Volvo Cars has invested in the optical and imaging technology start-up Spectralics through the Volvo Cars Tech Fund, the company’s venture capital investment arm. The investment gives Volvo Cars access to promising technology at an early stage of development.

Coming from a background in aerospace technology development, Israel-based Spectralics creates state-of-the-art imaging and optical infrastructure spanning materials, hardware and software, enabling a wide variety of advanced optical capabilities.

One of the company’s core solutions is the multi-layered thin combiner (MLTC) which is a new type of thin optics ‘film’ applicable to see-through surfaces of all shapes and sizes. Integrated into a car’s windshield or windows, the technology could be used to overlay imagery on the glass.

In a windshield configuration, the technology could create a wide field of view ‘heads-up display’ that can instill a sense of distance as virtual objects are superimposed onto the real-world environment for a safe and immersive experience.

Other potential uses of the technology include advanced filters for various applications, in-cabin sensing, blind-proof front-looking cameras and digital holographic projections.

Spectralics is an alumnus of the MobilityXLab programme in Gothenburg, Sweden and is part of the DRIVE network in Tel-Aviv, Israel. They are both accelerators for promising start-ups with ideas that can break new ground in the mobility sector. Volvo Cars has been a leading partner in both initiatives since 2017.

The Volvo Cars Tech Fund was launched in 2018 and invests in high-potential technology start-ups around the globe. It focuses its investments on strategic technology trends transforming the auto industry, such as artificial intelligence, electrification and autonomous driving.