TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Google said Thursday that it has signed an agreement with HTC to buy some of its extended reality engineering team for NT$8.19 billion (US$250 million).

The search giant said in a press release the deal will accelerate the development of Google’s Android extended reality platform across the headsets and glasses ecosystem. The transaction is expected to be completed in Q1, per CNA.

Founded in 1997, Taoyuan-based HTC is one of Taiwan’s smartphone and virtual reality headset makers. HTC said Google will receive a non-exclusive license for its XR intellectual property.

Google said that advancements in AI allow people to interact with computers more naturally, per Liberty Times. These breakthroughs allow XR devices to understand user needs and help them accomplish tasks in new ways.

In December, Google announced the launch of its Android XR platform, aiming to work with industry partners to create a new operating system tailored to next-generation computing needs. The platform integrates Google’s years of AI and virtual reality expertise to deliver more immersive experiences for headsets and smart glasses.

The transaction marks the second major agreement between the companies, following Google’s US$1.1 billion deal to transfer over 2,000 HTC engineers to the company in 2017, per Reuters.