Innovega
Innovega develops lightweight smart glasses and proprietary iOptik contact lenses that deliver real-time, adjustable visual enhancement for people with moderate to severe vision impairment from conditions such as macular degeneration, Stargardt's, and glaucoma, using camera capture and micro-OOLED transparent displays.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2021
- HeadquartersBellevue, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What Innovega does
Innovega is a privately held eyewear technology company developing smart glasses for people with moderate to severe vision impairment. The company's core product architecture pairs lightweight camera-equipped eyewear with transparent micro-OLED displays that project digitally enhanced images into the user's field of view, offering adjustable magnification, brightness, contrast, clarity, and image positioning. Its next-generation platform combines these glasses with proprietary iOptik disposable soft smart contact lenses (the eMacula system) to deliver a full-field-of-view binocular display. The technology is protected by 80+ international patents covering optics, digital display integration, gaze tracking, automated fitting systems, and ML-driven XR eyewear regulation, and has undergone clinical evaluation through the Ohio State University College of Optometry (Phase II results showing mean visual acuity slightly better than 20/20 in normally sighted subjects).
The company's go-to-market centers on people living with central retinal diseases—age-related macular degeneration, Stargardt's Disease, diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma, and ocular albinism—addressing a stated addressable population of 295 million people with moderate to severe vision impairment worldwide. Innovega operates a hybrid revenue model: direct-to-consumer hardware pre-orders for the Gen I Smart Glasses Founder Series at $2,950 (with expected retail of $3,950), planned recurring revenue from monthly disposable iOptik contact lenses, and a capital-efficient licensing model targeting established contact lens manufacturers and assistive technology distributors. A multi-year manufacturing agreement with Quanta Computer (signed March 2026) provides dedicated production capacity in Taiwan, and an LOI with a confidential leading global assistive technology provider in nearly 100 countries opens a distribution channel beyond direct sales.
To date, Innovega has raised over $22 million cumulatively through a combination of equity crowdfunding on StartEngine/SeedInvest (more than 1,000 new shareholders and $5.6M+ closed in the first Regulation A phase), strategic investments from Tencent, Vuzix, and Vispero, and government research support from DARPA, the National Eye Institute of the NIH, and the National Science Foundation. Leadership includes former MicroVision President Steve Willey as CEO and co-founder, former Apple Vision Pro systems architect Dr. Arthur Zhang as CTO, and former Microsoft Partner GM Bambo Sofola on the Board of Advisors. The company is actively pursuing FDA market clearance and CE marking for iOptik contact lenses and has scheduled commercial delivery of Gen I Smart Glasses for Q2 2027.
Innovega firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Innovega
- Legal name
- Innovega, Inc.
- Website
- https://innovega.io
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2021
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Innovega develops lightweight smart glasses and proprietary iOptik contact lenses that deliver real-time, adjustable visual enhancement for people with moderate to severe vision impairment from conditions such as macular degeneration, Stargardt's, and glaucoma, using camera capture and micro-OOLED transparent displays.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Innovega industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Assistive Smart Eyewear
- NAICS
- Ophthalmic Goods Manufacturing (339115), Electromedical and Electrotherapeutic Apparatus Manufacturing (334510)
- SIC
- Ophthalmic Goods (3851), Electromedical & Electrotherapeutic Apparatus (3845)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Low Vision & Assistive Vision Devices (Magnifiers, Electronic Video Magnifiers, Wearable Vision Aids) (HLAHAJAN)
Keywords
Where Innovega is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Bellevue
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices3 records
Markets served
Innovega business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others
Revenue model
- Smart Glasses Sales: One-time hardware sales of Gen I Smart Glasses at Founder Series pricing of $2,950 (retail expected at $3,950), with bundled Android smartphone, accessories, and priority support.
- Smart Contact Lenses: Monthly disposable smart contact lenses for use with the display eyewear system, targeting the visually impaired and normally-sighted users for vision correction and AR/VR applications.
- Technology Licensing: Capital-efficient licensing model enabling established contact lens manufacturers to produce iOptik smart lenses and eyewear companies to co-develop display eyewear products.
