Matterport, a startup specializing in computer vision for the real estate industry, is making a significant move by acquiring Arraiy, an AI startup focused on automating special effects processing in the film industry.
Arraiy managed to secure $13.9 million in funding, including a notable $10 million Series A round in March 2018. Leading the investment were Lux Capital and SoftBank Ventures Asia, with Lux Capital having also led Matterport’s Series A funding back in 2013. In contrast, Matterport has accumulated approximately $114 million in funding thus far.
Arraiy leveraged AI technology to seamlessly integrate digital content with physical spaces, revolutionizing the way digital effects are incorporated into films within the Hollywood ecosystem. While numerous computer vision startups were striving to bring AI and augmented reality (AR) capabilities akin to Snapchat’s live AR functionality to various corners of the web, Arraiy bet on the world of film, where the production of special effects is known to be a costly and time-consuming process.
It is worth noting that Arraiy’s founders previously initiated Industrial Perception, a robotics startup that was acquired by Google in 2013.
At first glance, the collaboration between a startup specializing in Hollywood special effects and a company renowned for digitizing real estate properties to offer immersive 3D tours may seem unlikely. However, this acquisition could enable Matterport to expand its horizons beyond its existing customer base in the real estate industry, opening doors to new opportunities.
