For Virtual, Augmented and Mixed Reality applications to work as mass market propositions, we need GUP infrastructure. One company is leveraging blockchain to do just that.

When you mention “Pokemon Go,” everyone remembers bumping into walls, people and maybe even cars, trying to catch rare AR characters from their phone, but there is a lot more to Augmented Reality than crossing the road without paying attention as you’re chasing little creatures on your screen.

There is a lot more to Augmented Reality than crossing the road without paying attention as you're chasing little creatures on your screen
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AR has enormous potential for transforming shopping experiences, both online and offline. With Augmented Reality technology, consumers will soon be routinely trying on designer outfits and seeing how they look at home, or in AR pop-up stores. It will help you to virtually decorate your home. Ikea is just one of the major retailers to embrace this tech, but to run smoothly, these applications will require a large amount of processing power.

AR has enormous potential for transforming shopping experiences, both online and offline
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This is not possible with centralized GPUs or even current cloud infrastructure. The Render Network RNDR wants to tackle this issue by creating the world’s largest distributed peer-to-peer network of Graphics Processing Units. Currently in Beta, this is a system built by Otoy on the Ethereum blockchain for the production, distribution and monetization of next-generation holographic media. The company has attracted a range of high profile investors and advisors such as Google/Alphabet Chairman Eric Schmidt, who wrote:

“I predicted that 90% of computing would eventually reside in the web based cloud…Otoy has created a remarkable technology which moves that last 10% – high-end graphics processing – entirely to the cloud. This is a disruptive and important achievement. In my view, it marks the tipping point where the web replaces the PC as the dominant computing platform of the future.”

Once live to the public, anyone with a GPU will be able to sign up and contribute their power to the network, which AR developers can then use to render their latest applications. In return, GPU-owners will earn up to $300 per month worth of Render Tokens that they can redeem for cash or spend to render their own graphics.

As RNDR’s blockchain lead, Kalin Stoyanchev explains:

“Through a peer-to-peer economy which allows anyone to contribute their GPU power to a decentralized network, RNDR achieves orders of magnitude greater scale and more competitive pricing than what centralized GPU cloud providers offer.”

By rewarding users for validated rendering work, RNDR transforms GPU cycles spent on increasingly wasteful Proof-of-Work cryptocurrency mining into more productive high-performance graphics compute. Fully immersive six-degrees-of-freedom Virtual Reality experiences and photorealistic Mixed Reality light field holograms require exponentially more GPU compute power than traditional 2D or 3D media. Through a distributed network of GPUs, RNDR creates a radically more efficient network to meet the emerging needs of the virtual and mixed reality sector – which is projected to become a 692-billion dollar industry by 2025

The key concept behind that is eArtists can contribute their GPUs to the network when they are idle, earning RNDR tokens that can then be redeemed for rendering credits when then need to scale on a deadline or when they need more GPU compute for an intensive VR, MR, 360 render.

Once live to the public, anyone with a GPU will be able to sign up and contribute their power to the network, which AR developers can then use to render their latest applications
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As the RNDR Network advances on its roadmap, the system will evolve into a decentralized marketplace for connected 3D assets. Through Ethereum smart contract and distributed ledger blockchain technology tied to an open RNDR SDK, the network will allow users to create, exchange, and distribute 3D objects, environments, and experiences produced on the platform.

eArtists contribute their GPUs to the network when they are idle, earning RNDR tokens that can then be redeemed for rendering credits
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Using the RNDR SDK, the network will enable the distribution and monetization of fully immersive, interactive mixed reality and light field media on thin client devices like AR glasses, Light Field displays, and mobile untethered VR headsets.

Render engine OctaneRender was used to create the opening title sequence of HBO’s Westworld at lightning speeds, and is now being integrated with game engine Unity as its cinematic render engine.

Using the RNDR SDK, the network will enable the distribution and monetization of fully immersive, interactive mixed reality and light field media on thin client devices like AR glasses
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The reason why these kind of developments are noteworthy and exciting for those watching the immersive tech space is because, if successfully implemented, they will reduce (and eventually eliminate) the relevance of geographical borders. If developers in Europe or Asia can easily, reliably, cheaply and flexibly access GPU from anywhere in the world, this will in turn mean an exponential growth in the development of compelling content. This, in turn, is also likely to accelerate global consumer adoption of Virtual/Augmented/Mixed reality. Quite appropriate considering how immersive tech is all about blending the digital and physical worlds and breaking down borders.

Scaling AR With Blockchain Technologyhttps://t.co/qOaCkV9R9y

— Forbes Tech (@ForbesTech) July 18, 2018

This article first appeared in Forbes

For companies looking to get into Immersive technologies such as VR/AR/MR/XR our Virtual Reality Consultancy services offer guidance and support on how best to incorporate these into your brand strategy.

Alice Bonasio is a VR and Digital Transformation Consultant and Tech Trends’ Editor in Chief. She also regularly writes for Fast Company, Ars Technica, Quartz, Wired and others. Connect with her on LinkedIn and follow @alicebonasio on Twitter.

