Distance Technologies - The Glasses‑Free Mixed Reality Bet Aiming Straight at Defence and Aerospace - Turn any window into a battlefield‑grade 3D display

In 2024, a Helsinki team of Varjo alumni quietly re‑emerged with an audacious promise: render true 3D mixed reality on any transparent surface, no helmet, no glasses, by generating a synthetic light field that fuses pixel‑perfect depth with the real world across the entire field of view. Their startup, Distance Technologies, claims this “infinite pixel depth” HUD can live in windscreens, cockpit canopies, visors and targeting sights, effectively becoming a front‑end for sensor fusion and AI in the most demanding environments.

Two things instantly set Distance apart. First, money and pedigree: Google’s GV led a €10 million seed round in September 2024, only three months after a pre‑seed, an unusually fast double tap for deep tech. Second, an IP trail that already stretches into granted claims on stacked liquid crystal light‑field systems and hybrid light‑field + waveguide architectures—precisely the kind of building blocks you need to embed depth‑correct MR into a curved windshield or canopy.

What Distance is building

The short version: Distance layers computational optics atop a standard LCD (or compatible emitter), tracks the operator’s eye position, and synthesises a per‑pixel light field so that virtual objects appear at true optical distances (one metre, 100 metres, infinity) co‑registered with reality. In a cockpit or armoured vehicle, this matters because depth errors kill: a symbolic target cue that sits “on” an object at the wrong depth leads to parallax mistakes, mis‑aimed weapons, and cognitive overload in turbulence, G‑loads, smoke or darkness.

The company positions its HUD as a sensor fusion front‑end: thermal, hyperspectral, lidar and battle‑management cues all land as a single, depth‑correct 3D layer on the windshield or canopy; no head‑worn gear, no staring down at MFDs, and minimal light leakage that could reveal vehicle position. That last point is crucial for night manoeuvre; Distance and Finnish defence prime Patria have highlighted “see‑in‑the‑dark” windshields for the 6×6 platform under the eALLIANCE programme funded by Business Finland, targeting operational maturity around 2027.

There’s also aerospace training and simulation: Aechelon Technology (a US leader in defence visualisation) has partnered with Distance to build in‑flight mixed‑reality simulations and infinite‑depth HUD concepts where headsets are impractical. For tanker rendezvous, refuelling booms or target designation, this is a sensible direction: the overlay is everywhere you look, with the right optical accommodation so your eyes aren’t fighting between a near screen and far airspace.

Follow the money

GV’s €10 million seed in September 2024 (following Distance’s public debut at AWE USA 2024) was pitched on the premise that the automotive supply chain can bring down costs first, then defence/aerospace can scale complexity. GV’s public comments emphasised an open ecosystem approach for OEMs and integrators, a rarity in a space often locked behind bespoke stacks. Independent coverage in Europe and the US corroborates the round’s size, timing and thesis.

Secondary trackers since then put Distance’s disclosed funding in the $14 million range across pre‑seed and seed, aligning with the above cadence. While trackers can lag, the directional picture is consistent with the company’s communications and the GV‑led seed.

Competitive landscape

Light‑field and see‑through HUD work spans a wide spectrum:

Light Field Lab (US) builds emissive holographic panels for glasses‑free 3D, but not as transparent windshields, it’s a different optical class, mostly fixed displays.
Leia Inc. focuses on diffractive light‑field for mobile/automotive displays, but again, true transparent, full‑FOV windshields with infinite depth remain non‑trivial.
WaveOptics / Lumus / Dispelix dominate waveguide optics for AR glasses; they are head‑worn, which Distance deliberately avoids.
Automotive HUD Tier‑1s (Continental, Denso, Panasonic Automotive, etc.) ship AR HUDs that place imagery at a fixed optical plane (often ~7–10 m) with limited eyebox and FOV, useful, but not 3D light‑field across the full windshield.

