Hot spots this week (5.6-5.12): It is rumored that the price of Apple's Vision Pro 2 is half of the original generation; The in-person experience Sandbox VR announced its expansion, adding 25 new locations by the end of 2028; Ultraleap launches successor to hand tracking software Gemini; VR in-car entertainment service provider Holoride filed for bankruptcy; OPTIX, an XR optical technology company, completed the Pre-A round of financing; Marvel and ILM Immersive create MR experiences for Vision Pro; The VR version of Spin Rhythm XD will be released on July 9, among other things.
Industry dynamics
LBE VR manufacturer Sandbox VR has announced its expansion with plans to add 25 new experience points by the end of 2028
Sandbox VR, a well-known LBE VR manufacturer, has announced a partnership with Apparel Group, a UAE fashion group, to open 25 new experience points in the Middle East by the end of 2028. The company's founder and CEO, Steve Zhao, called the partnership "due to the overwhelmingly positive response from our experience stores in the US, Europe and Asia."
Ultraleap launches Hyperion, the successor to "the best hand tracking software ever."
Ultraleap introduces Hyperion, the successor to Gemini's hand tracking software. Ultraleap Hyperion is said to have made significant advances in hand tracking performance, efficiency, and flexibility, providing a flexible solution for different needs. Ultraleap says it can use Hyperion to train hand tracking models for other specific use cases and customize the models in a matter of days.
The team of Xie Zhongshi from the Third Hospital of Jilin University completed the world's first laparoscopic radical sigmoid cancer surgery assisted by Vision Pro headset
Recently, the official WeChat public account of the Third Bethune Hospital of Jilin University issued an article introducing that the team of Dr. Xie Zhongshi from the Department of Gastrointestinal and Colorectal Surgery of the Third Hospital of Jilin University successfully completed the world's first laparoscopic radical sigmoid cancer surgery assisted by Apple Vision Pro headset. According to the Third Hospital of Jilin University, the Apple Vision Pro headset played an important role in many aspects in this operation.
Holoride, a provider of VR in-car entertainment services, filed for bankruptcy
Due to the failure of a new round of financing, Holoride, a VR in-car entertainment company based in Munich, Germany, announced that it has filed for bankruptcy. Nils Wollny, the company's chief executive officer and co-founder, sees the bankruptcy process as "an opportunity to start fresh with new investors or owners" and speaks of a "restructuring period".
Financing acquisitions
OPTIX, an XR optical technology company, completed the Pre-A round of financing
Recently, OPTIX, an XR optical technology company, announced the completion of the Pre-A round of financing led by Primavera Venture Capital and continuously increased by the old shareholder Lanchi Venture Capital. The new funds will be used to further accelerate the R&D and innovation of its core optical technologies. This is the third funding round for OPTIX in less than two years since it was founded. The last round of angel round was led by BlueRun Venture Capital and followed by Guangyue Investment, with a cumulative financing amount of more than 100 million yuan.
Micro LED材料技术公司Kubos Semiconductor完成200万美元融资
Micro LED材料技术公司Kubos Semiconductor宣布完成200万美元融资，投资方包括三位化合物半导体行业资深人士——Martin Lamb、Drew Nelson和Geoff Haynes，以及三家战略投资者——威尔士发展银行、FOV Ventures和S4C Digital Media Limited。 新资金将用于加速其cubic GaN技术的开发，该技术可以使红色Micro LED的效率翻倍。
Najing Technology, a comprehensive solution provider of metasurface optics, completed tens of millions of yuan in Pre-A round of financing
Najing Technology, a provider of comprehensive solutions for metasurface optics, announced the completion of a Pre-A round of financing of tens of millions of yuan, led by China Internet Investment Fund and Zhejiang Xingan Shiye Investment Management Co., Ltd., followed by Baida Group. The new funds will be mainly used for product development and mass production capacity building.
CoStar acquires 3D data platform company Matterport for $1.6 billion
CoStar Group announced plans to move its headquarters from Washington, D.C., to Arlington in February and has entered into an agreement to acquire all of the outstanding shares of Matterport, a California-based 3D data platform, on a cash-and-stock basis, valued at $1.6 billion.
Hardware Alerts
The Apple Vision Pro 2 is rumored to be half the price of the original generation and is expected to be launched in 2026
If a dubious rumor is true, the next generation of the Apple Vision Pro could be launched in 2026 at half the price of the first-generation model. @Revegnus1 posted on X that the Apple Vision Pro 2 will launch in 2026 and will retail between $1,500 and $2,500. SeeYA Technology will be the supplier of the Vision Pro 2 supply chain and is currently in the stage of sending samples to Apple for evaluation. Following SK hynix, Samsung will supply LLW DRAM.
新Apple Pencil Pro有望成为Vision Pro的配件
At the spring launch event, in addition to the new iPad, Apple also unveiled the new Apple Pencil Pro, which is equipped with gyroscope, pressure sensor, and haptic feedback. These three functions may be related to the interaction of Vision Pro.
Game News
漫威和ILM Immersive为Vision Pro打造MR体验
Marvel Studios and Lucasfilm's immersive entertainment studio ILM Immersive (formerly ILMxLAB) are working on a film called What If...? – An immersive experience for An Immersive Story. It's the first-ever interactive Disney+ original story that will be coming exclusively to Apple Vision Pro.
Niantic推出Quest 3体验《Hello,Dot》，可在MR中养宠
Pokémon GO developer Niantic has released Hello, Dot, an MR pet care game for Meta Quest 3, which allows you to put one of the virtual creatures in an AR game into your environment. In this immersive experience, you'll be able to see the visual stunningness of Peridot up close and create a special bond with them while playing together. Niantic is also planning to develop Hello, Dot for the Apple Vision Pro, but there is no release date yet.
The VR version of Spin Rhythm XD will be released on July 9th
Super Spin Digital has announced that Spin Rhythm XD will be coming to PCVR and PS VR2 headsets on July 9. It's a music rhythm game with stunning interactive backgrounds, elaborate levels, and smooth, grooved controls.
时空旅行VR冒险游戏《Wanderer: Fragments of Fate》推迟至9月12日
Originally scheduled to be released on June 27, the VR adventure game Wanderer: Fragments of Fate has been postponed to September 12 for Meta Quest 2, PS VR2 and PCVR headsets. Developer Mighty Eyes made the announcement on X: "We want you to be able to play the best and most refined version of the game that meets our vision and quality expectations. This meant that we needed to spend several extra months on development, so we made the difficult decision to postpone the release until September 12, 2024. ”
Beat Saber no longer offers multiplayer support for Quest 1
As of November 2, Beat Saber on Quest 1 will no longer be able to use multiplayer mode. While the game will continue to run, the multiplayer feature will be discontinued and the leaderboard feature will be removed. The reason given by developer Beat Games is to "focus our efforts on the next project of Beat Saber." ”