The Immersive Wire - 9 January 2022 (Sunday edition)

By Tom FfiskeVR/AR and metaverse analysis every Wednesday and Sunday

// 9 January 2022

Started playing DnD again. The tavern was razed by ten thousand platinum pieces. Don't ask.

A surprise is incoming...

MAIN STORYSmart minds, poor arguments

Media literacy is typically weak across the internet, so delivering good-quality information where possible is vital for the sustained and continued growth of the sector. I welcome discussions on the role of date and VR, so long as they are nuanced and well-balanced. But I am wary of articles that appeal to the lowest common denominator and barely contribute to the important discussions in our industry - and so should you. Check your diet of articles each day, and keep an eye out for clickbait.Perhaps the most common click-bait rumors link to either Apple headsets, or Meta’s upcoming AR specs. YouTubers and journalists are jumping on the morsels of speculation to generate clicks and insights. Though understandable, the actions can be dangerous too, as it sets up expectations that may collapse in a bloody heap. I believe that discussions are happening too soon. Partly because nothing is confirmed; we are all speculating on the show before the curtains roll up. But also because the most important part of the device is still unknown. Not the specs, straps, or software. It's the price, as it would partially compete against the PS5 and Xbox Series X. People can debate whether the Quest should be considered in competition with gaming consoles. Not all users are gamers, as some may be roped into the social side of VR. Still, it will be a sizable audience.The most testy area in the area is politics, which crops up from time to time. In a way, it is inescapable. Anyone who says 'politics doesn't interest them' is likely benefitting from a political structure that fits them. Besides, technology has historically interwoven with politics at every stage of human advancement. So let's say there are members of the community who push huge advances in VR/AR - which benefits everyone - but also holds views that damages groups of people? Or how about developing a technology that helps immersive professionals, but also signs military contracts that leads to the death of others? As one example, Palmer Luckey founded Oculus - arguably one of the most impactful companies in the industry. But equally, his new company uses AI for domestic surveillance to identify migrants; controversial in today's USA.Some wouldn't support VR/AR companies if high-ranking employees are tied to controversial contracts. Others differentiate between the person and the company, recognising the business acumen of entrepreneurs while disentangling their personal views. As one person said to me, 'you can admire a tool... without having to admire the internal thoughts or opinions of that object’s creator.' I am honestly undecided, but it's worth a deeper dive. The topic will continue to be relevant as younger consumers want companies to take an ethical stand. Tread carefully, and be kind.

More to come in my upcoming project, unveiled 12 January.

A surprise is coming... So here is a puzzle to work out what it is.✋︎ ⬥︎♓︎●︎●︎ ♌︎♏︎ ♋︎■︎■︎□︎◆︎■︎♍︎♓︎■︎♑︎ ♋︎ ♌︎□︎□︎🙵 □︎■︎ 📂︎📄︎ ☺︎♋︎■︎◆︎♋︎❒︎⍓︎📪︎ ♍︎♋︎●︎●︎♏︎♎︎ ❄︎♒︎♏︎ 💣︎♏︎⧫︎♋︎❖︎♏︎❒︎⬧︎♏︎🖳︎ ✌︎ 🏱︎❒︎□︎♐︎♏︎⬧︎⬧︎♓︎□︎■︎♋︎●︎ ☝︎◆︎♓︎♎︎♏︎📬︎ ✋︎ ♒︎□︎◻︎♏︎ ⍓︎□︎◆︎ ♏︎■︎🙰□︎⍓︎ ♓︎⧫︎✏︎

Q&A

Relaxing on the timeline

Luke Richey, Founder and CVO, Gravity Jack, Inc.

What is your background? Myself and two other founders started Gravity Jack in 2009 shortly after the launch of the app store with the purpose of doing AR monoscopically on inexpensive devices; which we knew would end up at some point as HMDs (still waiting). We patented a number of things in AR and relative location determination, then spent the last 12 years evangelizing augmented reality. I was at the first AWE and have been a witness to the massive growth. In recent years at CES there have been entire gigantic sections dedicated to AR, and I remember laughing about how people just used to look at us like we were crazy when we talked about it. Now it is the buzzword of buzzwords!

What are you working on, and what’s a key learning that you’ve had from it?Gravity Jack funds its R&D with custom, government and commercial software work. We attempt to align our contracts with R&D paths. The vision remains the same but with some tweaks:

From the moment we open our eyes as a baby we start the process of computing in this analog environment. While we love VR we do not believe full immersion is the end goal. The metaverse is already here. You were born into it and are already fully immersed in this simulation. Our goal is to allow our digital creations to enter and be indistinguishable in this analog environment we call the world. One of the steps in that is micronizing HMDs that people will wear. Only people like me would wear a HoloLens to a mall, but regular humans would put on their Pradas or Ray-Bans and wear those. In order to get to that size there are a number of hardware and software problems to solve: computing power, battery life, too much sensor fusion, need for common frameworks, financial settlement (who pays), content creation is incredibly hard, and many more subsets of those problems. Gravity Jack is working on a technology called Gridiron which is the coup d'état to usher in the next phase and solve those problems. As the oldest US company doing AR we have had so many firsts at Gravity Jack in AR and VR. 2022 will be the year the world sees more firsts. It may be the most exciting time our company has ever experienced.

