Magic Leap

File:Magic Leap No - 2.jpg

Magic Leap was founded by Rony Abovitz in 2010.{{Cite news|url = https://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/15/science/taking-real-life-sickness-out-of-virtual-reality.html|title = Real-Life Illness in a Virtual World|last = Markoff|first = John|date = July 14, 2014|work = New York Times}} According to past versions of its website, the startup evolved from a company named "Magic Leap Studios" which around 2010 was working on a graphic novel and a feature film series, and in 2011 became a corporation, releasing an augmented reality app at Comic-Con that year. In October 2014, when the company was still operating in stealth mode (but already reported to be working on projects relating to augmented reality and computer vision), it raised more than $540 million of venture funding from Google,The company, not its investment arm Google Ventures Qualcomm, Andreessen Horowitz and Kleiner Perkins, among other investors.{{cite news|url=http://www.fastcompany.com/3037345/fast-feed/so-bad-ass-you-cant-believe-it-magic-leap-raises-542-million-to-launch-the-future-|publisher=Fast Company|title=So Badass You Can't Believe It|author=David Lidsky|date=October 21, 2014}}{{cite news|work=The New York Times|title=Google Invests Heavily in Magic Leap's Effort to Blend Illusion and Reality|author=David Gelles and Michael J. de la Merced|date=October 21, 2014|url=https://dealbook.nytimes.com/2014/10/21/google-invests-in-magic-leap-an-augmented-reality-firm/?_php=true&_type=blogs&_r=0}}

A November 2014 analysis by Gizmodo, based on job listings, trademark registrations and patent applications from Magic Leap, concluded that the company appeared to be building a competitor to the Google Glass and Oculus Rift that would "blend computer-generated graphics with the real world". It had also been compared to Microsoft HoloLens.

{{Cite magazine|url = https://www.wired.com/2015/02/magic-leap-reddit/|title = Magic Leap CEO Teases 'Golden Tickets' for Its Augmented-Reality Device|last = Lapowsky|first = Issie|date = February 24, 2015|magazine = Wired}}

Before Magic Leap, a head-mounted display using light field had been demonstrated by Nvidia in 2013, and the MIT Media Lab has also constructed a 3D display using "compressed light fields"; however, Magic Leap asserts that it achieves better resolution with a new proprietary technique that projects an image directly onto the user's retina. According to a researcher who studied the company's patents, Magic Leap is likely to use stacked silicon waveguides.

Richard Taylor of special effects company Weta Workshop is involved in Magic Leap alongside Abovitz.{{Cite news|url = https://gizmodo.com/how-magic-leap-is-secretly-creating-a-new-alternate-rea-1660441103|title = How Magic Leap Is Secretly Creating a New Alternate Reality|last = Hollister|first = Sean|date = November 19, 2014|work = Gizmodo}} Science fiction author Neal Stephenson joined the company in December 2014. Graeme Devine is their Chief Creative Officer & Senior VP Games, Apps and Creative Experiences.{{cite web|last1=EmTech Digital|first1=MIT Technology Review|title=10 Breakthrough Technologies 2015 - Magic Leap|url=http://www.technologyreview.com/emtech/digital/15/video/watch/magic-leap-virtual-reality/|publisher=MIT Technology Review|access-date=June 9, 2015}}

On March 19, 2015, Magic Leap released a demo video titled "Just another day in the office at Magic Leap". The video includes augmented reality gaming and productivity applications but it was unclear if the video was actual footage using their technology or a simulated experience.{{Cite web|title = Watch Magic Leap's Video Of Seamless Augmented Reality Office Game Play|url = https://techcrunch.com/2015/03/19/watch-magic-leaps-video-of-seamless-augmented-reality-office-game-play/|website = TechCrunch|access-date = October 21, 2015|first = Darrell|last = Etherington| date=March 19, 2015 }}

On October 20, 2015, Magic Leap released actual footage of their product. While still not showing any hardware, the footage claims that it was filmed through a Magic Leap device without the use of special effects or compositing.{{Cite web|title=Stunning Magic Leap demo is as real as augmented reality gets - CNET|url=https://www.cnet.com/news/magic-leap-shows-demo-video/|website=CNET|access-date=October 21, 2015}} The video suggests that virtual 3D objects can be occluded by real objects, which may be predefined geometry in the scene but led to speculation about 3D spatial mapping being used.{{Citation needed|date=May 2020}} It also shows virtual lights reflecting from a real table, which seem to be incorrectly placed in space, and therefore may suggest that the reflections are part of the virtual scene without interacting with the real world (similarly to "fake" shadows in early video games).{{According to whom|date=May 2020}} The video showcases only quite bright objects superimposed over dark areas of the real world. This suggests that the hardware can only add new light without blocking incoming light from the real world. This would allow it to render only fully transparent objects which emit or reflect light, and may not allow virtual objects to occlude real objects.{{Citation needed|date=May 2020}}

