Can immersive technologies help struggling bricks-and-mortar retailers to create new shopping experiences and gain an edge against the likes of Amazon?

The past decades have seen a dramatic decline in traditional retail spaces as more people shift towards online shopping. So much so, that empty shops and malls have become a common sight, especially in smaller cities in the US and UK.

Malls were built for patterns of social interaction that increasingly don’t exist
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Millennials account for more than $1 trillion in U.S. consumer spending, yet they spend differently than previous generations, valuing experiences over possessions, and meaning over money. This why we’ve seen the shopping malls sector being both literally and figuratively demolished by the Millennial generation. Credit Suisse estimates that by 2022, 1 out of every 4 malls in the US could be out of business. This means an average of 8,600 closures in 2017 alone.

As Harvard Business professor Leonard Schlesinger reminds us, “malls were built for patterns of social interaction that increasingly don’t exist.” They made shopping efficient in a time of suburban sprawl. But then came the Internet, Amazon.com, mobile phones, and apps. One-click shopping with free same day delivery is pretty damned efficient.

Millennials account for over $1 trillion in U.S. consumer spending, yet they spend differently, valuing experiences over possessions
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Where retail used to be about places, therefore, the emphasis has now shifted towards experiences and non-repeatable moments, hence the enduring popularity of live concerts, sports matches, and luxury shopping.

“Places for bigger groups socializing or engaging with something are dying: bars, night clubs, shopping malls too. Groups of people enjoying social interaction are getting smaller. People are either on their way or at home and lots of social interaction happens online, in smaller groups normally – not at real spaces any more,” says Jonathan Nowak Delgado, cofounder of German-based startup HolodeckVR, which has been developing hybrid sensor technology allowing for up to 100 users to share a stadium-size arena at once.

The idea behind it is to have 10 people or more interacting socially in the same physical/virtual space, and this social/spatial context applied to VR is what makes it a particularly compelling proposition. In a 1998 article, B. Joseph Pine and James Gilmore coined the term “Experience Economy”, to
 refer to the premise that successful businesses must orchestrate memorable events for their customers, and that with memory themselves becoming the products.

Immersive technologies have the potential to bridge the gap between bricks-and-mortar and online retailing, bringing together the best of the digital and physical worlds
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Immersive technologies have the potential to do just that, by bridging the gap between bricks-and-mortar and online retailing, and bringing together the best of the digital and physical worlds. Location-based VR presents a way to amplify the shopping experience.

Where retail used to be about places, the emphasis has now shifted towards experiences and non-repeatable moments
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That scenario would see derelict or declining retail outlets transformed into attractions in their own right –shopping portals where customers can access products and experiences that they wouldn’t be able to get elsewhere. This could well prove a lifeline for local economies struggling to adapt to the new digital economy.

Human-centered design (HCD) is a methodology
 for creating new services and experiences that
 resonate meaningfully with customers, and according to Delgado, this approach is key for creating compelling content for platforms such as HolodeckVR.

Holodecks can save places and enhance moments
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When I spoke to Jeff Burton, cofounder of Electronic Arts and advisor to HolodeckVR at the Pioneers conference in Vienna earlier this year, he was enthusiastic about a range of applications for the holodeck, specially around education:

“A Holodeck classroom is the dream of any school kid wanting to fly through the solar system, roam through ancient Pyramids or walk with the dinosaurs. That’s the future of education without any doubt.”

In a commercial retail/entertainment scenario, not only would users in a small-town outlet be able to browse and buy a range of products and services comparable to the Dubai Mall, but access a range of unique and personalized experiences that would be impossible either in a traditional store setting, or on a website.

Users in a small-town outlet would be able to browse and buy a range of products and services comparable to the Dubai Mall
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Considering buying a new set of golf clubs? Take them for a few practice swings in a professional golf course of your choice. Japan, Florida or Scotland, are all only a few clicks away. Shopping for a new kitchen? Stand in the middle of it and change the layout to your heart’s content, until it looks and feels just right. Always dreamed of shopping in Rodeo Drive but afraid of getting the judgmental “Pretty Woman” treatment from snobbish sales assistants? With VR nobody would need Richard Gere to come to the rescue at all, as each experience is tailored for the customer.

“Holodecks can save places and enhance moments,” concludes Delgado. “We offer the most precise economic free-roam XR tracking tech to date. Our holodecks are disrupting how humans are interacting in virtual and real spaces on an unprecedentedly large level.”

Many have been quick to dismiss VR as a solitary medium full of isolating experiences, yet this emphasis on human connection and socialization as a catalyst for economic recovery and growth shows the varied and exciting untapped potential for immersive technology.

