Swave Photonics, a Belgian company specialising in holographic display technology, has successfully concluded a €27 million Series A funding round, elevating its total funding to exceed €37 million since its establishment in 2022. The company, which originated from imec, is focused on advancing spatial computing technologies powered by artificial intelligence.
Swave's proprietary Holographic eXtended Reality (HXR) display technology represents a significant leap forward, as it is touted as the first technology to achieve authentic holography. This is accomplished by sculpting light waves into high-resolution images that offer a "reality-first" user experience, wherein digital images interact with and adapt to the user's physical surroundings. Central to this innovative approach is the use of the world's smallest pixel, which facilitates the creation of vibrant 3D holographic visuals. Additionally, Swave’s DynamicDepth technology allows images to be processed in a manner that aligns with natural human vision.
Current augmented reality (AR) devices on the market face a multitude of challenges, such as excessive costs, cumbersome sizes and weights, high energy consumption, and visual phenomena including Vergence-Accommodation Conflict, which can lead to discomfort such as nausea or fatigue for users. Swave’s HXR technology addresses these obstacles by removing the dependency on expensive components traditionally associated with AR devices, including waveguides and varifocal lenses.
The development of Swave’s technology has been in progress for over ten years, resulting in the company securing 60 core technology patents. The recent funding round was co-led by imec.xpand and SFPIM Relaunch, alongside contributions from new investors such as the EIC Fund, IAG Capital Partners, and Murata Electronics North America, Inc. Additional support came from existing investors including Qbic Fund, PMV, imec, and Luminate.
Mike Noonen, CEO of Swave, commented on the funding's importance, stating, “This round will accelerate Swave's product introductions as we continue to solve the challenges of today's AR experiences through true holography.” Theo Marescaux, co-founder and Chief Product Officer of Swave, is expected to expand on these ambitions as the company looks towards the future of augmented reality and its applications in various industries.
The rapidly evolving landscape of AI automation and AR technology is poised to reshape business practices across sectors, providing enhanced user experiences and potentially leading to new use cases that leverage holographic capabilities. The implications of these advancements are significant, as companies like Swave Photonics continue to innovate in this space.
Source: Noah Wire Services