On December 9, 2015, Forbes reported on documents filed in the state of Delaware, indicating a Series C funding round of $827m. This funding round could bring the company's total funding to $1.4 billion, and its post-money valuation to $3.7 billion.{{Cite web|title = Secretive Augmented Reality Startup Magic Leap Raising $827 Million|url = https://www.forbes.com/sites/briansolomon/2015/12/09/secretive-augmented-reality-startup-magic-leap-raising-827-million/|website = Forbes|access-date = December 9, 2015}} On February 2, 2016, Financial Times reported that Magic Leap further raised another funding round of close to $800m, valuing the startup at $4.5 billion.{{Cite news|title = Magic Leap raises $800m from Alibaba, Warner Bros and Google|url = https://www.ft.com/content/8adc2e10-c9cc-11e5-be0b-b7ece4e953a0|newspaper = Financial Times|date = February 2, 2016|access-date = February 3, 2016|issn = 0307-1766|first = Tim|last = Bradshaw}}

On June 16, 2016, Magic Leap announced a partnership with Disney's Lucasfilm and its ILMxLAB R&D unit. The two companies would form a joint research lab at Lucasfilm's San Francisco campus.{{Cite web|url=https://variety.com/2016/digital/news/star-wars-lucasfilm-augmented-reality-magic-leap-1201796871/|title=Lucasfilm Developing 'Star Wars' Augmented-Reality Content Under Pact With Magic Leap (VIDEO)|last=Spangler|first=Todd|date=June 16, 2016|website=Variety|language=en-US|access-date=June 22, 2016}}

On December 20, 2017, Magic Leap unveiled their Magic Leap One, to be shipped the following year.{{Cite web|url=https://variety.com/2017/gaming/news/magic-leap-impressions-interview-1202870280/|title=Magic Leap: Founder of Secretive Start-Up Unveils Mixed-Reality Goggles|last1=Crecente|first1=Brian|date=December 20, 2017|website=Variety|language=en|access-date=April 9, 2019}}

On March 7, 2018, Magic Leap raised $461 million in Series D funding led by the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia, the country's sovereign wealth fund.{{Cite news|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-03-07/magic-leap-raises-461-million-from-saudis|title=Magic Leap Raises $461 Million From Saudis|date=March 7, 2018|work=Bloomberg.com|access-date=March 16, 2018|language=en}}

In June 2018, the company's first headset, called the Magic Leap One, was showcased for the first time online, only showcasing the device visually but performing no demonstration of its functionality.{{Cite web|url=https://www.cnet.com/news/magic-leap-is-ready-to-talk-more-about-its-ar-headset/|title=What we just learned about the Magic Leap One's hardware|first=Scott|last=Stein|website=CNET}}{{Cite web|title=At last: Magic Leap reveals its revolutionary techno-goggles – but wait, there's a catch|url=https://www.theregister.co.uk/2018/06/06/magic_leap_revealed/|last=McCarthy|first=Kieren|date=June 6, 2018|website=www.theregister.co.uk}}

On July 1, 2018, the device was finally demoed, confirming its use of NVIDIA TX2 hardware. The general reaction was of disappointment with what was shown, based on what had been promised up to that point.{{Cite web|title=Magic Leap Finally Demoed Its Headset And It Is… Disappointing - Digg|url=https://digg.com/2018/magic-leap-demo-video|date=July 11, 2018|website=digg.com}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.businessinsider.com/magic-leap-ceo-defends-tech-after-demo-draws-bad-reviews-online-2018-7|title=Magic Leap CEO says critics can't understand the multibillion-dollar startup's technology without trying it: 'You could never experience TV on the radio'|first=Kif|last=Leswing|website=Business Insider}}

On July 11, 2018, AT&T invested in the company, set to become its exclusive partner. Magic Leap One became the first product to be sold only in AT&T-owned stores across the United States. Also AT&T Communications' CEO John Donovan is set to become a board member of the company.{{Cite web|url=https://www.cnbc.com/2018/07/11/att-strikes-partnership-and-invests-in-magic-leap.html|title=AT&T strikes partnership and invests in secretive Google-backed 'mixed reality' start-up Magic Leap|first=Arjun|last=Kharpal|date=July 11, 2018|website=CNBC}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-07-11/at-t-joins-roster-of-magic-leap-investors-ahead-of-product-debut|title = AT&T Joins Roster of Magic Leap Investors Ahead of Product Debut|newspaper = Bloomberg.com|date = July 11, 2018}}

