Recently, Axon, a public safety technology company known for producing Taser stun guns, announced the acquisition of VR studio Foundry 45, which the company said will enhance its VR training products. Upon completion of the acquisition, foundry 45 will be integrated into Axon's virtual reality team.
Foundry 45 was founded in 2015 to provide VR/AR training applications for corporate customers around the world, including a number of Fortune 100 companies, foundry 45 is committed to creating VR experience content that integrates training skills and improves productivity to promote the popularization of corporate training. Founded in 1993, Axon is the company behind the famous Taser stun guns used by police and military around the world, and the company also focuses on body cameras and administrative and management software for public safety organizations.
Chris Chin, vice president of immersive technology at Axon, said: "Foundry 45's team of enterprise-grade virtual reality training experts is a great addition to Axon, which will enhance our training capabilities in the field of public safety and make the community safer. ”
David Beck, co-founder and managing partner of Foundry 45, said: "Our values are in line with Axon's, and when we are acquired, the team will be able to integrate more into the global public safety training system to create a social public interest product. ”
The acquisition appears to be an all-stock deal, with Axon saying 29,507 restricted stock units, valued at about $3.87 million, were "granted to two people related to the acquisition" for a period of three years. Axon said the deal would also include as many as 15,249 restricted stock units (valued at about $2 million) if the company's VR division achieves certain performance-based goals.
Axon is committed to making immersive technology-based public safety training more feasible, allowing law enforcement officers to make the most accurate judgment based on field conditions. And as virtual reality becomes a training tool for many industries, the acquisition of Foundry 45 will help Axon accelerate its development of innovative skills in public safety and the delivery of scenario-based training applications, and help client companies expand their global growth businesses.