Immersive Realities
Key Takeaway:
The immersive reality market is projected to grow from $97.9 billion in 2023 to $280.5 billion by 2028, driven by the merging of digital and physical realms and innovations like spatial computing and AI-enhanced technologies. These advancements are redefining interactions and enhancing human capabilities, indicating a significant shift towards more intuitive and immersive experiences across various industries.
Trend Type: Technology
Sub-trends: Spatial Computing, Immersive Reality Tech, Tech Augmented Humans
According to MarketsandMarkets, the immersive reality market, encompassing technologies such as spatial computing, augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR) and mixed reality (MR), is projected to grow from $97.9 billion in 2023 to an astounding $280.5 billion by 2028. This growth reflects the integration of digital and physical worlds, profoundly altering how we interact with technology.
Spatial Computing
Spatial computing is at the forefront of this revolution. Unlike traditional computing reliant on screens, spatial computing seamlessly integrates digital elements into our physical surroundings. This shift is poised to redefine user interactions, making them more intuitive and immersive (refer to the “Next-Level Interfaces” trend). In a recent global survey by Accenture, the technology has garnered substantial corporate interest, with 92% of executives asserting that their organizations plan to use spatial computing to secure a competitive advantage.
AI & Human Capabilities
The integration of artificial intelligence (AI) with human capabilities forms another critical component of immersive realities. This trend, explores how technology can extend our physical and cognitive capacities. This trend manifests in multiple ways, from using AI as a partner to liberate our imaginations to bridging the “digital” vs. “physical” gap through touch, haptics, and gesture, to the maturation of digital avatars to augment our friendships. For instance, over 90 million users are already engaging with AR through social media platforms, primarily through AR lenses on smartphones. Innovations in this area, such as AI-enhanced avatars and advanced sensory technologies, are not only enhancing user experiences across various platforms but also revolutionizing industry practices by improving efficiency and interaction quality. While, game developers, for instance, are leveraging generative AI to make game characters more lifelike and immersive, allowing players to have more engaging conversations with non-player characters (NPCs) and build bonds with them.
Business Adoption
In fact, business adoption of these technologies is expanding, with enterprises leveraging immersive realities for various applications, from training and simulations to customer interactions. While expanding the eligibility pool for employees, the potential for immersive technologies to improve efficiency and safety in workplace settings is significant, prompting more organizations to explore these tools. Companies like Lenovo and CareAR, for example, are collaborating to deliver AR solutions for field technicians, illustrating the broad applicability and growing enterprise reliance on immersive tech.
Immersive Media
Lastly, in 2024, the arrival of several innovative immersive media devices may spur innovation that will spill into the broader immersive media landscape, but as the trend continues to evolve, businesses will need to assess the role of the human touch—literally and figuratively.
Use Cases
Spatial Computing : Epic’s Reality Scan App lets people scan 3D objects in the physical world with just their phone and turn them into 3D virtual assets
Spatial Computing: Paris’s Centre Pompidou capitalized on this ability to personalize a museum experience through a collaboration with Christian Marclay.Marclay overlayed Centre Pompidou’s façade with a colorful digital instrument that users could play in many ways through Snapchat AR.
Immersive Reality Tech: When Morehouse College wanted to engage its remote students, biomolecular chemistry professor Muhsinah Morris introduced a virtual digital twin of the school’s chemistry lab to enable students to conduct experiments just as they would in person