VR & AR in Training Best Practices White Paper

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Thank you to our supporters who made this white paper possible:

This 20+ pages white paper was written by our Training Committee and industry experts.

The VR and AR landscape is fast evolving and provides benefits across many industry verticals. One of the most widely hailed applications of VR and AR is in Training/ Learning & Development because of the seemingly boundless array of possibilities and benefits compared to traditional training methods.

This document outlines and details a set of best practices, aiming to capture the rapidly-evolving field of VR and AR and its use in training and skills development. It is intended for novices to VR and AR technologies which are knowledgeable in current training methodologies and experienced in the general training market. While this document provides an extensive discussion of current best practices and usages, VR and AR continue to grow organically and rapidly. We encourage you to experiment and push the boundaries of what is currently possible with this technology.

The VRARA Training Committee will ensure this document is current through regular updates every six months.

If you want to participate in the Training Committee email info@thevrara.com 

Philip Wogart of VRARA Germany interviews Philipp Wilhelm of CEBIT

If you would like to get discounts to attend or exhibit CeBIT, email philip@thevrara.com 

As part of the run up to CEBIT this year, I had the chance to speak with Philipp Wilhelm who heads up the activities for the Deutsche Messe in Hannover as regards immersive tech. This year the conference will be in the second week June, and the German Chapters of the Association are excited to be partnering with Germany’s largest technology conference to showcase our members and expertise in Hannover. 

Hello Philipp and thank you for taking the time to sit down with me and discuss CEBIT with us. I want to jump right in and ask for our international audience what does CEBIT mean? It’s an acronym no? But more importantly what its legacy has been and where it is headed…

Thank you very much for having me! That’s kind of a hard questions at the beginning. The name CeBIT is quite old, the show exists for over 35 years. So when its first episode started I assume more than 70% of the technology we have today did not exist back then in the show. In the past the name ment  in German “Centrum der Büro- und Informationstechnik” something like “marketplace for office IT” and back then it was pretty accurate. But CEBIT has changed a lot over the past years and the meaning too. For the 2018 edition CEBIT has a brand new concept. The old known and valued business focus still remains valid but we add a younger component to the show, a festival for digitization and some new topics triggering younger and more creative professional visitor groups. As a result we are also rebranding the name by letting the small “e” grow up to a capital “E” for “Experience the digitization”. CEBIT is a feeling and place to be, not an acronym any more. 

This rebranding is quite exciting actually. The festival approach will certainly appeal to a younger generation of attendees and exhibitors I imagine. Please tell us a little about the diverse technologies that will be showcased this year.

CEBIT has 4 core elements all focusing on digitization that’s where the “d!” comes from. The festival is named d!campus it is an open air area in the middle of the exhibition ground and will be hosting festival stages with artist, showcases and networking back yards, all focused on casual networking after the business hours. The biggest part and most similar to the “old” CEBIT is the d!cononomy part. There visitors find everything they need to digitize their company. From accounting software, datacenters, office IT, security software down to workplace IT. The really game changing technologies as AR/VR, AI, drones and other technologies among startups are hosted in the d!tec part of the show. This will be the most interesting for your members to browse around, test some tec and listen to conference talks. These conferences are the last of the 4 elements named d!talk and are located in the halls and free to attend. Spread over the show and conferences are our lead topics as: VR/AR, Future Mobility, IoT & 5G, AI, Human Robotics, Security and for sure Blockchain.

Well all these are gonna be real hot topics for the coming years for sure. Let me focus in a bit more on spatial computing now. Virtual and Augmented Reality being the name our of association, I’m sure the readers want to know more to expect this year. Can you share with us about any exciting demos that will be coming to the expo or d!talks?

