We’ve previously inspected virtual reality (VR) funding trends and observed that its funding in the first half of 2018 was down versus the last two years. Now we are performing a deeper examination on our VR research platform to compare funding by category. Our analysis reveals two key takeaways:

The VR Enabling Software category leads the sector in Q2 funding
The Augmented Reality category leads the sector in all-time funding

We’ll highlight these takeaways with some graphics and discussions below.

The VR Enabling Software Category Leads Virtual Reality In Q2 Funding

To start off, let’s review the amount of funding raised this quarter by each category within VR.

The above graphic shows that the VR Enabling Software category leads the sector in Q2 funding with $59M. Its funding is 1.4 times the funding of the next two categories, Augmented Reality and VR Consumption Hardware at $41M each.

VR Enabling Software companies produce software to facilitate the...

Here is our Q2 2018 summary report on the virtual reality startup sector. The following report includes a sector overview and recent activity.

To learn more about our complete virtual reality report and research platform, visit us at www.venturescanner.com or contact [email protected].

The virtual reality (VR) sector has seen a lot of buzz in the news lately. Its applications can be observed in all industries from health to entertainment to real estate. In addition, we’ve analyzed that its funding and exit momentum has experienced significant growth in recent years.

We will now take a closer look at the different components of the VR sector and how they make up this startup ecosystem. We have classified the companies into 13 categories. This blog post will illustrate what these categories are and which categories have the most companies. We will also compare the categories with one another in terms of their funding and maturity.

Virtual Environment Content Is the Largest VR Category

Let’s start off by looking at the Sector Map for the VR sector. We have classified 750 virtual reality startups into 13 categories that have raised $10 billion. The Sector Map highlights the number of companies in each category. It also shows a random sampling of companies...

Here is our Q1 2018 summary report on the virtual reality startup sector. The following report includes an overview, recent activity, and a category deep dive.

To learn more about our complete virtual reality report and research platform, visit us at www.venturescanner.com or contact [email protected].

The following graphs highlight venture investing trends into the Virtual Reality (VR) sector. The graphics include data through July 2017.

The above graph compares the total venture funding in each VR category to the number of companies in the category. The Augmented Reality category leads in funding at around $2B. The VR Environment Content category leads in the number of startups with about 272.

The above analysis summarizes the average company funding in each VR category. The VR Environment Creation category leads the sector with around $51M in average funding per company, followed by the Augmented Reality category with around $41M in average funding per company.

We are currently tracking 718 VR companies in 13 categories across 49 countries, with a total of $8.1B in funding. Click here to learn more about the full Virtual Reality market report. 

The following graphs highlight the exit activity in the Virtual Reality sector. The graphics include data through July 2017.

The above graph summarizes the number of exits (acquisitions and IPOs) in each Virtual Reality category. The Virtual Reality Enabling Software category leads the sector with 8 acquisitions, followed by the Augmented Reality, VR Environment Content, and 3D Modeling categories with 4 exits each.

The above graph summarizes the number of exits (acquisitions and IPOs) in Virtual Reality by year. 2017 currently leads the sector with 10 acquisitions, followed by 2016 with 5 acquisitions.

We are currently tracking 716 Virtual Reality companies in 13 categories across 49 countries, with a total of $7.3B in funding. Click here to learn more about the full Virtual Reality market report.

The following graph shows average and median age in the Virtual Reality sector. The graphic includes data through July 2017.

The above graph summarizes the average age and median age of companies in each Virtual Reality category. The Virtual Augmented Reality category has the highest average age at around 6 years, followed by the VR Enabling Software and 3D Modeling categories with an average age of around 5.7 years each. The VR Enabling Software category has the highest median age at 7 years, followed by the VR Cinema Content category with a median age of 5.5 years. On the other hand, Virtual Reality Analytics is the youngest Virtual Reality category with an average age and a median age of approximately 3 years each.

We are currently tracking 713 Virtual Reality companies in 13 categories across 49 countries, with a total of $6.8 Billion in funding. Click here to learn more about the full Virtual Reality market report.

The following graph shows the founding year distribution in the Virtual Reality sector. The graphic includes data through July 2017.

The above graph summarizes the number of Virtual Reality companies founded in a certain year. 2015 ranks at the top with around 140 companies founded. 2014 comes in at second with around 108 companies founded in that year.

We are currently tracking 708 Virtual Reality companies in 13 categories across 49 countries, with a total of $6.7 Billion in funding. Click here to learn more about the full Virtual Reality market report.

The following two graphs summarize the rounds of funding going into the Virtual Reality space. Please note these graphics are made using data through July 2017.

The graph above shows the total amount of VC funding broken out by round. From 2006 to 2016, the overall sector funding peaked in 2014, plateaued in 2015, and peaked again with a much bigger magnitude in 2016. Earlier stage funding rounds (Series A, B, and C) made up most of the funding amount.

The graph above shows the total count of funding events broken out by round. We’ve seen a general upward trend which peaked in 2015 and plateaued thereafter. Earlier stage deals (Seed and Series A) have seen the largest growth in the number of funding events.

We are currently tracking 703 Virtual Reality companies in 13 categories across 49 countries, with a total of $6.6 Billion in funding. Click here to learn more about the full Virtual Reality market report.

The following graph shows average and median age in the Virtual Reality sector. The graphic includes data through March 2017.

