Standing at the edge of an abyss that drops thousands of feet probably wouldn’t rank as a bucket-list item for most people. It’s more like a terrifying moment to avoid at any and all costs. But this doesn’t change the fact that I must walk across a narrow ramp and board a spaceship—with no time to spare. At this moment, my mental state could be described as somewhere between absolute bliss and sheer terror. My heart is racing while a queasy sensation has invaded the pit of my stomach. My brain, my eyes, and my senses tell me that with one wrong step I will plummet into oblivion. So, I take tiny and careful steps—one ... at ... a ... precious ... time—until I have managed to traverse the narrow ramp. As I enter the space vehicle I hear myself emit a sigh of relief.
Of course, I’m not standing in a real spaceship. And I didn’t cross an actual boarding ramp. Truth be told, I’m not even remotely close to outer space. I’m wandering through an immersive virtual-reality environment called The VOID, which is located in Las Vegas. Here, a visitor fastens a vest and gloves, dons a virtual-reality head-mounted display, and ventures into a holodeck—an environment that blends physical and virtual reality. I’ve just entered a Star Wars battle called Secrets of the Empire. Once inside this space, the bare walls, floors, and ceilings of the holodeck morph into the spaceship. I’m actually a participant in a Star Wars film. It’s a 3D world where I can feel heat and vibrations, smell damp air and smoke, hear the sounds of battle, and, using my proton blaster, a laser gun, take out enemy storm troopers.
The experience, which lasts about 20 minutes, is at times exhilarating and at other times completely terrifying. Throughout the adventure, however, it’s entirely convincing. The VOID is unlike any form of entertainment I’ve ever experienced. It is to virtual reality what recordings are to music or smartphones are to communication. The space seamlessly weaves together reality and fantasy to advance the boundaries of entertainment to a new frontier. Forget the flat screens and 2D experience that TVs, computers, and movies deliver. This immersive world seems completely and utterly real. The VOID website describes the environment as “hyperrealism.”
The VOID represents the leading edge of a massive wave of virtual reality, augmented reality, and mixed reality. In family rooms, offices, and research labs around the world, people are using special goggles or head-mounted displays—along with haptic gloves and other apparatus—to venture inside a computer-generated world that convincingly mimics our physical world. In addition, many are turning to augmented-reality eyeglasses and smartphone apps to view data, graphics, and images in new and intriguing ways. These capabilities are available on demand at the push of a button or via a voice command.
To be sure, after decades of hype and sometimes breathless predictions, extended reality is taking shape. Zion Market Research estimates that the total market for virtual reality will swell from $2.2 billion in 2016 to $26.89 billion in 2022.1 According to the market research firm ARtillry Intelligence, the augmented-reality market will reach $18.8 billion by 2022.2 Yet these technologies are also reshaping business. The number of companies entering the augmented-reality market is growing at an annual rate of about 50 percent.3 Total global extended reality revenues will reach $61 billion in 2022, ARtillry reports.4
Yet this isn’t simply a tale of numbers and adoption. Jeremy Bailenson, a professor of communications and founding director of Stanford’s Virtual Human Interaction Lab has stated that these technologies have significant psychological and social ramifications.5 Once a person steps inside a virtual world, things change. “VR [virtual reality] takes all the gadgets away, it takes all the multitasking away and you actually feel like you’re with someone. We call this social presence—you see their emotions, you see their gestures and it feels just like you’re in the room with them. It takes what is typically seen as something that’s unemotional and distant and makes it feel like somebody’s right there with you.”
It’s impossible to argue with Bailenson’s conclusion. When I strap on an Oculus Go headset, reality is transformed. I can tour the canals of Venice, Italy, and turn my head to view things—boats, people, and buildings—as if I actually am taking a gondola ride. I can step aboard the International Space Station, learn about the different modules and equipment, and view the earth below. I can drop into fantasy worlds and games and even feel as though I’m on the court during a professional basketball game. It’s possible to watch LeBron James dunk or Stephen Curry throw down a three-point shot as if I were actually there. Even the most advanced television—delivering an ultra-high definition experience—cannot duplicate the feeling.