Absolutely, we will have great content and demos at the show. Something that impresses me all the time is from holofill, it’s a hologram in a box/ screen and you can see it without a headset. We will have the latest gloves for VR by Sensoryx, great AR-Kit demos by VuFrame and even some cool demos by Innoactive. Beside these Startups there will also be companies who are in the market for a very long time as Leica Geo Systems showcasing special cameras for, I think you call it “point cloud scanning”, sorry not an expert. Collaborative workplaces in VR  will be shown and some more great showcases and technologies I am unfortunately not allowed to talk about at the moment. But some headsets no one has seen before will be showcased too. ;-) 
So for everyone from B2C to deep B2B solutions will be showcased at the show.

The Association is privileged that you have invited us to participate too, so thank you for that. At this point I feel obliged to mention that we have secured discounts for our members to visit and exhibit this year and hope to continue our participation for years to come. Let me ask you Philipp how did you get into VR yourself? And personally where do you see it headed now that the hype has died down?

We are very happy to cooperate with the VRARA, you have a great international network and we love to support you and the growing spirit of the, let’s call it XR-Industry. My first contact with VR was with a DK2 Headset at an event I attended around 2 years back in the US. Being very fascinated I decided to do some research on the topic and even did my MBA-thesis on “Immersive technologies in the sales process”, doing that I experienced how open minded, giving and forward thinking this great industry is. It’s always a great pleasure working with XR-people. 

I have also been astounded how amazing the community is, in person and also on social media. I look forward to infinite potential Social VR has to offer and concerned at the same time of course, but I’m an optimist in this respect.

So I’m excited for my first year at CEBIT as an attendee, exhibitor and speaker ;) 
Thank you so much for taking the time to give us a heads-up about all that going on in Hannover this June 11-15 (FYI: Monday is conference only, from Tuesday the expo opens to the public). 
 

VRARA Member Stambol Studios partners with Health & Technology District to Create XR LAB to Embrace VR/AR

Health & Technology District Creates XR LAB to Embrace Emerging Technologies in Partnership with Conquer Experience and Stambol Studios

New XR LAB leverages mixed reality & emerging technologies to inspire healthcare solutions

Surrey, BC – May X, 2018 – The Health and Technology District, together with Conquer Experience and Stambol Studios, are launching a new XR LAB, a demo studio leveraging mixed realities and other emerging exponential technologies to inspire future healthcare collaborations. 

Located within the District’s HealthTech Innovation HUB in Surrey, the new dedicated XR LAB offers a fully equipped virtual reality workspace where companies can get access to mixed reality demo opportunities, shared spaces and facilities, workshops and programs and a whole suite of business services as part of the HealthTech Innovation HUB’s amenity offerings. 

Users of the XR LAB have the opportunity to co-locate with innovative thought leaders at the District, to built and inspire creative health and wellness collaborations and encourage the cross-pollination of forward-thinking ideas that bring real world healthcare solutions to patients everywhere. 

“The new XR LAB is a new venture and a natural fit for Conquer as we rebrand and transition into new markets leveraging our core virtual reality strengths and successes,” says Angela Robert, CEO and Co-Founder of Conquer Experience, formerly Conquer Mobile. “BC is at the forefront of innovative technologies and Surrey has a rapidly growing health and technology presence. The XR LAB and the resources at the HealthTech Innovation HUB will help advance health-tech innovations and further the successes of companies within the District.” 

Building upon Conquer Experience and Stambol Studios’ BC-built virtual reality successes, the XR LAB attracts businesses, entrepreneurs and emerging start-ups to use the highly specialized equipment within the LAB to build mixed realities in the areas of health and wellness and beyond as BC builds and commercializes disruptive global solutions in health. 

“We are pleased to partner with the Health and Technology District and Conquer Experience to showcase our mixed reality technologies and applications related to the District,” says Dogu Taskiran, CEO of Stambol Studios. “Immersive mixed reality technologies can provide creative solutions and bring to life various environments that benefit a variety of industries, including healthcare. We look forward to creating applications that will further innovate the health and wellness space utilizing various exponential technologies.” 

The XR LAB complements the Health and Technology District’s unique ecosystem that supports the collaboration, experimentation and innovation in health and wellness experiences that will have profound impacts in the future of health care services, delivery, training and most importantly, experiences. 

