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PORTL Hologram raises $3M to put a hologram machine in every home

55 points by respinal 6y ago

mensetmanusman 6y ago
I think the only way this could succeed would be by doubling as a good TV that can rotate 90 degrees with no hassle. How else do you convince people to set aside a space in the hoe for the occasional sales rep to talk to you.
- runawaybottle 6y ago
  Porn has a way with these things my friend.
sargun 6y ago
It sounds like they have an outsized amount of bookings compared to recognized revenue: The company has sold a hundred devices and already delivered several dozen to shopping malls, airports and movie theater lobbies. “We’ve manufactured and delivered several dozen,” Nussbaum said. I wonder what their challenge has been in recognizing that revenue. If it’s a matter of delivery capacity, R&D, or something else. At $60,000, it feels a little steep to me personally, but I would more than happily pay for the spectacle — like a movie theatre ticket price. Besides that, I’ve always thought volumetric displays would be a good way to visualize information. If the display is large enough, it’s a much better way to view certain datasets. Combined with certain gesture recognition technologies, this really does feel like technology that could be welcome in conference rooms. From a home entertainment, this reminds me of DVDs with multiple angles. Although it never was popular at the time, I think that it’d be awesome to watch a football game or play age of empires on such a display.
- jtsiskin 6y ago
  I’m pretty sure it’s only a 2D display, essentially a semi-transparent display in front of a box. It can’t visualize any data better than a 2D screen could. It’s https://images.app.goo.gl/BZAgsgtkdoptiGw37 https://images.app.goo.gl/BZAgsgtkdoptiGw37 but in a box. It does look like the edges of the box help with the sense of presence.
aphextron 6y ago
There's no such thing as holograms. Not until we discover new physics. These are Pepper's Ghost, a simple lighting trick [0]. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pepper%27s_ghost https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pepper%27s_ghost
- toast0 6y ago
  This isn't holograms (and neither are the looking glass or Sony's spatial display thingie), but holograms exist, generally film based.
- ceejayoz 6y ago
  Might wanna let the Nobel Committee know that. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dennis_Gabor https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dennis_Gabor
  - qchris 6y ago
    Side note: Dennis Gabor's "Personal life" section seems to have a strange bit of editorialization. > On 8 August 1936 he married Marjorie Louise Butler with whom he lived in a harmonious marriage. They did not have any children. I'm glad they lived in a harmonious marriage, I guess? I am really curious why/how that particular detail managed to make it onto Wikipedia. Random edit? Part of the phrasing in a biography or his will? Someone who knew them personally that wanted to make that clear?
    - haram_masala 6y ago
      Maybe they sang a lot.
    - cma 6y ago
      Sounds like typical language of an obituary, maybe it was lifted from one.
    - aaron695 6y ago
      It's often useful to check the other language wikis that are relevant for more info. (here you replace the en with hu) It's cited from here - "harmonikus házasságban" https://dokutar.omikk.bme.hu/archivum/gabor/htm/gaborkronol.htm https://dokutar.omikk.bme.hu/archivum/gabor/htm/gaborkronol.... Why they said it.......
jtsiskin 6y ago
What is the advantage of this over just an LCD screen? Is it just that the edges of the box move when the viewer does?
gkoberger 6y ago
Hmm, I don't understand why they did a $3M round. If they've already sold a hundred at $60k, that's $6M in revenue. I feel like they'd want to raise a lot more, or try to remain profitable. The $3M seems like they're taking on dilution (and expectations) for an relatively low amount of money, when their product is $60k and has a fair amount of traction.
- jtsiskin 6y ago
  The $6M probably only comes after delivering the product. $3M might be the what they need to get strong manufacturing going. And it looks like they money comes with a COO and some strong connections. It may be a smart move by the founder to get what they need while giving up as little equity as possible
  - gkoberger 6y ago
    So why not do debt financing? I do agree that it seems to be for the connections, and for all we know they gave up 5% for that $3M.
    - echelon 6y ago
      > So why not do debt financing? If you do debt financing, does that look unattractive to future VC rounds? Have any successful startups done primarily debt financing?
      - pbadg3r 6y ago
        Debt tends to be hard for super new companies, even with orders in hand. If you are developing a new product and don't have cash up front, there's a good chance you never deliver, and both lenders and potential customers know that. Also looks unattractive in future VC rounds, but in this case probably secondary to my first point.
        webmaven 6y ago
ilaksh 6y ago
I automatically distrust this just from the name. I know what holograms are and that is not it. It looks like it's just a full body video conference with a blank screen behind the person.
canada_dry 6y ago
This is a $60K 4K display... I'm missing what makes it revolutionary?!?
advertising 6y ago
Package up a gimmick in a decent looking kiosk and pitch the “where won’t this work!?” dream. You’ll capture enough imagination in pitch meetings to raise a few mil. You’ll put together a team and manufacture your first batch, spending all of your first raise in the process. A few big name clients will pop-up and show interest, enough to go back to your investors for a just a bit more money to keep going. Big name clients do some one off deals, everyone is interested but if it could just do X or Y, you’ll chase custom requests and eventually arrive at the crossroads of becoming an event based marketing agency or riding a slowly fading business into the ground as the kiosks age and no new clients sign up after the hype is over. Whether it’s touch screen mirrors, digital art club screens, cell phone charging kiosks, photo booths, sports training kiosks, screens on water faucets, it’s inevitably the same story arch. The only ones I’ve seen that make money are those that pivot into high-ticket custom events which then you’re not a scalable startup anymore but an agency, or you barely get your investors bailed out by selling some backend tech you developed for stock in another company.
- hkmurakami 6y ago
  Hey now, photo booths have been doing very, very well in Japan for 30 years! =D
- jayparth 6y ago
  "Pessimists sound smart. Optimists make money." —@natfriedman
  - jldugger 6y ago
    They also lose a ton of it =)
  - Judgmentality 6y ago
    Pessimists make money shorting the market.
  - deleted 6y ago
    [deleted]
- 6y ago
gdsfahgadsfgad 6y ago
> build a machine that can bring the joy of hologram-based communication to the masses. I sincerely hope Techchrunch is being paid a lot of cash to be this bad at journalism.
athriren 6y ago
fun with ambiguity: the title reads as if this company is literally using the 3 million to put the holograms in every home. i was unaware that holograms were commodity hardware. at 7.5 billion people, assume 4 people per household, that is 1.8 billion hologram devices. this puts the unit price at about a third of a penny. i’ll take 3.
thwarted 6y ago
The projector can transmit images any time of the day or night Is there some limitation of image recording and transmission technology that I'm not aware of that this needs to be called out?
- stronglikedan 6y ago
  I took that to mean it the projected image could be seen in daylight.
joakleaf 6y ago
So we now have the Telehuman from Silicon Valley? https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=9YOEEpWAXgU https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=9YOEEpWAXgU I wonder if the audio is working.
aquarin 6y ago
"In every home" - sure, if you somehow involve the adult industry.

