XYZ Reality
| XYZ Reality | |
|---|---|
| Information | |
| Industry | Augmented Reality |
| Founded | 2017 |
| Founder | David Mitchell, Umar Ahmed, Murray Hendriksen |
| Headquarters | London, United Kingdom |
| Products | Engineering-grade AR headset (Atom), HoloSite cloud platform |
| Website | https://www.xyzreality.com |
XYZ Reality is a British Augmented Reality company that builds hardware and software for the construction industry. It was founded in 2017 by David Mitchell, Umar Ahmed, and Murray Hendriksen, and is headquartered in London.[1][2] The company describes its technology as "Engineering-Grade" augmented reality, meaning AR that is accurate enough to be used for building work rather than just visualisation. Its system lets construction teams view holograms of 3D design models directly on site and position them with up to 5 millimetres of accuracy, so workers can build from holograms instead of paper plans.[3][2]
The company's offering has two main parts: the Atom, a wearable AR headset built into a construction safety hardhat, and HoloSite, a cloud platform and proprietary software that places high-fidelity 3D models onto the physical site.[4][5] Unlike consumer AR brands aimed at media and gaming, XYZ Reality sits in the construction technology and building information modelling (BIM) market, where its tools have been used on large, mission-critical projects such as data centres, pharmaceutical facilities, and airports.[6]
History
XYZ Reality was founded in 2017 by David Mitchell, an Irish-born architect who grew up around the building trade, along with co-founders Umar Ahmed and Murray Hendriksen.[4][2] Mitchell serves as founder and chief executive, Ahmed as co-founder and chief operating officer, and Hendriksen as the technical co-founder.[1] The founding idea was that the construction industry loses large sums to building errors and rework, and that an accurate way to show design models at full scale on site could cut those costs. Mitchell has framed the company's goal as ultimately "builders building from holograms."[1]
Before its public commercial launch the company ran an early-access programme, making its HoloSite system available to selected customers. By mid-2021 it said the technology had been used on projects worth more than 1.5 billion pounds over the prior twelve months.[6][4] The company has continued to expand internationally, including a planned move into the United States market, and by its own accounting the technology has since been used on more than 12 billion US dollars of mission-critical projects worldwide.[3]
Series A funding
On 14 June 2021 XYZ Reality announced a 20 million pound Series A investment round to prepare for its commercial launch and to scale up research, development, manufacturing, and sales. The round was led by Octopus Ventures, with participation from existing backers Adara Ventures, Amadeus Capital Partners, Hoxton Ventures, and J Coffey Construction, plus new investors Activum SG, Optimas Capital, and Tishman Speyer.[1][6][4] The company said the funding would also help roughly double its headcount, toward about 70 employees within 18 months.[2]
Technology
XYZ Reality's central claim is accuracy. The company markets its products as "Engineering-Grade" augmented reality, drawing a distinction between AR used for rough visualisation and AR precise enough to build from. The system positions 3D building information modelling content on site to within about 5 millimetres, which lets it be used to set out, install, and verify real construction work rather than only to preview it.[3][2]
To reach that level of accuracy the headset does not rely on the kind of free-floating spatial tracking common in consumer AR. Instead it locates itself against a fixed coordinate system on the building, using reflective targets placed around the site so that holograms stay locked to true survey positions.[7] The compute and the model data run on board the headset, which can work offline in areas of a site with no connectivity and then sync back to the HoloSite cloud platform when a connection returns.[7] The company has said its longer-term direction is toward "assisted reality," in which its spatial computing can automatically detect and flag issues in the field rather than only displaying the design.[1]
HoloSite is the cloud and software side of the product. It ingests detailed 3D design models and serves them to the headset as holograms overlaid on the real environment, and it acts as the platform through which work is reviewed and signed off.[4][5]
Products
XYZ Reality's main hardware product is the Atom, an AR headset purpose-built for construction sites. Its workflow on site covers pre-installation inspection, clash identification, setting out and installation, real-time review of design changes, and post-installation validation and sign-off.[5]
| Product | Type | Notable details |
|---|---|---|
| Atom | Engineering-grade AR headset | Launched November 2021; combines a safety-certified construction hardhat, AR displays, and on-board computing; positions BIM holograms to within about 5 mm; uses reflective targets and a fixed-coordinate tracking approach; Intel Core i7 quad-core processor, 16 GB RAM, 1 TB storage; BSI/ANSI safety certification; physical controller for selecting and measuring objects; works offline and syncs to HoloSite[5][7] |
| HoloSite | Cloud platform and software | Engineering-grade AR system that places high-fidelity 3D design models on site and serves them to the Atom; used for review, verification, and sign-off[4][5] |
The Atom pairs a construction safety hardhat with augmented reality displays and built-in computing. According to the company it runs on an Intel Core i7 quad-core processor with 16 GB of RAM and 1 terabyte of storage, and the hardhat carries BSI and ANSI safety certification so it can be worn on a live site.[7] Rather than tracking hand gestures, which the company says it rejected during development as not precise enough, the Atom uses a dedicated controller for accurate selection and measurement of objects within the model.[7] The headset is designed so teams can view and place holograms of 3D models to millimetre accuracy outdoors and indoors on a working site.[5][7]
Market position
XYZ Reality operates in the construction technology and BIM space rather than the consumer or media AR market that companies such as Xreal target. Its emphasis on survey-grade accuracy and a safety-certified hardhat positions the Atom as a professional jobsite tool, and the company has focused on high-value, error-sensitive projects including data centres, pharmaceutical plants, and airports.[6][5] Investors and the company have argued that the value of the technology lies in reducing the rework and errors that account for a significant share of construction project costs.[2][3]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 "Construction AR Start-Up XYZ Reality Secures £20M Series A Funding". June 14, 2021. https://aec-business.com/construction-ar-start-up-xyz-reality-secures-20m-series-a-funding/.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 "XYZ Reality raises £20m to build AR for construction industry". June 2021. https://sifted.eu/articles/xyz-reality-20m-constructiontech.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 "XYZ Reality: Engineering-Grade AR for Construction". https://www.amadeuscapital.com/company/xyz-reality/.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 "XYZ Reality closes £20m funding round as it seeks further growth". June 15, 2021. https://www.irishtimes.com/business/technology/xyz-reality-closes-20m-funding-round-as-it-seeks-further-growth-1.4593872.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 "XYZ Reality launches 'engineering grade' AR headset". November 22, 2021. https://aecmag.com/vr-mr/xyz-reality-launches-engineering-grade-ar-headset/.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 "XYZ Reality secures £20m Series A funding as it prepares for commercial launch". June 17, 2021. https://www.cambridgenetwork.co.uk/news/xyz-reality-secures-ps20m-series-funding-it-prepares-commercial-launch.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5 "XYZ Atom - Construction Safety Augmented Reality Headset". https://www.xyzreality.com/atom.