Snap takes over Israeli AR company for at least 28 million euros

Snap, the company behind the well-known Snapchat, has reportedly acquired Israeli startup Cimagine Media. It focuses on augmented reality. The company would pay between 28 and 38 million euros for this.

The report comes from the Israeli business newspaper Calcalist News. The start-up is four years old and specializes in computer vision, real-time image processing, smartphone development and international marketing. Snap is said to plan to keep the studio in Israel open and expand it in due course. Currently, 20 people work at Cimagine Media.

Cimagine Media is a partner of Shop Direct, which sells furniture. Through an augmented reality app from Cimagine Media, consumers can place Shop Direct’s furniture in their home to see how it fits with the rest of their home decor, as seen in the demo video below. In addition to Shop Direct, Cimagine Media also collaborates with Coca-Cola. It is not clear exactly what Snap will do with the start-up. Neither Snap nor Cimagine Media have commented on the news.

It wouldn’t be Snap’s first acquisition. The company has also acquired Flite, Vurb, Obvious and Bitstrips in the past.