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SmartVizX, a virtual reality (VR) solutions start-up, has raised Rs 3.5 crore from the Indian Angel Network (IAN), Stanford Angels and Entrepreneurs India (SA&E India).
The company builds ‘Immersive Technology’ solutions using VR for the real estate and other industries, which makes the property buying experience almost at par with an actual visit to the property.
The virtual reality market is expected to grow to a $150-billion market by 2020 with multiple levels of functionality across sectors — some yet to be discovered. With virtual reality hardware such as Oculus Rift and HTC Vive releasing their consumer version kits, the demand for VR-driven content will grow exponentially.
SmartVizX is the first virtual reality start-up that IAN & SA&E India have invested in. Ajay Lavakare, Member, IAN, and Co-President of Stanford Angels & Entrepreneurs India will join the board of SmartVizX.
“Our vision is to enable VR-supported processes and decision-making in business. We are further motivated by the fast adoption of this immersive technology by established, brands which helps them engage better with their target audiences and consumers,” said Gautam Tewari, Founding Director, SmartVizX.
Apart from developing virtual tours for real estate companies such as Developer Group and Rockworth, SmartVizX has also developed solutions for insurance companies that lets them not just talk about their product but also helps customers feel the impact of an accident in case of reckless driving, for example, through virtual reality.
The company said it will use the funding to expand R&D and to launch a new Bengaluru centre within the first few months.
“Virtual Reality is no longer a future dream, it is already one of the biggest technology trends this year. SmartVizX has identified key sectors with immense need for virtualisation and has a head-start in developing innovative product applications to meet these needs. The opportunity is immense and the team at SmartVizX is well positioned to tap it,” said Ajay Lavakare.
The VR hardware segment has seen a lot of action lately with the release of Samsung Gear VR and pre-orders having opened up for the consumer versions of Oculus Rift and HTC Vive; VR content creation is a market that is ready to explode. Some activity has been witnessed on the VR game content side of things already, but SmartVizX’ plans for creating VR content for businesses is being seen as an area of massive disruption.
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