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What you need to know

  • Apple has confirmed it has acquired NextVR.
  • The company has been suspected to be behind the acquisition since April.
  • Employees are suspected to work on Apple's upcoming smart glasses.

Back in April, it was rumored that Apple was the secret buyer behind an acquisition of NextVR, a live event VR/AR company. According to a new report from Bloomberg, Apple has confirmed that it was behind the purchase.

The AR/VR company's software is currently integrated with popular virtual and augmented reality headsets from brands like Playstation, Oculus, HTC, Microsoft, and Lenovo.

"NextVR has deals with sports leagues including the National Basketball Association and entertainment networks such as Fox Sports. The startup also has expertise in live streaming in virtual reality, which could also be useful for live concerts and games."

NextVR became available to acquisition because it "failed to secure a Series C round of funding in early 2019, however, which resulted in a 40% staff reduction at the time."

"The Newport Beach, California-based startup officially shut down this week, saying on its website that it is "heading in a new direction." Apple said it buys smaller technology companies from time to time, and generally does not discuss its purpose or plans. It didn't disclose a purchase price, but website 9to5Mac reported in April that Apple was in talks to buy NextVR for about $100 million."

It is currently unclear what exactly the team from NextVR will be working on at Apple, but, with the increasing rumors that the company is working on its own pair of smart glasses, anyone could take an educated guess. The team could also lend their expertise to other AR experiences on the iPhone and iPad.