On Wednesday, the US Army formally moved forward with the largest ever government-related deal for headsets in the virtual and augmented reality sector: a 10-year agreement with Microsoft to provide 120,000 headsets "based" on the HoloLens line.
Reports by CNBC and Bloomberg point to a $21.9 billion value for this week's updated arrangement, following its initial announcement in November 2018. Neither of those reports point to exact reasons for the deal's jump from an initial contract value of $480 million, despite that earlier deal confirming similarly high headset numbers.
The IVAS headset, based on HoloLens and augmented by Microsoft Azure cloud services, delivers a platform that will keep Soldiers safer and make them more effective. The program delivers enhanced situational awareness, enabling information sharing and decision-making in a variety of scenarios. Microsoft has worked closely with the U.S. Army over the past two years, and together we pioneered Soldier Centered Design to enable rapid prototyping for a product to provide Soldiers with the tools and capabilities necessary to achieve their mission.
Originally Posted by Ars Technica
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