Qualcomm, Bytedance Partner to Build XR Ecosystem

The mobile chipset manufacturer has made significant investments into global XR

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Qualcomm Opens Six XR Research Labs in Europe
Mixed RealityLatest News

Published: February 28, 2022

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Rory Greener

At the Mobile World Conference (MWC) in Barcelona, Spain, Qualcomm President and CEO, Cristiano Amon, announced on Monday a major partnership with Pico Interactive and Tiktok parent company ByteDance to develop hardware and software tools for global extended reality (XR) ecosystems.

Future Pico Interactive XR products from ByteDance will incorporate Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Spaces, an in-house developer platform launched by the San Diego, California-based firm, to encourage the development of XR applications unlocking the potential of spatial computing and the Metaverse.

During the Qualcomm keynote, Amon said,

“This is a great opportunity, maybe over a decade it is going to be. It could be as big as phones, especially as augmented reality glasses become an extension of every smartphones”

Amon also unveiled the Snapdragon Car-to-Cloud and Auto Connectivity Platform to improve global connectivity support and develop cloud-based applications.

Additionally, Qualcomm revealed at the MWC event the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 Mobile Platform, a powerful 5G-ready mobile processing chip, and the Snapdragon 8cx for personal computers.

Similarly, at last month’s Consumer Electronics Show 2022, Qualcomm announced that it is developing a new chip for use with lightweight AR smart glasses and Microsoft’s software ecosystem.

Leading European XR Research

The address comes after Qualcomm opened six research and development (R&D) labs in Europe this month to enhance engineering and development for crucial XR technologies.

The R&D lab aims to improve existing technologies such as spatial computing, hand tracking, gesture control, 3D mapping, localisation services, multiplayer immersive experiences, and image recognition.

Qualcomm is creating research opportunities to help establish XR solutions in many vertical markets, including retail, industrial, enterprise, education, and healthcare.

Enrico Salvatori, SVP and President, Qualcomm Europe, said earlier in February,

“The opportunities for XR are significant. Combine that with Europe’s rich R&D and leadership in XR and we see the XR labs in Europe as being a big contributor to XR development worldwide”

Qualcomm established R&D labs in Amsterdam, Bordeaux, Kiev, Odessa, Salzburg, and Vienna, where Salvatori claims that “brilliant minds are already working at speed to realise our vision of XR.”

Hugo Swart, VP and GM of XR, Qualcomm Technologies, said,

“These labs will be the key to building out our XR portfolio which encompasses best-in-class platforms, software and innovative technology features and to make it available to all developers helping to build out the Metaverse through Snapdragon Spaces.”

Snapdragon Spaces and the Qualcomm XR Vision

The developments come after last November, Qualcomm partnered with telecoms firm T-Mobile to launch the Snapdragon Spaces XR software development kit (SDK) for augmented, virtual, and mixed reality (AR/VR/MR) solutions.

In addition, T-Mobile is currently running its XR Accelerator program that assists startups and developers in creating 5G experiences on the Snapdragon Spaces XR Developer Platform.

Also, the T-Mobile program hosts three more opportunities for XR developers, including the T-Challenge, 5G Connected Future Incubator, and 5G Open Innovation Lab.

The news comes after Qualcomm, Accenture, and Unity joined the XR Association in February to support the growth of the emerging XR market.

 

 

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