Virtuix, the company behind the Omni VR treadmill, announced it’s raised $4.7 million through its latest crowd investment round. The Austin, Texas-based company also says it plans to ship 1,000 of its Omni One VR treadmills by the end of this year.
Earlier this year, Virtuix launched an equity crowdfunding campaign to further support the production of its Omni One VR treadmill, which, when paired with a VR headset, allows you to physically run around in a VR game instead of relying on artificial locomotion schemes, like stick movement or teleportation.
Similar to other parabolic VR treadmills like KAT VR, Omni One requires you to wear special low-friction shoes and strap into a harness system which keeps you in the center of the base’s parabola. Read about our latest hands-on to see Omni One in action.
Since launch in early 2023, the campaign has already raised over $4.7 million. Although just short of its initial $5 million target, Virtuix has decided to conclude the crowdfunding campaign earlier than planned on August 10th.
In addition to individual investors, the funding round received significant support from JC Team Capital, a prior investor, with its founder and CEO, Parth Jani, joining Virtuix’s Board of Directors as a lead investor. Virtuix intends to use the funds to increase Omni One’s production and aims to achieve profitability by 2024.
Virtuix has already started shipping beta units of Omni One to 8,000 of its equity investors. More than 1,000 units are said to ship out by the end of this year, with plans to deliver to all remaining investors in the first quarter of 2024. Pre-orders for the general public are expected to open in late 2023, with deliveries scheduled to start in the second quarter of 2024.
While more accessible to consumers than similar enterprise devices, Omni One’s introductory is $2,595, which includes the Pico VR headset—a sharp reminder that the accessory largely appeals to prosumers and businesses. The company has however devised a payment plan that offers the device as low as $65 per month.
Virtuix’s CEO, Jan Goetgeluk, expressed excitement about Omni One’s success and its potential for rapid revenue growth, saying the company already has a waitlist of 35,000 interested customers.
Founded in 2013, the latest campaign puts Virtuix’s lifetime funding to more than $35 million which was sourced from both individual and institutional investors.