Startup Meta unveils holographic augmented reality prototype
By Mike Chamernik, Associate Editor
Meta is emerging as a major player in the field of augmented reality. Forbes reports that the company’s new AR prototype, the Meta 2 Development Kit, was featured at the TED Conference in Vancouver this week. Meta Founder and CEO Meron Gribetz demonstrated the see-through headset, which projects holographic images with which users can interact.
The company has been secretive with Meta 2, but it is expected to be released later this year. A countdown clock on Meta's website indicates a "revolution" will begin on March 2.
Meta, a startup that was launched in 2012, previously released a AR HMD developer kit named Meta One. UploadVR reports that the clunky first version does not match up at all with what the Meta 2 can do.
Unlike Magic Leap, an AR competitor that has raised $827 million, Meta has been funded through Kickstarter and has raised $23 million in Series A funding.
Meta’s backers include Reddit Co-founder Alexis Ohanian and the Black Eyed Peas’ Will.I.Am.