2019 was a growth year for virtual and augmented reality (VR/AR)– known collectively as extended reality (XR). The presence of these breakthrough technologies began to be felt far away from the fields of gaming and entertainment, where they first became popular.

1. The 5 Biggest Virtual And
Augmented Reality Trends
In 2020 Everyone Should
Know About

2. © 2019 Bernard Marr, Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved
Title
Text
IntroductionIntroduction
2019 was a growth year for virtual and augmented reality (VR/AR)– known collectively as
extended reality (XR). The presence of these breakthrough technologies began to be felt
far away from the fields of gaming and entertainment, where they first became popular.
The 5 Biggest Virtual And Augmented Reality
Trends In 2020 Everyone Should Know About

3. © 2019 Bernard Marr, Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved
Title
Text
IntroductionIntroduction
Virtual reality – where users wear a headset and are fully immersed in computer-
generated environments – has been developed to meet design, marketing, education,
training, and retail needs. Augmented reality – where computer images are
superimposed onto the user's view of the real world, through a screen or headset – is a
more complex challenge, as it requires the software to "see" what is in front of it. But
we're getting used to seeing it used for more than adding cartoon features to selfie
pictures or spotting Pokemon in the wild.
The 5 Biggest Virtual And Augmented Reality
Trends In 2020 Everyone Should Know About

4. © 2019 Bernard Marr, Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved
Title
Text
IntroductionIntroduction
With global spending on XR technology is forecast to increase by 78.5% next year
compared to this year, both technologies will be key trends to watch out for in 2020. We
are likely to see a whole load of exciting new hardware offering even greater immersion
and realism, as well as innovative use cases as industry gets to grips with what it can do.
The 5 Biggest Virtual And Augmented Reality
Trends In 2020 Everyone Should Know About

5. © 2019 Bernard Marr, Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved
Industrial use outpaces gaming
and entertainment
Most people's first experiences of VR and AR today are likely to be in gaming and
entertainment. That's likely to change, as research shows that the development of
enterprise XR solutions is overtaking that on consumer solutions. The 2020 XR Industry
Insight report collated by VR Intelligence states that 65% of the AR companies surveyed
said they are working on industrial applications, while just 37% working on consumer
products and software.

6. © 2019 Bernard Marr, Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved
Industrial use outpaces gaming
and entertainment
This shouldn’t be surprising – although games made the headlines in recent years thanks
to Pokemon Go and Facebook's Oculus Rift, the potential to boost productivity and safety
using XR makes it an attractive proposition for industry. VR can be used to simulate
working in dangerous environments or with expensive, easily damaged tools and
equipment, without any of the risks. AR, on the other hand, can be used to relay essential
information directly to the user about whatever happens to be in front of them – reducing
the time spent by engineers, technicians, or maintenance staff referring to manuals and
looking up information online while on the job.

7. © 2019 Bernard Marr, Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved
XR takes off in healthcare
The potential uses for these technologies in healthcare are obvious, and over 2020 we can
expect to see many of these use cases transition from trials and pilots and gradually into
general use. Virtual reality has already been adopted in therapy, where it is used to treat
patients with phobias and anxiety disorders. Combined with biosensors that monitor
physiological reactions like heart rate and perspiration, therapists can get a better
understanding of how patients react to stressful situations in a safe, virtual environment.
VR is also used to help people with autism develop social and communication skills, as
well as to diagnose patients with visual or cognitive impairments, by tracking their eye
movement.

8. © 2019 Bernard Marr, Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved
XR takes off in healthcare
The adoption of AR in healthcare is forecast to grow even more quickly – with the value of
the market increasing by 38% annually until 2025. AR can be used by surgeons – both in
the theater and in training – to alert them to risks or hazards while they are working. One
app which has been developed uses AR to guide users towards defibrillator devices,
should they need one when they are out in public. Another one helps nurses to find
patients’ veins and avoid accidentally sticking needles where they aren’t wanted. As these
innovations and others like them lead to improved patient outcomes and reduced cost of
treatment, they are likely to become increasingly widespread throughout 2020.