In April 2019, it was reported that Magic Leap had raised an additional $280 million from NTT Docomo as part of a partnership announced by the two companies.{{Cite web|url=https://www.barrons.com/articles/magic-leap-telecom-ntt-docomo-augmented-reality-deal-51556311803|title=Magic Leap's Deal With NTT Docomo Is Another Step in the Virtual Reality Game|last=Swartz|first=Jon|website=www.barrons.com|language=en-US|access-date=November 11, 2019}}

In November 2019, it was reported that Magic Leap assigned all of its US patents to J.P. Morgan Chase in August 2019. The company also announced a significant financing round, which would become its series E when complete.{{Cite web|url=https://www.miamiherald.com/news/business/article237257639.html|title=Virtual reality company Magic Leap announces fifth round of venture funding|website=www.miamiherald.com|access-date=November 14, 2019}}

On April 22, 2020, Magic Leap indicated a major company restructuring and that half of the company's staff would be laid off due to the COVID-19 pandemic.{{Cite news|title=Magic Leap Cuts Half of Jobs In Major Restructuring|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-04-22/magic-leap-is-said-to-cut-half-of-jobs-in-major-restructuring|newspaper=Bloomberg.com|date=April 22, 2020|access-date=May 12, 2020}}{{Cite news|title=Magic Leap halves headcount in struggle for survival|url=https://www.ft.com/content/3a595375-65e5-49ec-928b-9077740d3c70|newspaper=Financial Times|date=April 22, 2020 |access-date=May 12, 2020}} Despite the job cuts, the company raised $350 million in May 2020.{{Cite web |title=Magic Leap has apparently raised another $350 million, in spite of itself |url=https://techcrunch.com/2020/05/21/magic-leap-has-apparently-raised-another-350-million-in-spite-of-itself/ |last=Heater |first=Brian |date=May 21, 2020 |website=TechCrunch |language=en-US |access-date=May 22, 2020}}

In September 2020, The Information reported that the company valuation was $6.4 billion in 2019 and by June 2020 it dropped to $450 million, by 93 percent in six months.{{cite news |last=Weinberg |first=Cory |url=https://www.theinformation.com/articles/biggest-startup-markdowns-magic-leap-wework-airbnb |title=Biggest Startup Markdowns: Magic Leap, WeWork, Airbnb |work=The Information (company) |date=2020-09-02 |access-date=2020-09-04 }}

In October 2021, Venture Beat reported that the company's valuation was $2 billion after raising $500 million from an unidentified source and that the company would unveil the new Magic Leap 2 AR headset in 2022 (“select customers” are already using it in 2021 as part of an early access program).{{cite news |last=Lyons |first=Kim |url=https://venturebeat.com/2021/10/11/magic-leap-raises-500m-and-unveils-magic-leap-2-ar-headset-for-next-year/ |title=Magic Leap raises $500M and unveils Magic Leap 2 AR headset for next year |work=Venture Beat |date=2021-10-11 |access-date=2021-10-11 }}

In October 2021, Magic Leap's CEO announced Magic Leap 2 would be the "industry’s smallest and lightest device" for business uses, with a significantly larger field of view, and include a dimming feature to be used in brightly lit settings.{{Cite web|title=My First Year at Magic Leap and the Opportunity Ahead {{!}} Magic Leap|url=https://www.magicleap.com/news/op-ed/my-first-year-at-magic-leap-and-the-opportunity-ahead|access-date=2021-12-17|website=www.magicleap.com|language=en-us}}

On September 30, 2022, Magic Leap officially released its latest AR Headset, the Magic Leap 2.{{Cite web |title=Magic Leap 2 Now Available to Customers as the Most Immersive Augmented Reality Headset for Enterprise |url=https://www.magicleap.com/news/magic-leap-2-now-available-to-customers-as-the-most-immersive-augmented-reality-headset-for-enterprise |access-date=2022-12-15 |website=www.magicleap.com |date=September 30, 2022 |language=en}}

On December 31, 2024, cloud services for Magic Leap 1 will no longer be available, core functionality will reach end-of-life and the Magic Leap 1 device and apps will stop working.{{Cite web |title=Magic Leap 1 AR Headsets Will "Cease To Function" After 2024 |url=https://www.uploadvr.com/magic-leap-1-cease-to-function-2025|access-date=2023-12-03|website=www.uploadvr.com|date=August 30, 2023 |language=en-us}}

