The Houston Angel Network (HAN) is the oldest angel network in Texas and most active angel network in the USA according to the Angel Resource Institute.  Its members have invested more than $61.7M in 198 deals since its inception in 2001.  In 2014, HAN members invested $15.3M in 66 deals.  The typical individual HAN member is an accredited investor seriously interested in providing capital and coaching to early stage companies. HAN also has institutional members such as seed funds, accelerators, universities and other networks within the innovation ecosystem.  HAN is a non-profit association that does not charge fees to entrepreneurs; its revenue consists of membership fees and sponsorships.

Houston Angel Network

Maveron is a consumer-only venture capital firm. Founded in 1998 by Dan Levitan and Howard Schultz, the firm has offices in San Francisco and Seattle. Maveron investments include Zulily, Allbirds, Common, August Home, eBay, Capella Education, General Assembly, and Trupanion. Maveron's name was coined from the words ''maverick'' and ''vision.'' Maveron funds seed and Series A companies that empower consumers to live on their terms. Based in SF and Seattle and invest coast-to-coast. Maveron has adopted the Diversity Term Sheet Rider.

Maveron

TEKTON VENTURES is an international seed investment firm that partners at inception with forward looking company builders in leading technology hubs worldwide. The firm’s principals have over three decades of experience as early stage investors. Leveraging an extensive global network of entrepreneurs and investors, Tekton makes early stage investments in category defining companies in several strategic geographies around the world.  Passionate entrepreneurs exist in many parts of the world. Tekton Ventures focuses its investments in two different places: Silicon Valley and selected technology centers ( London and Israel); and the fast growing mobile/digitally connected markets in Asia (China, Korea and India).  Our approach to global investing rests on partnerships with local venture ecosystems: we have built long standing relationships with some of the best local seed and venture investors in our geographies of focus.  We see our unique global perspective as important to build transformational companies and make that knowledge available across our entire community of entrepreneurs.

Tekton Ventures

SeedInvest is a equity crowdfunding platform that provides investors with access to highly vetted startup investment opportunities. The SeedInvest network contains over 15,000 accredited investors, including hundreds of family offices and institutions. SeedInvest typically invests between $500,000 - $5 million as part of a syndicate.

SeedInvest

StartCaps Ventures is an investment company that finances startups with a high growth potential at their early stages of development. It offers support to projects within the new technologies sector. The company provides its clients with technological support as well as mentoring and guidance. StartCaps Ventures’ focus areas include mobile, healthcare, gaming, big data, and education. The company was founded in 2011 by Ignacio Vilela. It is headquartered in San Francisco, California.

StartCaps Ventures

Scout Ventures is an early-stage venture capital firm making the world a better, safer place by investing in frontier and dual-use technologies built by veterans, intelligence leaders, and premier research labs. By leveraging our network of professional investors, operators, and experienced entrepreneurs, Scout can effectively execute every aspect of our investment thesis.

Scout Ventures

Scentan Ventures is focused on the industries of Internet, IT, and Mobile, and makes strategic investments to offer assistance with such processes as recruiting and product development.

Scentan Ventures

QueensBridge Venture Partners invests in technology companies in highly competitive and visible markets. The company's collective experience has shaped our approach to investing by allowing us to quickly recognize and capitalize on key trends. Furthermore, by focusing on co-investment opportunities with leading venture capital funds and angel investors in Silicon Valley, we have unique access to very attractive companies. Successful venture capital investing is highly influenced by a network of reputable investors. QBVP aligns itself with firms that have proven their ability to source and invest in the next generation of leading technology companies in Silicon Valley and emerging markets. We bring capital along with our network of industry veterans and corporate relationships to accelerate the development of the companies in which we co-invest. We seek to partner with firms that generate the most value among VCs and back the companies that reach enterprise value of over $1 billion on a regular basis. The general partners of QBVP are industry veterans in consumer products & services, media & entertainment, and financial services. We have (i) advised tech, media, and entertainment companies in raising over $20 billion of capital at bulge bracket Wall Street firms (e.g. Goldman Sachs; Deutsche Bank) (ii) started over twenty businesses, (iii) produced and/or recorded six number 1 albums on the Billboard 200, (iv) sold over 25 million records worldwide, (v) have products in over 3,000 stores.

