Author name: Rejus Almole

how-ar-and-vr-technologies-help-create-phygital-experiences

How AR and VR Technologies Help Create Phygital Experiences

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The widespread adoption of the so-called “phygital experiences” in consumer markets shows that they have now become the standard. By delivering highly personalized and seamless experiences, they ensure consumers’ unique needs are met and their expectations are exceeded. For brands, phygital is no longer just a trend. It’s also now integral to business sustainability and future growth.

The Increasing Demand for Phygital Experiences

One report shows that a majority of shoppers today feel more comfortable using digital technology. Currently, consumers are going back to in-store shopping post-pandemic. And they continue to look for digital options that make their buying journey more enjoyable. They have come to expect the same personalized experiences that brands offer online when they visit physical stores.

Contactless payments, curbside pickup options, and in-store ordering kiosks are some of the ways brands are delivering these phygital experiences. They offer seamless transitions between digital and physical touchpoints.

These solutions are now commonplace in airports, banks, restaurants, and many other establishments. To enhance in-store experiences, some brands leverage immersive technologies that elevate the digital experiences of consumers.

The Role of AR and VR in Creating Phygital Experiences

To create immersive experiences while ensuring smooth omnichannel journeys, AR and VR play a crucial role. Innovative AR and VR applications effectively meet the consumer demand for phygital experiences in the various channels they use.

Many of us already use these technologies at home. Farfetch, L’Oreal, Wacoal, Warby Parker, and other brands transformed online shopping with virtual try-ons.

Apps like IKEA Place use AR to enable shoppers to virtually place realistically rendered and true-to-scale furnishings into their real physical space.

Marriott International uses VR to help customers plan their events. Used with a headset, their VR app renders three-dimensional views of hotel venues with setups customized for specific social and corporate events.

Brands are bringing these at-home phygital experiences consumers have come to love into their brick-and-mortar shops. For instance, BMW makes car shopping more fun with an AR app that allows shoppers to customize the colors and styles of cars. They also offer VR headsets that let customers experience what it feels like to drive the cars.

Many Nike outlets today are equipped with AR solutions that allow shoppers to scan items to view more detailed information about them. A few years ago, Adidas also launched a unique AR experience in its Paris flagship store. Today, shoppers enjoy immersive experiences at home and in-store through the Adidas app.

Toms offers a similar VR experience that transports shoppers to Peru to see how their contributions to Toms initiatives are helping communities there. This type of immersive experience deepens the connection of consumers to a brand as they get fully immersed in the actual impact of the brand’s advocacy on society.

Other AR and VR applications also elevate shopping experiences. These include in-store navigation, immersive product catalogs, and customization tools. They make phygital experiences more captivating. They also connect consumers to brands on an immersive and more emotional level.

Immersive Technologies Are the Core of Phygital

Phygital experiences will be an inherent part of our future. People will come to expect seamless transitions between digital and physical modes in virtually every aspect of life.

Immersive technologies are fundamental to delivering these experiences. Thus, brands that haven’t done so yet must incorporate immersive solutions into their growth strategy. Aside from allowing brands to meet new consumer demands, immersive tech also enables them to deliver more value that gives them a competitive advantage.

How AR and VR Technologies Help Create Phygital Experiences Read More »

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Coming Product From Valkyrie Industries Could Put Haptics on Double Duty

featured, fitness, haptics, Sports & Fitness, virtual reality, VR accessories / /

 

Usually, when people talk about haptics we’re talking about making interactions more realistic or immersive. Of course, this is huge for VR. However, as VR develops as a fitness tool, haptics can take on a whole new dimension. Take a recently announced product from Valkyrie Industries as an example.

Understanding EMS

I used to write for health and wellness blogs, so entertain a little physiology rundown. The two branches of this product build on two facts about your body. First, your muscles work through electrical impulses generated by your body. Second, your muscles grow by working against resistance.

As to the first point, your muscles can be stimulated by electrical impulses not generated by your body. Electrical Muscle Stimulation (EMS) uses controlled electrical impulses applied to the muscles, typically in physical training.

As to the second point, resistance can come from an external force like gravity. This is mechanical resistance, which is the basis of most workouts. However, EMS can also provide a different kind of resistance that works out your muscles without the use of some physical source like weights or bands.

So, together, EMS doesn’t just make you feel like you’re doing something – your muscles actually get that benefit. So, what is Valkyrie Industries doing in this field?

