Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality (AR and VR) have been around for quite some time. While they’ve made their way into the worlds of gaming, marketing, and even real estate, their implementation was limited.
This was mostly because these techs are still in their infancy. As technology advances, we keep seeing more and more opportunities for AR and VR open up. Their scope of implementation will expand and these technologies will be more popular than ever.
This means now’s the perfect time to learn more about some of the biggest AR and VR technology trends.
Now that Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality have become mainstream, future developments are focused on accessibility, inclusivity and user interface. The focus is on ensuring people across all backgrounds and abilities are able to use immersive technology, not just the elite.
AR and VR are Taking Conference Calls to the Next Level
If you like Sci-Fi movies, you probably saw people speaking through holograms. Techs such as AR and VR made this possible and these “holograms” are now widely used in business and everyday life. This has brought so much change to team leaders in large corporations.
Let’s say you’re a marketing manager in a company. Now, all you need to do is put on a headset and you’ll be in the same room as all of your team members. You can then hold the meeting and return to what you were doing earlier.
Augmented Reality and Virtual reality now make it easy to conduct global meetings in virtual spaces with professionals from around the world. This has a huge impact on online collaboration and helps companies expand abroad.
For example, Cisco’s WebEx integrates Augmented reality and Virtual reality to create interactive and real time holograms of users.
Microsoft Teams has a Mesh for Teams feature where the participants can connect in 3D immersive experiences donning different avatars.
Augmented and Virtual Reality in Retail Shopping
It took people a lot of time to really start buying stuff online. In the beginning, consumers were afraid of using their sensitive data such as name and address when shopping online. While AI will make data collection even easier, people now shop online more than ever before. Large companies are always looking to enhance their customers’ shopping experience which is why they’ve turned to AI and VR.
With the introduction of Apple’s Vision Pro and Meta AR glasses Orion, the buzz about Augmented reality and Virtual Reality gear is high. Retail brands have followed suit,
IKEA has a popular VR tool called Ikea Place that allows customers to visualize how a particular piece of furniture would look like in their house. Sephora, the cosmetics giant has virtual try-ons available on its website, where users can see how a product may translate on themselves.
AR and VR in Teaching
After the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve all realized the importance of online education. This might make experts think about developing new online classrooms. While teacherless classrooms aren’t mainstream yet, AR and VR can take the learning experience to the next level.
The David Game College in London made headlines in 2024, when it introduced AI in teaching and in classrooms. While there were a lot of concerns about the lack of human interaction, the fact that curriculum could be customized according to each student’s pace and strengths was appreciated.
This is especially useful in fields that require simulations. Just think about all the training pilots go through. With the use of AR and VR, they can experience flying in realistic simulations. Firefighters and police officers can face lifelike situations in augmented reality or virtual reality and ensure they’re ready for real-world scenarios.
The use of AR and AI
AR and Artificial Intelligence (AI) go hand in hand. If you’ve ever taken an Instagram photo with a filter on, you know what we’re talking about. These two techs work together to decide which parts of the screen they should change. While this is a banal example of what AR and AI can do together, it gives you a good picture of what is coming.
For example, this is how some of the top online casinos want to create the perfect experience for their players. They rely on these two techs to let players customize everything from the look of the table to the card design. In 2025, AI will be used in online casinos to detect fraud, analyze huge amounts of data and overall offer a more personalized experience. Read more here.
Heads Up Display (HUD) In Cars
When you think about driving and AR or VR, the first thing that comes to mind are self driving cars.
They’re not mainstream yet,and we don’t have too many manufacturers announcing their potential launch- except for the Robotaxi range from Tesla. Until they’re available for everyday use, experts are working on using AR and VR tech to improve the driving experience.
Companies such as Basemark and Nvidia have developed software that projects info for drivers directly on the windshield. This lets drivers see essential info without taking their eyes off the road. This software will also point out road hazards, increasing safety for everyone in the vehicle.
By 2035, HUD or Heads Up displays in cars may become a common feature across all budget ranges of cars.
The Bottom Line For Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality
In recent years, we’ve seen a real increase in demand for AR and VR. These two techs are ready to transform both the business world and everyday life. With more widespread adoption expected by 2035, AR and VR have strong potential to impact various industries and reshape our experiences. Some new implementations might arrive sooner than you think. If you’d like to learn more about AR and VR, you can read other Yaabot articles here.
