On June 30, North Inc., a pioneer in human computer interfaces and smart glasses, announced that it had been acquired by Google. Financial terms were not disclosed. North Inc. (formerly Thalmic Labs), based in Kitchener-Waterloo, originally focused on new forms of interaction with Myo, a gesture-based input device that directly coupled neuro-muscular impulses into signals computers could understand. The company then shifted focus to Focals, smart glasses with direct retinal projection and prescription compatibility.
Gowling WLG (Canada) LLP advised North Inc. in this transaction with a team led by
Todd Bissett,
Ian Palm,
and that included
Sean Gomes,
Duncan Snyder,
Andrew Griffin (corporate/M&A),
Paul Carenza,
Mariam Al-Shikarchy (tax),
Neena Gupta,
Tushar Anandasagar (employment),
Ian Macdonald (Investment Canada/competition),
and assisted by student-at-law Marco Wai.
Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP represented Google (Alphabet Inc.) with a team that included
Carol Pennycook,
Dale Osadchuk,
Steven Cutler,
Simon Kaplan,
Ha Nguyen (corporate/M&A);
Guy-Étienne Richard (employment);
Alexandria Pike (environmental);
Patrice Thomas (real estate);
Elisa Kearney (competition);
Chris Anderson,
and Andrew Ellis (tax).
Cooley LLP was U.S. counsel to North Inc.