Mira

Mira was a Los Angeles-based augmented reality company that provided industrial-grade wearables and hands-free software for frontline workers. The company was founded in 2016 by Ben Taft, Matt Stern, and Montana Reed while they were students at the University of Southern California's Iovine and Young Academy. The founding team was driven by the desire to make augmented reality more accessible, noticing a market gap between expensive, high-end AR headsets and phone-based experiences like Pokémon Go. CEO Ben Taft's background included exposure to the Bay Area tech scene and an early role at Daqri, an industrial AR helmet startup, while his co-founders had experience developing Sony's PlayStation VR.

Mira's core product was the Prism headset, a smartphone-powered AR device designed to be a low-cost, durable, and scalable solution. The headset worked by inserting a user's iPhone, which would then project holographic-like images onto a clear visor, allowing the user to see both digital content and their real-world environment. This hardware was complemented by a suite of software, including 'Connect' for remote assistance and 'Flow' for creating and managing digital workflows. This platform enabled experts to virtually see what a frontline worker was seeing in real-time to provide guidance, and allowed workers to follow step-by-step instructions in a hands-free manner. The business model focused on enterprise and industrial clients in sectors such as manufacturing, mining, chemicals, and defense. Notable clients included the U.S. Air Force, the U.S. Navy, and Universal Studios, which used Mira's technology for the Mario Kart ride at its theme parks.

The company raised approximately $17 million in total funding over several rounds from investors including Sequoia Capital, Founders Fund, Greylock, and Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff. In June 2023, just after Apple announced its own Vision Pro headset, it was reported that Apple had acquired Mira for an undisclosed amount, with at least 11 of Mira's employees joining Apple.

Keywords: augmented reality, industrial wearables, frontline worker software, AR headset, remote assistance, digital workflows, enterprise AR, smartphone-powered AR, hands-free technology, situational awareness, operational efficiency, workforce training, remote collaboration, safety compliance, industrial technology, mobile augmented reality, Mira Prism, Ben Taft, Matt Stern, Montana Reed, Apple acquisition