Gracia AI Raises $1.7M to Advance High-Fidelity Volumetric Content for VR and AR

Gracia AI, a deep-tech startup building volumetric video experiences for virtual and augmented reality, has raised $1.7 million in new funding to accelerate the development of its immersive content platform.

As spatial computing gains momentum, driven by devices such as the Apple Vision Pro and Meta Quest, investors are increasingly seeking companies capable of producing high-fidelity, real-world content that can justify daily headset use.

Gracia sits squarely at this inflection point, offering a new way to experience digital environments that goes beyond flat video or conventional 3D models. While fashion runways remain one compelling example, the company’s broader ambition is to bring volumetric human presence and dynamic real-world performances into VR and AR, setting a foundation for the next era of immersive media consumption.

Solving VR’s Biggest Problem: Lack of Compelling, High-Fidelity Content

The VR and AR industries have made major leaps in hardware over the last decade, yet adoption remains limited by a persistent challenge: content that feels meaningful, realistic, and worth returning to. Most current VR experiences are either too game-centric or lack the realism necessary to create genuine immersion.

This is where Gracia’s volumetric video approach stands out. Unlike traditional 3D models or motion-captured avatars, volumetric capture records real people in three-dimensional space, allowing users to move freely around them and observe details from any angle.

In fashion, where texture, drape, silhouette, and movement matter deeply, 2D video cannot replicate the physicality of real garments on a runway. Gracia’s technology solves this fundamental limitation. By enabling users to stand beside models, walk around them, and see each outfit from any viewpoint, the company is transforming how digital fashion can be experienced, bringing a level of spatial realism that has long been missing from VR.

Advancing 4D Gaussian Splatting for Next-Generation XR Production

Gracia AI’s most significant contribution to the immersive media ecosystem is its rapid advancement of 4D Gaussian Splatting, a breakthrough technique that brings unprecedented realism and motion fidelity to volumetric video. The company has evolved far beyond its early static experiments, now delivering dynamic 4DGS sequences that run in real time on standalone VR headsets, something that was considered technically implausible just a year ago.

This progress attracted $1.7 million in new funding from investors such as EWOR and one of the original pioneers behind NeRF, underscoring the market’s appetite for high-quality spatial content infrastructure. Rather than simply generating eye-catching demos, Gracia is focused on solving a systemic industry gap: while interest in volumetric video is soaring, the production tools required to create, edit, and deploy it at scale have lagged far behind.

By building a pipeline that handles cloud processing, editing, timeline control, and seamless integrations with engines like Unity and Unreal, the startup is positioning itself as a foundational layer for the next era of XR content creation.

Shaping a New Creative Pipeline for Filmmakers, Advertisers, and VFX Teams

The implications of Gracia’s technology extend across film, advertising, virtual production, and live entertainment. The company’s engine is already being used in Hollywood workflows, European media studios, and even large-scale attractions such as PortAventura, where volumetric experiences require both fidelity and performance. Because 4DGS preserves fine details and handles complex, fast motion (such as 50fps footage reduced into smooth slow-motion sequences) creators are increasingly viewing it as a viable alternative to traditional capture and CGI-heavy setups.

The economic advantages are substantial: virtual sets powered by 4DGS can eliminate expensive location shoots, reduce reliance on robotic camera systems, and cut reshoot budgets by tens of thousands of dollars. These efficiencies, combined with cross-device support (including Quest 3, Pico 4 Ultra, and WebGPU-based viewers) are accelerating adoption across the creative industries.

As co-founder Georgii Vysotskii notes, volumetric video has existed for years, but only now, with Gaussian Splatting reaching production-level performance, has the technology become practical enough to reshape how immersive content is produced and consumed.

Paving the Way for the Next Chapter of Immersive Media

With new funding and a clear long-term mission, Gracia AI is poised to meaningfully influence the future of immersive media. The company aims to create experiences that feel less like digital simulations and more like real human moments captured in three-dimensional space which is a crucial step in expanding the appeal of VR and AR beyond gaming or niche tools.

As volumetric video becomes more accessible and creators adopt the format across entertainment, film, advertising, and live events, Gracia expects a shift in how audiences consume spatial content. By enabling users to walk around a scene, observe motion from any angle, and feel as though they are physically present, Gracia is helping define what high-fidelity immersive storytelling can become.

Its technology could push spatial computing into a new era of realism, engagement, and everyday relevance.