---
title: "Microsoft Is Selling $21.9 Billion of AR Headsets to the US Army"
description: "Microsoft has been awarded a massive contract to supply the US Army with more than 120,000 augmented reality headsets, MSNBC reports."
date: "2021-04-01"
modified: "2021-04-01"
authors:
  - name: "Victor Tangermann"
    job_title: "Senior Editor"
    link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor"
url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/microsoft-selling-ar-headsets-us-army"
categories:
  - "Future Society"
  - "Virtual Reality"
tags:
  - "augmented reality"
  - "hololens"
  - "microsoft"
  - "the digest"
  - "us army"
---

# Microsoft Is Selling $21.9 Billion of AR Headsets to the US Army

![Microsoft has been awarded a massive contract to supply the US Army with more than 120,000 augmented reality headsets, MSNBC reports.](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/microsoft-is-selling-21-9-billion-of-ar-headsets-to-the-us-army.jpg>)
*\<em\>Image: US Army\</em\>*

## HoloLens Army

Microsoft has been awarded a massive contract to supply the US Army with more than 120,000 augmented reality headsets, [*MSNBC* reports](<https://www.cnbc.com/2021/03/31/microsoft-wins-contract-to-make-modified-hololens-for-us-army.html>).

The contract, amounting to about $21.88 billion over ten years, follows a 2018 contract to build prototypes of the Army's Integrated Visual Augmented System (IVAS). The new contract will involve building working production versions of the system — a deal that stands to change the face of ground combat.

## Augmented Awareness

The headsets, based on Microsoft's consumer-facing HoloLens, allow soldiers to view map and even thermal imaging overlays, allowing them to effectively see in the dark.

The headsets can also relay video streams. For instance, thanks to a new gun barrel attachment, soldiers could [even see around corners](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/night-vision-goggles-look-around-corners>).

"The program delivers enhanced situational awareness, enabling information sharing and decision-making in a variety of scenarios," Microsoft wrote in a blog [post](<https://blogs.microsoft.com/blog/2021/03/31/army-moves-microsoft-hololens-based-headset-from-prototyping-to-production-phase/>) announcing the contract. "Microsoft has worked closely with the U.S. Army over the past two years, and together we pioneered Soldier Centered Design to enable rapid prototyping for a product to provide Soldiers with the tools and capabilities necessary to achieve their mission."

## Enabling War

Microsoft has a longstanding relationship with the US military. In 2019, the tech company scored a contract to provide [cloud services](<https://www.cnbc.com/2019/10/25/microsoft-wins-major-defense-cloud-contract-beating-out-amazon.html>) to the Defense Department.

Understandably, Microsoft employees aren't always keen on working for a company with such close ties to the military, calling on their employer to cancel the IVAS contract, cease development of "any and all weapons technologies," and "appoint an independent, external ethics review board" in a [2019 open letter](<https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/5746790-Microsoft-HoloLens-Letter.html>) signed by more than 100 Microsoft engineers.

"We are alarmed that Microsoft is working to provide weapons technology to the US Military, helping one country’s government 'increase lethality' using tools we built," the letter read. "We did not sign up to develop weapons, and we demand a say in how our work is used."

**READ MORE:** [Microsoft wins U.S. Army contract for augmented reality headsets, worth up to $21.9 billion over 10 years](<https://www.cnbc.com/2021/03/31/microsoft-wins-contract-to-make-modified-hololens-for-us-army.html>) \[*CNBC*\]

**More on IVAS:** *[The US Army's New Goggles Could Let Soldiers See Around Corners](<https://futurism.com/the-byte/armys-new-goggles-soldiers>)*

## Author
I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida.

### Author social links  
[Bluesky](<https://bsky.app/profile/vtanger.bsky.social>)