Technologies from the XR LAB will be showcased at the Health and Technology District’s booth at the upcoming BCTECH Summit taking place May 14-16 at the Vancouver Convention Centre. 

About the Health and Technology District: 

The Health and Technology District is one of BC’s most rapidly growing and dynamic new health-tech sectors located in Surrey’s emerging innovation ecosystem. It has a unique advantage being ideally located directly across from Surrey Memorial Hospital, one of Canada’s busiest hospitals where a collaborative cluster of multinational and start-up companies, international partners, clinical and research facilities, scientists, innovators and entrepreneurs, work together in partnership to accelerate the implementation of technologies and solutions towards health care impacts and improvements. www.healthandtechnologydistrict.com

About Conquer Experience: 

Conquer Experience (www.conquerexperience.com) is a digital simulation company focused on delivering ‘Education as an Experience’™. With deep expertise in UX, VR and simulation gaming, the company has created the Experience Platform™ that brings learning to life. Our award winning product PeriopSim (www.periopsim.com) is built on the Experience Platform, available on the iPad, HTC VIVE and Windows Mixed Reality headset and has been used in over 200 North American Hospitals, saving dollars and improving patient safety from day one. PeriopSim is the subject of the top ranking international peer reviewed academic research paper on BMC Medical Education. 

PeriopSim (www.periopsim.com) is an award-winning digital simulation training solution for clinicians who need to learn surgical instruments, passing technique, sharps safety, sterile technique and procedures. The product enables surgical staff to practice safely before surgery. PeriopSim was part of an 18-month pilot program with the Association of Perioperative Nurses (AORN). 

About Stambol Studios: 

Stambol is a distinguished creative technology studio specializing in highly immersive content and interactive applications for architecture & real estate marketing, enterprise and brand engagement applications through Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality. Headquartered in BC, Stambol Studios employs a team of dedicated artists, designers and engineers with a proven track record of success to create inspiring and memorable virtual experiences for businesses to showcase their products and brands. www.stambol.com

Watch VRARA Members at VRLA and the VRARA After Party

We did quick video interviews at VRLA and demos at our VRARA After Party to showcase the different VR and AR solutions from our Members and Sponsors. 

Classroom of the Future

Demo of “classroom of the future” @ VRLA with students using VR headsets to learn ✏️📝📐🖍📚#VRLA2018 #teach #education pic.twitter.com/iHN0xhMJXJ

— VR/AR Association (@thevrara) May 4, 2018

Immersive Art Experience with HoloLens

Nice! Amazing!! This immersive experience with the HoloLens was transformative 🙌🙌 @vrlosangeles #VRLA2018 #vrla #sensation #sensation #crowd pic.twitter.com/cZYu1J66ye

— VR/AR Association (@thevrara) May 5, 2018

VRARA After Party @talespincompany demo room @phasetwospace #VR #sports pic.twitter.com/i4cJMkFExP

— VR/AR Association - LA #VRLA (@vrara_la) May 5, 2018

📢 live from VRLA with Thomas Potter from Igloo @IglooVision showcasing their immersive environment igloo dome #realestate #unity #3D 👍👍👍 #VRLA2018 pic.twitter.com/SO6RCaRdpH

— VR/AR Association (@thevrara) May 5, 2018

No more “green screen” 🙌🙌 #Holocap @phasetwospace VRARA VRLA after party pic.twitter.com/UizLV9AZ7m

— VR/AR Association - LA #VRLA (@vrara_la) May 5, 2018

VRARA After Party @hologate experience #LBE #VR #Arcade at @phasetwospace pic.twitter.com/LxTbb50A1A

— VR/AR Association - LA #VRLA (@vrara_la) May 5, 2018

Nice walkthrough of #VRL2018 expo floor pic.twitter.com/wio40c5hHv

— VR/AR Association - LA #VRLA (@vrara_la) May 6, 2018

Recap of Virtual Reality Arcades Conference in Mountain View, CA

By Deborah Worrell, Member of the VRARA LBE Arcades Committee

The Virtual Reality Arcade Conference took place last weekend at the Samsung Research Center in Mountain View, CA.  The conference brought together companies specializing in VR hardware, software and distribution; VR content studios and publishers; VR research; and experts in funding and financing for VR LBE.