- Equity Crowdfunding: Regulation A crowdfunding campaigns through StartEngine, previously raising over $5.6 million in initial phases and accepting investments to fund FDA clinical investigations, patent expansion, and commercialization.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Founder Series Smart Glasses Package |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels8 records
Innovega product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Innovega designs, develops, and sells lightweight smart eyewear and proprietary smart contact lenses that enhance functional vision for people with moderate to severe vision impairment. The Gen I Smart Glasses use a built-in camera to capture scenes and project enhanced images onto HD micro-OLED transparent displays with adjustable magnification, contrast, brightness, and clarity. The company also sells the eMacula system that combines display eyewear with patented iOptik smart contact lenses for full-field-of-view AR/VR applications across medical, consumer, and industrial markets.
Product overview
Innovega offers a two-generation product portfolio for people with vision loss. The Gen I Smart Glasses (Founder Series) is the core commercial product—a standalone wearable device that captures scenes with a camera and projects enhanced images onto transparent micro-OLED displays, providing adjustable magnification, contrast, brightness, clarity, and image positioning. The Gen II Smart Glasses + Contact Lenses represents the next-generation platform, combining the smart glasses with proprietary iOptik contact lenses for wider field of view. Supporting both generations is the eMacula System platform, which integrates iOptik smart contact lenses with display eyewear and software for AR/VR applications. The company is initially focused on image enhancement for the visually impaired before expanding to other applications.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Gen I Smart Glasses (Founder Series) First-generation lightweight, water-resistant smart glasses (approximately 75 grams) for people with moderate to severe vision loss. Built-in camera captures scenes in real time and projects enhanced images onto HD micro-OLED transparent displays, with adjustable magnification, contrast, brightness, clarity, and image positioning to help users read, recognize faces, navigate environments, and watch television.
- Gen II Smart Glasses + Contact Lenses Next-generation platform combining Innovega smart glasses with proprietary iOptik contact lens technology to deliver wider field-of-view projection for people with vision loss, with a design aimed at future consumer productivity, entertainment, and AR use cases beyond medical low-vision applications.
- iOptik Smart Contact Lenses Patented disposable soft smart contact lenses designed for use with display eyewear to deliver high-resolution, panoramic field-of-view for AR/VR applications. Sold as monthly disposable consumables to support recurring revenue and targeted at both visually impaired users and normally-sighted users for AR-enabled vision correction.
- eMacula System Patented full-field-of-view display eyewear platform combining iOptik smart contact lenses with spectacle-mounted microdisplays and software to deliver separate images to each eye for binocular vision and 3D perception. Targets medical, consumer, and industrial AR/VR applications and serves as the foundation for licensing to eyewear and lens manufacturers.
Quantifiable outcome
- Mean visual acuity slightly better than 20/20 with iOptik contact lenses
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Innovega
Customer profileNamed customers7 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Innovega technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
AI capability7 records
Feature6 records
Innovega partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and flagship.
- Quanta ComputercoreInnovega signed a comprehensive multi-year manufacturing agreement with Quanta Computer, one of the world's largest and most respected electronics manufacturers and a Fortune Global 500 company. Under the agreement, Quanta will be Innovega's manufacturing partner for Gen I smart glasses, providing dedicated manufacturing capacity at their state-of-the-art facilities in Taiwan. The partnership involves collaborative engineering, new product introduction processes, quality systems development, supply chain management, and automation for efficient mass production.
- Taiwan-based Design & Engineering TeamcoreInnovega contracted with a Taiwan-based pioneer in smart eyewear manufacturing to design and engineer full-function commercial smart glasses by Q1 2026. The team brings deep expertise in optics, micro-displays, and AR wearables, having developed products for global technology leaders across Asia, Europe, and North America. This partnership accelerates Innovega's timeline to market readiness by combining advanced manufacturing capabilities with Innovega's proprietary optical platform and patent portfolio.
- Leading Assistive Technology Provider (Confidential)flagshipInnovega signed a letter of intent with one of the world's leading providers of assistive technology to the visually impaired, including the legally blind. The partnership includes a substantial investment and is expected to enable Innovega to outsource manufacture and distribution of the initial launch of its eMacula system. The counterparty operates in almost 100 countries and localizes products in more than 20 languages. Company name is confidential at this stage.
- Ohio State University College of OptometrycoreIndependent research evaluation of Innovega's technology through Phase II clinical investigation of the eMacula system. Dr. Jennifer Fogt, Associate Professor of Clinical Optometry, led clinical trials with 15 normally sighted subjects demonstrating positive visual performance results including mean visual acuity slightly better than 20/20.
