Holos Inc., a Madison firm founded to develop virtual reality and augmented reality education software for classrooms, has been awarded a $1.8 million contract from the U.S. Air Force following up on the firm’s 2019 contract to help the Air Force develop VR maintenance and repair training programs.
With the funds, available over two years, Holos will be able to perform last-mile product developments and integrate with an existing platform that serves as the secure backbone for training delivery across the U.S. Air Force, the company said in a press release. It’s expected to enable a new class of users across the USAF to rapidly create, remix and share immersive VR training experiences.
The contract was awarded through AFVentures, the investment arm of the innovation branch of the U.S. Air Force called AFWERX. The contract is focused on VR software development to investigate its potential to fill capability gaps in the Air Force.
"This is a significant milestone towards deploying Holos as one of the de-facto VR training creation tools for delivery across the U.S. Air Force, putting the management of these virtual exercises directly into the hands of our Airmen," said Daniel Borkhus, co-founder and CEO of Holos. "Crossing the 'Valley of Death' and taking a technology from R&D to a program of record is never easy."
Founded in 2015, Holos creates VR and AR education software for classrooms, giving teachers and students the ability to create, organize and learn in 3D. For its Air Force applications, the technology is largely the same, but loaded with different content, the company has told Wisconsin Inno.
Holos announced in September 2019 that it was awarded a $750,000 Phase II Small Business Innovation Research contract to develop the VR training software with the Air Force. That award was a follow-up to a $50,000 Phase I contract awarded earlier in 2019.