AR glasses also transform the way I see the world. I receive data and information in visual and auditory formats that are more useful, more contextual, and more refined than any laptop or smartphone can deliver. Suddenly, it’s possible to view a video that shows how to install a light switch—while I’m actually installing the light switch. With both hands free, the task is much easier. There’s no switching back and forth between a video playing on my smartphone and tinkering with the physical light switch—while juggling tools. This explains why architects, engineers, scientists, insurance agents, and countless others have begun to use artificial reality glasses to tackle a vast array of tasks.
There’s also mixed reality, which refers to a world somewhere between virtual and augmented reality. In this space, a head-mounted display projects a virtual world but includes actual physical objects in the virtual experience. Or it changes those physical objects into different things, which is what takes place inside The Void. A plain door in the holodeck becomes an elaborate control panel for entering a space ship. A rail or seat that actually exists in the room appears in the virtual world. Essentially, real world objects and virtual objects appear together in a “mixed” reality.
Haptics technologies—which intersect with virtual and augmented reality—ratchet up capabilities further. At a technology showcase presented by the global professional services firm Accenture in San Francisco in early 2018, I donned state-of-the-art haptics gloves along with an HTV Vive headset. The HaptX gloves were large and a bit clunky—they look like a robotic hand—but once I ventured into the virtual space the gloves become invisible. Suddenly, I could feel objects, including animals, shafts of wheat, and clouds. When I poked a cloud with a finger I could feel raindrops. When I picked up a rock I could feel the shape and texture. Venturing inside this odd, animated world was unlike anything I have experienced before.
Although various forms of virtual and augmented reality have appeared in books and films for a few decades, the vision of how they will play out is also evolving. In 2018, Steven Spielberg released the film Ready Player One. Set in the year 2045, human life on earth is threatened by severe climate change, which has unleashed a global energy crises, famine, disease, poverty, and war. The story, based on the 2011 science fiction novel of the same name, tracks protagonist Wade Watts as he escapes the unbearable reality of the physical world by traveling into a virtual world—along with millions of others who are in search of an enormous prize.
Let’s not assume, however, that extended reality is a virtual magic carpet ride to a utopian place. Myriad concerns swirl around morality, ethics, legality, and social considerations. Even more important is the fundamental question whether these technologies will actually lead to a net improvement in our lives—or whether they merely represent a faster or more enjoyable way to do things. I find that if I wear a headset for more than about 45 minutes, I begin to feel isolated and anxious. And I wonder, at a time when we already engage in separate activities together—fiddling with our phones at a gathering with family and friends and everyone barely talking, for example—how things will play out when we wear a head-mounted display. At that point, watching a movie or participating in a game loses the direct physical connection between humans. It’s simply a group of people doing something together while separated. Each person is isolated in his or her own virtual-reality world.
As society introduces virtual technologies that bridge the physical and digital realms, there are important questions to ask. Will extended reality create a better world? Will it benefit society as a whole? Or will XR merely fuel financial gains for a few winners—particularly the companies and individuals that build or use these systems effectively?
This book examines how the three types of extended reality—augmented reality, virtual reality, and mixed reality—have an impact on the world around us and how they are positioned to change the future. We will take a look at the history of these technologies, the latest research in the field, and how they are shaping and reshaping various professions and industries—along with the way we consume news, entertainment, and more. We will also examine the impact extended reality has on psychology, morality, law, and social constructs. Finally, we will speculate about how a virtual future will take shape. One thing is clear: virtual reality, augmented reality, and mixed reality have evolved from niche technologies, often relegated to gaming, to mainstream platforms that are radically changing the way we think about computing—and the way we use devices.
These technologies now appear at airports, in schools, in vehicles, on television sports broadcasts, in medical offices, and at home. Retailers now offer smartphone apps that allow consumers to preview a color of paint on the walls of their house or what a sofa will look like in their living room. There’s also immersive 3D porn and a pastor who is looking to create a virtual-reality church congregation. Make no mistake, the possibilities are limited only by our imaginations.
The journey into extended reality is just getting started.