In all of this, I have learned that while we may have an excellent vision of what is coming in the industry our timing has been off. There was always this fear that we were not moving fast enough, that HMDs were closer than we thought. I had believed that wearables with a decent field of view would be here by 2014 and we are still waiting! So, I have learned to relax about the timeline. I know what is coming and giving yourself time to execute allows you to get it right.

If you had to give one piece of advice, what would you give? That is an interesting question. As far as AR goes, as an industry, we need to band around the concept of not allowing centralization of content, protocols, or hardware. The fewer walled gardens and the more democratized those elements are the more amazing the AR metaverse will be and the faster it will arrive. Imagine this world controlled by Apple, Facebook, and Google and it is a world where content isn’t cross universe. Rather, big tech controls the content (or governments) they approve of and can profit from. We should look to the principles of the blockchain for how profits stay with the content creator, and how the AR metaverse is interchangeable and decentralized for all classes of humans regardless of their corporate affiliation. It will be either revolutionary to humanity or another brick in the wall.

If you want to know more about Luke, check them out here.

Jobs boardSENIOR COMPUTER SCIENCE and SOFTWARE DEVELOPER (3D, Linear Algebra, C++). We are looking for a unicorn computer scientist from anywhere in the world who can help build the core rendering technology that will serve creators to build custom products in training, marketing, sales, retail and learning in photorealistic, real-time 3D delivered on any device in a browser. Working with our Head of R&D, you will be responsible for creating and implementing new 3D graphics solutions to push the limits of our technology stack. Solid understanding of Real-time 3D libraries (OpenGL, Vulkan), Linear Algebra, C++ and 3D rendering and game engine technologies. To apply, contact info (at) metavrse (dot) com. XR SOFTWARE ENGINEER NETWORKING, Wikitude, a Qualcomm company. Qualcomm is a company of inventors that unlocked 5G ushering in an age of rapid acceleration in connectivity. Under this dynamic umbrella, Wikitude, a Qualcomm company, shapes the future of augmented reality by empowering businesses and developers. We are looking for an experienced XR Software Engineer Networking to drive the architecture, development, and deployment of core parts of our XR toolkit. A successful candidate has extensive experience in multiplayer streaming and can apply it to XR experiences. Do you have a solid technical background, a passion for the XR industry, and enjoy working with engineering teams? Apply hereXR CONTENT DIRECTOR, Pixo VR. The VR marketplace is exploding, and PIXO is leading the way in on-demand generation and adoption in our industry. With our groundbreaking PIXO ApexTM platform, we provide comprehensive, end-to-end VR content, distribution, and management solutions for enterprise. PIXO VR is searching for an XR Content Director to join our team. Reporting to the COO, the Content Director will manage the overall production, procurement and growth strategy for our XR content library. Working with a team of offshore and onshore designers, engineers, artists, marketers, and 3rd party content developers, the Content Director will ensure PIXO is delivering an exceptional content experience to all our end users. Check out further details here. SDK TECHNICAL ENGINEER, Pico Interactive Europe. As SDK Technical Engineer you will be responsible for investigating/troubleshooting issues reported, and collecting/consolidating customer requirements back to the Beijing DevSupport team. Through this role you will be the technical liaison between Pico Interactive Europe customers and Pico product teams to ensure Europe region's commercial success. In Europe, Pico is one of the premier enterprise hardware companies in the rapidly growing VR market. Click here for more.TECHNICAL PROJECT MANAGER, Pico Interactive Europe. As Technical Project Manager you will be responsible for evaluating improvements to the devices, services, logistics, and operations to continue the high growth business of Pico Interactive Europe. In Europe, Pico is one of the premier enterprise hardware companies in the rapidly growing VR market. The Pico Europe business is responsible for all business opportunities in Europe, Israel, Russian Federation and India. Click here for more. DIGITAL MARKETING MANAGER. ArborXR is device management for AR & VR devices. We power some of the largest headset deployments in the world with Fortune 500, ISVs and companies around the world. Looking for someone with experience in the B2B SAAS marketing space who would enjoy working with a fully remote team based in the US, Canada and Europe. Would join a quickly growing marketing team with a hot product that is selling rapidly. Click here for more. WEB-AR DEVELOPER wanted to work with veteran AR agency. Experience in JavaScript, Three.js, A-Frame, and 8th Wall preferred. Ideal candidate thrives working remotely. Includes competitive salary and full benefits. To apply, send resume to [email protected].INTERNSHIP, US. The intern will be primarily focused on developing proficiency in the use and application of tools designed for experiences in VR/AR headsets. GRIP-IE interns will assist the Get Real management team and clients in the design, development, and implementation of features within both internal and partner platforms. Interns will follow industry best practices including continuous improvement through code reviews of existing and new code. GRIP-IE interns will also be responsible for managing communication with software vendors on a variety of topics including bug identification, feature requests, troubleshooting, and documentation materials. Click here for more. BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER, UK. Here at CIRCUS (an award-winning creative agency, specialists of Virtual Brand Experiences) we're on the lookout for an enthusiastic B2B Business Development Manager on a part-time, remote basis. If this sounds of interest and you love all things virtual, we'd love to tell you more. Click here for more. Display your vacancy in front of thousands of talented VR/AR professionals in just a few clicks. Click here for more info.

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That's all for this week! Want to have a chat, let me know about a news story, or talk business? Either reply to this email, or contact tom (at) immersivewire (dot) com. Have an excellent day!