Google Purchases Vive’s Engineering Team for $250M, Sparking Speculation on HTC’s Future

Google’s recent decision to acquire a team of XR engineers from HTC for a hefty $250 million marks a significant move intended to boost the development of its Android XR platform. With this acquisition, Google aims to strengthen its standing within the ecosystem of headsets and smart glasses.

Android XR, which Google introduced just last month, is poised to stir up the competitive landscape, particularly with Samsung expected to debut a headset powered by this platform. Although the market is abuzz with anticipation over this familiar rivalry in consumer XR, there remains a layer of skepticism regarding Google’s long-term dedication to such projects.

In an exclusive discussion with Road to VR, Google attempted to ease some of these concerns. However, the company’s track record leaves a trail of discontinued ventures, with Google Daydream being a notable example—their initial foray into XR back in 2016.

In a recent announcement, Google shared its plans to acquire a segment of HTC’s XR team. While specifics about the transaction remain elusive, it’s probable that Google is looking to leverage HTC’s expertise in hardware as it fortifies its presence in the rapidly evolving XR domain.

A representative from Google enthused, “We’ve been investing in XR for more than a decade, and just recently, we launched the Android XR platform alongside our strategic partners. Today we’ve signed an agreement to integrate some of the HTC VIVE engineering team into Google, pending customary closing conditions. They possess an exceptional technical prowess with a proven track record in VR, and we’re thrilled to work with them to speed up the development of the Android XR platform across the headsets and glasses ecosystem.”

Interestingly, this is not Google’s first foray into acquiring HTC talent. Back in 2017, Google invested $1.1 billion to bring onboard HTC’s smartphone engineers, a move that underlined HTC’s focus on advancing its XR ambitions when it later merged its VR and smartphone sectors.

The finer details of this recent deal remain under wraps, leaving some speculation about HTC’s future. Based in Taoyuan, Taiwan, HTC is renowned for producing XR headsets for enterprise users, featuring products like the Vive Focus Vision—a $1,000 standalone mixed reality headset that blends tech from the Vive Focus 3 and the Vive Elite XR.

In addition to XR, HTC has explored other tech devices, albeit with mixed results. In 2018, it launched the HTC Exodus 1, dubbed as a crypto-phone, soon followed by an updated model. In 2019, HTC presented a home-based 5G hub, riding the wave of early 5G excitement. However, these devices have since been phased out from HTC’s lineup, leaving the industry in suspense about the company’s next steps.