This article was originally published on Forbes

Will Virtual Shopping Malls Save Retailers?https://t.co/h1PUSJcqdp

— Forbes Tech (@ForbesTech) July 22, 2018

For companies looking to leverage Immersive technologies such as VR/AR/MR/XR Tech Trends offers a comprehensive range of Virtual Reality Consultancy Services.

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 Shopping Malls 2.0 – The Future is Virtual appeared first on Tech Trends.

How a speech therapy app is helping children to overcome their impediments, and have fun in the process.

Speech Blubs uses technology to trigger sound and word production in toddlers, late talkers, children with Apraxia, Autism, Down Syndrome, ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) and SPD (Sensory Processing Disorder) progressively encouraging children to generate new sounds.

One in Four children will need professional help at some stage of their speech development
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One in four children need professional help at some stage of their speech development, and that number is increasing at an average rate of 10% each year, says Mitja Mavsar, Co-founder of Slovenian startup BlubBlub.

During a “pitch the media” workshop at the Pioneers conference in Vienna last May Mavsar explained to a panel of journalists – including myself – how he himself struggled with a speech impediment all the way through his childhood, which is what inspired him to found the company in 2016:

The Founder of @weareblubblub struggled with a speech impediment himself as a child
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“Therapists simply can’t keep up with this growing number of patients. In some countries, parents and their children have to wait up to 24 months for their first appointment. That’s two years, think about what that means in terms of a child’s delayed development!”

The app is based on the video modeling learning methodology and includes an assessment tool where the parent can easily test their child to see what stage they best fit in. The Snapchat-style app uses play to boost the children’s speaking skills, but the content is curated by speech therapists so the clinical outcomes are clear.

“Inspiring a child to overcome their speech disabilities begins with teaching them how to mimic the sounds of animals, machines and other objects. Using facial recognition and augmented reality technology, the child becomes what he/she is practicing, so they can role-play and have fun.”

One interesting feature of the app is that it uses videos of real kids to demonstrate the exercises. This sort of visual feedback is crucial for children when learning, specially where speech is concerned, as they’re not only listening to sounds but observing the shapes that facial muscles, lips, teeth and tongue take while producing those sounds. It also makes them feel like they are engaging in play with another child, something that Mavsar feels is somewhat missing in a world where children spend so much time interacting with their devices. It’s a sort of “if you can’t beat them, join them” approach.

Speech Blubs uses technology to trigger sound and word production and progressively encouraging children to generate new sounds
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One interesting feature of the @weareblubblub app is that it uses videos of real kids to demonstrate the exercises
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In order to smile, chew, swallow and speak properly, children need to develop all sorts of motor skills using their tongue, lips and cheeks, so the app has a “mouth gym” where practice exercises are designed to increase oral muscle awareness, coordination, strength, range of motion and endurance.

They operate a subscription model where parents pay a fee to access content, but therapists can use the Speech Blubs app in clinics and schools for free. Currently 10,000+ therapists take advantage of that, while over 100,000 individual users have been helped by their services.

Currently over 10,000 therapists are using the app
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BlubBlub’s success isn’t an anomaly though, as technology often takes on enabling or therapeutic roles in all manner of contexts. Virtual platforms such as Second Life have proven to be fantastic tools for enabling users with all manner of disabilities to interact with others, and technologies like Virtual Reality have been successfully used in the treatment of phobias.

BlubBlub’s success isn't an anomaly though, as technology often takes on enabling or therapeutic roles in all manner of contexts
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There is a growing focus amongst tech giants such as Microsoft of the need to make product design more inclusive
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There is also a growing focus amongst tech giants such as Microsoft of the need to make product design more inclusive. There is, after all, a market of around a billion people who are currently marginalized from this process, and from a business perspective (even if one is not necessarily bothered about the moral implications) that just doesn’t make any sense. And as Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella himself has pointed out, by making products which are more accessible, all users stand to benefit, not just those with a particular impediment or disability.

This article originally appeared on the Forbes website

How Tech As Therapy Can Be Big Businesshttps://t.co/8V8B8PtOuQ

— Forbes Tech News (@ForbesTech) June 22, 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 Therapeutic Tech Helping Kids Find Their Voice appeared first on Tech Trends.

SpaceVR will use Virtual Space Tourism to connect us to our planet and to each other, expanding the limits of human consciousness.

“Let’s launch cool s**t into space!”

As far as elevator pitches go, that’s not a bad start, but as I talked to Ryan Holmes about plans for his company’s upcoming launch later this year, things got even curiouser.

