What if you could play with landmarks instead of just touring them? Nexto is turning audio guides into games to make sightseeing more interactive. Launching today as part of TechCrunch Disrupt Berlin‘s Battlefield competition, Nexto is partnering with tourist destinations to help them attract more visitors and earn more money to fund culture. “We wanted to make heritage more… Read More
Category: Augmented Reality
Mapbox acquires augmented reality activity tracking app Fitness AR
Open source mapping platform Mapbox has acquired activity tracking app Fitness AR, which allows users to view runs, hikes or cycling routes from Strava superimposed on a 3D map of the terrain. The announcement was made in a Medium post by Mapbox …
View More Mapbox acquires augmented reality activity tracking app Fitness ARGoogle expands its 3D objects pipeline for AR/VR with the Poly API
Though Google’s early efforts in VR and AR may not have reached the average Android user, as the company scales its vision for what augmented and virtual reality mean to its overall business, it’s been devoting major attention as of late to the developers that have taken to building early experiences.
Today, the company announced an extension to their ever-expanding pipeline for… Read More
Why the YouTube of AR won’t be YouTube
A couple of years ago when I was working at Samsung, around the time the GearVR was being launched, there were lots of ideas flying around regarding the services to offer alongside the device. Many (most) of these ideas were related to hosting 360 Video content, and our boss David Eun (ex-YouTube) often reminded everyone that YouTube will be the YouTube of VR. He meant that the content on… Read More
Why the YouTube of AR won’t be YouTube
A couple of years ago when I was working at Samsung, around the time the GearVR was being launched, there were lots of ideas flying around regarding the services to offer alongside the device. Many (most) of these ideas were related to hosting 360 Video content, and our boss David Eun (ex-YouTube) often reminded everyone that YouTube will be the YouTube of VR. He meant that the content on… Read More
AWS launches Amazon Sumerian to build AR, VR and 3D apps quickly
We’d heard months ago that Amazon would be using its Re:Invent AWS event to roll out some a new service related to building in mixed reality — augmented reality and virtual reality. And on the eve of the conference kicking off, it’s done just that. Today the company announced Amazon Sumerian, a new platform for developers to build and host VR, AR and 3D apps quickly and… Read More
Pokémon Go creator raises $200 million ahead of Harry Potter game launch
Pokémon Go creator Niantic has raised a new $200 million in funding, reports The Wall Street Journal. The Series B raise was led by Spark Capital, and includes participation from Founders Fund, Meritech, Javelin Venture Capital, You & Mr. Jones and NetEase, Inc. Spark partner Megan Quinn is also joining Niantic’s board as part of the new financing deal.
Niantic is known for its… Read More
Black Eyed Peas’ graphic novel, ‘Masters of the Sun,’ gets the AR treatment
Black Eyed Peas frontman will.i.am took heed of Steve Jobs’ “think different” but perhaps more so, he has kept it all the way 100 by being fresh and original — the core values of golden-age hip-hop. Today, the group released an augmented reality app, available on iOS and Android, to go with its graphic novel Masters of the Sun: The Zombie Chronicles. The story,… Read More
Lightform raises $5M to turn old projectors into augmented reality machines
In Blade Runner 2049, one of the more interesting stylistic choices was how the film imagined futuristic augmented reality. While the Microsofts and Googles of our real dystopian world are currently approaching AR tech with headsets and smart glasses, Blade Runner 2049 relied entirely on external projection. This vision of the future may still seem a tad concerning, but it’s good news… Read More
Apple acquired augmented reality headset startup Vrvana for $30M
As Apple reportedly ramps up work to ship an augmented reality headset in 2020, it has acquired a startup from Montreal, Canada that could help it get there. TechCrunch has learned that Apple has acquired Vrvana, maker of the Totem headset — which had rave reviews but never shipped. The deal was for around $30 million, two sources tell TechCrunch. We contacted Apple, and the… Read More
5 technologies evolving the way we game
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It’s been almost 80 years since thousands of people lined up to challenge a computer to a game of math at the New York World’s Fair in Queens, NY. (The computer won almost every time, surprisingly.) Back then, the curious spilled into the fair to experience progress firsthand, which included a new way to play games. Little did those early gamers know they had participated in the birth of a $75 billion global industry driven by technological innovation that has reshaped our notions of sports, film, and even reality.
From curiosity to habit, gaming has been fully integrated into our lives, with 1.8 billion people playing worldwide. While the early decades of technological innovation spurred the ubiquity of consoles, advances in AR and mobility, and accessories like the latest wireless mouse and keyboard from Logitech are pushing gaming into its next phase. We’ve rounded up some of the most significant new technologies that are evolving the industry and changing the way we play. Read more…
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View More 5 technologies evolving the way we gameInternet of Elephants uses AR to get up close to endangered species, turns their migrations into a game
Wildlife conservation groups have made a lot of strides in raising awareness of animals whose populations or natural habitats are endangered, and what we can do to help. Now a startup out of Kenya is tapping into advances made in augmented realit…
View More Internet of Elephants uses AR to get up close to endangered species, turns their migrations into a game