Are you ready to delve into the world of spatial computing in startups? Join us as we explore a comprehensive analysis conducted at Plug and Play, examining both investor and corporate innovation perspectives. This overview aims to provide valuable insights into the startup market and highlight the immense opportunities that arise from early partnerships with innovative startups.

Understanding what is spatial computing

The term was coined in 2003 by MIT researcher Simon Greenwold, but it wasn’t until June of this year that everyone started talking about it. As usual, Apple managed to hype this topic at the WWDC, where they revealed their VisionPro headset, which allows users to interact with apps in an infinite landscape without needing a desktop screen. As a result, companies and investors worldwide are entering the spatial computing revolution, aiming to bridge the gap between digital and physical worlds. Current products in the market include Meta’s Quest Pro, Pico 4 VR headset, HTC’s Vive XR Elite, Lenovo’s Think Reality VRX, and Microsoft’s Hololens 2, among many others.

RELATED: Chatbots with Fraud Detection Software Are Revolutionizing Underwriting

We are particularly thrilled about this development because spatial computing has fundamentally transformed how people engage with traditional computers. As David Holz, the former CTO of Leap Motion, described, "Spatial computing is not merely a novel form of computing, but rather, the first genuine form of computing."

What do we comprehend by spatial computing?

It describes the digitization of activities of machines, people, objects, and the environment in which they take place to enable and optimize interactions. The revolutionary components are that spatial computing enables more seamless interactions with AR as an interface. It optimizes the complex working within an environment by gaining a complete picture of real-time movements within a space. Furthermore, machines and automation are more aware of their dynamic environment and understand how physical space is used to improve utilization, efficiency, and safety. With this in mind, let us look into its functioning.

How does it work?

CREDIT: Valentin Heun, VP of Innovation Engineering at PTC

Traditional computing is based on two main elements: data and logic. The new era of spatial computing adds another aspect, 3D location, and covers a five-step technology process that goes from data acquisition to spatial visualization.

1. Data acquisition is the initial step in spatial computing. It involves gathering spatial data from the real world using various sensors, such as came­ras, LiDAR, and GPS. These sensors collect information about the physical environment, enabling a comprehensive understanding of space.
2. Data processing occurs once the collected data is ready for refinement and e­xtraction of pertinent information. This crucial step involves various tasks, including noise filtration and merging data from diverse sources to create a compre­hensive repre­sentation of the environment.
3. Spatial mapping involves transforming acquire­d data into a digital model of the physical space and generates 2D and 3D maps while­ incorporating additional details like object locations and dime­nsions.
4. Spatial analysis happens when proce­ssed data is used to gain insights and make informed decisions. By analyzing patterns, identifying trends, or pre­dicting outcomes, businesses can effectively harness spatial computing for a wide­ range of applications. These applications span from urban planning all the way to environmental monitoring.
5. Spatial visualization is the final step, where spatial data is presented in a visually understandable format. This can be achie­ved by creating maps, charts, or interactive­ visualizations to communicate the outcomes of spatial analysis effectively.

By looking at the tech stack, we may see some technologies that are not new to us, such as artificial intelligence (AI), the internet of things (IoT), 5G, machine learning (ML), mixed reality (VR and AR), or blockchain. Combining all of these makes the technological breakthrough of spatial computing products. By merging hardware and software features, spatial computing can bring captivating and interactive experiences to life.

It is essential to highlight that sensor technology plays a pivotal role in spatial computing solutions by relying on an array of sensors such as cameras, LiDAR, and GPS to collect data from the physical environment. These sensors facilitate real-time tracking of position, movement, and other key variables. By adding computer vision, spatial computer systems are empowered to interpret and comprehend visual data from the real world. This sophisticated technology enhances interactive experiences by enabling the recognition and identification of objects and people, which is essential for seamless interactions. Integrating ML and AI with spatial computing improves sensor accuracy, pattern detection, and predictive analysis based on historical data. Additionally, combining mixed reality with all of the above plays a vital role, as interactive experiences are created in AR and VR, providing users with enriched real-world interactions.