9. © 2019 Bernard Marr, Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved
Headsets get smaller, more mobile
and more powerful
One of the biggest limiting factors with current XR technology is the need for
encumbering headsets and display units. This is more of a problem with VR, where the
powerful processing hardware needed to generate the graphics is usually contained within
the headset. However, hardware devices have started to trend towards being "untethered"
– For example, Facebook's Oculus headset initially needed to be connected to a powerful
PC, but this year became available as the self-contained Oculus Quest version.

10. © 2019 Bernard Marr, Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved
Headsets get smaller, more mobile
and more powerful
As well as more mobile, headsets will be able to generate increasingly realistic "worlds" for
the VR user to explore as the devices are fitted with more and more powerful processors.
While early VR worlds were clearly computer-generated using low-resolution polygons,
the vistas available to us in 2020 will move closer to reality, allowing for more immersive
experiences. Possibly the most anticipated breakthrough will be Apple’s forthcoming 8K
combined VR/AR glasses that will not be tethered to a computer or phone. The consumer
tech giant is hoping that it will be the one to break XR into the mainstream with a high-
end but affordable device, in the same way it did with the iPhone.

11. © 2019 Bernard Marr, Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved
5G opens new possibilities for VR and AR
Super-fast mobile networks will further boost the potential of XR to strengthen its
presence in entertainment and make further inroads into industry during 2020.
The potential for data transfer speeds of up to 3 gigabits per second – by comparison, the
average home broadband delivers well under 100 megabits per second – means 5G
should be fast enough to stream VR and AR data from the cloud. Rather than needing to
be wired up to powerful PCs, or encumbered by on-board hardware, viewing devices will
upload tracking data to data centers where the heavy processing will be done. The
rendered images can be delivered back to the user in real-time thanks to the speed of 5G
and other advanced networks.

12. © 2019 Bernard Marr, Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved
5G opens new possibilities for VR and AR
Streaming VR has been possible in a limited way for a few years now – Facebook lets you
do it with your phone, but the experience is limited due to data transfer speeds and low
on-device processing power. Combining it with the cloud and 5G technology means
designers of VR and AR tools will be unencumbered by the need to deliver their
experiences into a low-bandwidth, low-powered environment. The result will be cheaper
headsets and viewing devices and more realistic VR simulations.

13. © 2019 Bernard Marr, Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved
More of us will learn through VR and AR
Educational experiences in VR and AR will continue to become increasingly common
throughout 2020. The immersive nature of VR means that pupils can engage with learning
in fun new ways, and AR brings new flexibility to on-the-job training.
Already students can take a trip through time to visit the ancient Romans, or through
space to experience conditions on other planets. But as the technology becomes moves
away from niche and becomes part of the fabric of everyday education, we’re likely to see
growth apart from simply providing "experiences," into solving problems with current
education systems. Distance learners could be taught in VR classrooms, meaning they
don’t miss out on the benefits of learning in a collaborative environment, while AR training
aids can ensure that access to the information needed to carry out a job is always on
hand.

14. © 2017 Bernard Marr , Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved
© 2018 Bernard Marr, Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved
Bernard Marr is an internationally best-selling author, popular keynote speaker, futurist, and a
strategic business & technology advisor to governments and companies. He helps
organisations improve their business performance, use data more intelligently, and
understand the implications of new technologies such as artificial intelligence, big data,
blockchains, and the Internet of Things.
LinkedIn has ranked Bernard as one of the world’s top 5 business influencers. He is a frequent
contributor to the World Economic Forum and writes a regular column for Forbes. Every day
Bernard actively engages his 1.5 million social media followers and shares content that
reaches millions of readers.
Visit The
Website
© 2017 Bernard Marr , Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved
© 2019 Bernard Marr, Bernard Marr & Co. All rights reserved
Bernard Marr is an internationally best-selling author, popular keynote speaker, futurist, and a
strategic business & technology advisor to governments and companies. He helps
organisations improve their business performance, use data more intelligently, and
understand the implications of new technologies such as artificial intelligence, big data,
blockchains, and the Internet of Things.
LinkedIn has ranked Bernard as one of the world’s top 5 business influencers. He is a frequent
contributor to the World Economic Forum and writes a regular column for Forbes. Every day
Bernard actively engages his 1.5 million social media followers and shares content that
reaches millions of readers.
Visit The
Website

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