Dan Wagner, the founder of failed tech unicorn Powa, wants to buy collapsed augmented-reality startup Blippar
- British entrepreneur Dan Wagner is in early discussions to acquire what is left of failed augmented reality startup Blippar, Business Insider can reveal.
- Blippar collapsed into administration on Monday after an investor dispute meant it ran out of cash.
- Wagner is best known for founding Powa, the ecommerce startup that was once thought to be worth more than $2.7 billion, but collapsed in 2016.
British tech entrepreneur Dan Wagner is in early talks to acquire some of what's left of Blippar, the augmented reality startup that collapsed into administration on Monday.
Multiple sources confirmed to Business Insider that the two parties were in talks, in what would be a dramatic tie-up between high-profile operators in the UK tech scene.
Wagner declined to comment. The appointed administrators for Blippar, David Rubin & Partners, declined to comment.
Wagner is best known as the founder and former chief executive of mobile commerce company Powa, which was once worth $2.7 billion but collapsed in 2016.
Sources said his bid for Blippar is being made through his new company, Rezolve, the new "phoenix" company that emerged from Powa. Rezolve is an ecommerce venture built along the same lines as Powa. This is how the company describes itself on its website:
"Rezolve turns any mobile device into an instant transaction tool. By using either the camera, microphone, location awareness, Bluetooth or Wi-Fi capabilities, Rezolve allows the mobile phone to instantly engage with the physical world allowing instant purchase, engagement, information and donations with just one tap on the screen."
It isn't clear how much Wagner and Rezolve might pay for Blippar. Business Insider understands that Wagner is interested in scooping up Blippar's image recognition capabilities. This allowed the Blippar app to scan and recognise real-world objects.
Read more: Much-hyped augmented-reality startup Blippar has collapsed into administration
Wagner's interest in Blippar will likely raise eyebrows in the UK technology industry, given the similarities between both Powa and Blippar.
Powa raised more than $200 million from investors, and once claimed to be a tech unicorn worth $2.7 billion. Insiders claimed the company had been mismanaged, and the firm collapsed into administration in early 2016. Wagner has said little about the demise of Powa, other than likening its collapse to being "hit by a car" to the BBC.
Blippar raised more than $130 million in funding for its augmented reality app, and once claimed in an interview to be worth $1.5 billion, also making it a British unicorn.
Insiders told Business Insider in 2017 that the firm lacked strategy and the company eventually collapsed into administration and let go of all of its employees after it failed to secure new funding.