The Reality Of Augmented Reality

There’s more to AR than just gimmicky demonstrations designs. It can solve real problems in the real world. But how?

- Abhijit Bhaduri

The best of technology will often play hide and seek with us. There is the flash of a new technology that promises to change the world. Stories on social media trigger a wave of public interest. And this is what Gartner calls the first phase of the ‘Hype Cycle’. That in turn prompts venture capitalists (VCs) to fund startups working in the area. Companies make changes hoping to capture the market by being early movers.

Most of the early startups fail to get the prototype to be successful. VCs get impatient and demand returns. The startups beg for more time and go back to the drawing board with wisdom gleaned from their failures. The subsequent versions of the product show promise and the consumers who had walked away from the marketplace are back. Technology gathers traction and finds better applications. The technology in its final phase of democratization becomes like electricity. It becomes invisible and is taken for granted.

Augmented Reality going beyond Pokémon Go