WaveOptics snapped up in $500M deal
25 May 2021
UK-based maker of augmented reality waveguides based on diffraction gratings to become part of Snap Inc., the software firm behind popular Snapchat app.
Snap Inc., the NYSE-listed software company behind photo messaging app Snapchat, is to acquire UK-based WaveOptics in a deal reportedly worth more than $500Â million.
WaveOptics, which won a second consecutive Photonics Prism Award earlier this year, makes optical waveguides for augmented reality (AR) hardware. The optics technology features in Snap s latest generation of âSpectaclesâ AR glasses, which are aimed at content creators rather than consumers.
The deal marks Snapâs first foray into manufacturing, as the Santa Monica firm has - until now - outsourced production of its own AR glasses to various partners.