Investors have invested $1 billion in virtual and augmented reality

Over the past year, investors have invested $1 billion in AR and VR startups. Such conclusions were reached by the analytical company Digi-Capital.

In addition, for $2 billion, the company Facebook acquired Oculus Rift in March 2014.

Most of the $1 billion came from the AR startup Magic Leap (see image). The company received $542 million from Google in October 2014.

According to Digi-Capital analysts, such investments mean only one thing: investors believe that the segment of virtual and augmented reality is about to start developing at a very fast pace. The company’s experts are confident that the volume of the AR and VR market will reach $150 billion by 2020.

If the forecasts come true, it will mean that Google and Facebook have not spent money in vain. However, it is impossible to predict the result in advance, and therefore investments in AR/VR remain risky.

“No one thinks that investing in AR/VR is a win-win option. It’s just a trendy topic right now, that’s all,” said Wedbush Securities analyst Michael Pachter.

There are only a few months left before the release of Oculus Rift, HTC Vive and PlayStation VR. After the devices go on sale, it will become clear whether investors’ expectations have been met.

Source: http://www.digi-capital.com