QueensBridge Venture Partners

Black Green Capital are a London-based advisory company with a Venture Capital arm. Whether its web applications or social media developments, M2M devices or eco-systems through to Internet connected consumer devices and telco networks, their expertise and experience combined with strong capital structure makes them uniquely well placed to offer advice and investment.  From deploying new management teams to execute a turnaround through to providing the funding and mentoring to enable existing management to deliver to plan, Black Green Capital have the resources and experience to deliver tangible results.

Black Green Capital

Radical Investments

Western Technology Investment is a venture capital firm that specializes in offering acquisition financing to revenue-generating firms. The firm provides debt and lease financing to venture capital backed technology companies.

Western Technology Investment

2020 Ventures is a private fund investing in social mobile web companies at all stages.

2020 Ventures

Walden Woods Holdings was founded in 2013 to facilitate the research and investment in various projects. The primary aim of the company is to build a diverse portfolio of long-term real estate holdings, as well as stakes in nascent companies and start-ups.

Walden Woods Holdings

MSR Capital is an Asia investment firm that provides its clients with wealth management and brokerage services.

MSR Capital

Virtuix

Virtuix is a developer of a virtual reality platform that enables players to walk and run in 360 degrees in virtual reality. Its Virtuix Omni is the first virtual reality interface for moving freely and naturally in VR games and applications. Virtuix was founded in April 2013 and was one of the pioneers of the recent wave of VR innovation. Virtuix sells Omni systems to enterprise customers and location-based entertainment venues through the company’s global distribution network. Virtuix has shipped more than 3,500 Omni systems to date, and distributors have installed Omnis in over 500 commercial venues in 45 countries, making the Omni the most widely distributed VR hardware besides headsets. In November 2018, Virtuix unveiled Omni Arena, a turnkey esports attraction for high-end entertainment centers. Since its Kickstarter campaign in 2013, Virtuix raised $20MM from investors including Mark Cuban, 12 venture capital funds, two strategic investors, and private investors. The company has grown to a team of 35 employees with offices in Austin, TX (its headquarters), and in Zhuhai and Shanghai, China.

Virtuix is the creator of the Omni Pro systems that allow users to physically walk and run in all directions while being immersed in a VR experience and Omni Arena (November 2018), a turnkey full-body VR esports attraction that features four Omni Pro systems for a multiplayer experience with built-in weekly and monthly esports contests. Omni Arenas are supported by the Omniverse, the company’s proprietary content distribution and arcade management platform that consists of 20+ leading VR games optimized for its hardware and location-based experiences. The company rents out its Omni Arena systems across the US to companies at USD 3,000 a month. The company claims that its system can help venue owners generate USD 12,000 in average monthly revenues.

Technologies bringing about a new reality

Extended Reality

A Decade Of Innovation: Virtuix Levels Up VR With Omni One

Virtuix is the creator of the Omni Pro systems that allow users to physically walk and run in all directions while being immersed in a VR experience and Omni Arena (November 2018), a turnkey full-body VR esports attraction that features four Omni Pro systems for a multiplayer experience with built-in weekly and monthly esports contests. Omni Arenas are supported by the Omniverse, the company’s proprietary content distribution and arcade management platform that consists of 20+ leading VR games optimized for its hardware and location-based experiences. The company rents out its Omni Arena systems across the US to companies at USD 3,000 a month. The company claims that its system can help venue owners generate USD 12,000 in average monthly revenues.&nbsp;In <a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/17215">March 2023</a>, Virtuix debuted its Omni One treadmill, targeting the in-home VR gaming market which retailed at USD 2,595. The Omni One treadmill allows users to navigate VR environments with full-body movements, such as crouching, kneeling, and jumping, with integrated safety features to prevent collisions. The device requires users to wear special low-friction shoes and a harness system to keep them in the center of the base's parabola. Further, the Omni One improves on the Omni Pro in terms of form factor and does not require additional computing devices, apart from the treadmill and Pico headset. The company planned for shipments of the device in the second quarter of 2024.&nbsp;Key customers and partnershipsAs of March 2023, the company had installed over 70 Omni Arena units. The company planned to ship 8,000 units of its Omni One treadmill to equity investors as well.Funding and financialsIn August 2023, the company raised USD 4.7 million through its crowdfunding campaign. The round received significant support from JC Team Capital, a prior investor. Funding was earmarked to increase the production of its Omni One treadmill, and achieve profitability by the end of 2024.&nbsp;

