Immersive technologies are rapidly transitioning from the fringes to mainstream business applications, heralding a new era of digital interaction and value creation at scale. The same seismic shift witnessed during the advent of personal computers and smartphones is now occurring with spatial computing, the metaverse, augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), and extended reality (XR).
These technologies are not only redefining how we experience digital content by blending virtual and physical realms, but also how we interact with digital elements through voice, gestures, and movement. This evolution is setting off a virtuous cycle of innovation and adoption, promising enhanced business access to scalable value.
From our extensive experience with immersive tech in various sectors, we’ve distilled five key insights to help businesses harness the full potential of this transformative tech. These insights, derived from developing immersive applications, client engagements, and workforce surveys, are instrumental in shaping strategies that align with the latest trends in emerging technologies.
Here are the pivotal trends shaping the future of immersive technology in the business realm:
- Accelerating Enterprise Integration: Immersive platforms are poised to become a staple in the workplace, with user-friendly interfaces and interoperability with existing 2D applications. This means seamless transitions between traditional and immersive workspaces, syncing your work to your specific needs.
- Revolutionizing Work Practices: Immersive tech is set to enhance task performance and enable new capabilities for professionals. Remote work will benefit from immersive environments that replicate the office setup, while fostering stronger corporate cultures through heightened remote collaboration.
- Boosting Immersive Commerce: With trusted brands entering the space, immersive tech is becoming a significant channel for both consumer and business-to-business commerce, offering experiential ‘try before you buy’ shopping from home and virtual product testing for businesses.
- Scaling and Innovating: A burgeoning array of immersive devices and applications are about to hit the market, fostering wider adoption and spurring further innovation. This scale-up is expected to solidify immersive tech as a cornerstone for businesses and consumers alike.
- Leveraging Generative AI: The daunting prospect of creating immersive content is mitigated by generative AI (GenAI), which can automate content creation, power realistic avatars, and facilitate complex immersive experiences, effectively democratizing content production for businesses.
For businesses to truly benefit from immersive tech, they must also cultivate trust with stakeholders by addressing privacy, compliance, and data governance concerns. Establishing trust from the outset is essential, as immersive tech often deals with sensitive personal data. Deploying reliable frameworks early on can prevent costly revisions later, ensuring that immersive tech is a secure and effective tool for business innovation right from the start.