55 points by respinal 6y ago

I think the only way this could succeed would be by doubling as a good TV that can rotate 90 degrees with no hassle. How else do you convince people to set aside a space in the hoe for the occasional sales rep to talk to you.

runawaybottle 6y ago
Porn has a way with these things my friend.

sargun 6y ago

It sounds like they have an outsized amount of bookings compared to recognized revenue: The company has sold a hundred devices and already delivered several dozen to shopping malls, airports and movie theater lobbies. “We’ve manufactured and delivered several dozen,” Nussbaum said. I wonder what their challenge has been in recognizing that revenue. If it’s a matter of delivery capacity, R&D, or something else. At $60,000, it feels a little steep to me personally, but I would more than happily pay for the spectacle — like a movie theatre ticket price. Besides that, I’ve always thought volumetric displays would be a good way to visualize information. If the display is large enough, it’s a much better way to view certain datasets. Combined with certain gesture recognition technologies, this really does feel like technology that could be welcome in conference rooms. From a home entertainment, this reminds me of DVDs with multiple angles. Although it never was popular at the time, I think that it’d be awesome to watch a football game or play age of empires on such a display.

jtsiskin 6y ago
I’m pretty sure it’s only a 2D display, essentially a semi-transparent display in front of a box. It can’t visualize any data better than a 2D screen could. It’s https://images.app.goo.gl/BZAgsgtkdoptiGw37 https://images.app.goo.gl/BZAgsgtkdoptiGw37 but in a box. It does look like the edges of the box help with the sense of presence.

aphextron 6y ago

There's no such thing as holograms. Not until we discover new physics. These are Pepper's Ghost, a simple lighting trick [0]. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pepper%27s_ghost https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pepper%27s_ghost

