The new LBS projectors from the Viennese startup TriLite: The 1cm³ wonder for the AR glasses market! – Creative image: Xpert.Digital
Billion-dollar AR market: This Viennese startup holds the key to success
The 1cm³ miracle: How TriLite plans to conquer the 766 billion AR market with Trixel® 3.
The Laser Beam Scanner (LBS) projectors from the Vienna-based company TriLite are revolutionizing the augmented reality (AR) glasses market with their unprecedented compactness and efficiency. With the Trixel® 3, which the company claims is the world's smallest projection display, TriLite could deliver the crucial technology that finally makes AR glasses suitable for mass adoption. Strategic partnerships with Infineon and ams OSRAM, as well as a successful €20 million Series A funding round, underscore the enormous potential of this technology. The AR glasses market is projected to grow to US$766 billion by 2025, with TriLite's ultra-lightweight display technology representing a key element in this growth market.
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Trixel® 3: The revolutionary display technology
The Trixel® 3 Laser Beam Scanner represents a groundbreaking innovation in display technology. This ultra-compact optical display module combines a single 2D MEMS (Micro-Electro-Mechanical System) mirror, RGB laser diodes, and all optical components in an extremely small form factor. With a volume of less than 1 cm³ and a weight of under 1.5 g, the Trixel® 3 is among the smallest and lightest projection displays on the market.
The technical specifications of the Trixel® 3 are impressive. The projector boasts extremely low power consumption of under 320 mW, enabling all-day use, while simultaneously offering a brightness of 15 lumens – sufficient for clear readability even in direct sunlight. Furthermore, the technology provides a maximum color gamut that exceeds the sRGB standard by more than 200%, ensuring superior image quality.
A key distinguishing feature of Trixel® technology is TriLite's innovative "software-defined display" approach. This shifts complexity from the hardware to the software domain. The patented Trajectory Control Module (TCM) utilizes proprietary algorithms to ensure optimal image quality with minimal latency and to control position and brightness with subpixel-level precision.
“The ultra-compact and lightweight Trixel® 3 LBS projector combines a single 2D MEMS mirror, all optical components and the Trajectory Control Module (TCM), which shifts the complexity of a projector from the hardware to the software,” is how an industry report describes the innovative approach.
Since March 2024, TriLite has been providing form-factor engineering samples for the Trixel® 3 LBS, which combine the display engine, control electronics, and TCM software. These samples enable customers to quickly prototype their AR systems and significantly reduce time to market.
The AR glasses market: An industry on the rise
The augmented reality market is at a crucial turning point. Despite past difficulties – even Google had to cope with a painful flop with Google Glass – the industry expects enormous growth. According to forecasts, the AR market could reach a value of 766 billion US dollars as early as 2025.
Global shipments of head-mounted displays (HMDs) are projected to increase at a remarkable annual growth rate of 60 percent between 2020 and 2027. TriLite's laser beam scanner technology is considered a key driver of this growth, as it eliminates one of the main obstacles to the mass adoption of AR glasses: the size and weight of the display technology.
A crucial impetus for the AR market was the introduction of Apple's Vision Pro mixed-reality headset in 2023. As Heinz Arnold, editor-in-chief of Markt & Technik, noted: "Apple is giving not only VR, but also AR glasses an enormous boost." He also emphasized that "the missing element for consumer AR is a suitable display technology.".
The biggest obstacle to the widespread adoption of AR glasses in the consumer market has been their bulkiness and weight. TriLite's technology promises to solve this problem. According to Hermann Hauser, a renowned investor and founder of Hermann Hauser Investment GmbH, TriLite's tiny displays will fundamentally change AR/MR glasses by making them as light as conventional glasses. This should finally accelerate the mass adoption of AR/MR in the consumer market.
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Strategic partnerships for innovation
To ensure the mass-market appeal and technological superiority of its products, TriLite has established significant strategic partnerships. A particularly important collaboration is with the German chip manufacturer Infineon, which supplies the startup with lightweight and energy-efficient semiconductor technology (MEMS).
Infineon's MEMS scanner chipset features an innovative tilting mirror, forming the basis for a new generation of laser beam scanner projectors. Compared to alternative system designs and competing solutions, the chipset stands out significantly in terms of performance, size, energy consumption, and competitive system costs.
“Infineon’s MEMS scanner chipset features an innovative tilting mirror that forms the basis for a new generation of laser beam scanner (LBS) projectors. Compared to alternative system designs and competing MEMS scanner solutions, Infineon’s new chipset stands out in terms of performance, size, energy consumption and competitive system costs,” the German company said in a press release.
TriLite has also forged another crucial partnership with ams OSRAM, a leading global provider of intelligent sensors and emitters. ams OSRAM supplies the RGB laser diodes for the Trixel® 3 Laser Beam Scanner, whose leading performance and efficiency make them ideally suited to the projector's requirements.
