By Ed Hammond and Sarah Frier
Magic Leap Inc., the startup that raised more than $2 billion to build an augmented-reality device, is exploring options including a sale, according to people familiar with the matter.
The Plantation, Florida-based company is working with an adviser to consider strategic options that could also include forming a partnership or selling a significant stake ahead of a potential listing, said the people. Magic Leap could fetch more than $10 billion if it pursues a sale, the people said, asking not to be identified because the information is private.
Tech companies have been placing bets on the promise of augmented-reality products, which have also found uses in health care and other industries.
The entire hardware sector is facing new threats, from tariffs in the U.S.-China trade war to supply chain shortages, after factories closed with the coronavirus outbreak. The pressures are resetting expectations at major companies such as Apple Inc., and may hit even more acutely at private startups that rely on outside investors to keep their operations going.
Magic Leap, which counts Alphabet Inc.’s Google and Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. among its largest investors, is gauging potential interest from large tech companies including…