toast0 6y ago
This isn't holograms (and neither are the looking glass or Sony's spatial display thingie), but holograms exist, generally film based.
ceejayoz 6y ago
Might wanna let the Nobel Committee know that. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dennis_Gabor https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dennis_Gabor
- qchris 6y ago
  Side note: Dennis Gabor's "Personal life" section seems to have a strange bit of editorialization. > On 8 August 1936 he married Marjorie Louise Butler with whom he lived in a harmonious marriage. They did not have any children. I'm glad they lived in a harmonious marriage, I guess? I am really curious why/how that particular detail managed to make it onto Wikipedia. Random edit? Part of the phrasing in a biography or his will? Someone who knew them personally that wanted to make that clear?
  - haram_masala 6y ago
    Maybe they sang a lot.
  - cma 6y ago
    Sounds like typical language of an obituary, maybe it was lifted from one.
  - aaron695 6y ago
    It's often useful to check the other language wikis that are relevant for more info. (here you replace the en with hu) It's cited from here - "harmonikus házasságban" https://dokutar.omikk.bme.hu/archivum/gabor/htm/gaborkronol.htm https://dokutar.omikk.bme.hu/archivum/gabor/htm/gaborkronol.... Why they said it.......

jtsiskin 6y ago

What is the advantage of this over just an LCD screen? Is it just that the edges of the box move when the viewer does?

gkoberger 6y ago

Hmm, I don't understand why they did a $3M round. If they've already sold a hundred at $60k, that's $6M in revenue. I feel like they'd want to raise a lot more, or try to remain profitable. The $3M seems like they're taking on dilution (and expectations) for an relatively low amount of money, when their product is $60k and has a fair amount of traction.

jtsiskin 6y ago
The $6M probably only comes after delivering the product. $3M might be the what they need to get strong manufacturing going. And it looks like they money comes with a COO and some strong connections. It may be a smart move by the founder to get what they need while giving up as little equity as possible
- gkoberger 6y ago
  So why not do debt financing? I do agree that it seems to be for the connections, and for all we know they gave up 5% for that $3M.
  - echelon 6y ago
    > So why not do debt financing? If you do debt financing, does that look unattractive to future VC rounds? Have any successful startups done primarily debt financing?
    - pbadg3r 6y ago
      Debt tends to be hard for super new companies, even with orders in hand. If you are developing a new product and don't have cash up front, there's a good chance you never deliver, and both lenders and potential customers know that. Also looks unattractive in future VC rounds, but in this case probably secondary to my first point.
      - webmaven 6y ago

ilaksh 6y ago

I automatically distrust this just from the name. I know what holograms are and that is not it. It looks like it's just a full body video conference with a blank screen behind the person.

canada_dry 6y ago

This is a $60K 4K display... I'm missing what makes it revolutionary?!?

advertising 6y ago

Package up a gimmick in a decent looking kiosk and pitch the “where won’t this work!?” dream. You’ll capture enough imagination in pitch meetings to raise a few mil. You’ll put together a team and manufacture your first batch, spending all of your first raise in the process. A few big name clients will pop-up and show interest, enough to go back to your investors for a just a bit more money to keep going. Big name clients do some one off deals, everyone is interested but if it could just do X or Y, you’ll chase custom requests and eventually arrive at the crossroads of becoming an event based marketing agency or riding a slowly fading business into the ground as the kiosks age and no new clients sign up after the hype is over. Whether it’s touch screen mirrors, digital art club screens, cell phone charging kiosks, photo booths, sports training kiosks, screens on water faucets, it’s inevitably the same story arch. The only ones I’ve seen that make money are those that pivot into high-ticket custom events which then you’re not a scalable startup anymore but an agency, or you barely get your investors bailed out by selling some backend tech you developed for stock in another company.

hkmurakami 6y ago
Hey now, photo booths have been doing very, very well in Japan for 30 years! =D
jayparth 6y ago
"Pessimists sound smart. Optimists make money." —@natfriedman
- jldugger 6y ago
  They also lose a ton of it =)
- Judgmentality 6y ago
  Pessimists make money shorting the market.
- deleted 6y ago
  [deleted]
6y ago

gdsfahgadsfgad 6y ago

> build a machine that can bring the joy of hologram-based communication to the masses. I sincerely hope Techchrunch is being paid a lot of cash to be this bad at journalism.

athriren 6y ago

fun with ambiguity: the title reads as if this company is literally using the 3 million to put the holograms in every home. i was unaware that holograms were commodity hardware. at 7.5 billion people, assume 4 people per household, that is 1.8 billion hologram devices. this puts the unit price at about a third of a penny. i’ll take 3.

thwarted 6y ago

The projector can transmit images any time of the day or night Is there some limitation of image recording and transmission technology that I'm not aware of that this needs to be called out?

stronglikedan 6y ago
I took that to mean it the projected image could be seen in daylight.

joakleaf 6y ago

So we now have the Telehuman from Silicon Valley? https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=9YOEEpWAXgU https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=9YOEEpWAXgU I wonder if the audio is working.

aquarin 6y ago

"In every home" - sure, if you somehow involve the adult industry.