Today, we’re announcing we’ve acquired NZXR, a world-class AR studio based in New Zealand. NZXR has led the creation of AR-first experiences for years, helping companies and brands create engaging and interactive AR apps and prototypes for mobile phones and AR headsets. Joining Niantic, the NZXR team will become an integral part of the design and development of multiplayer real-world AR experiences unique to Niantic.

Our goal has always been to create augmented reality experiences that can be enjoyed by millions of people and to build the technology that powers them and third-party applications – Niantic Lightship. From Ingress to Pokémon GO, and Pikmin Bloom, people around the world have come together to complete Ingress missions, catch Pokémon, collect Pikmin, and explore the world. The NZXR team will help us accelerate new kinds of AR experiences for the real-world metaverse where our explorers can create, contribute, and interact with digital objects in a way that is persistent and shared by everyone.

NZXR shares this vision for how technology can positively impact our lives out in the physical world. They have created unique multiplayer AR experiences that blend the real and digital worlds for mobile phones, and AR headsets from Qualcomm and Magic Leap. The team has built dozens of experiences and supported projects ranging from interactive theater to AR skateboarding to multiplayer AR demos, and more.

We’re excited to welcome NZXR to Niantic and continue building the future of AR and the real-world metaverse together. For NZXR’s shared perspective on the news, please see the blog post from James Everett, the co-founder of NZXR.

-Dennis Hwang, VP of Visual and Interaction Design