Espoo, Finland-based company IXI has successfully raised $36.5 million in funding, marking a significant milestone in its effort to develop the world’s first autofocus glasses. London-based investment fund Plural, which specializes in growing tech companies through investment, led the investment round. Leading the round were notable investors including Amazon, Tesi, Heartcore, FOV Ventures, byFounders, the French private equity firm Eurazeo and the German investment company Tiny Supercomputer.
IXI was founded in 2021 to revolutionize eyewear starting with glasses that actively adjust to correct vision in real-time. This futuristic technology gives you a 360° view of your surroundings. It reproduces the way human vision actually functions. IXI CEO Niko Eiden explained that creativity and innovation are what fuel their drive to make a positive experience in eyewear.
Eyewear is the world’s oldest wearable, steeped in centuries of genius across disciplines, from science to design to craftsmanship. Honest to goodness, it’s surprising that we’ve not seen more breakthroughs. In doing so, they force millions more to settle for second best or worse on the direction of their non-local worldview. The time for change is now. We’re developing an exciting new future in vision technology—and we’re long overdue to show the world what’s ahead! As our investors have seen, this opportunity is enormous, and they are behind our vision to redefine the possibilities of eyewear to help us accelerate our growth,” said Eiden.
Under Eiden’s leadership, IXI is focused on developing its first-generation product. Ville Miettinen, their chief algorithm officer, is a man mostly responsible for this remarkable turn of events. The team’s knowledge in leading optics technology and eye-tracking technology especially puts them in a unique place within the growing and hot market. Their goal is to restore vision to a level that exceeds normal. On top of that, they want to create a product that is aesthetically pleasing and integrates seamlessly into everyday life.
Sten Tamkivi, a partner at Plural, celebrated IXI’s creative approach. “Niko, Ville and the team’s rare European hardware expertise puts them at the forefront of advanced optics and eye-tracking developments. They’re weaving in beautiful technology that you can’t see. We hope that this revolutionary new way of looking will in the end help create a better vision for humanity — for good. By supporting IXI, we’re supporting more than a company. We’re championing a future where emerging technology changes the way we see and understand the world,” said Kaido Tamkivi, chief executive officer of Tembusu.
This funding will enable IXI’s staff to accelerate their research and development efforts. It will additionally enable the team to gear up for the exhilarating rollout of its world-first autofocus glasses. The firm recently announced it was 75% of the way to its goal. It intends to continue to shake up the eyewear category in surprising and creative ways.