Touchstone Innovations PLC Touchstone invests in WaveOptics (1729L)

TIDMIVO

RNS Number : 1729L

Touchstone Innovations PLC

17 July 2017

Touchstone Innovations plc

Touchstone invests GBP3.1m in GBP12.0m Series B funding round in WaveOptics, a leading UK Augmented Reality company

Touchstone Innovations plc (AIM: IVO, 'the Group', 'Touchstone') has participated in a GBP12.0m funding round in WaveOptics Limited ("WaveOptics" or "the Company"). Touchstone has committed GBP3.1 million to the round, alongside existing investors Robert Bosch Venture Capital GMBH and Octopus Investments, as well as new investor Gobi Ventures.

WaveOptics is a global business with headquarters in Abingdon, Oxfordshire in the United Kingdom. It is developing novel optical waveguide technology and modules for augmented reality displays. Augmented reality (AR) devices enable people to view the world around them, overlaid with relevant digital content.

Whilst a number of major manufacturers are building the full AR systems (including the optics, sensors, camera and head mounted unit), WaveOptics is focused on developing the underlying optics to deliver an enhanced AR experience, whilst solving some of the performance and cost challenges currently limiting AR technology adoption.

The core of the WaveOptics technology is a novel design of waveguide that is able to channel light input from a micro display positioned at the periphery of a glass, or in future via a plastic lens. Unlike conventional technologies that rely on cumbersome prisms, mirrors or scarce materials, WaveOptics' optical design harnesses waveguide hologram physics and photonic crystals, which enables lightweight design with unrivalled optical performance.

As at 31 January 2017, Touchstone had a 21.6% interest in the issued share capital of WaveOptics. Following this new investment Touchstone will hold a 23.8% interest in the Company. This investment will result in a net fair value gain of GBP0.97 million, which was included in the updated NAV figure published in the Trading Update of 14 July 2017.

Robert Bahns, Director of Technology Investment at Touchstone Innovations, said:

"WaveOptics' technology has the potential to open up the AR market by solving some of the key challenges to AR technology adoption.

"The Company has made significant technical and commercial progress since the investment round we led in October 2015, with very positive feedback from industry on its initial beta products.

"This new funding will allow the Company to complete its product development and position itself as a leader and key technology enabler of highly compelling AR experiences."

Martin Harriman, Chairman of WaveOptics, said:

"WaveOptics is reinventing the AR market, by developing a series of new AR display technologies that enables a wider field of view and brighter full colour images - a unique combination in today's market. This funding round further accelerates development of our industry-leading technologies and enables us to launch programmes in new markets and territories.

"We are excited about the team of investors we have on board who share our vision."

For further information contact:

 
                                                  020 3053 
  Touchstone Innovations plc                          8834 
  Russ Cummings, Chief Executive 
   Officer 
  Jon Davies, Director of Communications 
 
                                                  020 7457 
  Instinctif Partners                                 2020 
  Adrian Duffield/Melanie Toyne-Sewell/Chantal 
   Woolcock 
 
  J.P. Morgan Cazenove (Nominated                 020 7742 
   Adviser)                                           4000 
  Michael Wentworth-Stanley/Alec 
   Pratt 
 
                                                  020 7653 
  RBC Capital Markets                                 4000 
  Darrell Uden/Marcus Jackson/Laura 
   White

Notes to Editors

About Augmented Reality

Augmented Reality (AR) can broadly be described as overlaying digital imagery onto the real world, whereby the real world is still visible. The aim of AR is to enhance one's current perception of reality, by overlaying information about the surrounding real world (such as sound, video, graphics or GPS data) over a transparent headset.

In contrast, Virtual Reality (VR) replaces the real world with a simulated one and uses a completely opaque headset such that the real world is not visible.

The AR market is expected to be worth more than $55 billion by 2020, which clearly indicates the great potential of this technology and its anticipated benefits, in the enterprise and consumer space.

About Touchstone Innovations - www.touchstoneinnovations.com

Touchstone Innovations plc (formerly Imperial Innovations Group plc) creates, builds and invests in pioneering technology companies and licensing opportunities developed from outstanding scientific research from the 'Golden Triangle', the geographical region broadly bounded by London, Cambridge and Oxford.

This area has an unrivalled cluster of outstanding academic research and technology businesses, and is home to four of the world's top 10 universities, as well as leading research institutions, the cream of the UK's science and technology businesses and many of its leading investors.

Touchstone supports scientists and entrepreneurs in the commercialisation of their ideas through protecting and licensing out intellectual property (through its Technology Transfer subsidiary, Imperial Innovations Limited), by leading the formation of new companies, by recruiting high calibre management teams and by providing investment and encouraging co-investment. Touchstone remains an active investor over the life of its portfolio companies, with the majority of its investment going into businesses in which it is already a shareholder.

Since becoming a public company in 2006, Touchstone has raised more than GBP440 million of equity from investors, which has enabled it to invest in some of the most exciting spin-outs to come out of UK academic research. In addition, the Group has drawn down the outstanding GBP50.0 million from the European Investment Bank (EIB) taking the total loan to GBP80.0 million.

Between admission to AIM (August 2006) and 30 June 2017, Touchstone has invested a total of GBP364.0 million across its portfolio companies, which have collectively raised investment of more than GBP1.5 billion.

About WaveOptics - www.enhancedworld.com

WaveOptics is a UK company committed to pushing the boundaries of optical science to make stunningly immersive Augmented Reality (AR) commercially viable and accessible to multiple industry partners.

Working at the cutting edge of current AR visual challenges, WaveOptics uses unique and patented waveguide physics to produce AR lenses with unparalleled display performance and all-day ergonomics, designed for real-world AR applications.

Founded by Sumanta Talukdar and David Grey in 2012 and headquartered in Oxfordshire, WaveOptics' aim is to deliver on the acknowledged potential of AR by creating superior optics that are highly scalable and designed specifically to the requirements of the end user.

This information is provided by RNS

The company news service from the London Stock Exchange

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July 17, 2017 02:00 ET (06:00 GMT)

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