Peter Diamandis Takes A Look at the Augmented World

September 1, 2019 – Augmented Reality (AR)  is about to go mainstream and Peter Diamandis provides us with an understanding of how it is and will transform retail, manufacturing, education, tourism, real estate, and other industries. This is the first of five postings Diamandis has promised to share with readers and I am hoping you can enjoy the content even if you are not on his mailing list. The subject areas he has promised to cover include this first part describing the importance of AR as an emerging technology, followed by:

• Leading AR hardware
• AR convergence with AI, blockchain, and sensors
• Industry-specific applications
• Broader implications of the AR Cloud

So let’s begin.

AR superimposes digital worlds onto physical environments (by contrast to VR, which completely immerses users in digital realities). In this way, AR allows users to remain engaged with their physical surroundings, serving as a visual enhancement rather than replacement. As AR hardware costs continue to plummet — and advancements in connectivity begin enabling low-latency, high-resolution rendering — today’s AR producers are initially targeting businesses through countless enterprise applications. And while AR headsets remain too pricey for widespread consumer adoption, distribution is fast increasing. Roughly 150,000 headsets were shipped in 2016, and this number is expected to reach 22.8 million by 2022.

Meanwhile, AR app development has skyrocketed, allowing smartphone users to sample rudimentary levels of the technology through numerous mobile applications. Already, over 1 billion people across the globe use mobile AR, and a majority of mobile AR integrations involve social media (84%) and e-commerce (41%). And while well-known players like Microsoft, Apple, Alphabet, Qualcomm, Samsung, NVIDIA, and Intel have made tremendous strides, well-funded startups remain competitive including:

• Magic Leap, a company aiming to eliminate the screen altogether, has raised a total of $2.6 billion since its founding in 2010. With its own head-mounted virtual retinal display, Magic Leap projects a digital light field into users’ eyes to superimpose 3D computer-generated imagery over set environments, whether social avatars, news broadcasts or interactive games.
• Mojo Vision, in its own right, has raised $108 million in its efforts to develop and produce an AR contact lens. Or take Samsung’s recently granted U.S. patent to develop smart lenses capable of streaming text, capturing videos, and even beaming images directly into a wearer’s eyes. Given their multi-layered lens architecture, the contacts are even designed to include a motion sensor (for eye movement tracking), hidden camera, and display unit.

And as of this writing, nearly 1,800 different AR startups populate the crowdfunding site Angel’s List.

While AR isn’t (yet) as democratized as VR, $100 will get you an entry-level Leap Motion headset, while a top-of-the-line Microsoft HoloLens 2 remains priced at $3,500. Heads-up-displays in luxury automobiles — arguably the first AR applications to go mainstream — will soon become a standard in economy models.

And as corporate partnerships with AR startups grow increasingly common, the convergence of augmented reality with sensors, networks, and IoT will transform almost every industry imaginable.

A Taste of Industry Transformations

AR’s most notable implications across a range of sectors include:

• Manufacturing & Industry where AR training simulations are already beginning to teach us how to operate numerous machines and equipment, even to fly planes. Microsoft is targeting enterprise clients with its HoloLens 2, as the AR device’s Remote Assist function allows workers to call in virtual guidance if unfamiliar problems arise in the manufacturing process.
• Healthcare where AR is allowing surgeons to “see inside” clogged arteries, provide precise incision guides, or flag potential risks, and introducing seamless efficiency in everything from reconstructive surgeries to meticulous tumor removals. Medical students are starting to use AR to peel back layers on virtual cadavers. And in everyday health, we will soon track nearly every health and performance metric whether heart rate, blood pressure or nutritional data through an AR lens as opposed to wearables.
• Education where in-classroom AR is letting children and adults alike to explore both virtual objects and virtual worlds. But beyond the classroom, AR will soon be employed as a private tutor for wherever we are. Buildings will project their history into our field of view. Museums will display AR-enhanced information. Every pond and park will overlay the natural environment with virtual lessons in biology and ecology. Children will learn about the value of money through virtual budgeting and adults will tabulate their grocery and department store bills as they shop. Already, apps like Sky Map and Google Translate allow users to learn about their surroundings through the smartphone camera lens. AR will enhance these applications even further.
• Retail and Advertising where AR’s transformative potential will reach a new level. Hungry and on a budget? Your smart AR contact lens might show you all available lunch specials as you walk down a street and will cross-reference real-time customer ratings, special deals, and your own health data for individualized recommendations. Storefront windows will morph to display personalized clothing preferences, continuously tracked by AI, as eye-tracking technology allows your AR lens to project every garment that grabs your attention onto your form and in your size. Smart AR advertising will have the potential to target your unique preferences, transparently informing you of comparable, cheaper options any time you reach for an item.
• Entertainment where we will be able to toggle into imaginary realities, or even customize physical spaces using our own designs. 3D creations will become intuitive and shareable. Sports player stats will be superimposed onto live sporting events as spectators recreate immersive stadiums with front-row seats in their own backyards. Turn on game mode, and turn every streetside, park, store, and neighborhood into a virtually overlaid environment.
• Transportation where AR, integrated into vehicle heads up displays will allow users to access real-time information about restaurants, stores, and landmarks as you pass them. Walking, bicycling, and driving directions will be embedded in route mapss through AR. And when sitting in your autonomous vehicle on the way to work, AR will have the power to convert any vessel into a virtual office.

A Day in the Life of 2030

Reaching for your AR-enabled glasses upon waking up, your Jarvis-like AI will populate your visual field with any new updates and personalized notifications. You will begin your day with a new pancake recipe, directed seamlessly by a cooking app as seen through your AR glasses. The ingredients will be tailored to your dietary preferences. Glancing at your plate, your glasses will inform you of the meal’s nutritional value, and track these metrics within your online health monitoring app.

As you prepare to fly cross-country, your AI will hail an autonomous shuttle to take you to the airport. Along the way, you will switch glasses to create mode, allowing you to populate entire swaths of the city with various art pieces friends have created in the virtual world. You will drop your own 3D designs into the picture and even turn your vehicle floor into a virtual pond as you glide along a smart highway equipped to automatically charge your vehicle as you ride. Upon arriving at the airport, your AR glasses will switch gears to navigation mode, displaying arrows to direct you to your boarding gate. And when you get to your hotel, you will activate tourist mode which will offer you a number of facts and relevant figures about nearby historical buildings and monuments. When you toggle to restaurant mode the AR will give you a review of nearby eateries tailored to you and the with whom you will be dining. When ready to wind the evening down, your AR will give you the ability to scroll through pictures captured by your glasses throughout the day and controlled by eye movements, and you will be able to share them with family.

Does this sound like a world you would like to experience?