SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., April 6,
2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Axon (Nasdaq: AXON), the global
leader in connected public safety technologies, today announced the
acquisition of Foundry 45, an industry-leading virtual reality (VR)
studio focused on developing immersive training modules for large
enterprises. The acquisition, which closed on April 5, 2022, will integrate Foundry 45 into the
Axon VR team.
Founded in 2015, Foundry 45 has delivered virtual and augmented
reality training applications to global enterprise customers
including several Fortune 100 companies. Pushing the boundaries of
corporate training for some of the world's most innovative
companies, the Foundry 45 team builds exceptional VR experiences
geared towards improving productivity, boosting knowledge retention
and creating better training outcomes.
"We're thrilled the Foundry 45 team has joined Axon in our
mission to Protect Life," says Chris
Chin, VP of Immersive Technologies, Axon. "Their team
of accomplished enterprise VR training experts are a great addition
to Axon and I'm excited to join forces and level-up our public
safety training capabilities to make communities safer for
all."
Axon's VR team is transforming public safety by making training
more accessible, relevant and affordable — with the goal of using
new immersive technologies to better prepare officers for real-life
situations in the field. Axon's VR products provide virtual reality
content that helps officers develop critical thinking,
de-escalation techniques and tactical skills across a diverse set
of highly realistic scenarios.
Virtual reality is rapidly becoming a game-changing training
tool across many industries, and the acquisition of Foundry 45 will
help accelerate Axon to deliver innovative skills- and
scenario-based training in public safety, and will catalyze Axon's
expansion into new growth markets globally.
"I'm exceptionally proud of the work our team has accomplished
at Foundry 45," says David Beck,
Co-Founder and Managing Partner, Foundry 45. "We believe purpose is
one of the most important elements of a company and are excited our
values align with Axon. By joining their team, we are able to
continue to bring our innovative vision and world-class engineers
to the table to build products for public good."
Equity inducement awards of an aggregate 29,507 restricted stock
units ("RSUs") were granted to two individuals in connection with
the acquisition. Of the total amount awarded, 11,438 time-based
RSUs will vest in equal annual amounts following the first, second,
and third anniversaries of the grant date. 2,820 time-based RSUs
will vest two-thirds following the first anniversary and one-third
following the second anniversary of the grant date. Additionally,
up to 15,249 RSUs will vest based on the attainment of three
performance criteria based on content development and sales
bookings. All awards are subject to continued service through each
vesting date, with the exception of 7,625 time-based RSUs that
would accelerate vesting in the event of an involuntary termination
without cause.
Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP represented Axon as legal
counsel in this transaction.
About Foundry 45
Foundry 45 (www.foundry45.com) uses innovative technologies to
create better training outcomes for clients. We are a team of
technologists and creatives who are driven to build powerful,
immersive virtual reality experiences. By leveraging interactive
content, we help organizations break the monotony of their current
training routines while providing safer, more efficient and
engaging employee training solutions. We've delivered hundreds of
VR experiences for clients across the country and around the globe,
including several Fortune 100 companies.
About Axon
Axon is a network of devices, apps and people that helps public
safety personnel become smarter and safer. With a mission of
protecting life, our technologies give customers the confidence,
focus and time they need to keep their communities safe. Our
products impact every aspect of a public safety officer's
day-to-day experience with the goal of helping everyone get home
safe.
We work hard for those who put themselves in harm's way for all
of us. To date, more than 263,000 lives and countless dollars have
been saved with the Axon Network of devices, apps and people. Learn
more at www.axon.com or by calling (800) 978-2737. Axon is a
global company with headquarters in Scottsdale, Ariz. and global software
engineering hub in Seattle, Wash.,
as well as additional offices in Australia, Canada, Finland, Vietnam, the UK and the Netherlands.
Facebook is a trademark of Facebook, Inc., Morgan, Lewis, &
Bockius is a trademark of Morgan, Lewis & Bockius Partnership
and Twitter is a trademark of Twitter, Inc. Axon, Axon Network,
Protect Life and the Delta Logo are trademarks of Axon Enterprise,
Inc., some of which are registered in the US and other countries.
For more information, visit www.axon.com/legal. All rights
reserved.
Follow Axon here:
- Axon on Twitter: https://twitter.com/axon_us
- Axon on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/Axon.ProtectLife/
Note to Investors
Please visit http://investor.axon.com,
https://www.axon.com/press, www.twitter.com/axon_us and
https://www.facebook.com/Axon.ProtectLife/ where Axon discloses
information about the company, its financial information and its
business.
MEDIA CONTACT:
Corinne Clark
Public Relations Manager
Media ONLY Hotline: (480) 444-4000
Press@Axon.com
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SOURCE Axon