Scale indicators9 records
Recent moves9 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Innovega competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- eSight: eSight develops electronic glasses that enhance vision for people with low vision and legal blindness, similar to Innovega's Gen I product. Both companies target the same AMD, Stargardt's, and other central vision impairment populations with head-worn camera-plus-display solutions.
- OrCam Technologies: OrCam builds AI-driven wearable devices (MyEye, OrCam Read) that assist visually impaired users with reading, face recognition, and navigation. Both companies focus on wearable assistive vision technology for the legally blind and low-vision populations.
- IrisVision: IrisVision develops VR- and AR-based smart glasses designed to help people with macular degeneration and other low-vision conditions. Like Innovega, the company combines wearable displays with software-driven visual enhancement for the visually impaired.
- NuEyes Technologies: NuEyes produces smart glasses (Pro 3, e2) that magnify and enhance vision for patients with macular degeneration, glaucoma, and retinitis pigmentosa. It is a direct competitor to Innovega's Gen I Smart Glasses in the low-vision assistive wearables market.
Broad incumbents
- Vuzix: Vuzix is an established smart glasses and AR waveguide display company serving enterprise and consumer markets. Vuzix is also a strategic investor in Innovega, positioning it as both a peer in the smart eyewear category and a potential collaborator in display technology.
- Apple (Vision Pro): Apple's Vision Pro is a leading XR headset in the broader smart eyewear category, and former Apple Vision Systems Architect Dr. Arthur Zhang is now Innovega's CTO. While not a direct competitor in low-vision assistive devices today, Apple represents the dominant consumer XR player Innovega may eventually compete with for AR mindshare.
- Meta (Ray-Ban Stories): Meta's Ray-Ban smart glasses represent the leading consumer-grade smart eyewear product today. Meta's massive distribution, brand, and ongoing AR roadmap make it a significant competitive threat as Innovega contemplates pivoting from assistive to consumer AR applications.
- Magic Leap: Magic Leap develops AR headsets and optical systems for enterprise and healthcare applications, including potential medical/surgical use cases. It competes with Innovega for talent, AR mindshare, and enterprise healthcare customers, though it targets different form factors.
Emerging players
- Mojo Vision: Mojo Vision was developing AR-enabled smart contact lenses with embedded micro-LED displays, the most direct technological analog to Innovega's iOptik platform. Despite recent restructuring, Mojo represents the closest emerging competitor in the smart contact lens space.
Others
- Bausch + Lomb: Bausch + Lomb is one of the world's largest contact lens manufacturers and a potential licensee of Innovega's iOptik smart contact lens technology. The licensing model Innovega is pursuing depends on partnerships with established contact lens players like Bausch + Lomb for scaled manufacturing and distribution.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks7 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Innovega social profiles
Digital presenceInnovega financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Innovega leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles9 records
Innovega funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds7 records
Investors3 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Innovega M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Innovega
What does Innovega do?
Innovega designs, develops, and sells lightweight smart eyewear and proprietary smart contact lenses that enhance functional vision for people with moderate to severe vision impairment. The Gen I Smart Glasses use a built-in camera to capture scenes and project enhanced images onto HD micro-OLED transparent displays with adjustable magnification, contrast, brightness, and clarity. The company also sells the eMacula system that combines display eyewear with patented iOptik smart contact lenses for full-field-of-view AR/VR applications across medical, consumer, and industrial markets.
Is Innovega a public or private company?
Innovega is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Innovega founded?
Innovega was founded in 2021. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Innovega based?
Innovega is headquartered in Bellevue, United States, in the North America region.
How does Innovega make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Smart Glasses Sales are the primary driver. The others are smart Contact Lenses, technology Licensing and equity Crowdfunding.
Who are Innovega's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are eSight, OrCam Technologies, IrisVision and NuEyes Technologies. Broad incumbents are Vuzix, Apple (Vision Pro), Meta (Ray-Ban Stories) and Magic Leap. Mojo Vision is listed as an emerging player. Bausch + Lomb is listed as an others.
Does Innovega have an API?
No public API is recorded for Innovega.
What industry is Innovega in?
Innovega's product category is Assistive Smart Eyewear. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HLAHAJAN, Low Vision & Assistive Vision Devices (Magnifiers, Electronic Video Magnifiers, Wearable Vision Aids). Its NAICS code is 339115 and its SIC code is 3851.