Google’s Latest & Bold Move!!
Acquiring a part of HTC's XR business for $250 million?
Trying to rule the XR space?
Google is damn serious about competing in the advanced technology space.
What's happening?
Let's start from scratch.
1. What is XR?
- XR, or Extended Reality, is a collective term that includes: Virtual Reality (VR): Fully immersive digital environments. Augmented Reality (AR): Digital overlays on the real world (think Pokémon GO). Mixed Reality (MR): A mix of both VR and AR.
2. What’s the Deal About?
- Google is buying a part of HTC’s XR business for $250 million.
- The deal includes: Engineering staff: HTC VIVE engineers known for their expertise in VR headsets and technology will now work for Google. Intellectual Property (IP): Google gets non-exclusive rights to HTC’s XR technology, meaning HTC can still use and develop it.
3. Why Is This Important?
- Google recently launched its Android XR platform, a system for running XR applications (like headsets and smart glasses). This acquisition will speed up the development of this platform.
- Google will be a strong competitor to companies like: Meta (Facebook): Known for Oculus VR headsets. Apple: Vision Pro and much more (who doesn’t know them?)
4. History Between Google and HTC
Not their first time working together — the two go back to Android's early days.
- They first met in 2017. Google spent $1.1 billion to buy HTC’s smartphone unit, and many HTC engineers worked on Google’s Pixel smartphones. This new contract will open doors for future collaborations.
5. What Does this deal have for HTC?
- HTC will retain the rights to use and develop XR technology, so it’s not about losing its entire XR division.
- This allows HTC to still innovate in the XR space while having funds from Google.
6. The Bigger Picture
Who will play a long-run game?
Google is trying to catch Meta and Apple, which are already ahead in their XR devices. Investing heavily to become Top 1 and become a key part of the future.
Google, Apple, Meta or any other pro player rule the XR game?
Time will tell.
Stay tuned to techi.com to get regular updates.
About the Author
Zoha Imdad Ali tracks AI labs and the compute they depend on, from Google DeepMind moving coding research to California to inference chips being pledged as loan collateral. Many of her stories ask what a company has not yet shown: a price for Google's Ironwood TPU, public evidence behind OpenAI's Astra risk rating, or proof that Akash's AKT token captures value from real compute.
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