This has two big potential benefits for VR: fitness, and general immersion. Valkyrie Industries is primarily focused on fitness, so we’ll start there.

Haptics in VR Fitness

Fitness has been a major use case of VR, primarily through cardio. To dust off my health blogger hat again, cardio is good for your heart and lungs but it doesn’t necessarily do a lot for muscle growth because it doesn’t involve a great deal of resistance. But, it’s the ideal match for VR because VR solves so many of the problems of conventional cardio.

Conventional solo cardio also tends to be boring. Switching things up requires a partner, access to specialized equipment or areas, and other obstacles. VR has largely removed these various barriers by “simming in” items, venues, and even partners. The ability to gamify these activities also makes them more attractive, particularly when paired with social features.

But it still doesn’t do much for muscle growth. Right?

Valkyrie - haptics - EIR Armbands

Valkyrie Industries recently announced Valkyrie EIR. These are bands worn around the upper arm that provide muscle stimulation to the biceps and triceps during your cardio workout in VR. This helps to bring muscle activation into cardio without incorporating weights or bands to get in the way.

Valkyrie also announced EIR Training, VR fitness courses specifically designed for use with the Valkyrie EIR armbands.

Valkyrie - haptics - EIR Training

“The powerful feeling of resistance is integral to the best workout routines,” Valkyrie Industries co-founder and CTO, Ivan Isakov, said in a release shared with ARPost. “We wanted to push the boundaries of immersion for the millions of fitness fans that work out in VR every day. Valkyrie EIR is the next step in that journey, as we build on our expertise with haptic technologies.”

Haptics in VR Generally

Now, let’s talk about general immersion as a potential benefit of EMS. This requires a little extrapolation from the actual Valkyrie Industries releases. But, as we saw above, EMS creates the feeling of physical resistance from a virtual activity. That is here, being used to increase a workout. It could also be used to increase immersion.

In EIR Training, EMS replicates the feeling of resistance from a cable pull. It could also replicate the feeling of resistance from drawing a bowstring, reeling in a fish, climbing a mountain – whatever you like to do in VR.

Haptics as a form of feedback is one of the great pursuits of hardware developers – usually focusing on the hands and body. However, Valkyrie Industry’s armbands only cost $150 – significantly below the price of other haptic solutions.

So, why aren’t I playing Archery Dungeon with EMS right now? There are a few reasons. First, While Valkyrie EIR was announced last month, it isn’t scheduled to ship until next summer. Second, strapping on an armband doesn’t automatically make it reactive to whatever experience you’re enjoying. That would require SDKs and APIs that we haven’t seen yet. But, it’s still early.

Plus, we know that companies like Meta are working on EMG. That’s “electromyography” – tech that detects the electrical impulses in muscles. In VR, it’s a potential input method of future devices. A headset that you communicate with through EMG input and that communicates with you through EMS haptics could have incredible potential for human-computer interaction.

Both Eyes Open

Valkyrie EIR for VR fitness is exciting. The idea of Valkyrie EIR providing haptic feedback for more diverse VR applications? That’s thrilling. But that’s often the problem with emerging technologies: If we keep looking at what might come next, we forget to appreciate what we have today.

Coming Product From Valkyrie Industries Could Put Haptics on Double Duty Read More »

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Artebinaria Open-Air Museum: Imaginary Museums Without Walls in Augmented Reality

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Sponsored content

Sponsored by Artebinaria

 

Artebinaria Open-Air Museum is a brand new technological platform – designed, developed, and curated by Artebinaria – for setting up and opening to the public a collection of imaginary museums in augmented reality, geo-locatable anywhere in the world, and visitable through the app Open-Air Museum, available for iPhone and iPad.

A series of open-air exhibition spaces come to life in augmented reality, offering an unparalleled experience for art enthusiasts, with exclusive installations that evolve over time with new proposals.

Meet Artebinaria

Artebinaria is a tech company based in Florence, Italy, founded by senior software engineer Alessandro Bemporad, operating internationally since 2019 in the field of augmented reality applied to the world of art. The company develops its own solutions on Apple devices and Cloud Computing platforms.

The team is composed of software engineers and art historians, all with many years of experience in their respective professional fields.

Artebinaria believes in augmented imagination – the symbiosis of creativity, knowledge, and technology.

Artebinaria Open-Air Museum in Florence, London, and Paris

The first three imaginary museums are already open at Piazzale Michelangelo in Florence, at Primrose Hill (The Regent’s Park) in London, and at Place-Vendôme in Paris, and offer a selection of 100 masterpieces of painting from the 13th to the 20th century.



