The Eye Tribe
Innovation Fund Grand Solutions
The Danish entrepreneur company The Eye Tribe has developed a project that will make eye-controlled phones and tablets available to consumers. Their eye-tracking technology will make it easier, faster and more natural to use mobile devices, and several experts believe that eye control will revolutionize the use of smartphones in the same way as touch screens did years ago. When the technology is fully developed, it will make it possible to operate, e.g., smartphones and tablets using the eyes, so users of these devices will be able to write text messages, browse the Internet, log on to their online banking or playing games – all by merely using eye movements.
After the project The Eye Tribe was acquired by Oculus (owned by Facebook/Meta).
1st Mile’s Work with The Eye Tribe
With the help of 1st Mile, The Eye Tribe compiled and applied for project funding under the Grand Solutions program under Innovation Fund Denmark (Innovationsfonden; then Højteknologifonden), and a strong partnership was established. This project involved both private and public partners such as Lego, Serious Games, the IT University and the Technical University of Denmark.
Before applying for the grant, The Eye Tribe received an investment of approx. DKK 5 million from private investors in 2012, but according to CEO Sune Alstrup Johansen, the support from the Advanced Technology Foundation gave the start-up company the vital boost they needed.
“We have a groundbreaking technology that eventually could become the standard for mobile phones. The potential is there, and we now have a unique starting point. The support from the Advanced Technology Foundation will help us develop and maintain our position in the market.”
The Eye Tribe’s application with 1st Mile resulted in a grant of DKK 13 million for a three-year project with a total budget of DKK 25 million, funded by the Danish Advanced Technology Foundation.
Since our work with The Eye Tribe, the company was acquired by Facebook and Oculus in 2016. Read more about the acquisition story published on TechCrunch by clicking here.
Below are a few words from The Eye Tribe on their collaboration with us.