Apple is said to have acquired a Silicon-Valley startup called LuxVue Technology, a low-power micro-LED maker that claims to have developed display technology that could potentially allow for a longer battery life.
According to a report by online publication Techcrunch, which reported the acquisition, Apple acquired the company to add to its hardware innovations area. It is being speculated that this help Apple give its portable hardware better battery life and screen brightness. Also the rumoured iWatch can use the low-power display technology.
“Apple buys smaller technology companies from time to time, and we generally do not discuss our purpose or plans,” an Apple spokesperson responded to Techcrunch in a statement, which is as close as Apple gets to confirming an acquisition.
Reportedly, the LuxVue had raised $43 million in funding from Kleiner Perkins, iD Ventures America and others including $25.2 million in December, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing.
John Doerr, partner at Kleiner Perkins, while speaking at a Techcrunch Disrupt conference, had said that LuxVue has managed “a technical breakthrough in displays.” Earlier it was rumoured that the same technology could be used to power the next-generation of Google Glass, but this probably will not be the case after Apple’s acquisition.
Notably Apple has acquired 24 companies in the last 18 months. Apple’s CEO Tim Cook while speaking at Q2 2014 earnings call in April had said, “From an acquisition point of view, we have done 24 in 18 months. That shows that we’re on the prowl, I suppose you could say. We look for companies that have great people and great technology and that fit culturally.”
Apple’s last acquisition was a silent one where it had gone on to purchase an automatic speech recognition technology company called Novauris Technologies. The acquired team now works on improvement of Siri, and we might see the results soon in the next flagship – iPhone 6.