The selection of the artworks, and the original content of the information sheets, illustrating the artworks, have been curated by an art historian, the Art Director of Artebinaria, Maddalena Grazzini.

How to Visit Artebinaria Open-Air Museum

A visit to one of Artebinaria’s Open-Air Museums takes place via the app Open-Air Museum by Artebinaria, which allows visitors who are in one of the geo-located museum locations to explore the artworks in augmented reality.

Visits to the Artebinaria Open-Air Museums are free of charge and are offered by selected sponsors, whose logos are visible in 3D directly within the augmented reality scenes.

artebinaria open-air museum augmented reality florence

Each of Artebinaria’s Open-Air Museums is arranged in a series of ‘Pavilions’ and ‘Exhibition Rooms,’ which over time will house new thematic exhibitions.

Inside the virtual rooms, visitors can admire the artworks, displayed in life-size, as if they were hanging on invisible walls which do not conceal their surroundings.

Moving within each imaginary room, visitors can admire the artworks from any perspective. In particular, it is possible to get close to an artwork to discover all its details or touch an artwork in space to view its information sheet.

100 Masterpieces in Augmented Reality

In this first edition, located in London, Paris, and Florence, the Pavilions of Artebinaria Open-Air Museum are dedicated to the themes of everyday life, portraits, mythology, and sacred art. Inside the exhibition rooms are shown 100 paintings of more than 60 great masters such as Giotto, Vermeer, Rubens, Van Gogh, Leonardo da Vinci, Rembrandt, Gauguin, Renoir, Degas, Monet, etc.

artebinaria open-air museum augmented reality london phone

Artebinaria Open-Air Museum in Your City

With the opening of the first museums without walls in Florence, London, and Paris, Artebinaria invites all art history enthusiasts to visit them, and also to propose new locations for the opening of fantastic new Open-Air Museums in augmented reality all over the world.

Why don’t you propose to Artebinaria the opening of an Open-Air Museum in your city, too?

Artebinaria Open-Air Museum: Imaginary Museums Without Walls in Augmented Reality Read More »

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6 European startups dragging rail networks into the future

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When it comes to B2B products, it’s all about building relationships, something that can be challenging for startups entering traditional industries like rail. But over the last few years, the rail industry has reached out to startups to provide a way to gain their insights and draw them into its ecosystem. Examples of these initiatives include the UK’s Rail Innovation Group — an incubator for rail startups — and Deutsche Bahn’s DB Mindbox. Since 2015, the latter in particular, has organised hackathons and supported more than 150 startups with their proof of concept, 60% of which continue their business cooperation…

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6 European startups dragging rail networks into the future Read More »

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Here’s what to do if you’ve just been laid off

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Suddenly finding yourself unemployed is a precarious position to be in, and not even severance pay can take the sting out of the confidence knock a lay-off brings. The unprecedented tech layoffs that have occurred in recent weeks at the likes of Meta and Stripe have sent shockwaves through the industry, as thousands of workers brace themselves for the task of finding a new role in a less buoyant job market. However, the industry as a whole remains stable. In fact, according to a report by Gartner, IT expenditure is expected to increase by 5.1% and hit $4.5 trillion by…

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Here’s what to do if you’ve just been laid off Read More »

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London-based Flawless AI’s ‘True Sync’ tech is a revolutionary approach to film dubbing

Artificial Intelligence, Neural, Next Featured / /


When British director Scott Mann’s latest film, Fall, was on the precipice of receiving an “R” rating from the MPAA over the number of “F” bombs dropped over its one hour and 47-minute run time, he did what any reasonable person would: he used artificial intelligence to digitally alter the actor’s performances in order to change the swear words into more palatable terms. A stroke of fricking genius, if you ask us. For those who are curious: about 35 “F” words stood between a PG-13 rating and an R rating. Mann’s dilemma, then, became trying to figure out how to…

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London-based Flawless AI’s ‘True Sync’ tech is a revolutionary approach to film dubbing Read More »

why-the-future-of-ai-is-flexible,-reusable-foundation-models

Why the future of AI is flexible, reusable foundation models

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Content provided by IBM and TNW When learning a different language, the easiest way to get started is with fill in the blank exercises. “It’s raining cats and …” By making mistakes and correcting them, your brain (which linguists agree is hardwired for language learning) starts discovering patterns in grammar, vocabulary, and word sequence — which can not only be applied to filling in blanks, but also to convey meaning to other humans (or computers, dogs, etc.). That last bit is important when talking about so-called ‘foundation models,’ one of the hottest (but underreported) topics in artificial intelligence right now. According to…

