bring our vision and products to the world,” said Rony Abovitz, president, CEO and founder of Magic Leap. “Magic Leap is going beyond the current perception of mobile computing, augmented reality and virtual reality. We are transcending all three, and will revolutionise the way people communicate, purchase, learn share and play.”