Virtuix is the creator of the Omni Pro systems that allow users to physically walk and run in all directions while being immersed in a VR experience and Omni Arena (November 2018), a turnkey full-body VR esports attraction that features four Omni Pro systems for a multiplayer experience with built-in weekly and monthly esports contests. Omni Arenas are supported by the Omniverse, the company’s proprietary content distribution and arcade management platform that consists of 20+ leading VR games optimized for its hardware and location-based experiences. The company rents out its Omni Arena systems across the US to companies at USD 3,000 a month. The company claims that its system can help venue owners generate USD 12,000 in average monthly revenues.In <a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/17215">March 2023</a>, Virtuix debuted its Omni One treadmill, targeting the in-home VR gaming market which retailed at USD 2,595. The Omni One treadmill allows users to navigate VR environments with full-body movements, such as crouching, kneeling, and jumping, with integrated safety features to prevent collisions. The device requires users to wear special low-friction shoes and a harness system to keep them in the center of the base's parabola. Further, the Omni One improves on the Omni Pro in terms of form factor and does not require additional computing devices, apart from the treadmill and Pico headset. The company planned for shipments of the device from <a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/32629">September 2024</a> onwards.Key customers and partnershipsAs of March 2023, the company had installed over 70 Omni Arena units. The company planned to ship 8,000 units of its Omni One treadmill to equity investors as well.Funding and financialsIn August 2023, the company raised USD 4.7 million through its crowdfunding campaign. The round received significant support from JC Team Capital, a prior investor. Funding was earmarked to increase the production of its Omni One treadmill, and achieve profitability by the end of 2024.

Interplay Learning (Interplay) provides on-demand, interactive, and hands-on simulation learning courses for skilled trades, including HVAC, plumbing, electrical, solar, and facilities maintenance, through VR, mobile, and desktop applications. The learning courses also include simulated walkthrough videos where experts lead users through procedure guides methodically, with knowledge testing features and additional learning material such as wiring diagrams, equations, sample system configs, and charts at the end of each lesson. The platform also enables managers to track user progress.The company operates a subscription-based model with monthly packages for individuals (USD 54) and teams (USD 229), alongside a custom plan for larger organizations.In <a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/33810">September 2024</a>, the company acquired Industrial Training International (ITI), enabling the company to provide immersive simulation training solutions for crane and rigging operations across various job sites.Key customers and partnershipsNotable customers include Tesla and Rheem Manufacturing. Interplay’s customer usage rose by 445% YoY in 2020. As of February 2021, the platform had over 2,000 customers and 110,000 users across the US.

Interplay Learning

Switzerland-based WayRay develops holographic AR technology and hardware for the automobile sector. Its technology is used in head-up displays (HUDs) that project images into a driver’s field of vision to assist with navigation. Although its initial focus was on developing HUDs that can be purchased and installed in any vehicle, it has since pivoted to producing embedded HUD systems (i.e., hardware built into vehicles). WayRay’s HUDs are considered to provide a wider field of vision and combine data (location and mapping information) with vision data to generate images by projecting a laser beam through a Picture Generating Unit (PGU) onto a Holographic Optical Element (HOE).&nbsp;In <a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/18537">May 2023</a>, WayRay announced integration of its AR displays into Tesla Model 3's in Switzerland, with plans to follow shortly afterwards in the US. Previously, in September 2021 the company launched its deep reality system that replaces the traditional car dashboard. In addition, WayRay launched “The Holograktor” dubbed the first “metaverse on wheels”, which can be driven conventionally or using a remote control via a 5G and satellite connection (November 2021).&nbsp;The company’s founder and CEO, Vitaly Ponomarev, identified that its systems are more advanced, backed by more patents, and potentially 20x smaller than comparable devices in the market. WayRay’s HQ in Switzerland also acts as a product design and development hub, while its R&amp;D center and prototyping factory are based in Russia.&nbsp;Key customers and partnershipsThe company is backed by strategic investors such as luxury automaker Porsche, which highlighted the management’s expertise in space engineering, hardware, and software development as key reasons for its investment, Hyundai Motor Co., and Alibaba. It is also notable that these investors, particularly Hyundai, are looking at ways to potentially use WayRay’s technology to offer more services in the future. For instance, Hyundai believed that the technology could be used for smart cities and smart buildings, which are its new areas of interest.WayRay partnered with Karma Automotive, a producer of luxury electric vehicles, in December 2021 to support the implementation of its HUDs into their test fleet. Moreover, it partnered with a leader in designing and manufacturing specialty glass, AGP eGlass, in September 2021 to further proliferate its technology.&nbsp; Funding and financialsIt was reported in April 2021 that the company is considering a public listing at a USD 2 billion valuation via a SPAC, although no further updates on this have been announced as at January 2024.&nbsp;