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Why the future of AI is flexible, reusable foundation models Read More »

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Rail Baltica is the sort of infrastructure project every continent needs

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All around the world, governments are investing in public transport to reduce car use and create a greener world. And, now, Eastern Europe is going all in with the rail infrastructure project Rail Baltica. Rail Baltica aims to integrate the Baltic States within the European rail network. It’s one of Europe’s most substantial investments to improve mobility and travel options, and it’s the largest Baltic-region infrastructure project in the last 100 years. The project includes five European Union countries — Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia and, indirectly, Finland. It will connect Helsinki, Tallinn, Pärnu, Riga, Panevežys, Kaunas, Vilnius, and Warsaw. But…

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Rail Baltica is the sort of infrastructure project every continent needs Read More »

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A guide to the quantum workforce of tomorrow

Neural, Next Featured / /


Welcome to the future. It’s 2022 and the near billion-dollar quantum computing sector has gone from a passion project for forward-thinking physicists to a thriving B2B industry. Experts predict the market for quantum technologies will quadruple in value by 2029.  Simply put there’s never been a better time than right now for potential jobseekers to get in on what, arguably, could be the greatest technological revolution since the advent of the internet. But what if you don’t have a PhD in physics or a background in quantum research?  Fret not. The world of quantum technologies will require a lot more…

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A guide to the quantum workforce of tomorrow Read More »

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Varjo Releases XR-3 Retooled for Training and Simulation

Highlights / /

 

 

Passthrough is turning VR companies into AR companies. But, it isn’t perfect. Often, the AR view of the world offered via passthrough has less visual fidelity than the VR view. This poses a problem when an AR experience relies on fine details in the physical environment like in simulation and training. Varjo has a solution.

That solution is a modified version of the company’s already awe-inspiring mixed reality headset XR-3. By the way, if your company has any security concerns at all, this headset solves those too.

The XR-3 and the Passthrough Problem

Varjo offers some of the highest-quality VR headsets in the world for remote collaboration and immersion in virtual worlds. However, customers may need a fine blend of both virtual elements and real-world environment. For these users, Varjo released the XR-3 last spring.

The XR-3 mixed reality headset introduced us to “variable passthrough” allowing users to move back and forth from virtual reality to augmented reality and back again. It’s an amazing piece of kit but there’s a catch.

If you’ve ever used passthrough on a device like the Meta Quest 2, you know that the passthrough isn’t crystal clear. Even reviews of the newer Quest Pro, which is based almost entirely around its passthrough feature, say that users can’t do things like read while in passthrough mode.

At least part of the problem is that your eyes can’t focus in passthrough. Passthrough isn’t looking through a clear lens like using AR glasses. Passthrough is looking through a camera’s lens, which is fixed to whatever focal plane the cameras have. That’s the problem that Varjo’s new XR-3 Focal Edition solves.

The Varjo XR-3 Focal Edition

The new XR-3 Focal Edition offers its XR passthrough through two high-resolution 12-megapixel cameras – just like the original XR-3. However, the cameras on the XR-3 Focal Edition are specifically calibrated “to provide an improved image clarity” between about one and three feet away from the user.

Varjo MR headset - XR-3 Focal Edition

“The optimized components in the mixed reality camera system change the distance of the focus so the lens brings a sharper depth of field, closer to the user,” a release shared with ARPost explains.

That makes a big difference for people using the headset to learn how to navigate highly complex environments reliant on extremely fine detail, for example, cockpits or car dashboards. Users can also interact with physical handheld devices like mobile phones or controllers.



“We heard from our customers the need for more precise visuals at a closer distance, specifically when looking at dashboards, cockpits, and cellphones,” Varjo Chief Commercial Officer, Seppo Aaltonen, said in the release. “We responded with the XR-3 Focal Edition to address this need.”

Added Security

Depending on the use case, focal planes might not be the only barrier to using XR – or, not using it as one might like. For many potential users, security concerns are also a problem because XR headsets have to access cameras and audio. Users also have to create accounts and access the internet on headsets – except for the XR-3 Focal Edition.