The above graph summarizes the average age and median age of companies in each Virtual Reality category. The Virtual Augmented Reality category has the highest average age at around 6 years, followed by the VR Enabling Software and 3D Modeling categories with an average age of around 5.7 years each. The VR Enabling Software category has the highest median age at 7 years, followed by the VR Cinema Content category with a median age of 5.5 years.

We are currently tracking 695 Virtual Reality companies in 13 categories across 49 countries, with a total of $6.5 Billion in funding. Click here to learn more about the full Virtual Reality market report.

The following graph shows the founding year distribution in the Virtual Reality sector. The graphic includes data through March 2017.

The above graph summarizes the number of Virtual Reality companies founded in a certain year. 2015 ranks at the top with around 125 companies founded. 2014 comes in at second with around 100 companies founded in that year.

We are currently tracking 689 Virtual Reality companies in 13 categories across 49 countries, with a total of $5.8 Billion in funding. Click here to learn more about the full Virtual Reality market report.

The following two graphs summarize the rounds of funding going into the Virtual Reality space. Please note these graphics are made using data through March 2017.

The graph above shows the total amount of VC funding broken out by round. From 2006 to 2016, the overall sector funding peaked once in 2014 and peaked again with a much bigger magnitude in 2016. Earlier stage funding rounds (Series A, B, and C) made up most of the funding amount.

The graph above shows the total count of funding events broken out by round. We’ve seen a general upward trend which peaked in 2015 and remained constant thereafter. Earlier stage deals (Seed and Series A) have seen the largest growth in the number of funding events.

We are currently tracking 684 Virtual Reality companies in 13 categories across 49 countries, with a total of $4.9 Billion in funding. Click here to learn more about the full Virtual Reality market report.

The following graphs highlight the exit activity in the Virtual Reality sector. The graphics include data through March 2017.

The above graph summarizes the number of exits (acquisitions and IPOs) in each Virtual Reality category. Virtual Augmented Reality, VR Enabling Software, and 3D Modeling categories lead the sector with 4 exits each. 

The above graph summarizes the number of exits (acquisitions and IPOs) in Virtual Reality by year. 2016 currently leads the sector with 5 acquisitions, followed by 2014 with 3 acquisitions.

We are currently tracking 677 Virtual Reality companies in 13 categories across 49 countries, with a total of $4.8B in funding. Click here to learn more about the full Virtual Reality market report.

The following graph shows the founding year distribution in the Virtual Reality sector. The graphic includes data through October 2016.

The above graph summarizes the number of Virtual Reality companies founded in a certain year. 2015 ranks at the top with 97 companies founded in that year alone. 2014 is the runner-up with 71 companies founded in that year.

We are currently tracking 634 VR companies in 13 categories across 45 countries, with a total of $5 Billion in funding. Click here to learn more about the full Virtual Reality report and database.

The following graph summarizes the investor activity in the Virtual Reality (VR) space. Please note these graphics are made using data through October  2016.

The above analysis summarizes the total number of investment rounds VR investors participated in, and the number of unique companies funded by selected investors. Frontier Tech Ventures takes the lead in both categories, making the highest number of investments (around 13) and backing the most companies (around 11). Andreessen Horowitz, Sky, GV, and Dana Capital round out the top of the list.

We are currently tracking 585 VR companies in 13 categories across 44 countries, with a total of $3.8 Billion in funding. Click here to learn more about the full VR landscape report and database.

The above analysis summarizes the average company funding in each Virtual Reality category. The Virtual AR category dominates the sector with around $70M in average funding per company. The VR Enabling Software and VR Consumption Hardware categories round out the top three.

We are currently tracking 573 Virtual Reality companies in 13 categories across 44 countries, with a total of $3.7 Billion in funding. Click here to learn more about the full Virtual Reality landscape report and database.

The above graph summarizes the average age and median age of companies in each Virtual Reality category. The Virtual Augmented Reality category has the highest average age at 6 years, followed by the 3D Modeling category with an average age of just under 6 years. The Enterprise VR category has the highest median age at 15 years, followed by the VR Enabling Software category with a median age of 14 years.

We are currently tracking 565 Virtual Reality companies in 13 categories across 43 countries, with a total of $3.4 Billion in funding. Click here to learn more about the full Virtual Reality landscape report and database.

The above graph summarizes the total funding raised by Virtual Reality startups for each year. 2016 is the best year so far with almost $1.6B raised to date. 2014 comes in at second place with almost $0.8B raised.

The above graph summarizes the total amount of funding raised by Virtual Reality companies founded in a certain year. VR companies founded in 2011 have raised the most funding at around $1.4B, followed by those founded in 2012 which have raised about $0.3B.

We are currently tracking 564 Virtual Reality companies in 13 categories across 43 countries, with a total of $3.46 Billion in funding. Click here to learn more about the full Virtual Reality landscape report and database.

The above sector map organizes the Virtual Reality sector into 13 categories and shows a sampling of companies in each category.

3D Modeling: Companies that enable the user to capture and render everyday objects in 3D. Examples include 3D full-body scanners, 3D head modeling, and 3D merchandise modeling.

Enterprise Virtual Reality: Companies that utilize virtual reality for enterprise/business purposes. Examples include virtual work rooms, virtual real estate visualizations, and virtual data visualizations.

Medical/Health Virtual Reality: Companies that utilize virtual reality for medical and health/wellness purposes. Examples include virtual meditation environments, virtual fitness simulations, and virtual environments to treat eye illnesses.

Virtual Augmented Reality: Companies that create virtual reality solutions but also incorporate relevant augmented reality capabilities and functionalities. Examples include augmented reality headsets, augmented reality social games, and...