Use wechat scan QR code to share with friends and circle of friends_ blank" href=" https://news.163.com/news/search?keyword=%E5%BE%AE%E8%BD%AF "> Microsoft < / a > has won a huge contract worth as much as US $21.9 billion to produce 120000 sets of < a target =" in 10 years_ blank" href=" https://news.163.com/news/search?keyword=HoloLens "> hololens < / a > augmented reality (< a target ="_ blank" href=" https://news.163.com/news/search?keyword=AR ">AR） helmet < / a >. This is the largest ar equipment procurement contract ever awarded by the US military. < / P > < p > the deal shows that after years of research and exploration, Microsoft can finally obtain considerable revenue through ar business, rather than relying on core businesses such as operating system and productivity software. The contract was awarded on Friday for a base period of five years, followed by a five-year renewal option. The defense department did not immediately respond to requests for comment. < / P > < p > the contract builds on a two-year, US $480 million contract Microsoft won in 2018 to equip the US military with a prototype of an integrated visual enhancement system (IVAS). At the time, the contract detailed that the deal could lead to further orders for more than 100000 helmets. < / P > < p > Alex kipman, a Microsoft technology researcher who launched hololens in 2015, wrote in his blog post: "IVAS helmet is designed based on hololens and enhanced by Microsoft azure cloud service, providing a safer and more effective platform for soldiers. The system provides them with enhanced situational awareness and realizes information sharing and decision-making in various situations. " < / P > < p > the standard hololens helmet costs $3500, enabling people to see holograms covered in real environments and interact with gestures and voice. The improved design improves the performance of hololens 2 to meet the needs of soldiers in the field environment. Microsoft's IVAS prototype in 2019 shows that it can provide maps and compass, and has thermal imaging function to show people in the dark. The system can also display the target of the weapon. "This new contract extends our long-term trust with the U.S. Department of defense to new areas, and marks the transition of our ar devices from prototype design to production and field promotion," a Microsoft spokesman said Microsoft's helmet enables soldiers to fight and train in the same system, the U.S. military said in a statement. < / P > < p > the deal makes Microsoft a more important technology supplier to the US military. In 2019, Microsoft beat the market leader of cloud computing services_ blank" href=" https://news.163.com/news/search?keyword=%E4%BA%9A%E9%A9%AC%E9%80%8A "> Amazon < / a >, won the contract to provide cloud services to the US Department of defense. Amazon has been challenging the potentially $10 billion contract in federal court. < / P > < p > previously, some Microsoft employees asked the company to suspend its cloud computing contract with the military. Similarly, some employees also called on Microsoft to cancel the hololens contract. "We have not signed a contract to develop weapons, and we want to have a say in how we use the results of our work," the employees wrote in the relevant open letter < / P > < p > Satya NADELLA, Microsoft's chief executive, defended the AR contract, saying: "we have made a decision of principle that we will not reject technologies used by democracies to protect the freedoms we enjoy." Meanwhile, the U.S. military says AR technology can help soldiers target the enemy and prevent the killing of civilians. < / P > < p > after the news of huge orders came out, Microsoft's share price rose. At Wednesday's close, the stock rose 1.7 per cent to $235.77. (small) < / P > < p >