Varjo Mixed Reality HMD for Pilot Training

The Varjo XR-3 Focal Edition is TAA/BAA compliant, ships with a “perpetual offline license” that does not require an account, and can ship with the radio frequency capability removed. So, while the headset still uses a camera and audio, that info can be kept entirely on the device and any connected computer.

“The XR-3 Focal Edition can support the most demanding security needed for the United States Department of Defense, intelligence, and security-critical infrastructure customers,” reads the release.

Breaking Ground Again

The original Varjo XR-3 deserves to go down in spatial computing history. Despite the amazing features of the original headset, some special-case users couldn’t get the most out of it because of intensive optical needs or intensive security requirements. The Focal Edition optimizes the headset for even these most challenging customers.

Varjo Releases XR-3 Retooled for Training and Simulation Read More »

zero10-ar-fashion-platform:-a-digital-fashion-hub-where-virtual-clothing-becomes-wearable-in-real-life

ZERO10 AR Fashion Platform: A Digital Fashion Hub Where Virtual Clothing Becomes Wearable in Real Life

Highlights / /

 

The increasing engagement in the metaverse is also spurring interest in digital fashion. We now see more collaborations between global fashion brands and tech companies grabbing opportunities in digital fashion in the virtual world.

But one innovative company has done something more revolutionary for the fashion industry by giving digital fashion practical use in real life. ZERO10, a global fashion platform, recently launched an AR fashion platform that makes it possible for brands, designers, and users to create virtual clothes and wear them through augmented reality.

ZERO10 AR Fashion Platform Makes Virtual Clothing Wearable in Real Life

ZERO10, a team of tech and fashion pros that combines fashion design with cutting-edge technology, recently launched its AR fashion platform to serve as a touchpoint for inspiration, creation, and community among those in the fashion industry.

The ZERO10 AR Fashion Platform is a digital fashion hub where independent designers, fashion brands, and digital fashion enthusiasts can bring their ideas into the real world through augmented reality. The proprietary AR technology of ZERO10 empowers them to create digital apparel, showcase their collections to audiences worldwide, and have users try them on via AR. This powerful AR try-on technology gives digital fashion a more practical purpose beyond the virtual world.

AR Fashion Platform ZERO10 - digital fashion

With the platform’s user-friendly interface, anyone who wants to create and share their digital designs in AR can do so even without prior 3D fashion design experience. Armed with the tools and technology integrated into the platform, all they need is their imagination and creativity to bring their fashion ideas to life. The platform welcomes everyone from emerging fashion designers to global fashion brands into its growing community that fosters creative freedom.

“We want our platform to become the designated space for collaboration, community, and connection where anyone who is passionate about design, technology, content, and digital fashion has a chance to bring their ideas into the world via augmented reality,” said George Yashin, CEO of ZERO10, in a press release shared with ARPost.

Empowering Creators With Advanced AR Tools

To further empower users, ZERO10 will be integrating ZERO10 AR Studio into the platform which will enable creators to transform their designs into AR through user-friendly design tools. The platform will also open opportunities for them to sell their digital fashion designs and gain more value.

Aside from adding more features to the AR fashion platform, ZERO10 also plans on launching an educational program for digital fashion creators. The program will hone their 3D design skills and teach them how to transform 3D designs into high-quality AR assets.

ZERO10 AR Fashion Platform - digital fashion

By providing free design tools and educational content, ZERO10 is making the digital fashion space accessible to more people. It is breaking down barriers of entry to give emerging designers opportunities for growth and success in a highly competitive industry. By providing support for the creator community, it is helping push the boundaries in the development of digital fashion.

“Using our advanced technology and capabilities, we want to support the digital creators community to make this shift happen and create a future where fashion can truly be expressive and unique, limitless, and more sustainable,” said Yashin. 

The Narrowing Gap Between the Physical and Digital Worlds of Fashion

Indeed, ZERO10 is helping pave the future of the fashion industry as they work closely with fashion creatives, digital creators, and software developers in developing technological solutions that provide value for all users.

With innovative platforms such as ZERO10 AR Fashion Platform, the gap between the physical and digital worlds of fashion becomes increasingly narrower. Along with advancements in the metaverse and developments in immersive technologies, we’re bound to see the lines between them blurring and becoming virtually imperceptible.

