New Recommendation: Virtuix
The wait is over. Virtual reality (VR) is here.
TechCrunch, a leading technology media property, estimates it will explode from just a few billion dollars today… to more than $150 billion by 2020.
And thanks to this technology, you’ll soon be able to “step” right into far-away places you’ve always dreamed of seeing…
Sites like the Great Wall of China… the Wailing Wall in the Old City of Jerusalem… the Louvre in Paris… the Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, Russia.
Or how about “museums” exhibiting stolen works that haven’t been seen for decades!
For my part, as a lifelong Beatles fan, I can’t imagine the thrill of being invited into Paul McCartney’s home. Yet a VR project now underway is making this possible.
Within the next few years, this technology is going to disrupt existing industries and create entirely new ones…
It’s already getting interesting, with major initiatives or updates announced seemingly every week in 2016…
- Facebook finally began shipping its 3D Oculus Rift headsets in April, with new orders overwhelming its production capacity.
- Samsung’s Oculus-powered “Gear VR” headsets only arrived in November 2015. Yet by mid-2016, there were more than 1 million monthly active users.
- The HTC Vive also hit store shelves in April.
- As of June, Sony was maintaining a PlayStation VR launch date of October 13, with 50 VR-compatible games available by the end of the year.
- In early June, Google revealed major plans with Daydream concerning a comprehensive platform for mobile VR built into Google’s Android operating system.
Even slow-moving Microsoft is getting onboard! It announced in mid-2016 that its Project Scorpio Xbox will feature high-fidelity VR.
VR technology is going to make a big difference in our lives. And not only in gaming.
As MIT Technology Review reports, “There’s a lot more to virtual reality than just playing games.” It can also be used to train employees… athletes… or pilots.
Fortune magazine confirms that virtual reality now allows “medical professionals to practice procedures that don’t occur frequently in real life.”
Meanwhile, the U.S. Army is using it to train soldiers on M1A1 tanks. The Air Force is using it to simulate emergency evacuations in the Middle East. And NASA is using it to prepare astronauts for spacewalks.
Whatever the situation, with virtual reality, you’ll feel like you’re really there… without ever leaving the room.
Just how big of a change are we facing thanks to these advances?
Think about cellphones for a moment. Remember what it was like before them? That seems like nine lifetimes ago, right?
Well, it already seems like a foregone conclusion that 2016 will go down in history as the beginning of commercialized VR devices.
It will be the year that forever changed how we game, work, play and exercise.
Much like mobile tech, VR should spawn a new generation of exciting and sustainable companies, with some growing quite large.
That’s why, right now, I’d like to introduce you to one of the sector’s most promising up-and-coming startups.
Its name is Virtuix. And it performs VR magic.
Fixing the One Thing Holding These Breakthroughs Back
At its most basic, VR involves donning goggle-like “headsets” and other motion detectors. The view from the goggles then takes you into another world…
Yet there’s one big flaw with this setup…
After the initial thrill, many users find the lack of real motion to be a bit of a letdown. When you’re sitting on the couch not moving, it’s hard to fully immerse yourself in VR.
Knowing that, Virtuix’s “Omni” takes the VR experience to a new level by completely tricking your mind into thinking you’re walking around in a virtual world.
Respected Barron’s tech writer Tiernan Ray recently tried it out, reporting that he experienced “the physical feeling of actually walking, without limit, through endless spaces.”
“I had a sense that I was moving to someplace as my legs moved. I felt like I was running to a point in space.”
Other users have also had good things to say (see for yourself here and here), including Early Investing co-founder, Adam Sharp. He describes Omni this way:
It’s designed to make virtual reality more active and immersive. It allows you to walk, run and jump while staying in a small confined space. This system is arguably the best way to make VR truly immersive. When you can look all around a virtual world, it would feel unnatural if you couldn’t move toward something.
Adam and I have watched a dozen videos of Omni in action. It’s the real deal. And we believe it has all the ingredients necessary to make a huge impact. Here are the main reasons why…
- The market is large and growing. VR is expected to develop into a $150 billion market by 2020.
- Omni is a critical enabler. I believe it’s the missing piece that will launch a new and exciting era of immersive VR experiences across areas like gaming, virtual tourism, training and education. Virtuix’s technology complements – rather than competes with – the headsets coming from Facebook and others. We expect VR content developers to embrace this enhanced experience en masse, making it a “must have” component.
- Virtuix has no serious competitors. A couple of companies are raising money on Kickstarter. But they’re just starting out – and at least one of them is already struggling. Admittedly, this market is too big with too much profit potential for competitors not to show up at some point. Yet even then, Virtuix has all the advantages of being first to market with breakthrough technology.
