AR Cloud – the logical next step for augmented reality

The AR Cloud is the logical and consistent further development of augmented reality and the internet.
Data networks already span the globe today. We are all connected with our devices anytime and anywhere and can therefore access all kinds of data at any time. We are also increasingly using augmented reality applications, in which we display certain data in space based on cases. At the moment, however, it is hardly possible to interact with the same 3D models together with others. What’s more, we still place the models wherever it suits us. The AR Cloud will radically change this situation.

To summarize, the AR Cloud is a digital copy of the real world that is placed as a layer over the real world. A true-to-scale and detailed, millimeter-accurate virtual space in real space, so to speak. Sounds complicated? But it’s not.

Even if the picture that Matsuda paints is of course somewhat exaggerated, the basic idea is clearly conveyed: With the help of the AR Cloud, digital data leaves the “2D prison” of our devices and becomes part of the real world. The internet is pushing into three-dimensional space.

The aim is therefore to overlay the entire world with a digital model and anchor digital data in a fixed location. But how can this be achieved?

The AR Cloud requires three main components to function:

1. A machine-readable image of the world, aligned to reality with millimeter precision.
2. Devices that can immediately align themselves with this image anytime and anywhere
3. The ability to place content in the model and interact with it

Although we are still some way from an AR cloud, there are already promising developments in some areas. scape.io, for example, is working on a 3D model of the city of London, in which AR content will one day be located.

But a lot is also happening on the device manufacturer side. Our smartphones are equipped with ever better sensors to help them find their way around the room. This development is set to increase significantly. Not least because industry heavyweights such as Tim Cook and Mark Zuckerberg never tire of emphasizing the importance of AR.

Of course, it is not yet possible to predict how important the AR Cloud will be one day. However, experts attribute immense importance to it. Forecasts range from “more important than Google’s search algorithm” to “more important than Facebook’s social graph” and “the most important software infrastructure in history”.

At first glance, this may sound a little over the top. However, on closer inspection, it is easy to imagine that this development could fundamentally change our lives in certain areas. For example, just as the search function has changed the way people organize and consume information, the transfer of the data world to the real world can fundamentally add a new dimension to the Internet. If the entire world is covered with a digital layer and every device can permanently and immediately locate and orient itself in this layer, some of the problems of future-oriented technologies will solve themselves. Self-driving cars, for example, will then always know where other cars are and will no longer have to rely on potentially error-prone sensors to avoid accidents.

After the digital age and the mobility of the internet through smartphones turned many things upside down, the “Spatial Era” will be the next big disruption.

Illustration of the AR Cloud with the three layers Real World, 3D Model and Real Time Content Layer:

But it’s not quite there yet. There are still a few hurdles to overcome on the way to the AR Cloud.

On the one hand, creating a multi-dimensional, real-time image of the world is incredibly complex from a technological perspective alone. In comparison, Google’s Street View project seems almost stepmotherly. On the other hand, the question arises as to whether there will be a shared cloud or whether each company will create its own image of the earth.

The current trend is for well-known tech giants such as Google, Facebook and Amazon to develop their own platforms, which they will market and try to monetize accordingly. However, there are also efforts to create collaborative open source solutions. The provider landscape is therefore similar to that of traditional map services, where Google Maps and Apple’s Map service compete with open platforms such as Mapbox.

A look into the crystal ball shows only one thing with a high degree of probability: the AR Cloud is coming. However, it remains to be seen in what form. It is conceivable that the current infrastructure will be used by the major players for their own services and that industries (e.g. transport) or state or international players (e.g. in the aviation sector) may join forces.

The only thing that is currently clear is that the technological limits will fall within a foreseeable time frame. This is not least thanks to the billions that the industry invests in spatial computing every year.