The consideration will be through a mix of cash and stock
WaveOptics has various partnerships, with one of them being with PEGATRON for developing AR wearables. (Credit: WaveOptics Ltd)
US-based camera and social media firm Snap is set to acquire British augmented reality (AR) hardware company WaveOptics in a deal worth more than $500m.
The transaction was confirmed by the US firm’s CEO Evan Spiegel.
As per the terms of the deal, Snap will pay around $250m in the form of its shares at the closing of the deal. The other half will be paid in cash or stock in two years.
WaveOptics, which began trading in 2014, has raised total funding of $60m to date. This includes a Series C funding round of $39m, which was closed in September 2019.
Apart from the UK, the AR technology company has offices in China, Taiwan, and the US.
The company has developed near-eye transparent displays that enable device manufacturers, consumer electronic firms, and social media companies to create wearable devices that combine digital imagery with the real world.
WaveOptics’ products include waveguides, projectors, and modules.
The company has a manufacturing line at Goertek’s facility in Weifang, China. Goertek, which is engaged in the design and manufacturing of high-tech consumer electronics, is one of the main investors of WaveOptics.
For Snap, the announcement of the deal comes in the wake of unveiling the company’s next generation of spectacles and the launch of other new augmented reality tools and camera experiences.
The company, which owns the multimedia messaging app Snapchat, said that its first pair of display glasses designed for creators for directly overlaying their lenses onto the world.
According to Snap, the next generation of its spectacles are integrated fully with the company’s powerful desktop application – Lens Studio. The spectacles will enable augmented reality creators and developers to build and distribute lenses across the AR platform of the company.