Saudi Arabia Invests $750 Million in Augmented Reality

posted  6 Aug 2024
Photo - Saudi Arabia Invests $750 Million in Augmented Reality
Since early 2023, Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF) injected more than $750 million into Magic Leap, an augmented reality company. The investments were split into two tranches: $590 million at the start of 2023 and $160 million a year later as convertible debt.  

This agreement allows the creditor to either convert the debt into company shares at a discounted rate or receive the loan amount with interest after meeting all conditions. Despite these and earlier investments amounting to $3.5 billion, Magic Leap still needs additional funds to fulfill previous obligations.  

The company aims to secure new funding in three phases: by the end of August 2024, and then in January and June 2025. According to preliminary reports, negotiations with a potential investor are ongoing, but Magic Leap and PIF representatives have declined to comment.  

Previously, Magic Leap experienced a major setback: its first product, launched in 2018, failed entirely, resulting in an 80% staff reduction and the complete shutdown of sales and marketing departments to focus exclusively on licensing their technologies.