Google LLC parent Alphabet Inc. is reportedly in advanced talks to acquire North Inc., a Canadian smart glasses startup, for about $180 million.

The discussions were first reported by Canada’s The Globe and Mail on Thursday evening. The publication’s sources indicated that Ontario-based North is in the “final stages” of hammering out an agreement with Alphabet.

Founded in 2012, North is backed by about $160 million from investors that include Intel Corp.’s venture capital arm and Salesforce.com Inc. founder Marc Benioff. The startup offers a smart glasses product called Focals that’s touted as less bulky than many other products in the category, closely resembling a regular pair of glasses. Users can view mobile notifications without looking at their phone and perform certain other tasks such as ordering an Uber ride.

North is “effectively being stripped for parts” by Alphabet, according to the Thursday report. The startup reportedly did not succeed in building out a sizable user base around Focals and is believed to have sold fewer than 1,000 units.

If it closes, the deal would buy Alphabet a team of experienced wearable engineers as well as a sizable intellectual property portfolio. North not only developed new wearable technologies in-house but in 2018 also acquired the patents for Intel’s canceled Vaunt smart glasses. Both Vaunt and Focals, which stopped becoming available last December, rely on a laser projector attached to the glasses’ frame to display content for the user.

Alphabet’s reported negotiations with North may signal it’s looking to re-enter the consumer smart glasses category. Google attempted to gain an early start in the segment with the Google Glass but discontinued the device in 2015. 

Google Glass has since been turned into an enterprise headset for use cases such as inspecting industrial equipment. Beyond potentially giving Google a new opportunity to target the consumer side of the market, North’s patents and technical talent may also boost its enterprise plans. Google competes in this market with Microsoft Corp.’s HoloLens 2 mixed-reality headset.

North discontinued sales of the Focals last December to focus on the development of a second-generation product. According to the startup’s website, the upcoming glasses will be “up to 40% lighter and sleeker” with a “dramatically sharper 10x improved retinal display.” If Alphabet and North sign a deal, the second-generation glasses may end up being brought to market by Google, perhaps with certain modifications such as Google Assistant integration.

Google in November inked a $2.1 billion agreement to buy smartwatch maker Fitbit. The deal is pending regulatory approval.

Image: North