{{short description|Defunct UK-based software company}} {{EngvarB|date=September 2013}} {{Use dmy dates|date=July 2024}} {{Infobox company | name = Tao Group | logo = Tao-logo.png | logo_size = 150px | type = [[Limited company]] | industry = Computer [[software]] | foundation = 1992 | location = [[Reading, Berkshire]], England | website = {{URL|tao-group.com}} }}

'''Tao Group''' was a software company with headquarters in [[Reading, Berkshire]], UK. It developed the Intent software platform<ref>{{Cite web |last=EETimes |date=2001-09-13 |title=Tao gets Japanese backers for Intent platform |url=https://www.eetimes.com/tao-gets-japanese-backers-for-intent-platform/ |access-date=2026-04-22 |website=EE Times}}</ref>, which enabled content portability by delivering services in a platform-independent format called [[Virtual Processor]] (VP). The business's IP portfolio was sold in May 2007 to Cross Atlantic Capital Partners.<ref name="theregister2007">{{cite web|title=Tao Group throws in the towel|url=https://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/06/13/tao_group_administration/|publisher=The Register|accessdate=3 July 2012|author=Kelly Fiveash|date=13 June 2007}}</ref>

==History== Francis Charig and Chris Hinsley founded Tao Group in 1992<ref>{{Cite web |last=Reimer |first=Jeremy |date=2018-03-29 |title=A history of the Amiga, part 12: Red vs. Blue |url=https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2018/03/a-history-of-the-amiga-part-12-red-vs-blue/ |access-date=2026-04-22 |website=Ars Technica |language=en}}</ref>. In the same year, the company released the first generation of its [[virtual machine]], called [[Virtual Processor]] (VP). In 1998, Tao Group released the second generation, VP2<ref>{{Cite web |date=22 April 2026 |title=Tao Group |url=https://www.kpt.co.id/IT/en/105-2/Tao-Group_10168_kpt.html |url-status=live |access-date=22 April 2026 |website=KPT}}</ref>.

In 2002, Tao acquired SSEYO,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.intermorphic.com/company/history.html |title=Founders History |publisher=Intermorphic |accessdate=6 November 2012}}</ref> a British audio company that specialised in [[generative music]] technologies and created the [[Koan (program)|Koan]] generative music engine. SSEYO won a [[BAFTA]]Interactive Entertainment Award in 2001.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://awards.bafta.org/award/2001/interactive/technical-innovation.html |title=BAFTA Interactive Technical Innovation in 2001|accessdate=8 December 2017}}</ref> Tao won a BAFTA Interactive Entertainment Award in 2005 for the miniMIXA product.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://awards.bafta.org/award/2005/interactive/music|title=BAFTA Interactive Music in 2005|accessdate=8 December 2017}}</ref>

Tao licensed more than 20 million copies of Intent to clients, working with companies such as [[Sony]], [[NEC]], [[JVC]], [[Kyocera]], [[HTC Corporation|HTC]], [[Philips Electronics]], [[Kodak]], [[Sharp Corporation|Sharp]] and [[Panasonic]]. From 2001 to 2004{{Citation needed|date=June 2013}}, the Open Contents Platform Association (chaired by Kyocera President [[Yasuo Nishiguchi]]) and Tao CEO Francis Charig looked at networked device standardisation using Intent. More than 50 companies were members, mostly Japanese. [[Red Herring (magazine)|Red Herring]] included Tao in its top 100 European privately held companies in 2005 and 2006.<ref>{{cite web|title=Red Herring Reveals Companies Selected for the 2006 Red Herring 100 Europe; Award Recognizes the 100 ''Most Promising'' Firms Driving the Future of Technology|url=https://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0EIN/is_2006_May_9/ai_n26854236/|publisher=Business Wire|accessdate=3 July 2012|date=9 May 2006}}</ref> In 2006, Tao was named a [[World Economic Forum]] Technology Pioneer<ref>{{cite web|title=TheWorld Economic Forum's Technology Pioneers 2006|url=http://www.weforum.org/pdf/techpioneers/apax2006.pdf|publisher=[[World Economic Forum]]|accessdate=27 October 2013|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20131019041634/http://www.weforum.org/pdf/techpioneers/apax2006.pdf|archivedate=19 October 2013}}</ref> and was ranked 26th in the 2006 [[Tech Track 100]] in association with the [[Sunday Times]].

