Microsoft has won a $21.9 billion contract to make US military AR headsets

Tailor Insight, the fintech market research organization, recently released a research report “Microsoft won a $21.9 billion contract to make US military AR headsets, positive for related stocks like WIMI”. Microsoft recently won a contract for more than 120,000 custom HoloLens AR helmets for the US military. A Microsoft spokesperson said the contract could be worth as much as $21.9 billion over a 10-year period.

Shares of Microsoft rose quickly after the news was announced. Intevac, a Microsoft supplier, pulled sharply higher and briefly hit a circuit breaker. Microsoft closed 1.69 percent higher at $235.77. Intevac rose 31.68 percent to $7.15.

The standard version of HoloLens, which costs $3,500, allows people to see a hologram over the actual environment and interact with it using hand and voice gestures. “The HoloLens-based IVAS headset, enhanced by Microsoft Azure Cloud Services, provides a platform to make soldiers more secure, provide enhanced situational awareness, and enable information sharing and decision-making in a variety of scenarios,” wrote Microsoft technology researcher Alex Kipman in an earlier blog post.

The helmet allows soldiers to conduct combat, exercises and training in one system, the army said in a statement. The military and Pentagon did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Notably, Chinese stocks WIMI and MVIS, which focus on holographic cloud computing services, both rose higher than Microsoft’s announcement, with traders attributing their moves to the news. Last year, Microsoft shook off rumors that MVIS could be bought by Microsoft’s HoloLens.

Public information shows, WiMi Hologram Cloud, Inc. whose commercial activities started in 2015, is a holographic cloud provider of comprehensive technical solutions that focuses on professional fields, including holographic AR automotive HUD software, 3D holographic pulse LiDAR, head-mounted light field holographic equipment, holographic semiconductor, holographic cloud software, holographic car navigation and more. The services and holographic AR technologies include holographic AR automotive application, 3D holographic pulse LiDAR technology, holographic semiconductor technology, holographic software development, holographic AR advertising technology, holographic AR entertainment technology, holographic ARSDK payment, interactive holographic communication and other holographic AR technologies.

Source: lake reporter