IXI – The world’s first autofocus glasses

Why?

IXI is on a mission to disrupt the nearly EUR 200 billion global eyewear market – an industry in which the core optical functionality of glasses has remained largely unchanged for centuries. Millions of people struggle with presbyopia and are forced to rely on progressive lenses, which are always an optical compromise. With traditional eyewear, clear vision requires constant head movement and searching for a narrow zone of focus, making dynamic everyday situations unnecessarily demanding.

IXI aims to remove these limitations and deliver complete visual freedom. The company is developing the world’s first autofocus glasses.

What and how?

At the core of IXI’s innovation are recognition of eye movement and dynamically activated liquid crystal lenses.

When the wearer shifts their gaze from a distant object to something nearby, the glasses’ control unit detects the change in milliseconds and adjusts the optical power of the lenses accordingly. This allows the eyewear to adapt in real time to the wearer’s eye movements, delivering optimal vision at all distances. The result is a wider, distortion-free field of view and the elimination of the peripheral blur typical of progressive lenses.

While the underlying technology is complex, the user experience is intentionally invisible. Ultra-low-power technology is seamlessly integrated into elegant, lightweight frames that look and feel like premium conventional eyewear.

Growth and internationalisation

IXI has been built as a global company from day one. Rather than incrementally improving an existing product, the company is creating an entirely new eyewear category that combines advanced optics, recognition of eye movement and timeless design. This international mindset is reflected throughout the company in its team, investor base, partner network and growing global media interest.

To date, growth has focused on finalising the technology and building global demand. Market entry will take place through strategic optical partnerships and selected distribution channels.

The importance of venture capital

A strong and diverse investor base, together with significant growth funding, has enabled IXI to scale production and accelerate product development.

In April 2024, IXI announced a EUR 33 million Series A funding round, one of the largest rounds in European hardware technology to date. The round was led by London-based VC firm Plural, with participation from Tesi, Heartcore, FOV Ventures, byFounders, Eurazeo and Tiny Supercomputer. Existing investors also joined the round, including Amazon Alexa Fund, Maki.vc, firstminute capital, Bragiel Brothers, as well as Risto Siilasmaa (FirstFellow), David Helgason, Ilkka Paananen and John Lindfors.

Tesi’s mission is to help build new, internationally competitive growth sectors in Finland. IXI is a further example of Finland’s strong optics technology expertise that is also represented in Tesi’s portfolio by Varjo.

General information

IXI was founded in 2021 in Espoo, Finland. The company was founded by Niko Eiden (CEO) and Wili Miettinen (Chief Algorithm Officer), who are also known as the co-founders of mixed reality hardware company Varjo. Now, the duo aims to permanently change how people see the world.

IXI employs approximately 80 people, with expertise spanning optics, algorithms, hardware, and design. The company’s first product is currently in the commercialisation phase.