Freelands
86-90 Paul Street, London, England, EC2A 4NE, United Kingdom
Overview
Freelands Ventures is an early stage venture fund investing at the intersection of media, technology and entertainment. They believe that success is shaped as much by access to great partners and networks as it is by capital. They provide internal strategic and operational experience and a best-in-class global network of media, brand and partner relationships to help accelerate the growth of their portfolio companies. They like to collaborate with teams where it is immediately apparent how they can add value and support to a bold ambition. They are based in London but invest wherever they find the most brilliant people and products.
- Total investments
- 1
- Lead investments
- 0
- Investments · 12mo
- 0
- Active investors
- 0
Sector focus
- Finance
- Financial Services
Investment portfolio
- 8i
Participated · Series A · Oct 2015
8i builds volumetric capture systems that stitch multiple camera feeds into three-dimensional holograms, primarily aimed at bringing celebrities and personalities into immersive AR/VR experiences. The company has focused on headset-based solutions but is moving toward phone-based augmented reality through a new app called Holo. Holo is slated to launch later this year on Google Tango–compatible devices, with the company open to supporting more basic camera configurations in the future. 8i Studios currently counts more than 100 partners using its capture technology. Growth is constrained by the technical complexity of high-end hologram creation—many captures require large, studio-grade setups—and the firm says its software is steadily improving. 8i is not pursuing hardware production and is instead anticipating more mobile volumetric capture devices that would enable simpler footage to be uploaded to its network. The company recently closed a $27 million Series B round of funding led by Time Warner Investments. 8i builds a consumer media platform that enables users to create, experience and share immersive, lifelike 3D video of real people. Its proprietary software transforms regular camera video into realistic, fully volumetric 3D video for VR, AR and the web, allowing viewers to move around people in a virtual environment while preserving human movement, face and hair detail. The company was founded in May 2014 by CEO Linc Gasking and is headquartered in Wellington, New Zealand, having since expanded to Los Angeles and San Francisco. 8i has opened a showcase studio in Culver City, Los Angeles, and plans to offer free access to the recording studios alongside community events such as workshops and demonstrations. The company announced a $13.5M venture funding round, reflecting its current financial backing. No operating metrics (revenue/users) were disclosed in the article.
Team
No current team members are available.