The recurring theme from presenters and exhibitors was one of consultation, cooperation, education and support. Daisy Berns, General Manager of Exit Reality, summed up the spirit of the conference, saying, ‘Virtual Reality is an extremely new industry and it is important for all of us to work together to elevate the entire location-based sector and be mindful that we will be introducing VR experiences to the masses’.

Panels focused on best practices and speakers shared insights based on their own successful models with the audience of arcade owners and interested attendees. Along with seasoned VR location owners a significant number of individuals came to learn about VR LBE and how they can become VR entrepreneurs themselves.

One particularly memorable panel (Jan Goetgeluk, CEO of Virtuix, Brad Scoggin, CEO of SpringboardVR, Shauna Heller, NA President of AiSolve, McKay Christensen, CEO of VR Junkies and Daisy Berns, GM of Exit Reality) had a spirited back and forth about end-user pricing, revenue projections, minimum number of stations and thoughts about keeping high-end VR experiences at an affordable price point.  Listeners learned a lot about VR business models, planning for success and the importance of exceptional customer service. The speakers were unanimous in extolling the benefits of marketing services and cautioned the audience against relying on foot traffic.

Attendees and exhibitors had a great time demoing all the new hardware at the conference. Lines were long to try the new omni-directional treadmill from Avatar=VR and the Omni total immersion body rig. Tactical Haptics showed off new gun-like controllers and everyone enjoyed playing Rocket VR’s games. Exit Reality brought a Cube—their complete B2B solution for VR content, distribution and customer service.

Virtual World Arcade showcased a large free roam arena VR set-up and Jeremy Lam, CEO of Virtual World Arcade, delivered Saturday’s keynote on VR Content Development and Mobile Events as well as Sunday’s talk on How to Prevent Motion Sickness in VR Arcades and Games.

The conference drew to a close on Sunday afternoon with an important panel on financing and funding for VR start-ups. In the cooperative and consultative spirit of the program the audience heard experts from the venture capital world (Angelo Del Priore, HP Tech Ventures, Ken Sobajima, KDDI Open Innovation Fund, and Ryan Wang, Outpost Capital) offer best practices, insights and examples.

Overall the event was a huge success—the panels and speakers were insightful and practical, the demos were fun and illustrated where the industry is headed, and the opportunity to network and build partnerships with VR professionals was outstanding. Mark your calendars for Virtual Arcade World Conference next year.

Join our Committee here 

 

Today! Join us online live 10am pst for our "The AR Cloud" webcast with the experts

Attend here

Perhaps the most dramatic shift the introduction of AR-enabled mobile phones is brought about by the use of the camera as the interface. But the camera needs something to detect, or "see". We have come to think of this geolocated content as "The AR Cloud". The implications of SLAM capable geolocated content are profound; the world will be painted with data. The technology to enable this dramatic development is in its infancy, although there are several promising startups tackling it right now. Some, like Ubiquity6 and YouAR, offer complete solutions, while others, such as 6D.ai offer key technologies that would enable developers to create their own apps. 

In this webinar, we'll explore the meaning of the AR cloud with the man who first coined the phrase, Ori Inbar, co-founder of AWE and partner in seed stage AR focused venture fund, Super Ventures. We'll be speaking with an incredible panel which includes three pioneering startups working to enable the creation and population of the AR cloud. In addition to company presentations from Unbiquity6, YouAR, and 6D.ai, we'll explore key concepts around the AR cloud. Such as: 

• The role of computer vision, AI, and sound
• The universal visual browser - how will enable all AR content to be found? Could existing browsers play a role? 
• Will there be open standards, so enterprises and individuals can populate the AR cloud? YouAR is pushing for an ICANN like organization to manage this, The AR Cloud Foundation. 
• If a dozen developers painted data on a landmark like the Golden Gate Bridge, how would a user sort through it? 
• Will there be a Google for visual search? How would that work? 
• How important are filters? Surely we don't want to be assaulted by every kind of content. 
• What are the opportunities today for developers, enterprises, and individuals? 