In July 2024, Magic Leap cut about 75 jobs, including its entire sales and marketing teams. The company is also partnering with Google.{{Cite news |last1=Gorelick |first1=Evan |last2=Brustein |first2=Joshua |date=2024-07-19 |title=Augmented-Reality Startup Magic Leap Cuts Sales, Marketing Teams |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-07-19/magic-leap-cuts-sales-marketing-teams-in-ar-about-face |access-date=2024-07-22 |work=Bloomberg.com |language=en}}{{Cite web |last=Paul |first=Katie |title=Exclusive: Google, augmented reality startup Magic Leap strike partnership deal |website=Reuters |url=https://www.reuters.com/technology/google-augmented-reality-startup-magic-leap-strike-partnership-deal-2024-05-30/}}

By August 2024, Magic Leap had raised at least $3.5 billion, including $750 million from Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund.{{Cite news |last=Bergen |first=Mark |date=2024-08-06 |title=Saudi PIF Has Poured $750 Million Into Depleted AR Firm Magic Leap |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-08-06/saudi-arabia-s-pif-provided-750-million-to-depleted-ar-startup-magic-leap |access-date=2024-08-07 |work=Bloomberg.com |language=en}}

As of December 2024, the Magic Leap One is no longer supported or working, becoming end of life and abruptly losing functionality when cloud access was ended. This happened whilst encouraging users to buy a newer model.{{cite AV media |last=Rossmann |first=Louis |date=Dec 31, 2024 |title=$2300 device turned into brick |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EEBzCKBcuFk&ab_channel=LouisRossmann |language=en-US |access-date=2025-01-09}}

The Magic Leap 1 uses a liquid crystal on silicon (LCOS) display for each eye.{{cite web | last=Guttag | first=Karl | title=Magic Leap, HoloLens, and Lumus Resolution “Shootout” (ML1 review part 3) | website=KGOnTech | date=2018-10-22 | url=https://kguttag.com/2018/10/22/magic-leap-hololens-and-lumus-resolution-shootout-ml1-review-part-3/ | access-date=2025-04-20}}{{cite web | title=Magic Leap One Teardown | website=iFixit | date=2018-08-23 | url=https://www.ifixit.com/Teardown/Magic+Leap+One+Teardown/112245 | access-date=2025-04-20}}

• April 18, 2016: Israeli cybersecurity company NorthBit.{{Cite news |last=Ackerman |first=Gwen |date=April 18, 2016 |title=Magic Leap Acquires Israeli Cyber Security Company NorthBit |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-04-18/magic-leap-acquires-israeli-cyber-security-company-northbit |access-date=April 19, 2016 |newspaper=Bloomberg.com |language=en-us}}
• February 18, 2017: the 3D division of Swiss computer vision company Dacuda.{{Cite news |last=Colaner |first=Seth |date=February 19, 2017 |title=Magic Leap Acquiring Dacuda's 3D Scanning Assets |url=http://www.tomshardware.com/news/magic-leap-acquires-dacuda-3d-scanning,33684.html |access-date=March 5, 2017 |work=Tom's Hardware |language=en}}
• Early 2018: military startup Chosen Realities.{{Cite news |last=Burstein |first=Joshua |date=September 21, 2018 |title=Magic Leap is bidding on an Army combat contract |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/magic-leap-is-bidding-on-an-army-combat-contract |access-date=September 21, 2018 |newspaper=seattletimes.com |language=en-us}}
• May 2019: Belgian startup Mimesys, developer of volumetric video conferencing software for the Magic Leap platform.{{Cite web|title=Magic Leap buys Belgian startup building hologram teleconferencing software|url=https://techcrunch.com/2019/05/17/magic-leap-buys-belgian-startup-building-hologram-teleconferencing-software/|website=TechCrunch |date=May 17, 2019 |first=Lucas |last=Matney |language=en-US|access-date=May 19, 2019}}

• CastAR
• Meta (augmented reality company)

{{reflist}}

• {{Cite magazine|url=https://www.wired.com/2016/04/went-inside-magic-leaps-mysterious-hq-heres-saw/|title=I Went Inside Magic Leap's Mysterious HQ. Here's What I Saw|last=Hempel|first=Jessi|date=April 20, 2016|magazine=Wired|access-date=April 20, 2016|via=wired.com}}

• [https://www.magicleap.com/ Company website]

{{Mixed reality}}

Category:American companies established in 2010

Category:Technology companies established in 2010

Category:Technology companies of the United States

Category:Companies based in Broward County, Florida

Category:Augmented reality

Category:Virtual reality companies

Category:2010 establishments in Florida

Category:Plantation, Florida

Category:Wearable devices

Category:Spatial computing