ZERO10 AR Fashion Platform: A Digital Fashion Hub Where Virtual Clothing Becomes Wearable in Real Life Read More »

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Cooperation of Deep Tech SMEs and Global Giants Drive Opportunities in the Metaverse

Highlights / /

 

 

In 2021 Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg was quoted saying that AR glasses are “one of the hardest technical challenges of the decade.” That might really be the case, as several innovations for example in the fields of displays, processors, batteries, sensors, miniaturization, and manufacturing technology will still have to be mastered before metaverse becomes a seamless part of our everyday lives in a way similar to our use of mobile phones and Internet. This will require extensive cooperation by both deep tech SMEs and industry-leading global corporations.

In Finland, the opportunities for cooperation between deep tech SMEs and large corporations have been proactively created by both the XR companies themselves and by private and public accelerators.

Finland at the Forefront of the Metaverse

Finland has got a globally unique and versatile ecosystem of XR companies, which covers all stages of the value chain, ranging from XR headset and technology development to various XR development platforms, use case-specific solutions, and customer-specific XR content.

The thriving ecosystem of companies has been enabled by decades of research at several universities and research agencies in several supporting technologies such as machine vision, mobile phone technologies, and photonics/optics. Particularly the Finnish Photonics Cluster, consisting of several research agencies and growth companies is, from a global perspective, one of the “gems” of the Finnish XR ecosystem.

Internationally the most successful Finnish XR companies include Varjo Technologies, which is developing high-end XR headsets for enterprise use, OptoFidelity with its XR testing solutions, Dispelix with its augmented reality waveguide technologies, and VRKiwi with its Cave Digger VR games available on all VR platforms.

Nokia, the Finnish telecom giant, has been focusing on telecommunication infrastructure development after selling its mobile phone business to Microsoft in 2014. In an interview at the World Economic Forum in 2022, Nokia’s CEO Pekka Lundmark stated that mobile phones will be overtaken by smart glasses by the time 6G is introduced in 2030s. Nokia has also very openly talked about its commitment to metaverse development as part of its 2030 strategy.

In the transformation that metaverse will bring about, we can easily see parallels with the growth of mobile phone markets in the 90s. That’s why it’s great news for the Finnish XR ecosystem to have Nokia onboard this time as well.

Enormous Business Potential

In early 2022, the “Growth Opportunities in Extended Reality” report was released. There were four main categories of business opportunities identified in this report.

Firstly, Finnish companies should strengthen the XR ecosystem by partnering with industry-leading technology companies in technologies and businesses convergent with XR. The opportunities for partnering were identified in trending markets and technologies, for example in remote assistance, cloud software, and 5G.

Secondly, as XR enables tracking users’ actions on an unprecedented level of detail, a lot of attention will have to be paid to user privacy. This trend will open opportunities in e.g., edge computing, data encryption, and standardization work.

Thirdly, certain technologies are currently clearly underserved in XR, and they open market opportunities for significant improvements, for example in displays, edge computing, batteries, and high-speed connectivity.

Fourthly, there are certain key application areas or industry vertical-specific solutions that Finnish companies should pay more attention to. These include at least smart retail, tourism, and architecture.

In my opinion, one way to advance the industry and promote collaboration might also be a consortium of companies around Open-Source projects such OpenAR, which is an initiative by the University of Eastern Finland, the University of Oulu (Finland), and many prominent individuals from the academia such as professor Steven M. LaValle, who was also an early founder and head scientist of Oculus VR.

Indian System Integrators Supercharged With Finnish Technology

HCL Technologies (HCL), a leading global product and technology company recently launched HCLTech MetaLabs for exploring, building, and adopting the metaverse to strengthen its enterprise architecture along with that of its clients’. According to the Tech Trends 2022 by HCLTech, the metaverse holds the potential to change how we will live and interact – a place where reality meets imagination.

In recent years, innovative Finnish SMEs and research institutes have been actively creating contacts with large Indian system integrators such as HCL Technologies.

HCLTech MetaLabs is backed by an open innovation ecosystem with more than 40+ identified use cases, supported by 300+ startup creator partners, and 500+ identified HCLites interested in exploring this burgeoning and futuristic tech solution.

During 2022, HCL Technologies, together with SMEs and other interest groups, organized the HCL Metaverse Startup Exploration Series of events. During these events, several Finnish metaverse companies and Professor Jussi S. Jauhiainen, University of Turku (Finland), met with HCL to investigate concrete ways in which all parties could benefit from the fast-emerging metaverse.

The HCL Metaverse Startup Exploration Series is a perfect example of the advantages and necessity of cooperation between SMEs and corporations with global reach. The companies not prepared to collaborate will either be late for the metaverse or are in danger of not reaching it at all.

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