Attend here

BGC Engineering to exhibit at the VR/AR Global Summit (Applied Earth Sciences)

BGC Engineering Inc. (BGC) is an international consulting firm that provides professional services in applied earth sciences.

Clarity through holographic visualization

BGC Ada Platform

Applied earth scientists study and solve issues in a 3D world. Yet our industry has been constrained to communicate concepts using 2D images and drawings. This makes it difficult to communicate the scale and scope of challenging projects, as well as the complex geological conditions that must be addressed to achieve project success.

As a solution, BGC has developed the Ada Platform™ (Ada): a functional software platform that enables everyone to understand applied earth science as 3D holographic models.

Through realistic 3D interactive and immersive experiences Ada removes barriers to understanding multidimensional datasets and opens a portal to visualizing and investigating data and information in unprecedented ways.

Ada combines terrain and survey data, engineering designs, and real-time computer graphics to visualize applied earth science data in 3D. With this solution, experts and non-technical stakeholders can visit a digital version of their project site at any time – past, present or future. For example, an engineered mining landscape can be visualized through to closure, allowing various groups to collaborate through a shared 3D perspective.

BGC has assembled a unique team to develop Ada, with combined expertise in both earth sciences and augmented-reality holographic visualization. We have used this expertise to develop a software platform usable today on the Microsoft HoloLens. Ada is breakthrough technology that enhances communication and understanding amongst owners, decision makers and stakeholders like never before.

Learn more about BCG here 

More info about the VR/AR Global Summit here

What Goes Into a VR Ad Experience?

Join our Advertising Committee here

With nothing more than some basic VR glasses attached to my iPhone, I'm transported to The Conjuring 2 as I watch the three-minute trailer. I feel like I’m in the movie, beginning with the creepy music effects. I'm not sure what is going to happen next, and just that feeling of uncertainty is making my heart beat faster and triggering my senses with giddy anxiety. I know it's not real, but it seems real enough. Everything -- from the furniture to the cracks in the walls -- is just like the movie, and these details of the experience make an impression.

This is advertising in VR. The example involving The Conjuring 2, which allows users to experience Enfield firsthand, was produced by SunnyBoy Entertainment for Warner Brothers, who partnered with Paper Triangles to create the first VR horror movie trailer, to create the first VR horror movie trailer. (Full disclosure: Paper Triangles is a VR/AR Association member.) The trailer has racked up over 13 millionYouTube views and 4.3 million Facebook views.

How To Create a VR Ad Experience

Well, the are several options available now for brands to create a VR, AR or MR experience. The first would be to go to any one of the current production studios. Anzu.io, Blue Visual Effects, CreateAR and many others work in the AR space specifically for brands. Another option would be to create the experience in-house and build a team dedicated to VR, AR and MR work.

Features And Functionality

In this case, creators needed to replicate the set of The Conjuring 2 in VR, which consisted of fusing live-action with CG technology into a stereoscopic VR setting. The result was a remake of the Enfield house in VR form, which made the house look and feel like real life.

Gamification of a branded experience (i.e., an ad) or eye-gaze features to direct the experience can be considered for engagement. The end goal is to surprise and delight the user inside the experience. For examples, using Microsoft's HoloLens allows creators to use spatial mapping, gaze and gestures as tools to immerse users in a branded experience.

How Do You Launch And Measure Success Metrics?

The type of experience you create will determine what platforms are available to distribute your content and how to effectively measure metrics.

In another example, Adverty built a VR/AR advertising platform for brands via an easy-to-integrate, non-intrusive native form of advertising. In 2017, the company launched a Christmas VR campaign for Coca-Cola using virtual out-of-home billboards inside the snowball-throwing VR game Merry Snowballs from game studio Hatrabbit Entertainment. It is a true VR experience, using headsets supported by the mobile and desktop VR platforms, and the ad units are placed non-intrusively and seamlessly in the game design. 

