Seattle, Munich, St. Ingbert, 2nd June 2020. We are overwhelmed by this years digital version of AWE USA. The AWE team realised an extraordinary experience that is accessible for participants worldwide through online livestreams, Virtual Reality side events, networking and discussion forums and a digital Expo. There are so many possibilities to interact and get most out of the flood of innovations, information and speakers being presented the whole conference week. We were at AWE’s offline conferences during the last years but this year’s format is even offering much more to the participants than the offline event could do in a real expo day. We really like this new digital format of AWE USA 2020!
Good News for Augmented Reality!
According to a report from Gartner, the consumer and enterprise demand for AR delivered through web browsers is expected to continue to grow. Have a look at the Gartner report here: https://www.gartner.com/en/newsroom/press-releases/2019-04-01-gartner-says-100-million-consumers-will-shop-in-augme
The report says that 100 million shoppers will browse using AR online and in-store by the end of 2020. The market analysis website Statista estimates that the AR industry market size for 2019 reached $10.5 billion and 2020 is forecasted to reach $18.8 billion.
Highlights of AWE USA 2020 from XRWA!
The Augmented Reality platform and creative studio startup Zappar Ltd. announced the release of Universal AR, a set of software development kits and application programming interfaces designed to allow developers to create compelling AR experiences for mobile app and web environments. “The release of Universal AR is a landmark moment for us,” said Connell Gauld, co-founder and chief technology officer at Zappar. “Now for the first time, content developers can utilize our computer vision in whichever platforms and creative tools they are most familiar with. These two innovations are a great leap forward in Zappar’s mission to democratize augmented reality.”
Unity announced that their Mixed and Augmented Reality Studio (MARS) will be available now as from 1st June 2020. Learn more.
On 27th May there was an AWE Social Hour with VR artist The Sabby Life who painted live in virtual reality using the VR art app Tilt Brush on AltspaceVR.
She completed the 365DaysOfTB daily challenge to create new Tilt Brush art everyday in 2019 and has inspired others to participate in the YearOfVRArt challenge in 2020:
https://www.thesabbylife.com/blog
And the next Livestream that we joined has been the Augmented Conversation, which has been a dialog between human and AI participants. It enables them to imagine, describe and create live virtual objects and simulations that they can interactively and simultaneously explore and modify. “The AI is a full participant in this exploration - listening and watching the human participants and responding instantly to reify the ideas and concepts that they discuss. This is live collaboration - a foundation for how the next devices will mediate our engagement with others and with the world. Not only will these devices replace your smart phone, but they will replace your PC,” explains Davis Smith, CEO of Croquet Corporation.
Ideas from the Next Generation of Creators
The Entertainment Technology Center is launching the Immersive Media Challenge.
More information can be found on the website of Entertainment Technology Center at the University of Southern California (ETC@USC): https://www.etcenter.org/what-is-the-immersive-media-challenge/
An excellent example of a submissions for this challenge is the AR App ART WALK:
AUGGIE AWARDS 2020 Winners
The Auggie Awards Ceremony 2020 took place on 29th May starting from 8.50 pm. The winners have been awarded in different categories like:
- Best Art or Film
- Best Campaign
- Best Consumer App
- Best Creator and Authoring Tool
- Best Developer Tool
- Best Enterprise Solution
- Best Game & Toy
- Best Headworn Device
- Best Healthcare & Wellness Solution
- Best in Location Based Entertainment
- Best Indie Creators
- Best Input or Output Hardware
- Best Interaction Software
- Best Societal Impact
- Best Use of AI
- Startup to Watch
In total, 16 Auggie Awards were presented during the live online ceremony. 15 of those were selected prior to AWE Online through a system of public nominations, public voting to determine the finalists, and finally judging by a panel of industry experts to determine the winners. The Startup to Watch award was determined by a panel of top venture capitalists as part of the 2020 AWE Startup Pitch Competition held yesterday, May 28, online. The competition saw startups from around the world pitch and field questions in front of the judges. In addition, the Virtual World Society presented three Nextant Awards.
More information can be found on AWE USA’s website: https://www.awexr.com/