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VueReal Closes $40.5M USD Funding Endorsement For Its MicroLED Printing Technology
January 30, 2025 by Dave Haynes
A Canadian company regarded as one of the more innovative players in the manufacturing end of microLED displays just got a heathy does on confidence from the market, with VueReal closing a $40.5 millionSeries C funding round.
The Waterloo, Ontario company, which operates out of one of Research In Motion’s (Blackberry) vacated buildings, will use the funds to scale its production capabilities and “enhance its ecosystem to support partners in achieving their goals of integrating microLEDs in commercial production.”
The company, which is profiled in the recent Sixteen:Nine Future Displays report, has developed Microsolid Printing technology intended to address and overcome one of the primary challenges of bringing microLED products to market at workable prices – cost-effective, accurate and high volume mass transfer of the teeny LEDs to the display surface or backplane.
“VueReal has always been committed to delivering and scaling its breakthrough MicroSolid Printing platform to redefine the display and sensing landscape. This latest funding round is a testament to our partners’ confidence in our technology and vision,” says Dr. Reza Chaji, CEO of VueReal. “This new capital infusion will enable us to scale the mass production of microLED lighting and displays while empowering our partners to enhance their production capabilities. By expanding the ecosystem, we aim to ensure the seamless integration of Microsolid Printing technology into production lines worldwide.”
“As a lead investor, Export Development Canada recognizes VueReal as a pioneer shaping the future of the global microLED market,” says Lissa Bjerkelund, Vice-President, Investments and Mid-Market Lending. “VueReal’s cutting-edge technology and commitment to establishing a world-class production platform are pivotal in unlocking the vast potential of microLED and other micro semiconductor innovations across industries. EDC is pleased to support VueReal’s global ambitions and help the company realize its bold vision for the future.”
Other investors include Cycle Capital, BDC Capital’s Cleantech Practice, and TDK Ventures.
“VueReal is transforming the lighting and display industry and creating a scalable, sustainable pathway for advanced manufacturing,” says Andrée-Lise Méthot, Founder Managing Partner of Cycle Capital. “We value VueReal’s ability to drive innovation and commercialize the technology through innovative business plans. We’re excited to be part of this journey and look forward to seeing the impact of their technology on a global scale.”
This funding milestone follows several recent breakthroughs for VueReal, including its partnership with microLED suppliers and foundries for cartridge scale-up production and significant patent portfolio growth. VueReal continues to solidify its position as a global leader in microLED and micro semiconductor innovation, driving the industry forward with its commitment to sustainability, performance, and scalability.
Vuereal was one of my early visits and interviews in pulling together the Future Displays report. These guys were all big-brained electrical engineers, and I will happily admit I didn’t fully grasp everything Chaji relayed. But what I did sense was this was they were developing processes to use with very sophisticated machinery to effectively print microLEDs.
Here’s how I frame it in the report:
VueReal has developed a method and equipment to mass transfer and place LED lights the size of bacteria on target backplanes (surfaces). At the heart of the process are what VueReal calls cartridges, microchip-like electronics that are smaller and much thinner than a mobile phone micro SIM card. The cartridges, belying their size, can hold thousands of LEDs so small they need to be viewed under a microscope.
One of those tiny cartridges, seen on a table during a visit to VueReal’s main office, had a depth of just six microns, and was populated by some 50,000 LEDs.
VueReal is developing enabling technology – mass transfer capability to build displays much more rapidly than conventional methods. Critical to that is doing so with 99.999% accuracy, a so-called yield rate needed to minimize flaws and hedge against products being unmarketable.
VueReal’s MicroSolid Printing technology enables mass parallel transfer of micro devices – not just LEDs but equally small devices like sensors. In lay terms, printing involves passing the cartridge over backplanes and depositing LEDs.
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