In Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality News
April 15, 2020 – Swedish sound company Dirac has today announced that it has completed a new USD $6 million round of financing and will appoint former Spotify executive Jonathan Forster to its Board of Directors. The latest round includes Swedish tech investors Inbox Kapital, Swedia Capital, and Johan Sedihn, and new investor DIG Investment.
The completion of the fundraising round and strategic new board appointment comes on the heels of the company’s recent launch of its Dirac headphone technology and mobile app that automatically enhance the performance of any connected headphone to reveal even the most subtle beats, tones and sounds typically lost in standard headphones.
Dirac’s technology developments improve the quality of conference calls, online collaboration and gaming through immersive 3D audio and increased voice intelligibility. Furthermore, the company has been implementing its immersive audio systems into standalone VR headsets, and the technology also has uses for augmented reality audio experiences.
Proceeds from the new financing round will be used to further evolve the capabilities of the company’s technology and app, and expand Dirac’s ability to create intelligent audio solutions that enable new and improved sound experiences across all devices and content.
Dirac CEO, Mathias Johansson, said: “Earlier this year, we introduced a technology that demonstrates that the audio you experience from your headphones can sound so much better with the addition of intelligently-designed digital sound software. However, this headphone technology is just one of the many pieces of our intelligent audio platform which digitally upgrades any kind of sound experience.”
Johansson added, “We’re pioneering the intelligent audio solutions that will enable the devices and content of tomorrow. With this new round of financing, and the addition of Jonathan to our board, we’re equipped with the capital and expertise to realize our long-term product and market development objectives.”
Dirac noted that its new board member, Jonathan Forster, is an international executive with 25-years of experience scaling digital companies through hyper growth. He worked in a number of leadership roles at Spotify, where he spent ten years after joining as one of the company’s first five employees.
“Thanks to music streaming platforms, hundreds of millions of people around the world are consuming more music than ever before,” said Forster. “Dirac’s technology gives each of these people the chance to enjoy the experience through better sound, regardless of how they’re listening. I’m excited to help the team continue to bring this technology to market.”
According to Johansson, this capital infusion and board appointment strengthen Dirac’s leadership position in the audio industry, and he commented further: “We very much remain focused on a future that extends well beyond this current climate. Challenged to rethink the way we live, learn and work, we are not shying away from the investments that are necessary to sustain our long-term growth. We hope that this message helps ignite a sense of optimism among companies and entrepreneurs across the world during these challenging times.”
Dirac’s current suite of digital audio solutions are used by blue chip brands in the smartphone, PC, and home audio/theater markets, ensuring that the sound that consumers experience is of the clearest, crispest, and most enhanced quality possible, according to the company.
Image credit: Dirac
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Sam is the Founder and Managing Editor of Auganix. With a background in research and report writing, he has been covering XR industry news for the past seven years.