All Things That Rise | augmented reality

The Unbundling of “Augmented Reality” — Behold the Bionic Eye

By Giovanni Rodriguez ⋅ September 13, 2009 ⋅ Post a comment

Critics of these various unbundlings claim that consumers will never allow themselves to be encumbered by new tech appendanges. But that’s what makes the contact lens so intriguing. There are many of us who would never wear glasses (too dorky). And there are many of us who would never wear contacts (too fussy). And I’d bet that there are even more of us who would never walk down the street pointing phones at people, places, and things (way too dorky). But with the options for “better vision” ever increasing, AR is beginning to look like it’s really going to happen. We’ve been dealing with the issues of vanity, usaability and technology-prosthetics for many generations. And we have learned a great deal. I trust that AR technologists and designers will get things right.

Nokia’s Future Product “Mix”?

By Giovanni Rodriguez ⋅ September 9, 2009 ⋅ 8 comments

For the uninitiated, augmented reality is a set of technologies that enable businesses to overlay data on top of a consumer’s view (say, over a mobile phone). The technologies have been embraced by an army of marketers and developers, mostly outside of the U.S. But with recent news that some U.S. mobile phones can now run augmented-reality applications, U.S. consumers can expect to hear a lot more about the category over the next few months. And what is Nokia’s vision? It’s a world turned on by augmented reality that doesn’t necessarily depend on the phone. That’s a rather evolved view for a phone manufacturer. But perhaps Nokia’s world, too, has become augmented.

The Future of “Augmented Reality”? Your Body as the Device

By Giovanni Rodriguez ⋅ August 13, 2009 ⋅ 10 comments

As a catchphrase, “augmented reality” doesn’t help us to see future applications of this technology. I would argue that “augmented reality” speaks to the device — which today is the mobile handset. But the technology — again, better described as “augmented intelligence” — speaks to the human being, and points to an inevitable market for applications where the device is more and more about the human body.

AI Digest: 8/9/09: Investing in Augmented Reality

By Giovanni Rodriguez ⋅ August 9, 2009 ⋅ 6 comments

Daily links on AI, IA and the place where social tech meets the two. Today: robots in healthcare, medical augmented reality, and investment in augmented reality.