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Virtual and augmented reality technology firm, Leap Motion, has just secured a $50 million investment following a Series C investment round led by financial services company J.P. Morgan.
The deal sees clients investing through via J.P. Morgan which will add Lawrence Unrein, who is the global head of the company’s private equity group, joining the Leap Motion board.
The investment is intended to help fund the development of hand tracking for virtual and augmented reality. The move for a more precise and accurate natural input for the technologies is one of the big races in the VR/AR/MR industry at the moment, alongside wireless setups and better processing power.
"Virtual and augmented reality technologies are evolving at a rapid pace, drawing significant attention from investors," said J.P. Morgan’s Unrein. "Leap Motion’s suite of hardware and software designed for headsets falls squarely into this category, offering natural input through hand and finger tracking that can be integrated into any headset."
Leap Motion, which formed in 2010, is looking to expand its operations to Asia, with an office in Shanghai to be opened, and growth in more commercial VR/AR/MR enterprises such as education, healthcare and industry. "Natural input through full hand tracking is inseparable and fundamental to the future of VR/AR, and Leap Motion is a principal driver of its widespread adoption," said Leap Motion CEO and co-founder, Michael Buckwald. "In much the same way as the touchscreen sparked the mobile revolution, Leap Motion is playing a transformative role in the development of human interface technology for VR/AR. As a result, the industry as a whole is on the verge of a similar moment of exponential growth."
