Blippar, a UK-based augmented reality (AR) technology developer backed by mobile chipmaker Qualcomm, is struggling to avoid insolvency, TechCrunch reported yesterday, citing a statement provided by the company.
Blippar originally launched in 2011 as a marketing agency that enabled brands to purchase augmented reality advertisements in magazines or overlaid on real-world objects.
The company has since pivoted multiple times, offering a visual search engine to identify real-world objects and faces, and launching a social media tool called Halos and a navigation app called AR City before settling in August 2018 on an indoor visual positioning system for large venues such as stadiums, airports and shopping centres.
Blippar’s shareholders are hoping to provide emergency funding for the company, which has raised approximately $137m in venture capital but burned through most of its cash reserves while attempting to find a sustainable business model.
The vote for the additional capital needs to be unanimous but a shareholder identified by The Sunday Times as Malaysian sovereign wealth fund Kazanah Nasional has so far declined to consent.
Should Khazanah maintain its position, Blippar will be forced to begin insolvency proceedings, though the company remains hopeful it can resolve the issue by the end of this week.
Blippar received $37m in a September 2018 series E round co-led by Qualcomm’s corporate venturing division, Qualcomm Ventures, and VC firm Candy Ventures. TechCrunch has however suggested that round could have been emergency funding and may not have closed.
Qualcomm Ventures had already provided an undisclosed amount of funding for the company in 2012 that was followed by $45m series C round backed by unnamed investors in 2015 and a $54m series D led by Khazanah Nasional in 2016.
