Virtual reality learning platform developer, Immersive VR Education recently announced it had secured an investment of around EUR 3 million from tech-giants HTC.
According to an official release, the HTC investment comes after the massive success of its first-ever all-virtual HTC VIVE Ecosystem Conference back in March 2020 via the ENGAGE platform.
Before COVID-19 hit, this event would have been held at a real-life conference hall in China. However, in the face of restrictions on travel and contact, virtual reality provided HTC with a comprehensive solution for people to attend the event without traveling or putting their health at risk.
It’s believed ENGAGE will use the investment to develop and further enhance the platform, build its sales and marketing capability, and ramp up the production of other showcase experiences in the future.
Commenting on the funding, Alvin W. Graylin, HTC China President, said: “with the ongoing global pandemic, we recognize that now, more than ever, it is important to invest in and expand accessibility to XR technologies that enable human connection and maintain presence when we are all physically apart.”
“Through this partnership, we believe we can offer an important service to large groups of people to learn, share and collaborate with their peers around the world,” he added.
Virtual reality platforms like ENGAGE offer tremendous value for many organizations worldwide by allowing them to minimize disruption and keep operations moving along despite the heavy limitations on movement and human-to-human contact.
With education being one of the industries most affected by the pandemic, this investment makes a lot of sense. HTC will be looking to capitalize on the growing trend of virtual reality in education over the years to come.
Founded in 2014, Immersive VR Education is a virtual and augmented reality software company that builds powerful and innovative tools and technologies designed to enhance the learning experience for educational institutes and businesses.
Speaking on the investment, David Whelan, CEO of Virtual Reality Education, said: “the Subscription will provide additional funding for the next stage of our development and allow us to progress the capabilities and commercialization of our core ENGAGE platform at a time when industries across the globe are adapting to new and innovative ways of working.”
“In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, which is set to catalyze long-term changes in working practices, VRE and HTC’s combined offering provides a complete end-to-end service to alleviate the challenges posed by reduced travel due to health and climate change concerns. We look forward to this next stage of our development and continuing to work alongside HTC as a strategic partner and shareholder to provide these solutions for customers.”