Market Overview: A look into where the trends are headed

The following 10 years will be an exciting time for spatial computing, with new gear, software, and applications that will likely change many fields. Current market projections estimate that the space will grow at a rate of 18% CAGR to a projected value of $620 billion by 2032.

CREDIT: Goldman Sachs Global Investment Research; Statista

This graph shows the market split into industries, showing how much each one is worth. For instance, healthcare is expected to have the most significant share, followed by engineering.

From a geographical analysis, we concluded that the US is still the largest market for spatial computing, driven mainly by the presence of major tech companies and overall higher consumer adoption. However, APAC is expected to be the fastest-growing market. Surprisingly, Germany is also positioning itself as a leader in spatial computing adoption due to increased industrial applications.

Overall, the exponential growth of spatial computing can be attributed to various factors, including technological advancements such as enhanced graphics processing power, high-resolution displays, and precise tracking sensors. Additionally, increased investment in research and development and the widespread adoption of spatial computing across diverse industries have contributed to creating interactive and immersive user experiences. To illustrate this concept further, we will delve into a few current applications.

Spatial computing in practice: How enterprises leverage this technology

Many benefits can already be seen in the extended reality (XR) space. Still, the revolution expands beyond AR and VR, connecting the dots between IoT, AI, digital twins, and many more. From an individual perspective, it has significantly influenced our lives today. For instance, whenever we use filters or location tags on social media, interact with a GPS, or speak to an intelligent assistant. From a business perspective, the use cases are abundant.

• Enhanced training through spatial tools offers more engaging training experiences and simulations, ensuring team members can securely and innovatively interact with various scenarios.
• Spatial computing has already impacted product design as companies utilize digital twins and 3D visualization tools to explore product concepts and connect with global employees.
• Future workplacedesign could be revolutionized by spatial solutions, aligning hybrid teams through XR, and optimizing office layouts with automated lighting and environmental controls to enhance employee comfort.
• Collaboration is also evolving with spatial computing, enabling efficient interaction in hybrid meeting rooms and the expanding world of work through the metaverse and XR.
• Productivity gets a boost with spatial technology, bringing essential information and assets into an accessible space and providing hands-free access to data to help teams overcome technical challenges.
• Even customer service benefits, such as sensors, capture customer information, enabling companies to create more personalized experiences while employees use spatial devices to deliver top-notch customer service.

Three practical examples to illustrate the benefits of implementing spatial computing into your business:

VERSES: WAYFINDER

CREDIT: VERSES

VERSES is a cognitive computing company offering different products, including WAYFINDER, that offers dynamic AI routing for order fulfillment.

By harnessing spatial intelligence and AI, the system generates 3D twin models of warehouses, facilitating the strategic optimization of inventory location, storage space, and inventory flow to enhance overall efficiency. This leads to a remarkable increase in productivity, as workers can efficiently pick more items within the same allotted person-hours. The WAYFINDER system is compatible with handheld mobile devices and hands-free augmented reality (AR) tools.

When combined with 3D visual and voice guidance, pickers can navigate to items in significantly less time, resulting in reduced travel time and high operational efficiency. This enhanced workflow can achieve an impressive increase of up to 50% in daily order fulfillment across the distribution center, with a positive downstream effect on customer satisfaction, retention, and long-term loyalty.

ORamaVR & HTC Vive

CREDIT: ORamaVR

As the global population ages and grows, there is an increasing need for healthcare employees, which means there’s a growing need for efficient, effective training strategies.

ORamaVR and HTC have built together one of the world’s most intelligent VR training solutions for healthcare and successfully deployed that technology into the Vive headsets.

This partnership has empowered numerous medical professionals to access immersive training solutions, ushering in a new era of healthcare practitioners. It has demonstrated itself as a cost-effective and efficient alternative for teams of all sizes, surpassing traditional training methods such as cadaver usage.