The value creation strategy is based on partnerships with leading global companies to ensure the highest quality and reliable series production for the customer portfolio. Dr. Peter Weigand, CEO of TriLite, emphasizes that the choice of ams OSRAM as a technology partner is based on the outstanding performance and efficiency of ams OSRAM's laser light sources, which perfectly meet the requirements of the Trixel® 3 LBS projector in terms of brightness, contrast, and power.
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Trixel® 3: The technology behind smarter and lighter AR glasses
Financing successes and market strategies
TriLite has recently achieved significant funding successes, underscoring investors' confidence in the potential of its technology. In 2024, the company announced that it had increased its total Series A funding to more than €20 million.
In this extended financing round, two strategic investors – Continental's Corporate Venture Capital Unit and an unnamed global electronics supplier – invested in the Trixel® 3 projection display. Existing financial investors APEX Ventures, B&C Innovation Investments, and TEC Ventures also participated in this round.
Jürgen Bilo, Managing Director of Continental's Corporate Venture Capital Unit, emphasized the importance of the technology and explained that TriLite has developed an outstanding display solution for AR applications. He highlighted that Continental places great value on TriLite's innovative technology and sees high potential in various automotive applications in addition to consumer applications.
Back in October 2021, TriLite had already received €8 million in a previous funding round, in which investors including APEX Ventures, B&C Innovation Investments, Hermann Hauser Investment, TEC Ventures, and QC-Ventures participated. This ongoing financial support enables the company to advance its technological development and expand its market presence.
Peter Weigand, CEO of TriLite, explained the company's strategic direction and emphasized that TriLite has proven the functionality and market viability of its Laser Beam Scanning (LBS) technology for high-volume consumer applications. With the recent funding and the support of experienced strategic investors, TriLite plans to further qualify the optical LBS engine for both consumer AR systems and automotive applications and to move it into industrial production.
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Application areas and future prospects
TriLite's Trixel® technology opens up a wide range of application possibilities, with a primary focus on consumer AR glasses. The ultra-compact projection displays make it possible to develop AR glasses as light as today's standard glasses, which could significantly increase their acceptance in the mass market.
Augmented reality with Trixel® can make everyday life more comfortable and efficient: "AR overlays virtual objects in front of you, and where this is via a truly wearable head mounted display with Trixel®, it can make every day less stressful and more satisfying. See when your Uber will arrive hands-free, effortlessly manage your business to-do list, or get live updates while watching your favorite team, thanks to our ultra-compact display".
In addition to consumer applications, TriLite is also showing increased interest in automotive applications. At SPIE AR|VR|MR 2025 in San Francisco, the company presented its new technology for dynamic projections onto any surface. This includes advanced automotive use cases such as dynamic turn signals and reversing warnings, as well as innovative applications like transforming the vehicle interior into an interactive projection surface.
Looking ahead, TriLite plans to unveil its new compact, cube-shaped Trixel 3 projector at Display Week 2025 in San Jose: “TriLite will introduce its new compact, cube-shaped Trixel 3 projector (~1cm³), optimized for mass production and ease of integration into AR eyewear designs. This new format enables hinges to be positioned closer to the lenses, reducing complexity for manufacturers and supporting sleeker, more stylish smart glasses.”.
Kevin Hockerman, Head of Sales at TriLite, will give an overview of the company's mission and display innovations at this event, while Mario Spiegl, Chief Commercial Officer, will be on hand to interact with visitors and discuss the new display solution.
TriLite as a pioneer for the mass market of AR glasses
TriLite has established itself as a pioneer in the field of ultra-compact projection displays with its Trixel® 3 Laser Beam Scanner and could thus provide a decisive boost to the AR glasses market. The innovative technology overcomes previous limitations regarding size, weight, and energy efficiency that have so far prevented the widespread acceptance of AR glasses in the consumer market.
Strategic partnerships with technology leaders such as Infineon and ams OSRAM, as well as the successful €20 million Series A financing round, underscore the confidence in the potential of this technology. With the availability of engineering samples and the planned unveiling of the redesigned Trixel 3 projector at Display Week 2025, TriLite demonstrates that the technology is nearing market readiness.
The future outlook for TriLite and the AR glasses market is promising. The forecast that the market could grow to $766 billion by 2025 demonstrates its enormous potential. With its ultra-compact and energy-efficient display technology, TriLite is ideally positioned to capitalize on this growth while making a significant contribution to the realization of everyday AR glasses.
The company's vision of enabling AR glasses that are as light and comfortable as conventional glasses could fundamentally change the way we interact with digital information. If TriLite succeeds in industrializing its technology and establishing it in the market, the Vienna-based startup could indeed become a key pioneer for the mass market of AR glasses.
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