General Motors has contributed to series C funding for Envisics, a tech startup planning to introduce holographic head-up displays for vehicles as soon as 2023.
The UK-based startup announced on Thursday that it had received over $50 million in investments from multiple automakers. GM has been a long time investor in the project, and will debut the company’s second generation augmented reality head-up display (HUD) on the 2024 Cadillac Lyriq. Construction of the vehicle is expected to begin this month, with a possible launch date set for late 2023.
Envisics’s latest system projects information onto the interior of a vehicle’s windshield, displaying information typically visible on the dashboard. With the latest iteration of its holographic HUD, the startup has implemented new augmented reality features, allowing graphics to overlay the driver’s point of view. In addition to seeing their route projected over the highway in real-time, users will also have a clearer view of pedestrians and other vehicles through object tracking and identification. Since the HUD is at eye-level, occupants will no longer need to take their eyes off the road to view their dashboard, a potentially life-saving benefit.
In a press release, Envisics CEO and founder, Dr. Jamieson Christmas, said, “Our solutions are an exceptional fit for OEM requirements and provide platforms that enable the creation of unique brand experiences. Envisics sands apart as the only company that has created and delivered dynamic holographic technology as a viable product at scale.” Simon Sproule, Senior Vice President of Marketing and Communications at Envisics, informed CBT News that former generations of the HUD product have been deployed in over 150,000 Jaguar Land Rover vehicles starting in 2014. Other investors include big-name brands such as Stellantis and Hyundai.
Note: this article has been updated for accuracy