ZERO10 & Tommy Hilfiger

CREDIT: ZERO10

AR company ZERO10 has partnered with renowned brands such as Tommy Hilfiger and Coach to showcase their AR Try-On technologies. These innovative displays leverage ZERO10's cutting-edge technology to showcase the Tommy X Shawn Classics Reborn collection. Customers have had the opportunity to experience the AR try-on technologies at Tommy Hilfiger's physical retail locations, allowing them to explore the company's clothing product range digitally. ZERO10's app has been providing digital twins and recommendations for the clothing lineup since March this year. Simultaneously, Tommy Hilfiger clothing stores in London, Berlin, and Milan have also implemented this solution.

Concluding Remarks

This piece aimed to give an overview of the spatial computing revolution and convey the need to implement such technologies into your business. Being ahead of this trend will allow you to differentiate yourself, outgrow your competition, and improve society. The market speaks for itself, and the future is indeed spatial computing.

NEXT: Key Insurance Industry Trends in EMEA Regions in 2023

I want to reinforce the idea that there are vast opportunities for many industries, including new ways of collaboration and communication or enhanced customer experiences. Nevertheless, it is worth mentioning that there are currently some challenges that have to be considered. These include costs (especially of sensors and displays), hardware issues (e.g., weight, resolution, or battery life), privacy and security concerns (e.g., location or biometric data collected by sensors-, or ethical considerations.

All things considered, we are at the beginning of this revolution expecting many technological advancements in the upcoming years. However, there are already many success stories of corporate-startup partnerships showing the beginning of this new era.

Startups to keep an eye on

As one of the most active early-stage investors worldwide, Plug and Play remains at the forefront of innovation, continuously evaluating new startups. Before concluding, I would like to showcase some of the most intriguing startup players I've had the pleasure of engaging with in recent months.

Hololink

A Danish Techstars portfolio company with a vision of democratizing augmented reality, starting with the education and advertising industry. Since incorporation in early 2019, Hololink has gone through Techstars Tel Aviv, raised $800.000, and built a web-based platform already beta-tested by over 100 organizations worldwide. Lucas Nygaard, the CEO and co-founder of Hololink, has developed an innovative platform that enables the creation of interactive AR experiences. This scalable, cost-efficient, and user-friendly platform offers instant accessibility through the device's built-in browser. Hololink's proprietary technology combines web, computer vision, and 3D capabilities to deliver an unparalleled augmented reality experience.

Visionaries 777

A Hong Kong-based company accelerated by Plug and Play. They deliver pioneering interactive software that optimizes how people are trained, work, and interact in the physical world through digital twins and extended reality. The startup has reached profitability with over 2 million USD in global annual sales from corporate clients. Global leaders such as Nissan, BMW, Honda, LEGO, Tokio-marine Insurance, Cartier, and Montblanc have deployed their software across factories and showrooms in Japan, Europe, and the US.

VRdirect

A German company that enables businesses to easily make their virtual reality projects available to end-users, employees, or partners without having to develop their own apps. VR projects can be accessed via keyword, code, or link and be permanently stored in the VRdirect App with just one click. Thus, a personalized Virtual Reality library can be created in no time.

Hadean

A UK-based company that has raised more than $70M. It offers an operating system for big data that lets developers write code that runs at any scale with zero ops or tuning. With Hadean, a single developer can scale with a single command, eliminating & nbsp the need for any ops, tuning, or engineering.

SynergyXR

A Danish company that has raised $3M to bring XR to the people and envision a future and a present where extended realities like augmented and virtual reality will continue to revolutionize how we live, work, and play. They designed SynergyXR for people who work with things that are difficult to understand or explain things that need to be communicated visually. It’s never been easier to communicate in 3D using augmented, virtual, and mixed reality without worrying about technical aspects.

Plug and Play connects the world's largest corporations with the most disruptive startups to spark change. Don't miss out on the opportunity tocatalyze your own innovation journey and join our platform today.