Distance’s patenting (see below) suggests a hybrid path, combining stacked LC multiscopic layers with optical combiners and, in some claims, a companion waveguide channel for specific content. That hybridisation (light field + waveguide) is unusual and reads like a way to manage brightness, accommodation, and FOV trade‑offs while keeping the windshield itself as the primary see‑through optic.

What the patents say (a curated read, not the full 44)

Methodology: We sampled Distance’s portfolio across USPTO grants/pubs, WIPO/EP search entry points, and third‑party patent aggregators to extract themes and notable exemplars. This is not a legal opinion; it’s a journalist’s synthesis with links to the primary records.

1) Multiscopic light‑field via stacked liquid crystal layers

Exemplar: Multiscopic display using stacked liquid crystal layers — US 12,113,956 (grant, 08 Oct 2024), assigned to Distance Technologies Oy, inventor Mikko Strandborg. The claims describe dual LC layers between crossed polarisers controlled per‑pixel to synthesise eye‑separated light fields for left/right eyes based on tracked positions—classic computational multiscopy for a see‑through display stack.

Why it matters: Stacked LC light steering can produce high brightness and addressable vergence without moving parts, critical for cockpit daylight legibility and NVIS‑compatible night ops. (Interpretation based on the grant’s structure; see the primary.)

2) Hybrid light‑field + waveguide for complex HUDs

Exemplar: Augmenting reality with light field display and waveguide display — US 12,386,175 B1 (published in USPTO Official Gazette Aug 2025; assignment to Distance; inventors Urho Konttori and Mikko Strandborg). The system couples a light‑field unit via an optical combiner with a separate waveguide channel, allowing a second part of the synthetic light field to exit the waveguide and be optically combined with both the first part and the real‑world light field.

Why it matters: A hybrid lets Distance use the light field for wide‑FOV, depth‑correct spatial cues (targets, obstacles), and the waveguide for high‑contrast symbology or collimated “far” layers, without forcing a head‑worn optic.

3) Breadth and global coverage

CB Insights tracks ~44 Distance patents (filed + grants, multiple jurisdictions). While paywalled for full detail, this aligns with the founders’ prior art histories and the now‑granted US examples above. For global family hunting and forward citations, use WIPO PATENTSCOPE and Google Patents, both confirm multi‑jurisdictional publication trails and are the right tools as more PCTs surface through 2026.

Programmes and partnerships

Patria eALLIANCE (6×6 “see‑in‑the‑dark” windshield)
The collaboration focuses on low‑visibility combat (darkness, smoke) where depth‑correct overlays and light‑leakage control reduce compromise risk. The roadmap mentioned public prototypes (2025) and progression toward production quality by 2027.
Aechelon Technology (aerospace MR training/HUD)
Strategic partnership targeting in‑flight mixed reality and an “infinite‑depth” HUD platform for training and mission aids where headsets are impractical or unsafe.
Basemark (automotive HMI + AR)
Integration with Rocksolid AR suggests an OEM‑friendly path to bring production‑ready AR/HMI apps onto light‑field HUDs, accelerating automotive feasibility studies and toolchains.
GDLS‑UK (Light Mobility Vehicle)
A 2025 announcement indicates a collaboration to embed Distance’s 3D Lightfield HUD into the GDLS‑UK LMV platform (Ford Ranger‑based), with a prototype showcased at DSEI 2025. This aligns with the ground‑vehicle “see‑through‑windshield” concept and hyperspectral fusion narrative.

