XR Kaigi 2024 made me want to build more
I attended XR Kaigi in both 2022 and 2023, and I went again this year. Somehow, the days of XR Kaigi always feel cold and carry the sense that the year is ending. Personally, it has become a winter tradition, and I almost think it could be a seasonal word.
This time I attended while short on time, so rather than carefully watching sessions, I decided to focus on walking around the individual booths at the expo.
I was reminded again that device technology continues to advance year by year, and content creation is also becoming more complex. There were also several exhibits for Vision Pro content, and I could feel the times changing.
The experience I personally enjoyed was "The Wonder Lamp," created by curiosity. It went one step beyond simply being the kind of experience where real space and AR content merge in an impressive way. After playing for a while, you begin to understand the trick and move smoothly, and the trial-and-error design feels less like learning and more like leveling up. It did not feel like a simple showcase of what is technically possible.
I also feel that exhibits for glasses-free 3D displays are gradually increasing. At larger trade shows there are probably more types, but even at this venue I could see several, from small ones to fairly large ones.
XREAL, a company I have been watching for a long time, had recently released XREAL One, and there was a line. Personally, I am more interested in spatial computing products than spatial display products, so I am looking forward to seeing what happens with XREAL Light-style devices in the future.
The device that made me go "oh!" the most this time was "MiRZA," made by NTT QONOQ Devices. It is a glasses-style AR device, but its mechanism is novel: divided images are output to grid-like slits in the lens area, resulting in a 3D projected image. I think it was created through a slightly different approach from other glasses. I am looking forward to seeing how this type of glasses evolves. I also liked that the battery is built in, so there is no need to think about wiring.
At the venue, yugo-san, who organizes the visionOS study group, was also there, and we exchanged various information. I feel like I also need to explore Android XR and Meta Spatial SDK.