PhoneOptika, based in Sde Warburg, Israel, and founded by serial entrepreneur Arie Heiman, develops VISION_GLASS: a transparent film under 0.5 mm thick, made of layers of tiny lenses, that is applied to a phone or car display so that people with presbyopia can read it without glasses. The film projects the image as if it were far away, which the company also says could reduce the risk of myopia in children, according to CORDIS.
The European Innovation Council granted €899,304 towards a €1.29 million project from January 2023 to May 2025. PhoneOptika's website says it was selected for "a generous grant and investment amounting to €6.6 million". The only report on CORDIS covers 2023: the team chose resins for the lens layers, looked for alignment tools, with a camera-based system "delayed until June 2024", and customised its optical design software. No later report, product launch, partner or customer has been published, and the website's copyright line still reads 2023.
Company file
- Legal entity
- PhoneOptika Ltd, Sde Warburg, Israel
- Founder, chairman and CEO
- Dr. Arie Heiman
- CTO
- Shraga Tsur
- Products listed
- iGlass (VISION_GLASS), BrightView, iGuard
- EIC project
- VISION_GLASS, 1 Jan 2023 to 31 May 2025
- EIC funding
- Blended finance
Where PhoneOptika Stands Now
The company's website lists three products, the reading film, an anti-reflection film called BrightView and a myopia-prevention product called iGuard, and offers demos on request. Its news section consists of the EIC award announcement; a separate news page returned an error when checked in September 2026. Heiman previously founded Nogatech, which went public on Nasdaq and was bought by Zoran, and companies later sold to Broadcom and DSP Group, according to the site. PhoneOptika has not published any information on sales, funding rounds or partnerships since the award.
"We are proud to share that we have been selected as one of the 70 companies by the European EIC Accelerator, out of 1000 contenders, to receive a generous grant and investment amounting to €6.6 million."
PhoneOptika, websiteThe Technology: Micro-Lens Arrays on a Screen
The film stacks micro-lens arrays made from high and low refractive index resins, aligned in a specific pattern, to form an image "at infinity" for the viewer's eye. The report says designs with a larger difference between the two resins performed better, but the company chose to start production with parameters its film manufacturer knew, "to minimize risk". Precise alignment of the layers was the unsolved manufacturing challenge in the first year.
What the EIC Project Promised, and What CORDIS Shows
The project aimed to take the film to production and sell it as an add-on for phones and navigation systems. The public record stops after the first of its two and a half years, with production specifications still being finalised and alignment tooling delayed. Whether a manufacturable film exists is not documented. CORDIS still lists the project as signed.
- Resin selectionDeliveredPer 2023 report.
- Alignment toolingDelayedTo June 2024.
- Production filmUnknownNo later report.
- Market launchNot announcedNo product news.
The Money
The €6.6 million the company announced is more than seven times the €899,304 grant on CORDIS; the company described the package as grant and investment. Whether that equity was invested has not been disclosed by PhoneOptika or the EIC. PhoneOptika has not published accounts.
What Cannot Be Checked
Questions for the EIC
Whether the EIC Fund invested in PhoneOptika, why no final report is public, whether a production film was made and whether the company is still operating are not public.
Why Europe Should Care
The report cites WHO figures of more than a billion people with presbyopia. By the company's account, the EIC offered it €6.6 million to address them. The public cannot tell what that money produced.
What the project promised
A screen film that removes the need for reading glasses, sold as an add-on for phones and car displays.
What the record shows
A first-year report on materials and tooling, a delayed alignment system and no public news since 2023.
The Verdict
Funded, then silent
PhoneOptika announced an EIC package more than seven times the size of its grant, then stopped reporting in public. Without a final report or product news, there is no evidence the film reached users.
PhoneOptika and the EIC have not been asked for comment for this article. It is based entirely on public records and published statements, linked throughout.
