The US firm Realwear is taking up the Swiss startup Almer as a part of the XR market consolidation

American wearables company Realwear has acquired Swiss augmented reality (AR) startup Almer Technologies.

Almer's AR headset – the Arc-2 – overlays digital information into the wearer's field of vision, allowing them to access real-time data, instructions or assistance from an engineer located anywhere in the world. The glasses are aimed specifically at industrial companies that are searching to help their employees maintain and repair equipment and machines remotely.

“Almer’s innovative approach to frontline workers has enabled us to deliver industrial AR solutions that are intuitive and effortless to use,” said Sebastian Beetschen, co-founder and CEO of Almer.

Beetschen founded Almer in 2021 together with Timon Binder as a spin-off from a research project at the Swiss Institute of Technology. The company has raised $8 million in funding so far. His customers include Coca-Cola, Ford and Samsung.

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For Realwear, the acquisition is part of its plans to become a global leader in industrial wearables. For Almer, the deal is a strengthening of the up-and-coming company Ambitions to scale quickly and expand beyond Europe.

“We are very pleased that the Almer team is working with the American leader in augmented reality for frontline workers,” said Olivier Laplace, managing partner at Swiss VC Vi Partners. The company was an early representative of Almer.

“This strategic move confirms our early belief that Almer is a technical leader,” said Laplace, who will now join Realwear’s board.

The acquisition comes at a time when the AR and extended reality (XR) market is consolidating.

The initial hype around XR sparked a wave of startups and experimental applications, driven by enthusiasm for immersive digital experiences. Now that the market is maturing, we are starting to see where the technology offers real value.

XR technology can now be found in every industry that benefits from immersive interactions. Healthtech was one of the biggest use cases. AR is being used to train healthcare professionals, improve patient diagnosis, and even enable remote surgery.

Startups in transportation, manufacturing, vocational training and construction are also using the technology. And of course, gaming and entertainment – ​​the early targets of the XR market – still make up a significant portion of the market.

The Almer acquisition was financially supported by TeamViewer, a major provider of enterprise AR software, which owns a minority stake in each of Almer and Realwear.

Almer will continue to operate from its headquarters in Switzerland. The transaction amount was not disclosed.