Ultrahaptics acquires AR/VR pioneer Leap Motion for only $30 million

Leap Motion publicly established itself as a pioneer in VR hand-tracking controls and DIY augmented reality gear, but reportedly didn’t generate much revenue — one reason its valuation sank from $300 million to $30 million as it entertained buyout offers from companies including Apple. Today, U.K.-based Ultrahaptics partially confirmed a Wall Street Journal report that it’s acquiring Leap Motion, seemingly at the low end of that range.

While the Journal characterized Ultrahaptics as a “rival” to Leap Motion, the latter’s CTO and cofounder David Holz underscored that the companies have actually worked together for almost six years. Their innovations are complementary rather than competitive, and Leap Motion’s tech is already used in Ultrahaptics products.