in december 2012, meta was founded by meron gribetz, based on the work of a columbia university team that began in 2011. on 17 may 2013, the company launched a kickstarter campaign to raise funds to manufacture the meta 1, an augmented reality wearable display that is based on epson's moverio bt-100. meta's outward-facing camera captures gestures allowing users to interact with virtual games, architectural renderings and other 3d objects by using their hands. to get one of the first-generation devices required a pledge of $650 or more to the kickstarter campaign. the kickstarter campaign was successful in raising $194,444, topping its pledged goal of $100,000.