Today, Leap Motion – the motion tracking technology specialist – has announced a $50 million USD funding round, led by clients advised by J.P. Morgan Asset Management.
Founded in 2010, Leap Motion’s tracking technology can be used to make virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) experience more immersive by allowing users to actually grab virtual objects without the need for data gloves. This new funding round will allow Leap Motion to push forward with its global expansion plans, which includes opening an office in Shanghai, China. The company also plans to expand its commercial and enterprise reach, developing applications in education, healthcare, and industrial training simulations.
“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 Michael Buckwald, CEO and Co-founder of Leap Motion in a statement. “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.”
As part of the funding round, Lawrence Unrein, Global Head of J.P. Morgan Asset Management’s Private Equity Group, has joined Leap Motion’s board of directors.
“Virtual and augmented reality technologies are evolving at a rapid pace, drawing significant attention from investors,” adds 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.”
Over the years Leap Motion has partnered with several tech companies, the most recent being Qualcomm. This saw Leap Motion to bring its interface to the Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 mobile platform, and Qualcomm’s new VR development kit (VRDK).
VRFocus will continue its coverage of Leap Motion, reporting back with the latest updates.