How the AI Boom is Set to Revolutionize How We Use Augmented Reality

2023 is shaping up to be a boom year for the development of artificial intelligence, and the implications for augmented reality can’t be underestimated. 

With more processors offering competitive prices alongside the continued evolution of supporting technology, both AI and AR are growing exponentially, and it’s becoming easier to adopt intelligent solutions across many industries as a result. From more immersive customer experiences, to more effective manufacturing processes and healthcare, these technologies are becoming more impactful than ever before. 

In the coming months and years, more enterprises will have the ability to scale and incorporate AI-assisted augmented reality for their operations. This will pave the way for better internal processes revolving around productivity, training, and the sharing of knowledge as well as passing transformative experiences on to consumers and target audiences alike. 

With this in mind, let’s take a closer look at how AI is forming a close-knit relationship with augmented reality, and its implications for a number of industries:

Supercharging Augmented Reality

Despite augmented reality and artificial intelligence existing as entirely separate entities, both technologies can work extremely well together due to the extent in which they complement each other. Complex algorithms are essential for making sense of sensor data of the surrounding environment, and AI is well-placed to simplify this process and develop more accurate models at a faster pace. 

This can be seen in ClipDrop, an app that empowers users to digitize an item in the real world into a 3D object that can be used in compatible programs like PowerPoint, Photoshop, and Google Docs among others. 

This practice of 3D scanning an object can be useful in driving Web 3.0 platforms like the metaverse, and certainly pays dividends for businesses seeking to create virtual models of their items for eCommerce purposes. 

AI can also combine with augmented reality to deliver automatic design technology. Apps like SketchAR can allow users to freely draw within the app and use artificial intelligence to quickly transform their sketches into virtual structures–helping to provide AR with more real world functionality. 

Tapping into the Vast Potential of Generative AI

Generative AI is one of the world’s fastest developing technologies, and its transformative potential is yet to be fully realized across the many industries that it can improve. Models like Stable Diffusion, ChatGPT, Dall-E, and BLOOM have all helped to provide industries with a glimpse into the world of tomorrow, and the potential is set to be passed on into the world of augmented reality. 

Use cases for generative AI models combining with AR platforms are continuing to crop up. Stable Diffusion, for instance, is capable of automating the creative generation process which can build unique landscapes and scenarios in augmented reality that can be tailored to user requirements in a single prompt. 

Likewise, image to 3D, text to 3D, and photo to 3D avatar models will be enhanced further by generative AI to work in tandem with mass object creation at scale–which can pave the way for far more immersive AR and VR worlds. 

In the coming years, the combination of AI and VR will be utilized at scale in discreet ways, such as smart contact lenses, which would have the power to provide essential information and visual prompts based on user preferences. Considering the fact that 75% of adults need some form of vision correction, smart contact lenses could be revolutionary.  

Although there may still be some user concerns about the application of contact lenses, once this issue is hurdled, there may be little to stop smart contact lenses from becoming the world’s favorite technological accessory–powered by AI and AR operating in tandem.  

Revolutionizing Healthcare for the Visually Impaired

The combination of artificial intelligence and virtual reality is also set to make waves in the realm of healthcare for the visually impaired. Already Envision Glasses have utilized the technologies to deliver assistive functionalities for those suffering from varying degrees of blindness. 

Through a discreet AI eyewear accessory, Envision Glasses can use artificial intelligence to learn the daily routines of wearers to provide assistance in a more preemptive manner, scan text or objects to describe them to wearers, and help to improve daily activities. 

For instance, the eyewear can work to assist wearers when out shopping, by learning their favorite brand of orange juice, or audibly informing them of the different costs of products on supermarket shelves. 

Crucially, it’s also possible for Envision Glasses to detect important things in the wearer’s field-of-view. This can equate to the recognition of loved ones, objects, and colors–helping to make a number of daily tasks far more efficient for all users. 

Changing eCommerce for the Better

When it comes to customer experience, there are few technologies as impactful as augmented reality. 

Now, as customers learn to expect immersive experiences, AR applications are becoming more powerful ways of adding value to the journeys of everyone–despite varying audience segments or demographics. 

Artificial intelligence can help to create personalized visual experiences of products which may even incorporate its packaging. When customers view a 3D image of their package, they could interact with the product more and gain a more meaningful experience as a result. 

These enhancing measures can take a customer’s shopping habits into account, assess their likes and dislikes, and create a customized approach to the packaging experience on the fly. 

The beauty of AI and AR’s relationship is that it’s still in its fledgling stages. As generative AI grows, so too will its ability to enhance the augmented experience for users. The ramifications of this is likely to greatly improve industries like healthcare, marketing, manufacturing, employee training, and eCommerce to name a few. 

But this new frontier could deeply resonate with mainstream audiences should the technology become strong enough for consumer adoption. We may be many years away from AI and AR contact lenses, but for these two emerging technologies, the sky’s the limit.