After a very intense April with Laval Virtual, it’s time to take stock of the latest news in augmented reality! We are currently preparing a summary of the 2025 edition of Laval Virtual. While waiting for this article, you can find below a link to an initial discussion around our feelings. You will also find an explanation of the European Union’s Virtual Worlds Partnership, a crucial action for the future of the XR ecosystem, for which we need your opinion. Moreover, an article from XRmust questions us, very appropriately, on Europe’s dependence on BigTech tools.
On the corporate side, there are fundraising rounds (frontline.io) and acquisitions (DeepAR). The landscape remains relatively calm, however, even if the announcement of a major order by Vuzix and several discussions on Laval Virtual seem to indicate the beginnings of an improvement for the sector. You will also find an interview with TwinWorks, a platform for creating interactive procedures using AR from simple « paper » procedures.
On the software side, the announcement of the month certainly comes from 8thWall with the elimination of the license fee for using experiences created with 8thWall Studio, including those for commercial purposes. Remember that the previous pricing started at $700 per month per experience! It’s worth remaining cautious in the face of such a development, but it seems consistent with Niantic’s desire to focus on the development of its « large geospatial model. »
Most of the other announcements concern XR hardware and, as expected, glasses. It’s worth noting that Vuzix’s OEM strategy is expanding with the first shipments of XanderGlasses. Google is announcing its own pair of glasses, which, while they probably have a screen, aren’t exactly stunning. For a company that offered Google Glass in 2013, it’s safe to say that evolution is pretty slow :) Meta, for its part, is reportedly finalizing the successors to the Ray-Ban Meta, codenamed « Hypernova. » It’s quite strange for Meta to offer a pair of glasses under its own brand, without using the power of non-RayBan or even Oakley. This doesn’t stop other manufacturers from offering their own models like Xiaomi or RayNeo, without really offering us convincing uses.
To discover interesting uses of XR, we recommend a visit to the Bormes-les-Mimosas Museum of History and Art, which offers an augmented reality exhibition. A little further from France, the Seymour Marine Discovery Center in Santa Cruz is also using this technology to meet Ms. Blue, the institution’s iconic whale skeleton. In this watch, you’ll also find examples in healthcare, construction, and maintenance. Finally, note that the AREA (Augmented Reality for Enterprise Alliance) is publishing a report on the use of low-code/no-code tools in XR.
See you in a month!
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