Intel pours cash into eye-tracking specialist Tobii

A consortium of investors have given Swedish eye-tracking specialist Tobii $21m (£13m) in funding to help it expand its technology into mainstream computers and other mass-market applications.

Intel's investment division, Intel Capital, joined existing investors Amadeus Capital, Investor Growth Capital and Northzone Ventures in the funding round, Tobii announced on Tuesday.

"Tobii aims at taking eye tracking from niche markets to mass-market applications in mainstream computing and automotive applications," Henrik Eskilsson, Tobii's chief executive, said in a statement. "This investment will help us to take this leap and to make the technological advancements necessary to maintain a leading position in eye tracking technology."

In March, Tobii demonstrated an eye-controlled arcade machine that used its updated Tobii IS-2 Eye Tracker module as part of its plan to move out of specialist medical applications and into devices with a broader consumer appeal.

As a result of the funding, Ian Cooper, investment director at Intel Capital, will be appointed to Tobii's board of directors. When ZDNet UK spoke with Tobii in March it would not disclose the processors it used within its eye-tracking modules.