We’re seeing reports that Skully — the company that made an augmented reality motorcycle helmet that was one of the first high-profile wearables startups — has fallen apart. And those reports indicate that the end is not peaceful.
Skully’s helmets were essentially heads-up displays mounted inside the visors, giving wearers views of their bikes controls as well as visibility to the side and back. At $1500, the helmets weren’t cheap and production was slow.
Now, TechCrunch is reporting that Skully has run out of inventory and that founding CEO Marcus Weller left last week and won’t sign a confidentiality agreement. There are 3,000 unfilled orders, the status of which are uncertain, although new CEO Martin Fichter promised in a blog post last week that orders would be fulfilled starting this month. LinkedIn shows 50 full-time employees.
The dispute, TechCrunch says, arose as the company ran out of money before a hoped-for funding round or acquisition could close. One company that Skully was talking to was apparently the Chinese LeSport, which announced just yesterday a $2 billion acquisition of the US TV company Vizio. Another rumored investor was Intel Capital, which denied interest in Skully.