Walmart acquires VR startup Spatialand

Walmart’s innovation hub, Store No 8, has bought VR platform and content studio, Spatialand, to build omnichannel products for the retailer. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Store No 8 principal Katie Finnegan will serve as interim Chief Executive of the venture and Spatialand’s Kim Cooper and Store No 8 consultant Jeremy Welt will assume senior roles. Cooper has worked on films like Iron Man, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, and Prometheus, as well as video game franchises Destiny and Metal Gear Solid. Welt helped launch YouTube’s first-ever commercial deal and worked on the Walt Disney Company’s acquisition of Maker Studios.

"The team will develop and explore new products and uses of VR through immersive retail environments that can be incorporated by all facets of Walmart, online and offline," Finnegan said in a blog post.

Other Store No 8 projects include a personal shopping service headed up by Rent the Runway founder Jenny Fleiss and a checkout-less store along the same lines as Amazon Go, run by Jet.com co-founder Mike Hanrahan.