Metrics can be measured in the following ways:

• Viewability gives you metrics so you can see the number of views your ad has received.

• Reach is fairly standard, but "resonance" gauges thought and feeling about your ad while "reaction" tracks in-store lift in sales.

• Verification provides third-party data to keep things transparent.

Why does this matter? For now, VR, AR and MR may seem like a novelty. When you mention them to friends or businesses, they, in turn, immediately reference the headset or some type of gear. But what is certain is that the technology behind all three is getting closer to becoming mainstream. More than 1 million headsets were shipped in Q3 2017, and it's expected that over 2oo million units will be sold by 2020. And it's important to remember that headsets are shared devices in homes, schools and entertainment venues. Without a doubt, once a person tries one of the experiences, they are instantly transformed into a smiling, eyes-wide-open user.

For advertising, this is dollar signs and rainbows. Both enterprise and retailers alike will be eager to happily invest in the new medium of communication to get closer to their loyal customers and build new relationships with potential customers. After all, why would you miss an opportunity to tell your story if all you have to do is make the user feel connected to your brand experience?

Join our Advertising Committee here

This Wednesday May 2nd join Live Online our Expert Panel discussing "The AR Cloud"

RSVP here

Join live and ask questions during our Q&A! 

Perhaps the most dramatic shift the introduction of AR-enabled mobile phones is brought about by the use of the camera as the interface. But the camera needs something to detect, or "see". We have come to think of this geolocated content as "The AR Cloud". The implications of SLAM capable geolocated content are profound; the world will be painted with data. The technology to enable this dramatic development is in its infancy, although there are several promising startups tackling it right now. Some, like Ubiquity6 and YouAR, offer complete solutions, while others, such as 6D.ai offer key technologies that would enable developers to create their own apps. 

In this webinar, we'll explore the meaning of the AR cloud with the man who first coined the phrase, Ori Inbar, co-founder of AWE and partner in seed stage AR focused venture fund, Super Ventures. We'll be speaking with an incredible panel which includes three pioneering startups working to enable the creation and population of the AR cloud. In addition to company presentations from Unbiquity6, YouAR, and 6D.ai, we'll explore key concepts around the AR cloud. Such as: 

• The role of computer vision, AI, and sound
• The universal visual browser - how will enable all AR content to be found? Could existing browsers play a role? 
• Will there be open standards, so enterprises and individuals can populate the AR cloud? YouAR is pushing for an ICANN like organization to manage this, The AR Cloud Foundation. 
• If a dozen developers painted data on a landmark like the Golden Gate Bridge, how would a user sort through it? 
• Will there be a Google for visual search? How would that work? 
• How important are filters? Surely we don't want to be assaulted by every kind of content. 
• What are the opportunities today for developers, enterprises, and individuals? 

Watch our report from Tribeca 2018 with 35 VR Experiences! (Video)

Deadline is this Monday April 23rd for the Global AR Online Pitch! Apply here

The VR/AR Association has partnered with the Global AR Online Pitch. The GFR Fund, Super Ventures and The Venture Reality Fund ("The VR Fund") are excited to be hosting the first Global Online AR Pitch Event in early May.

This online-only event is a great opportunity for AR startups to present their business plan and innovative technology and/or products to more than 40 global AR investors who commit to investing in AR.

8 startups will be selected as finalists to present at the online pitch event.

Additionally, these finalists also qualify to pitch live on stage at AWE USA 2018 on May 31.

DEADLINE: Applications are accepted until Monday, April 23.

Please check the details and apply here: https://www.augmented-reality.link

Join us for the Mixed Reality Experience at the Smart Manufacturing Experience event in Boston

For discounted conference passes, email info@thevrara.com

The Smart Manufacturing Experience will be held from April 30 to May 2, 2018, at the Boston Convention Center.