Investors in Tao Group included [[Motorola]], [[Freescale Semiconductor]], [[Sony]], NEC, [[Sharp Corporation|Sharp]], Kyocera, and [[Mitsubishi]]. In June 2007 Cross Atlantic Licensing, a wholly owned subsidiary of Cross Atlantic Capital Partners LLC, acquired the business.<ref name="theregister2007"/> In mid-2007 Charig founded Antix Labs Ltd, which was headquartered in Reading, [[England]], and employed many who previously worked at Tao. Antix built a software games player that enabled games to be delivered to internet-connected TVs<ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=2010-09-29 |title=Antix Game Player |url=https://www.gamesindustry.biz/antix-game-player-tv-games-platform-available-on-tellies-using-mstar-chips |access-date=2026-04-22 |website=GamesIndustry.biz |language=en}}</ref>. In 2008, Intermorphic Ltd, a generative tools company established by the founders of SSEYO, acquired the entire intellectual property base of the Intent Sound System (ISS) technology (including Koan and miniMIX) from Cross Atlantic Licensing, and it is now rebranded as the Intermorphic Sound System<ref>{{Cite web |title=From SSEYO to Intermorphic |url=https://intermorphic.com/archive/sseyo/ |access-date=2026-04-22 |website=intermorphic.com}}</ref>, part of Intermorphic's "tikl tech" platform. Koan was superseded by Intermorphic's Noatikl music engine (now a component of Wotja),<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.intermorphic.com/tools/noatikl/index.html |title=Noatikl 2 &#124; Generative Music Lab for Reflective Music |publisher=Intermorphic |accessdate=6 November 2012}}</ref> and miniMIXA has been rebranded and further developed into first Mixtikl, and now Wotja.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.intermorphic.com/tools/mixtikl/index.html |title=Mixtikl – Generative Music Mixer with Words, Visualizer and Tap Play &#124; Intermorphic Music App Software for iPhone iPad iPod touch Android Mac Windows |publisher=Intermorphic.com |date=1 July 2010 |accessdate=6 November 2012}}</ref>

==Products== The company's main product was "Intent", a hardware-independent software platform.<ref>{{Cite web |date=24 June 2023 |title=Tao Group Collects $9M |url=https://www.lightreading.com/business-management/tao-group-collects-9m |url-status=live |access-date=22 April 2026 |website=LightReading}}</ref>

===Intent=== TAOS was the original name for Intent. As the product changed it was renamed to Elate and then finally named Intent.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://wiki.c2.com/?TaoIntentOs|title=Tao Intent Os|accessdate=18 October 2019}}</ref>

Tao Group's licensed product, "Intent", was a software platform provided to third party hardware and service providers. It enabled games and [[multimedia]] entertainment to run on [[Mobile phone|mobiles]] and other digital devices. It was also used to simplify [[content management]] by delivering code in an efficient hardware-independent format.

The Intent platform could be run either as the native [[operating system]] or as an application. Service code was delivered in a format called [[Virtual Processor]] (VP), which was translated on the device to native [[machine code]].

The Intent portfolio included support for: * [[C (programming language)|C]]/[[C++]] games with [[OpenGL ES]] 3D rendering * A [[Java (programming language)|Java]] virtual machine which translated to native code * A [[web browser]] optimised for small screens * A music and multimedia [[Mixing console|mixer]] called miniMIXA * A [[MIDI]] [[ringtone]] engine called the Advanced Polyphone Ringtone Engine.

==References== {{Reflist}}

==External links== *[https://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0ECZ/is_2001_July_16/ai_76556099 Announcement of formation of Open Contents Standard Association] *[https://archive.today/20110807134553/http://www.electronicsweekly.com/Articles/2003/01/29/28063/reading-based+tao+wins+japanese+mobile+backing.htm Kyocera invests in Tao Group] *[https://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0ECZ/is_2002_March_28/ai_84240630 Tao acquires SSEYO] *[https://archive.today/20060526163429/http://msmobiles.com/news.php/3645.html Tao wins BAFTA for its SSEYO miniMIXA product] *[https://web.archive.org/web/20070210152548/http://www.fasttrack.co.uk/fasttrack2002/migration/dbDetails.asp?siteID=3&compID=1885&yr=2006 Tao ranked 26th in the Tech Track 100 and confirmation Charig & Hinsley as the founders] *[http://c2.com/cgi/wiki?TaoIntentOs Tao Intent Os] An earlier version of Intent described on WikiWikiWIki *[http://www.osnews.com/story.php/157/Tao-Group-on-ElateOS-AmigaDE-and-More/ Interview with the developers of Intent 2001] *[http://www.intermorphic.com Intermorphic Limited] *[https://www.edn.com/electronics-news/4039644/Amiga-reborn-via-Tao-alliance Amiga reborn via Tao alliance]

[[Category:Software companies of England]] [[Category:Defunct software companies of the United Kingdom]] [[Category:Companies based in Reading, Berkshire]] [[Category:Software companies established in 1992]] [[Category:2007 mergers and acquisitions]] [[Category:British companies established in 1992]] [[Category:1992 establishments in England]]