This Is Why Augmented Reality Startups Will Make It Big

by Startacus Admin

The odds are that augmented reality will be the next big thing. Nate Vickery, Editor at Bizzmark Blog, explains why...

"New technologies such as AI, machine learning, and VR have already become part of our daily lives. They have found numerous practical uses, and it’s expected that they’ll continue to develop much faster in the future.

Besides these obvious sure bets that will most certainly rule the tech industry, there’s an underdog that only recently started showing its true potential – augmented reality.

It can be said that this concept was pushed aside after the failure of Google Glass, but the Pokemon Go frenzy once again dragged it into the spotlight. According to the latest information, Google decided to bring this smart headset back to life and to give it another go. It’s very unlikely that the tech giant would allow itself another failed attempt with the same product, and the odds are that augmented reality will be the next big thing.

More than just a game

Unlike VR that creates a completely new reality, AR only enhances and improves the existing reality by adding layers of information or useful adjustments. Yes, Pokemon Go helped us realize how fun augmented reality can be, and the fact that it was downloaded 500 million times made a serious impact on the gaming industry, but there are many other advantages of this technology that have nothing to do with entertainment. Some of the uses that come to mind are phone apps that help interior decorators and their clients see how their design ideas would look like. Both commercial and military aviation already take advantage of augmented reality by employing the heads-up display which presents critical information to pilots in a way that doesn’t require them to look down in order to see the instruments positioned on the dashboard.

Data, such as airspeed, the horizon line, and altitude, are in pilots’ field of view all the time, which reduces eyestrain. Pairing up AR with navigation apps is one of the most common uses of this technology, and it makes finding the best route significantly easier.

Medicine is also a field which will be revolutionized with the help of AR. Namely, among many other practical uses, this technology enables remote assistance in the operating theatre, as a surgeon who isn’t physically present can literally point and guide the surgeon performing the procedure. We’re talking about an amazing technology that requires a lot of money to fund its development, and one of the best ways to find investors is through crowdfunding.

Avoiding the traps

It’s widely believed that Google Glass failed to succeed mainly because the market wasn’t ready for it at the time. Another culprit may have been the unsophisticated technology so that the final product was pretty uncomfortable and the battery life left a lot to be desired. That’s still one of the biggest concerns of entrepreneurs willing to try their hand and luck in the AR landscape. It’s true that mobile apps that combine AR and a device’s camera to provide useful information to users are cool, but holding up your phone every time you want to access certain information can be pretty annoying and tiring. That’s why building light and comfortable glasses with an improved battery life is a must, and companies are working on that at the moment. Legal issues are another thing that has plagued the commercial uses of AR, and it’s essential to resolve them as soon as possible.

For example, AR glasses are capable of using hidden cameras and face recognition applications, which means that they could give access to various databases and display real-time information to the user. Needless to say that this could potentially lead to privacy violations. 

VR vs AR

It’s true that virtual reality might seem like a more complex and exciting concept at the moment, with its immersive experience and the promise of digital escapism, but according to experts, in the long term augmented reality is more likely to endure incoming challenges and be successfully implemented. Despite its numerous benefits, especially when it comes to training and all kinds of simulations performed in controlled environments, VR in a way limits our perception of the actual reality and it can be described as hermetic.

On the other hand, AR will shape and improve the manner in which we interact with our reality. It’s also worth mentioning that AR is capable of integrating more easily with other systems, regardless of the industry. The fact that Snapchat boasts 166 million daily active users who produce 10 billion AR videos every day speaks volumes about the profitability of this technology. Business Insider Intelligence estimates that the AR and VR market opportunity combined will hit $162 billion by 2020, but according to the same source AR will generate more revenue.

Bearing in mind that Apple is rumored to be integrating AR into the iPhone camera and that it has already patented an AR mapping system, while its biggest rival, Microsoft, is developing HoloLens, there’s no doubt that the industry’s major players are convinced that there’s a bright future for this technology.

Based on all available data, we can safely conclude that augmented reality will make it big and leave some other advanced technologies, such as VR, behind."

Nate Vickery is a marketing consultant and author mostly engaged in researching the latest marketing technology trends and practices applicable to startups and SMBs. He is also the editor at Bizzmark Blog and an author on The Next Web.

• #augmented reality
• #augmented reality startups
• #vr
• #virtual reality
• #ar startups
• #pokemon go
• #google glass

Published on: 21st August 2017