Interactive experiences

The Mixed Reality Experience put on by the VR/AR Association, PTC, and Mechdyne will let you engage with virtual, augmented, and mixed reality technologies to see how machines, systems, and data can be integrated. VR and AR demonstrations will show applications of machine learning in live factory analytics, virtual machines, and modeling and simulation.

Workshops at the Smart Manufacturing Experience will expose attendees to technologies from the show floor, as well as innovations in additive manufacturing, automation, and more.

Speaking of the show floor, exhibitors will also be presenting small group sessions called “Knowledge Bars.” This allows people to ask questions and get answers that directly connect available technologies to their needs.

The Learning Lab at the Smart Manufacturing Experience will include presentations on trends, business cases, and new products that can benefit businesses.

A team competition will enable students to design a Mars Rover to carry out two missions: carrying a payload over rocky terrain and carrying a payload over sandy terrain. The team with the most creative logo will be recognized.

Watch our Recap of the NAB Show (video)

Here's our recap of NAB Show 2018. Lots of content and VR solutions from HumanEyes Technologies,  Blueprint Reality Inc.,  Visbit Inc.,  Eastman Kodak Company, Adobe,  Public Broadcasting Service,  Intel Corporation, Cirque du Soleil Entertainment Group, and much more. 

VRARA Netherlands & VRX Rising Stars First Edition 2018 (5 startups will be given a unique opportunity!)

To enter the competition, please click here

To attend the event RSVP here

What is the VRARA Netherlands Rising Stars?

Showcase outstanding achievements in VR/AR/MR

Selected Startups will have the huge opportunity to showcase their achievements to thousands of attendees and decision makers on the 17th of May during the afterparty of VRX Europe in Amsterdam.

Attendees will include some of the biggest names in VR and offer a night of learning, entertainment and celebration.
 

OUR EXPERT JUDGING PANEL

Our experts are going to select 5 of the best startups.

They will showcase their solution during our event on the 17th of May.

CRITERIAS FOR STARTUP SELECTION

Our jury members will assess the startup submissions against several criteria.

The 5 startups reaching the highest scores will be the ones selected to present at the event on the 17th of May 2018.

DURING THE NIGHT – 17th MAY 2018

More details coming soon !

SPONSORS

The success of the VRARA Netherlands Rising Stars event is tightly linked to the generosity and support of its sponsors and partners.

If you want to take part in the adventure, please contact  isa@thevrara.com

PARTNERS

VR Owl
Jits van Lexmond 
Jan Willem Denengelsen 

Ordina
Jasper Jochem

DigitasLBI
Andres van Vugt

AkzoNobel
Bram Kokke

COMPETITION AGENDA

Jury Members Announced – 15th April

Recruitment startup campaign launch – 16th April

Deadline Startup Submission – 6th May at 23:59

Selected Startups Announced – 11th May

INTERESTED IN JOINING THE EVENING?

The 5 selected startups will showcase their products and solutions on the 17th of May 2018 during a fun after party event. If you want to have the privilege to discuss with those rising stars and meet VR/MR/AR biggest influencers in Europe, please book your ticket now.

This event is free for all VRX Europe attendees (Our event is built in partnership with the VRX Europe conference), you will receive an email to proceed to registration soon.

If you are a member of the VRARA Netherlands Association, this event is also free for you. Members will receive an email to proceed to registration soon.

Limited Tickets:

If you are not part of the VRX Europe conference, you can register here. Only few tickets are sold outside of the VRX event, we would like to encourage you to register as soon as possible if you want to be sure to secure a spot.

QUESTIONS?

Get in Touch

isa@thevrara.com

ELIGIBILITY AND GUIDELINES

Guidelines see here

How Do Consumers Feel About Mobile AR? (new report)

This post is adapted from the latest report from ARtillry Insights, Mobile AR Usage & Consumer Attitudes. Preview more of the report or subscribe through VRARA. 

How do consumers feel about mobile AR? Who’s using it? How often? And what do they want to see next? Perhaps more importantly, what are non-users’ reasons for disinterest? And how can app developers and anyone building mobile AR optimize product strategies accordingly?