The post Scaling Up Immersive Tech With Blockchain appeared first on Tech Trends.

Retailers are under pressure to cut down on unnecessary packaging, and Lush shows how tech can enable everyone to go plastic-free

It’s a sad fact that plastic debris in our oceans is killing marine wildlife at a staggering rate. With plastics pollution spiralling out of control, shops are under pressure to cut down on their use of unnecessary packaging. Some of the greatest culprits in generating harmful waste that often ends up in the oceans or landfill are cosmetics companies – just think about how many bottles and pots of shampoo, conditioner, moisturiser, shower gels and other grooming products the average person keeps in their bathroom and it’s easy to see how it very quickly adds up.

Plastic debris in our oceans is killing marine wildlife at a staggering rate
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Some of the greatest culprits in generating harmful waste that often ends up in the oceans or landfill are cosmetics companies
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The increased awareness of the problem among consumers means that this is a commercial opportunity for those offering environmentally friendly alternatives, however. And this is what UK handmade cosmetics company Lush has been doing for many years, making many products such as shampoo in solid form (which according to the company saves nearly 6 million plastic bottles a year) where they require neither packaging nor preservatives and are offered in what the company refers to as “naked” form (where at most buyers have the option to slip it into a small paper bag or have it wrapped in some greaseproof paper).

The increased awareness of the plastic pollution problem among consumers means that this is a commercial opportunity for those offering environmentally friendly alternatives
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Selling solid shampoos, Lush saves nearly 6 million plastic bottles a year
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Currently over 40% of Lush’s product range is completely free of packaging, but in early June the company went a step further and opened a shop in Milan, Italy which is 100% packaging free, relying on technology to keep customers informed instead. The trial is currently running exclusively on Fairphone, and customers visiting the Milan shop have access to four devices, yet Lush hopes to roll out the technology to global customers in the near future.

Over 40% of Lush's product range is completely free of packaging
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The Lush Lens app uses AI to eliminate the need for packaging
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Powered by Tensorflow from Google, the Lush Lens app uses AI and product recognition to eliminate the need for packaging. In its current beta version, the information comes up as a simple text pop-up, but there are plans to explore more possibilities around immersive technologies such as Augmented Reality to provide more information about the sourcing of ingredients, the process of making products, provenance about who actually made each batch, and suggestions on how to use it. For those familiar with the company’s rather eclectic and unusual offerings, those features would all make a lot of sense.

“With this prototype mobile app we’ve put new technologies such as AI to a good use in our mission to eliminate more packaging and further educate our customers on our unique cosmetics,” Says Adam Goswell, Technology R&D at Lush. “The company believes in the ethical use of data, so all the information Lush has is secure and used in a transparent way. We’re increasingly part of the tech community, providing open source solutions where before only monopolies existed. This is in line with a company ethos that aims to give more than it takes, act transparently, push innovation and raise industry standards.”

Lush believes in continuously challenging norms and driving best practice when it comes to business ethics
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Lush is well-known for its activism, and have – if you’ll excuse the pun – recently got into hot water for one of their more controversial campaigns which was meant to raise awareness against abusive surveillance practices carried out by certain police force branches in the UK. Having spoken to its founders on several occasions (Lush is very much a family business at its core in spite of its multimillion-pound global turnover) it is clear that politics and product are very much intertwined in their strategy.

In the past few years Jack Constantine – the son of Lush’s Founders Mark and Mo Constantine has focused on developing in-house technology under the Lush Digital umbrella, including building an in-house R&D team called Tech Warriors. When we last spoke they were enthusiastic about the possibility of using image recognition and AR functionality to allow people to find out about the products in a shop simply by pointing their smartphone camera at them.

Lush sees technology playing a role in achieving their goals
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Technology doesn’t have to be unethical. We believe tech can be built for the greater good and impact positive social change
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The company sees technology as playing a vital role in achieving their commercial-political goals, which translates not only in advocating for digital rights, embracing open-source technologies and adopting ethical sourcing of hardware, but also in their investment in new technologies such as 3D printing, artificial intelligence, image recognition, and immersive tech such as augmented reality.

“Technology doesn’t have to be unethical. We believe tech can be built for the greater good and impact positive social change,” Constantine agrees. “Just like its approach to sourcing ingredients and testing products, Lush believes in continuously challenging norms and driving best practice when it comes to business ethics. One of those key principles is the ethical use of data and technology.”

This article was originally published on Forbes

How technology can help tackle the plastics pollution crisishttps://t.co/3cqenFodS6

— Forbes Tech News (@ForbesTech) June 17, 2018

For companies looking to get into Immersive technologies such as VR/AR/MR/XR our Virtual Reality Consultancy services offer guidance and support on how best to incorporate these into your brand strategy.

Alice Bonasio is a VR and Digital Transformation Consultant and Tech Trends’ Editor in Chief. She also regularly writes for Fast Company, Ars Technica, Quartz, Wired and others. Connect with her on LinkedIn and follow @alicebonasio on Twitter.

The post Technology Paving the Way for a Naked Future appeared first on Tech Trends.