N4M Network: Exploring The Future Of Augmented Reality: Trends Innovations And Opportunities For Businesses

The first personal computer was launched in the year 1974 by Intel Corporation. Since then we have only amplified our relationship with computer systems but there weren’t technologies to bring the virtual world of computers and the real world together.

Augmented reality is a technology enabled via AI that provides an interactive and immersive experience in the virtual world. Augmented reality is capable of providing stimuli that are visual and auditory. However, the technology is working towards providing somatosensory (touch-based) and olfactory (Smell based) stimuli.

As per a report by Statista, the AR & VR market combined is estimated to make a revenue of $31.12 billion in the year 2023. This information is backed by a CAGR of 13.72% and a market projection of $52.05 billion by 2027.

This opens several rooms of opportunities for AR companies or Augmented Reality companies. Therefore without wasting any time, let’s learn about the trends, innovations, and opportunities in the realm of augmented reality.

Augmented Reality Trends

Below are some of the Augmented reality trends that AR development companies need to keep in mind. These are:

Higher Usage of AR in Mobile Devices

In a recent report by Statista, it is estimated that by 2024 the number of mobile augmented device users will reach 1.7 billion users. In an earlier report, the number of mobile AR users was close to 1.1 billion in 2022. The market has also seen a rise in AR headsets. It is estimated the number of AR headsets as per will reach around 30 million units which is 12 times more than in 2020.

Inclusion of AR in Marketing

There has been a rise in the usage of AR-based marketing. There is a series of apps that are utilizing AR technology for their marketing campaigns and their products such as IKEA, Google Lens, Augment, Shopify AR, etc. Following this, there are plenty of more brands to come and utilize AR technology.

Rise of WebAR

WebAR is a nascent technology in the realm of augmented reality. These AR apps are catered to customers via websites. It makes these services way more accessible to the user considering the fact that it doesn’t require any dedicated download. However, there is one downside that the experience isn’t that rich.

Innovations in Augmented Reality

There have been several new innovations that have happened in the AR industry. Let’s check them out one by one:

Acura: It is a live-streaming AR race service. It provides a 180 degree real race experience to its users. This is done via cameras mounted on the racer’s helmet with AR technology embedded in the extra-wide visor.
Disney: Disney has created an AR technology for kids that makes 2D coloring books characters into 3D.
Pepsi Max: Pepsi recently started an advertising campaign where they installed an AR assembly at the bus stop. This technology would show the people sitting there different AR elements such as a giant robot, tentacles grabbing a man, tiger, etc by tracing the real location via camera and showing augmented reality objects there.
U.S Army Tactical Augmented Reality (TAR): TAR is a project developed for the U.S army. It is an AR-embedded eyepiece that shows the location of friends & foes, show precise location and even the distance of the target.

Business Opportunities in AR

There are several business opportunities that can stem from AR technology. With the examples given an augmented reality development company might be able to come up with their own idea of using AR. Therefore, let us provide you with some examples:

AR-embedded sports app that provides real-game experience with all the stats
AR app for dating to provide a live-dating experience
Provide a 3D view of the product in your house using AR (as done by IKEA)
Application for imagining architecture in an empty land for architects
Provide AR apps for traveling that showcase all the stats, reviews, and ratings of places via an AR Google
Provide data visualizations for businesses

Future of Augmented Reality

There are a lot of possibilities that augmented reality holds for the future. For instance, right now, there are devices that are equipped with LIDAR (Light detecting and ranging) technology. This technology is already being used in iPhone 12 and later on devices which gives it the capability to process spatial surroundings. The same technology is used in autonomous vehicles for similar purposes.

Extended reality (XR) is bound to become mainstream providing a much more realistic experience to its users. The technology is backed with better cameras, sensors, and processor that provides a wholesome experience to its users. Adding to it VR headsets will become much more efficient. There are even full-fledged haptic suits being prepared to provide a complete AR experience to the users. With so many inventions taking place and the recent popularity that is gained by Metaverse, we might be able to see the integration of AR in every facet of our life.

Wrapping Up!

With AR taking over and becoming a mainstream technology, people can accept a whole lot of changes. This is keeping in mind that AR has the capability to bridge the gap between the virtual content generated the reality. This technology is literally bound to create some novel ways of interaction, especially in turns of education and training across industries. AR will provide an immersive experience and help its users to embrace reality the way they might never have imagined.