Magic Leap has recently seen some setbacks and has recently turned its attention back toward enterprise applications. Together with Google, the two firms are developing a new headset featuring video passthrough technology as well as “cool AI ties-ins,” according to CEO Julie Larson-Green.
Magic Leap will combine their AR expertise and optics leadership with Google’s technology platforms for this partnership, supporting enterprise customers as part of their service offering.
Magic Leap’s optics technology
Google and Magic Leap’s partnership will enable it to develop AR and VR hardware. The deal combines Magic Leap’s optics hardware IP and manufacturing expertise with Google technology platforms, according to their respective blog posts. As part of an overall effort to expand “extended reality,” which encompasses AR/VR/MR technologies.
Magic Leap stands out in the AR headset market with its transparent optics technology and has spent years working to perfect its product. Unfortunately, however, initial trials failed to meet expectations, leading them to shift focus toward enterprise customers instead. Furthermore, Magic Leap provides licensing and component manufacturing services for other AR headset makers.
The Magic Leap 2 headset, introduced last year, is the premier transparent AR headset on the market. Its transparent display can produce up to 2,000 nits of brightness; enough to compete with ambient lighting in many environments. Furthermore, dynamic segmented dimming enables users to draw attention or highlight specific content areas.
In addition to its transparent display, the Magic Leap 2 features a holographic processor capable of processing multiple layers of graphics and video for an enhanced immersive experience. Furthermore, its ergonomic design evenly distributes weight around your head for thermal comfort and allows for an optimal computing power experience.
Google’s partnership with Magic Leap could reignite its AR ambitions, which had previously been put on pause due to the failure of Google Glass smart eyewear. However, this deal won’t alter Google’s existing arrangement with Samsung for developing their XR hardware.
Google’s technology platforms
While details were sparse, Alphabet and Google stated they would join forces to “advance the potential of augmented reality.” Google has shown only limited engagement with AR technology over time – their initial foray was Google Glass which proved unpopular among consumers before eventually being moved back into enterprise use mode. Project Astra, another attempt at an AR headset project by Alphabet, was shelved last year.
Magic Leap is a transparent AR headset manufacturer known for producing transparent headsets similar to Microsoft’s HoloLens 2 but with smaller displays and separate battery/comput pack. They focus on offering their technology to enterprise clients.
Google is developing a micro XR platform designed to run on AR devices, and may eventually license this technology to hardware makers. HP and Qualcomm have both collaborated with Google on plans to develop an augmented reality video conference system in 2025; furthermore, Google and Qualcomm also collaborated with Qualcomm on creating virtual reality headsets compatible with Android smartphones.
Research indicates that consumers desire immersive technologies like VR and AR. Retail shoppers may use virtual try-ons provided through VR/AR for instance to preview how furniture will look in their home or clothing fits them before making their purchase, helping reduce returns and boost sales. Other retailers use immersive customer experiences like virtual try-ons to increase customer satisfaction while simultaneously growing revenue.
Initial development
Not much is known yet about what this partnership will entail, but it is expected to include initial development of augmented reality experiences as well as integration of Google technology platforms into Magic Leap AR headsets. If successful, this may mark Google’s return to consumer AR market; they have supported and pulled back several times before.
This partnership will launch this fall, with first AR experiences made available for developers and enterprise customers to help both companies gain an in-depth understanding of each technology’s potential. From there, devices will be gradually introduced to other users until commercial launch takes place at some point during 2024.
One key area of this partnership involves the incorporation of artificial intelligence (AI) into AR devices. This could prove highly advantageous for both parties involved, enabling new capabilities for AR headsets – something especially valuable in industries like e-commerce where customers want to interact with digital content directly. Google also boasts extensive expertise in this area with Project Astra at its annual developer conference.
Magic Leap and Google’s partnership will mark an important moment in augmented reality (AR) industry. Together they have collaborated to develop a novel form of AR system which businesses will be using for productivity and customer engagement purposes. Their AR platform uses cutting-edge optical and computing technologies for an interactive user experience and captures physical world data for display on mobile phones or glasses screens.
Commercial deployment
These companies announced plans to collaborate on developing innovative augmented reality solutions and experiences that will revolutionize how people use computers and interact with digital devices. Their partnership will also aid both firms develop their respective platforms; Google will give Magic Leap access to its hardware, software, and AI technologies.
This deal is significant because it demonstrates Google’s renewed dedication to augmented reality after years of false starts and cancelled projects. Google reignited their augmented reality ambitions at this year’s I/O developer conference with their Project Astra AI headset unveiling; signaling to many industry observers that augmented reality remains on their agenda despite any criticism they might face from analysts and observers alike.
Magic Leap announced in its announcement of this partnership that they will combine their “expertise in optics and manufacturing” with Google’s technology platforms for enhanced AR apps for developers and customers alike. Together, these companies aim to accelerate immersive experiences for both their respective customers and developers while producing more powerful AR apps than before.
As this announcement provided few details, it remains unknown if this partnership will lead to any new devices. Magic Leap launched their initial transparent AR headset in 2018, however sales did not meet expectations and now focus on enterprise customers instead. Their latest product – Magic Leap 2 – features higher field of view and brighter displays than Microsoft HoloLens.
No one knows yet whether this partnership will result in any new consumer devices, but it could mark an important step forward for AR technology development. Both Apple and Meta have released AR/VR products already; thus this alliance could increase competition between both firms.
Continuous improvement
Google-Magic Leap’s partnership aims to transform augmented reality experiences by merging physical and digital realms. They hope their efforts will set a new standard of innovation within the technology industry while producing breakthrough advances that may change our interactions with our digital devices.
Magic Leap will combine their optical and device manufacturing expertise with Google’s technology platforms in this partnership, though whether or not this will eventually result in consumer AR devices is yet unknown. However, it signals Google’s return into an arena previously dominated by Apple and Meta.
Magic Leap has maintained its lead in enterprise spatial computing despite not meeting initial sales projections for their first product, due to their innovative technology and ability to provide immersive experiences to businesses of all sizes.
Magic Leap AR provides healthcare professionals with access to 3D patient data to improve diagnosis and treatment outcomes, while it allows companies to add virtual components on real machinery so employees can practice operating and troubleshooting without risking damage to equipment. This virtual training approach increases safety while decreasing training times by up to 50%.
Google and Magic Leap’s partnership will allow them to develop new capabilities for AR Cloud platform, which will enable multiple stakeholders to view large-scale digital content in real-time – further increasing collaboration, productivity, and immersion for users. The partnership also enables Magic Leap to improve user experience with additional features which can be added onto existing software applications.