WayRay

AmazeVR initially focused on developing VR technologies but pivoted to VR concerts in late 2019. The concerts are backed by proprietary 9K cameras and software that automate complex VR concert visual effects that run on more than 100 headsets simultaneously. Users join and hang out with other users as avatars while experiencing VR concerts. It intends to bring VR concerts by major artists to theaters and eventually, homes.AmazeVR rolled out its first commercial VR concert, which will feature 3x Grammy winner Megan Thee Stallion, in 2022. The artist is expected to tour select AMC Theaters across the US. It is also in the final stages of closing deals with its second and third artists. AmazeVR also revealed plans to release weekly content by 2024 in theaters and for at-home viewers.In <a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/20145">July 2023</a>, AmazeVR launched its official AmazeVR Concerts app, featuring an exclusive VR concert from Swedish pop star, Zara Larsson. The app is available on major VR app stores, and the exclusive Zara Larsson VR concert can be accessed for a year at a launch price of USD 6.99. AmazeVR also produces and monetizes VR content on a subscription basis.As of August 2023, the company was in the process of producing and releasing mixed reality concerts by overlaying virtual elements onto live, real-world video.Funding and financialsThe company’s most recent funding was in <a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/13338">September 2022</a>, when it raised USD 17 million in a Series B funding round led by Mirae Asset Capital. The fresh funds were allocated to expand partnerships with artists, artist management companies, labels, publishers, and agencies.

AmazeVR

Dispelix, based in Finland, designs and manufactures single-layer, full-color waveguide displays, a thin (about 1mm) transparent element that takes in a projected image and relays it to the eye, using a nanophotonics-based approach catering to AR applications (e.g., smart glasses). It uses laser beam scanning technology to render laser-sharp images with a gamut of color palettes, which are displayed using beam-combiner technology. Its patented and proprietary approach includes diffractive surface relief gratings, which are elements used for high-power laser applications, fabricated on high refractive index glass wafers that enhance field-of-view and image quality.The company had a total of more than 40 granted or pending patent families as of November 2021. Its product line, Dispelix DPX, includes Dispelix DPX - Ohut, Dispelix DPX - Selva, and Dispelix DPX - Sade with a varying degree of field of view, form factor, and weight. According to Co-Founder and CTO Juuso Olkkonen, its displays are the lightest and thinnest in the market.Key customers and partnerships 1) Collins Aerospace: to integrate Dispelix's advanced AR displays into Collins Aerospace's products (November 2024)2) Foxconn and Pegatron: to create reference designs for AR glasses based on its Selvä waveguide display (October 2023)&nbsp;3) VividQ: created a “waveguide combiner” which accurately displays variable-depth 3D content in a user’s environment (January 2023)4) ColorChip and Maradin: To further Light Beam Scanning (LBS) solutions for AR glasses (October 2022)5) Jade Bird Displays: To develop multiple reference designs for AR devices (June 2022)6) AAC Technologies: To improve waveguide displays for the AR and MR industry (March 2022)7) OQmented: for the development and commercialization of MEMS-based LBS technology (November 2021)8) Coretronic: To develop a range of AR optical module solutions (December 2020)9) Hoya Corporation: To improve quality of waveguide displays (November 2020)Funding and financialsIn its most recent funding round (November 2021), Dispelix raised USD 33 million in a Series B funding round co-led by Atlantic Bridge, CCB Trust, and Flashpoint with participation from Lifeline Ventures, VTT Ventures, and 3M Ventures. The funds were allocated to product development. It revealed that several OEM customers were slated to integrate its technology into their consumer offerings by 2023.&nbsp;

