Lynx Shipping Additional R-1 Mixed Reality Headsets Soon, CEO Details “excruciating” Fundraising Environment

French Startup Lynx Overcomes Funding Challenges to Ship R-1 Headsets

French startup Lynx has faced hurdles in bringing its R-1 mixed reality standalone headset to market, including financial difficulties. However, CEO Stan Larroque recently announced that a batch of R-1 headsets will soon be shipped out.

Larroque revealed in a Kickstarter update that an additional 400 units will be distributed between July and August. These units had been assembled earlier but faced delays due to financial issues with the assembler Compal.

Despite the challenges, Lynx is making progress with its product. Larroque described the past year as “excruciating,” citing tough fundraising conditions for XR hardware in Europe.

However, there is positive news on the horizon for Lynx. The company is now working with a major US financial partner and sees promising opportunities in defense, industrial, and medical sectors.

On the funding front, Lynx has received support beyond its successful Kickstarter campaign, with a Series A investment from Somnium Space in 2022 totaling $4 million. This brings the startup’s total funding to $6.8 million, including previous rounds.

Similar to Meta Quest 3 and Apple Vision Pro, Lynx R-1 offers mixed reality experiences through passthrough sensors and a Snapdragon XR2 chipset. The company aims to make the R-1 a versatile and open device for a range of applications.