Sydney virtual reality (VR) startup Inspace XR has raised $750,000 in seed funding from investors including Sydney Angels, Artesian, and Investible.
Founded by Justin Liang and Eric Fear in 2017, Inspace XR is creating a range of augmented and virtual reality tools for the building and architecture sectors.
The idea came to Liang during his time at AMP Ventures, where he specialised in assessing VR and artificial intelligence-focused startups. A believer in the idea that it’s important to sell before building, Liang pitched the theoretical product to a real estate company, and brought Fear on board after they said yes.
The company’s flagship product is River Fox, which allows architects and builders to easily design spaces in VR and in turn walk clients through them.
With the startup counting the likes of JLL, Macquarie Bank, Charter Hall, and Folkestone among its clients, the funding will go towards further product development and international expansion. The startup has set its sights on China and the US.
Liang, CEO of Inspace XR, said the global building industry wastes $55 billion annually as a result of construction mistakes made due to the misinterpreting of building designs.
“Clients of builders and architects are frustrated because they don’t understand floor plans and are also questioning the certainty of rendered images. This results in slow decision making and a high chance of design regret once it’s too late,” he said.
“We created software that easily allows architects and their clients to walk through virtual buildings so they could be happy with the design before commencing construction.”
Enrico Massi, lead investor at Sydney Angels, said the organisation is confident that Fear and Liang have the ability to build the startup into “an enormously successful business which will have real impact locally and globally”.
“Not only is Inspace XR a high-quality product that solves a very real and significant issue, but the team also has a solid business plan and a demonstrable path to growth,” he said.
The startup also runs Inspace Labs, a consulting arm that delivers custom AR and VR projects, strategic consulting, and hardware solutions for clients.
Image: Eric Fear and Justin Liang. Source: Supplied.
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