EssilorLuxottica is continuing its expansion into immersive technologies with the acquisition of the French startup Lynx, which specializes in mixed reality.
Although the total value of the deal has not been disclosed, this acquisition reflects a clear ambition: to strengthen its technological expertise in preparation for the next generation of smart glasses. The company Lynx, founded in 2019 by Stan Larroque, is one of the few European companies capable of developing a standalone mixed-reality headset.
While the first model, the Lynx R1, generated a great deal of interest, the new Lynx R2—a more compact headset designed for professionals—is expected to attract comparable interest. The company never reached the stage of large-scale industrialization, partly due to the high cost of hardware development—driven by fierce competition from Meta, Apple, and Google—which led to the company being placed in financial liquidation this past spring. It is against this backdrop that this acquisition comes as a godsend.
An acquisition focused on technology
For EssilorLuxottica, this deal is not about bringing a new mixed-reality headset to market; the real value lies in the technological assets developed by Lynx over the past few years. Through this acquisition, the group gains ownership of the startup’s intellectual property, patents, software, and a large portion of its engineering teams. These engineers possess expertise in key areas such as computer vision, spatial tracking, 3D mapping, low-latency video processing, and augmented reality interfaces.
Discover our plans Subscribe for 1€ Become an active member of the community of luxury leaders.
Read also > Chanel acquires Charvet: a new strategy tailored to perfection
Featured photo : © EssilorLuxottica