Dispelix

DigiLens is a developer of holographic waveguides, which is a clear, thin piece of glass or plastic, used for AR devices. In January 2023, the company launched ARGO, an XR smartglass designed for enterprise and industrial use, the first AR device to utilize Qualcomm’s SnapDragon XR2 platform. Other specifications included 6-degrees of freedom (6-DoF) tracking, a 30-degree field-of-view, spatial audio, a 48MP RGB camera, voice and gaze recognition, access to real-time data visualizations, and a 2,500-nits HD display.&nbsp;The company’s first product, the DigiLens Crystal was introduced in 2019, was a thin-film laser-etched photopolymer embedded with microscopic holograms of mirror-like optics. By projecting a micro display to one end of the lens and another set of optics working to guide the light wave toward the eye, this proved to be an ideal piece of hardware for AR devices, which are preferred with as little hardware as possible.&nbsp;It claims that its patented optical platform and photopolymer technology coupled with a holographic copy manufacturing process enable it to produce cheaper and more scalable solutions. In <a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/17598">April 2023</a>, the company announced the launch of SRG+, a surface relief gratings product that improves upon its waveguide technology.The company generates revenue by licensing its technology across a range of industries including the automobile, enterprise, consumer, avionics, and military sectors. DigiLens also offers a white-label solution for automotive companies whereby it creates holographic waveguides for windshields that could offer in-cabin experiences for drivers.&nbsp;&nbsp; Key customers and partnershipsKey partnerships include that with1) Phantom Technologies: - Phantom Technology: To integrate Phantom's CASSI Spatial AI assistant into the DigiLens ARGO glasses, providing features such as spatial search, a contextual assistant, and task management using voice commands (October 2023)2) Wisear: To integrate its neural interface-powered earphones with the ARGO smart glasses (May 2023)3) Mojo Vision: To utilize Mojo Vision's micro-LED technology to build improved AR glasses (May 2023)4) Taqtile: To integrate the company's ARGO smart glasses with Taqtile's AR work platform, Manifest (May 2023)5) OMNIVISION: To develop new XR product offerings (January 2023)Other partnerships include that with OMNIVISION (January 2023), a leading global developer of semiconductor solutions to develop new XR product offerings. OMNIVISION’s liquid crystal on silicon (LCOS) panels allowed DigiLens to build LCOS/LED projectors optimized for its holographic waveguides. OMNIVISION's core camera technology provides DigiLens' devices with features such as visual odometry and six degrees of freedom.&nbsp;DigiLens also works with Taiwanese licensed waveguide manufacturer Young Optics, Chinese original design manufacturer and electronics supplier Malata, Korean display manufacturer Sekonix, international technology company Continental, Chinese optical elements manufacturer Crystal Optech, and Mitsubishi Chemical.&nbsp;Funding and financialsIn April 2022, DigiLens announced the second close of its Series D funding round (intiial close in November 2021) in which it raised USD 50 million at a valuation of USD 530 million. The funds were allocated for the development of DesignV1, its second-generation product.

DigiLens

Companies developing XR headsets and relevant sub-components (displays, sensors, and processors). Also includes complementary XR hardware (tracking devices, haptic vests, and gloves)

Companies offering engines that enable the development of AR/VR content, also includes companies offering capabilities to capture and create 3D images for immersive environments

Companies offering AR/VR solutions or toolkits for specific industry applications, including VR game developers

Companies offering location-based AR/VR experiences

AR/VR platforms offer remote assistance to field experts and headset manufacturers facilitate virtual work

Some solutions in the "content" segment are offered under a B2B SaaS model

Headsets and content segments provide the building blocks for the metaverse

AR, VR, and MR are the primary enabling technologies for the XR industry

ANALYST_QUICK_TAKE

PROMINENT_CATEGORY

<div>
 The developer of VR treadmill, Virtuix, is planning to officially launch the Omni One, available for USD 2,595, on September 10, 2024. This product uses a unique, concave saucer-shaped platform and special footwear. Users can move naturally in VR environments by slipping in place on the platform. This motion helps avoid the nausea or discomfort often associated with stationary VR experiences.
</div> Analyst QuickTake: 
 VR treadmills are generally marketed at a steep price point compared to XR headsets (ranging from ~USD 300–1,000), which could inhibit consumer uptake. However, Virtuix <a href="https: 
//sp-edge.com/updates/17215"> claims </a> to have sold over 3,000 Omni One units during its pre-order period last year and also raised USD 4.7 million in crowdfunding ( <a href="https: 
//sp-edge.com/updates/20657"> August 2023 </a> ), aimed at increasing its production capacity.

Virtuix

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