Thanks to the successful marketing of Apple’s Vision Pro, spatial computing and augmented reality (AR) are about to become even more exciting and eye-catching, transforming physical stores into next-generation storefronts.
Spatial computing, a vision long held by Silicon Valley, aims to shift interactions with technology from screens to physical spaces. Users can seamlessly interact with technology within their environment through voice commands, auditory cues, gestures and more.
First teased at Apple’s annual WWDC conference in June, the Apple Vision Pro has undoubtedly raised the status of these technologies simply by anticipating and promising that it’s already on the market.
What is Spatial Computing?
Spatial computing is a technological approach that allows digital interactions to take place seamlessly within our physical environment. Rather than being limited to screens, spatial computing integrates digital information into the world around us. This can be achieved through voice commands, gestures, auditory cues and augmented reality (AR) images. Essentially, it combines the digital and physical worlds, allowing users to interact with technology as if it were a natural part of their environment.
Apple CEO Tim Cook referred to spatial computing when he first teased the device as “the first product you look through, not at.” The device is scheduled for release in early 2024 and is part of a larger movement that is actively working to connect e-commerce and physical retail.
Diego Di Tommaso, co-founder of the AR metaverse platform Over, told WWD that he’s noticed a surge in AR’s popularity since Apple unveiled its Vision Pro. Naturally, he expects brands to explore new avenues, including physical storefronts.
Di Tomasso believes that over the next six to 12 months, brands will focus primarily on AR activations in physical stores, where AR experiences can be integrated into the store exterior or interior elements such as virtual try-ons or product enhancements to entice customers.
Digital and physical realities become one
This approach has the potential to turn any location into a ‘store’, benefiting brands with a strong online following. Sending store-like experiences to customers’ homes with avatars could translate online popularity into real-world engagement.
In September, Over will partner with Italian fashion company Pinko for an AR activation in a pop-up store in the Rinascente building in Florence. The activation includes both exterior and interior AR experiences, including interactive digital products, aimed at promoting a new sustainable product line.
However, Pinko told WWD that while it’s still early days, these “indoor and outdoor AR experiences, including interactive digital products” will help “raise awareness” toward a new sustainable product line.
Giovanna G. Casimiro, who has been head of Metaverse Fashion Week since 2022, has turned her attention to Phygicode, a consortium that aims to use these virtual technologies to “bring people back to the malls and entertainment centers.”
Having recently left Decentraland to step into the role of Phygicode’s head of production, Casimiro also shared with WWD her belief that we are about to see the transformation of “phygitality” into a more immersive experience that taps into the growing phases of spatial computing and AR. .
While realizing these scenarios will take some time, tech innovators seem more confident in anticipating the next phase of retail AR.
Editor’s note: This article was written by a staff member of nft now in collaboration with OpenAI’s GPT-4.