Investor support for wearables drops to five-year low – StartupSmart

Investment in startups developing wearable tech is at a five-year low in the United States, according to research from CB Insights.

The amount of capital invested in wearable tech startups is projected to reach $US276 million, a drop of 72% year-on-year and the lowest annual funding total since 2010.

Last year’s wearable tech investment was inflated by a Magic Leap, a startup developing head-mounted augmented reality displays which raised $US542 million led by Google.

Seed and angel rounds currently account for 55% of investment deals, up from 29% last year.

The highest funded wearable startup is Jawbone, which has raised $US614 million. The startup has developed a wireless speaker as well as the Up fitness band and raised $300 million in debt financing from BlackRock in April.

The five most active wearable tech investors from 2010 to 2015 were Intel Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, Rock Health, True Ventures and Khosla Ventures.

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