U.S. Army Multi-Billion RFI News Could Benefit These Holdings

When we think about many of the technologies and devices that we utilize in our daily lives — from GPS and RF semiconductors to microwave ovens and duct tape to, of course, the internet — many of them have their origins in military applications.

That’s why we’ll be paying close attention to developments for the U.S. Army and its open request for information (RFI) for next-generation, combat-suitable, heads-up display products as part of its Integrated Visual Augmentation Systems (IVAS) efforts. This RFI is a potential re-compete for a $22 billion dollar mixed-reality goggle contract won by Microsoft MSFT in March 2021.

While there have been multiple reports of issues with Microsoft’s Hololens product, with the Army declaring it “not combat ready,” we expect Microsoft will participate in the RFI. We will be looking to see which other companies toss their hat into the ring. Given efforts by Apple AAPL with its Vision Pro product, Meta’s META AR/VR headsets and Ray-Ban smart glasses, and AI Smart Glasses teased at Google’s GOOGL 2024 I/O event, we could see them participate in the RFI with a program win supporting their research and product development efforts.

Other companies that could compete in the RFI include various defense companies as well as other technology companies that participate in military and display applications. One such potential competitor is Kopin Corp. KOPN, a vendor of microdisplay solutions already used in military applications such as aviation displays, soldier vision systems and targeting systems. We're not fans of Kopin's cash burn and amount of cash on its balance sheet, but we'll keep an eye on its technology and impact on commercial applications.

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At the time of publication, TheStreet Pro Portfolio was long MSFT, AAPL, META and GOOGL.