- Prospective sales are headed through the roof! Virtuix has developed partnerships with game developers and headset makers. It’s already building its brand with eSports, PC gaming and VR enthusiasts after filing 12 patent applications. It’s also begun delivering on more than 4,000 preorders ($2 million worth of Omnis). And founder and CEO Jan Goetgeluk tells me that shipping is on schedule and going smoothly.So there’s very strong early execution here, which is a great sign. Product is going out the door, and money is coming in.
It’s also important to note that management is serious and determined, and has done an admirable job so far.
When Goetgeluk called me from Taipei, I grilled him for 45 minutes. He was very forthcoming about his plans for the company, which wasn’t a surprise. With an M.S. in mechanical engineering and an MBA, he can hold his own when it comes to technology and finance.
Working as a JP Morgan investment banker by day and an engineer by night, he first developed the technology in his “off hours.”
Of course, now it’s his only job.
His business partner, David Allan, is the president and COO. Before joining Virtuix, Allan set up a Chinese manufacturing subsidiary that employed more than 200 workers for a California-based electronics startup. He’s lived and worked in Taipei for the past 25 years.
Some very sharp shareholders are betting on this company as well, including respected venture capital firms Tekton Ventures and Maveron, and billionaire Mark Cuban.
If you’ve ever seen Cuban in action on Sharktank, you know he isn’t likely to take a stake in something unless it has a rock-solid competitive moat and huge upside.
Yet he liked this company so much, he’s actually invested twice! It’s a great sign. And an even better one comes from Leyard, a Chinese provider of visual experiences with serious national marketing muscle.
Leyard has invested $500,000 in Virtuix and has promised to introduce it to China’s massive network of VR entertainment providers, including about 140,000 internet cafes that will be transformed into VR locations.
Well-known investing firms like Tekton Ventures, Western Technology Investment, Scentan Ventures, QueensBridge Venture Partners and 2020 Ventures have gotten onboard as well. Several of them even plan to double down here.
To top it off, Virtuix also enjoys strong crowdfunding support. More than $30 million worth of “indicated interest” was logged during its “testing the waters” period, and it’s raised $5.5 million from 1,250 investors so far. All of that crowd validation is yet another positive sign.
This Startup’s Ceiling Is Among the Highest I’ve Ever Seen
Five years from now, I expect we’ll be asking each other, “Which big VR company did you invest in back in the day?”
And we’ll be very impressed with anyone who says Virtuix.
This startup’s ceiling is among the highest I’ve ever seen. We’re witnessing the birth of an entire new market. Exciting deals like this one will be what propels it forward.
So if you like the idea of making profits of 10X to 50X, Virtuix has that potential. In fact, I won’t be surprised one bit if it will make a whopping 100X!
Never before have you had a chance to invest in private companies alongside Marc Cuban and other venture capital billionaires – and on the exact same terms.
But today, you can. All you have to do is follow my instructions below on how to get on the portal and make the investment.
Ready?
Sure you are! Let’s get started…
Investment Synopsis
Company: Virtuix
Sector: Virtual reality
Website: http://www.virtuix.com
Location: Austin, Texas; with offices in California and China
Employees: 31
Status: Raising $10 million to $15 million under Regulation A+, where anyone
can invest – not just accredited investors
Platform: SeedInvest
Share Price: $2.33
Previous Price per Share: $0.80 to $1.20
Implied Valuation: $35 million
Offering: Series A preferred equity
Minimum Investment: $1,000
Funds Raised to Date: $8 million
Additional Information: $699 per Omni; shipping began in December 2015.
Portal Instructions
I’ve compiled detailed instructions below for those of you who would like more guidance on how to join SeedInvest and buy in to this opportunity.
Just click here to access the portal instructions document. Or you can go right here or paste https://www.seedinvest.com/ into your URL box.
You’ll then see this…
Click on the blue box that says “Join as an Investor,” then follow the provided instructions.
Once you’ve signed up, you’re ready to make your online investment. So back on the homepage, click on the far left box that says “Virtuix”…
You’ll see this…
Click on the “Invest in Virtuix” blue box, then follow the instructions.
You’ll be asked to make a payment by wire or ACH (automated clearing house), which operates pretty much like an e-check. Just enter your account information (including routing number) into a payment screen, and select a date for payment. The payment will be processed on that date and deducted from your account. That’s all there is to it.
If you’re having difficulty at any point in the process, you can click on the “Chat With Us” link – as shown below – which is on every page as you go through the application process.
Invest early and well,
Andy Gordon
Co-Founder, First Stage Investor