What the tech must prove next

Brightness and NVIS compliance
Daylight legibility in cockpits and armoured cabins demands thousands of nits equivalent with strict NVG compatibility at night. Distance’s stack claims high brightness via additional optical layers and light steering, but field testing across military luminance/contrast standards remains the hurdle between demo and deployment.
Eyebox, FOV and curvature
A windshield is curved, laminated, heated, and subject to shock and vibration. Maintaining a wide eyebox and full‑FOV depth accuracy across multiple seats and helmet positions is non‑trivial. Distance’s light‑field + waveguide hybrid suggests a strategy to balance these variables, but certification data (especially for rotary/fixed‑wing) will be critical.
Latency and head‑motion tolerance
Tactical manoeuvres, rotor vibration, and G‑loads punish any pipeline with lag. Eye‑tracked light‑field synthesis must remain solid under these conditions, or the operator will default back to collimated symbology. (Industry‑wide constraint; Distance emphasises tracking‑driven computation.)
EMI/EMC, ruggedisation, maintainability
Cockpit and AFV environments require environmental qualification (DO‑160/ MIL‑STD‑810/461, etc.). The stack must survive and stay aligned after hits, thermal cycles and maintenance events.

Why this could stick

Stick: If Distance can truly map synthetic depth to the real world at scale, it collapses the gap between head‑down sensor fusion and head‑up awareness. For close‑in urban driving, brownout landings, degraded visual environments, or convoy night ops, a windshield that functions as a tactical light field is a human‑factors win. Add the automotive cost curve plus Basemark‑style toolchains, and OEM adoption could subsidise the rugged defence variant.

Not stick: Light‑field is a harsh mistress. Stray reflections, windshield lamination artefacts, polariser stress, and multi‑crew parallax can degrade the illusion fast. The hybrid waveguide approach reads clever, but every extra optical surface is a potential failure mode. Without robust multi‑seat eyebox and certifiable brightness/NVIS across the full operating envelope, programmes will fall back to classic collimated HUDs and HMDs, even with their drawbacks.

Founder DNA

Distance’s founders, Urho Konttori (ex‑Varjo CTO/CEO), Jussi Mäkinen (ex‑Varjo CMO/CBO), Mikko Strandborg (principal inventor with ~100 prior filings at Varjo/Unity), and colleagues, represent Finland’s quiet dominance in human‑machine visual systems from Nokia to Varjo to today’s light‑field push. GV explicitly cited this team’s pace and open‑ecosystem posture when leading the seed.

The road to 2027

OEM trials in windshield and side windows (automotive), with Rocksolid AR integrations surfacing in early dev kits.
Patria 6×6 demonstrations in low‑visibility scenarios, showing light‑leakage control and crew‑station ergonomics.
Aerospace simulator to cockpit steps with Aechelon, especially for refuelling and targeting workflows.
New patent families appearing in WIPO/USPTO that extend claims to laminated automotive glass, curvature correction, and multi‑occupant eyebox management.

In a market littered with brilliant head‑worn optics that struggle outside labs, Distance has picked the harder but potentially more transformative target: put the 3D interface in the glass itself. If they can prove depth‑correct, full‑FOV, high‑luminance, low‑leakage overlays across real vehicle glass, and certify it, the result won’t just be a better HUD. It will be a new HMI class for the AI battlefield and beyond. The money is real, the IP is forming, and the partners are credible. Now the physics, manufacturing, and certification grind begins.

Source list

Company & technology

Distance homepage & technology positioning: distance.tech
Company team bios: distance.tech/company
Seed round (company news): distance.tech/news… €10M Seed round

Funding & ecosystem coverage

CNBC on GV‑led €10M seed (26 Sep 2024): CNBC
Silicon Canals recap (27 Sep 2024): Silicon Canals
Tracxn tracker (2026 profile): Tracxn
Additional syndicated summaries: TechStartups, TechInvestorNews, TechBullion

Defence & aerospace adoption

Patria eALLIANCE collaboration (6×6, “see‑in‑the‑dark”): National Defense Magazine, Auganix, Telematics Wire
Aechelon Technology partnership (in‑flight MR/HUD): LinkedIn announcement (Distance post): LinkedIn
GDLS‑UK LMV collaboration (DSEI 2025): SDArabia (English)

Automotive developer ecosystem