Now that the new year has finally arrived, it’s time for all of us to begin thinking about the opportunities that this new landscape has to deliver. In 2020, the XR landscape achieved a significant amount of growth, driven by the demand for new immersive experiences that don’t rely on face-to-face interactions. Restrictions created by the pandemic meant that today’s businesses quickly became more open to the idea of AR, VR, and MR technology.
As we step into 2021, extended reality is quickly becoming a valuable tool for everything from employee engagement and collaboration, to business transformation, innovation, and growth. Here are some of the predictions we have for the year ahead.
1. XR Becomes a Key Differentiator
In today’s ever-evolving business landscape, extended reality is quickly emerging as a valuable tool for enterprise innovations. CXOs in the year ahead are going to set aside more time and investment for looking at AR, VR, and MR to make sure that they can stand out from the crowd.
The investments that companies make in XR will be critical to not only boosting productivity levels among members of staff, but attracting new investors, partnership opportunities, and talent too.
2. Customers Look Forward to Smart Glasses
During 2020, we began to see the initial release of some interesting smart glasses in the marketplace. Eyebrows are currently being raised in the enterprise as companies ask themselves whether these glasses will unlock any new opportunities and possibilities. With both Apple and Facebook preparing to release their new glasses in 2021, could they prove to be a must-have part of the new workplace?
Will smart glasses reign this year, or will they disappear into the consumer market, never to be seen again, just like the majority of smartwatches?
3. VR Headsets Enter the Workplace
Virtual reality headsets are also making their way into the workplace more aggressively now. The Oculus Quest 2 and similar affordable products are ensuring that enterprises have the budget to experiment with new technology. 3D worlds and spatial computing solutions are within reach for all kinds of brands that want to explore the possibilities of VR.
You might find yourself meeting more frequently in virtual reality collaboration landscapes in the not so distant future – almost as often as we meet in video today.
4. Work From Home Drives Adoption
While there are many factors encouraging the adoption of XR right now, the home working trend may be one of the most significant. As more companies embrace the work anywhere environment, there’s an increasing demand for employees to feel more present within meetings and team working sessions.
We want to be able to interact with colleagues in a way that feels more immersive than a Zoom call, and the growth potential for XR because of this is off the charts. The arrival of new technology will be fuelled by the redefinition of how we work that’s happening right now.
5. Exploring the New Hybrid Workplace
Finally, the hybrid environment will be the workplace of the future. Anywhere work is quickly becoming the new replacement for in-office productivity, and XR technology is set to deliver new superpowers to our work days. As 5G connectivity continues to spread around the world, giving us the connectivity we need to power our smart lives, opportunities will only grow.
Extended reality is one of the most exciting concepts on anyone’s radar. Who knows, maybe we’ll even see the emergence of new smart masks to help fight back against the dreaded pandemic.
