In Augmented reality news
September 23, 2021 – Worldwide semiconductor company Qualcomm Technologies, Inc.. has recently acquired Wikitude, a provider of an augmented reality (RA) software development kit (SDK), for an undisclosed amount.
Qualcomm is one of the largest semiconductor suppliers in the world and offers a range of chipset solutions for the extended reality (XR) market, namely its Snapdragon XR1 and XR2 5G platforms, which have been created with account virtual and augmented reality applications.
Wikitude, based in Salzburg, Austria, offers an augmented reality SDK that allows developers to build more sophisticated and immersive RA solutions that can be deployed across multiple platforms, including Android, iOS, Windows, and smart glasses. At the time of posting, the number of employees working on Wikitude on LinkedIn was 35.
The two companies have been working together since 2019, when Wikitude optimized its AR platform for Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 855 mobile platform. At the time, the Wikitude platform was also the only one of its kind to run on all operating systems (iOS, Android, and UWP), meaning that RA developers could easily transport experiences from the smartphone’s AR Up to new headphones.
Although none of the companies have released any press releases so far, a Qualcomm spokesman simply stated, “Qualcomm can confirm the acquisition of Wikitude.”
It is known that Qualcomm participates in acquisitions and joint ventures, in fact, the company states that it does so to: “meet certain technological needs, obtain development resources or open or expand opportunities for [its] technologies and to support the design and introduction of new products and services ”, this includes for voice and data communications, new segments of the industry and also applications beyond the mobile.
At the beginning of the year, Qualcomm announced its new reference design Smart Viewer Snapdragon XR1 AR, which consists of an AR smart viewfinder that can be connected to a compatible smartphone, a Windows PC or a processing puck and is optimized for to devices powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon platforms. While it’s still unclear which direction Qualcomm will follow with Wikitude as a result of the acquisition, it could indicate that the company is also looking to offer its own RA development software to go along with its reference hardware and devices. of RA.
An announcement from both companies is expected in the coming weeks.
For more information on Qualcomm, click here. For more information about Wikitude and its AR SDK, click here.
Image credit: Qualcomm / Wikitude