These are the questions we set out to answer. Working closely with Thrive Analytics, ARtillry Intelligence wrote questions to be presented to more than 2000 U.S. adults in Thrive’s established consumer survey engine. And we’ve analyzed the findings in a narrative report.

This follows last month’s ARtillry Intelligence Briefing, which examined mobile AR app strategies and business models. Now, a deeper view into real consumer usage and attitudes  provides new dimension on mobile AR strategy development and opportunity spotting.

Specifically, one third of consumers surveyed have used a mobile AR app. And those consumers appear active, with more than half reporting that they use mobile AR apps at least weekly. The top app category by far is gaming, which we attribute mostly to Pokémon Go.

Mobile AR users are also engaged, with 73 percent reporting satisfaction or high satisfaction. But beyond these and a few other positive signals, there are areas for improvement. For example, non-mobile AR users report low likelihood of adopting soon, and explicit disinterest.

The disparity between current-user satisfaction and non-user disinterest underscores a key challenge for XR: you have to “see it to believe it.” To reach high satisfaction levels, apps have to first be tried. This presents marketing and logistical challenges to push that first taste.

Put another way, AR’s highly visual and immersive format is a double-edged sword. It can create strong affinities and engagement levels. But the visceral nature of its experience can’t be communicated to prospective users with traditional marketing like ad copy or even video.

The same challenge was uncovered in our corresponding VR report last August (we’ll publish the second wave in Q3). This makes it a common challenge with immersive tech. It will take time and cost reductions before they reach a more meaningful share of the consumer public.

Meanwhile, there are strategies to accelerate that process, and to build AR apps that are compelling to consumers’ current standards. For example, social features can boost AR stickiness and network effect, which will be accelerated with multi-player support in ARkit.

There is of course a lot more to it, which we break down in the report. Meanwhile, this will continue to be a moving target and require lots of strategic precision and an informed position. Stay tuned for lots tidbits and survey results we’ll unpack in the coming weeks.

Preview more of the report or subscribe here. 

VR & AR for Business (Enterprise) White Paper

To get this White Paper, enter your email:

This 40+ pages paper was co-written by 9 industry experts and our Enterprise Committee, exploring the positive and lasting impact that VR and AR technologies can have when businesses deploy them to generate substantial revenue, increase productivity or improve safety. 

Thank you to Atheer for the support in making this white paper possible.

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Virtual & Augmented Reality are immersive technologies that provide new and powerful ways for people to generate, use and interact with digital information. These technologies take traditional media beyond conventional screens and use photographic images, video or computer generated graphics (sometimes provided as an 360-degree view within your field of vision) as a new communication and interaction medium that can be used across your company from marketing and sales to field services, training and data visualization.

Companies like Walmart, Farmers Insurance and Boeing have already begun deploying this technology across their organizations for training. Specific examples of how other brands are using VR/AR right now are detailed in this paper. Whether you are a brand marketer, director of operations, run a line of business or head of HR, there are many ways you can deploy this technology to generate substantial revenue, increase productivity or improve safety.

This white paper is broken into the following parts so you can skip to what is of interest to you:

• Market Predictions for VR/AR

• Key VR Industry Market Size Estimates

• Market Size Estimates: Drilling Down on Enterprise

• How to use Virtual Reality in your business?

• 20 uses of VR/AR for Business

• Deeper Dive on Examples

• Preparing Your Business for the Immersive Future

• 8 steps to build your VR/AR experience

• Use Cases

  • Retail

  • Real Estate

  • Airlines

  • Automotive

  • Banking & Financial

  • Health & Medical

  • Virtual Reality Architectural Renderings

  • Industrial (Mining, Oil & Gas, Manufacturing)

  • VR Simulations & Data Analysis

  • Restaurant & Food

  • Travel & Tourism

  • Communications & HR

• Different Types of VR

• Uses for VR/360° Video

• Computer Generated (CG) Virtual Reality

• WebVR

• VR Head Mounted Displays

• AR Head Mounted Displays

• Challenges Facing VR/AR Adoption

• Conclusion