The Future is XR

What’s in a name? 

AR, VR, MR, XR. Names, and in our industry, acronyms, are a representation of intent, to some extent.

When we got into this business in 2016, we were all hands on the VR deck.

Today, with our expertise and experiences, Inception is ready to embrace and spearhead both the VR and AR markets.

Over the past year, we’ve expanded our capabilities to include the rising star of immersive technology, Augmented Reality, and therefore are true believers that right name for our direction is actually XR.

AR has been under the spotlight in the past few months and slowly gearing up for an all-out explosion. At the same time, the progress of VR hardware is moving on to a new chapter with new devices coming out that are more affordable, comfortable and easy to wear (like the Oculus Go) that could change the market and turn VR into a product that’s in every household (recent survey by Ericsson suggests 1 in 3 households will have VR by 2020).

Regardless of whether we’re talking about AR or VR, the future is already here. And we’re ready for it.

The Road to XR

We can’t hide the fact that we’re passionate about VR. Seeing people experiment with VR, their facial expression of excitement, is what drives us. As a VR content app that both creates and distributes VR content, we get to spend every day letting users immerse themselves in new worlds, new places, new experiences – which, let’s face it, is amazing!

Since the launch of our destination app we’ve worked closely with independent creators, major publishers and industry leaders to bring over 1 million users the best VR content out there, and keep it coming. From our groundbreaking work with in the art world with pieces featuring Dali and Monet, to music experiences with Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike or the Mystery Jets, to launching news and lifestyle channels with Time Out, Associated Press, FashionTV and Refinery29 – we think these are all just the beginning.

Inception’s app will continue to expand our catalogue as the market grows. With more content being consumed, more talented creators and studios are starting to emerge and produce a rich pipeline of high-quality experiences. We are excited to see an ecosystem slowly forming, one that will continue to build on itself and is definitely something to look forward to.

The Excitement of AR

While we’re still looking into the next breakthroughs in VR (and Apple’s upcoming VR and AR headset is definitely a big one), we realize that AR is already here, in almost complete market adoption. There are existing AR devices in everyone’s pockets – our smartphones. Mobile consists of ~99% of the installed base for AR currently; by the end of 2018, more than 800 million smartphones are expected to have an OS with dedicated AR support and sufficient hardware, which presents a huge opportunity for anyone to easily reach the biggest audience possible.

Consumer market aside, AR has shown promising aspects in enterprises across industries, from the phenomenal Pokemon Go, to adoption of AR in manufacturing for higher efficiency, to AR in advertising for deeper connection with customers – all of which have demonstrated the beauty of overlaying digital on top of physical world.

Thanks to the major milestone set by Magic Leap in March by opening access to its developer portal and software development kit (SDK) to all developers, we believe that by end of 2018, the development around AR headsets will also accelerate, innovative and engaging content will emerge and the market will expand at an exponential rate – and we’re completely on board.

Our best-in-class creative team, together with our technology, allow us to spearhead the AR market. In the last few months, Inception has expanded extensively into AR with projects such as Facebook and Snapchat filters for Just Eat, Phantom of the Opera, Pitchfork and more; AR installations at events; as well as AR apps for consumer packaged goods, book publishers and more. We’re currently pushing the AR envelope with some top secret projects. Stay tuned!

VR and AR each have their own strengths, can work amazingly together but can also drive results for different use cases. We believe that VR and AR will continue to exist and advance side by side. With a combined forecast of over $107 billion market in XR by 2025, there’s clearly a need and certainly a great opportunity for Inception to pursue in the coming years.

With these changes in the market, we at Inception now know – we’re not just VR. We’re not just AR. We are XR. Inception is ready to adopt any new technology, and react to any change in the market – whatever the X is in this equation.