From out there on the Moon, international politics look so petty. You want to grab a politician by the scruff of the neck and drag him a quarter of a million miles out and say, ‘Look at that, you son of a bitch.' - Edgar Mitchel
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Located in the heart of San Francisco’s emerging nano-satellite industry, SpaceVR developed the world’s first virtual reality camera satellite, betting on creating a market for cinematic, live, virtual space tourism. When I met him at the Pioneers tech conference in Vienna, Austria, in May, Holmes was rocking the quasi-guru look – dressed in loose-fitting robes adorned with large fresh red roses – and he talked passionately about using virtual reality to expand people’s consciousness.

“SpaceVR aims to give everyone the opportunity to experience the truly infinite, boundless Universe through virtual reality,” he explained in quietly earnest tones, which were somewhat disconcerting to a cynical old tech journalist.

His inspiration, he told me, was a well-documented phenomenon called the Overview Effect, which is that first moment an astronaut realizes their place in an infinite universe, something they only achieve through direct observation. This in turn leads to reprioritization of protecting the earth and working together on a global scale.

It’s what prompted Neil Armstrong to say space travel made him feel “very, very small,” and is best summed up by a colorful quote from Apollo 14 astronaut Edgar Mitchel, who in a 1984 interview for People Magazine said: “From out there on the Moon, international politics look so petty. You want to grab a politician by the scruff of the neck and drag him a quarter of a million miles out and say, ‘Look at that, you son of a bitch.’”

SpaceVR initially launched as a Kickstarter in 2015 with a plan to send a 12-camera rig to the ISS that would be capable of shooting 3D, 360-degree footage. It felt well short of its ambitious $500,000 goal, although a subsequent scaled-back campaign managed to raise $100,000. It was a $1.25 million investment from China’s Shanda Group, however, that turned the project from a pipe dream to what now looks more of a viable proposition.

Located in the heart of San Francisco’s emerging nano-satellite industry, SpaceVR developed the world’s first virtual reality camera satellite
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Although Holmes wistfully admits that some of it was spent on what he describes as “his stupid mistakes,” there was enough left of their seed round investment to develop onboard software for the satellite, begin development of its content delivery and distribution channels, and invest in a worldwide satellite dish ground station communication network.

SpaceVR promises not only a whole different take on stargazing, but a truly transformative, almost spiritual experience
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This all promises not only a whole different take on stargazing, but a truly transformative, almost spiritual experience, and this most Silicon Valley of startups is now gearing up to its first pilot at –where else? – Burning Man.

The experience will last 11 minutes and 11 seconds, and will be housed on the 11^th floor of the Tree of Life art installation, currently being crowdfunded on Indiegogo.

The idea, as far as I could tell, involves people experiencing the VR footage from space while literally being immersed in flotation tanks to simulate the zero gravity feeling of actually being in orbit. They even refer to these units as “Galactic Spaceships” to be housed within Galactic Temples which Holmes plans to eventually place in all 197 countries of the world.

“People will enter the Galactic Spaceship and lay on a specially designed sound bed (8 speakers) where sound will play through their body as they experience a transcendent CGI based VR Overview Effect experience. The Tree and Galactic Spaceship are both built to house ambisonic sound experiences where one is completely surrounded by 3D audio,” explains Holmes.

It’s the sort of plot that would not be out of place in HBO’s Silicon Valley spoof, and it’s precisely the reason why so many of my colleagues in the tech industry can’t bear to watch the show. It’s just too close to home.

It's the sort of plot that would fit right into @SiliconHBO
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But while doubters may roll their eyes and dismiss the idea, there is compelling evidence and research suggesting that VR experiences can be extremely effective in engendering greater empathy towards our fellow humans and the environment. Jeremy Bailenson, a professor at Stanford University’s Virtual Human Interaction Lab has run many experiences which demonstrate that even short experiences in relatively low resolution headsets can produce a change in behavior and predisposition in people who take part, so it is not that much of a stretch to say that people might get hooked onto these meditative experiences and end up caring a lot more about the planet in the process. Neither would be a bad thing, so could warrant a pass on the new-age stuff.

In 2016 SpaceVR partnered with NanoRacks LLC – a company that runs the commercial laboratory aboard the international space station and has experience launching hundreds of payloads into space, counting the European, German and US space agencies – to overcome the remaining logistical hurdles and deploy the satellite.

Users will get a taste of the SpaceVR experience @burningman this year
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The company will take the footage from the cameras and stitch it all into a 360-degree sphere — with live-streaming being the ultimate goal
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The satellite – aptly called the Overview — was due to launch inside one of SpaceX’s Dragon cargo capsule, but was postponed due to some parts not being delivered to spec. SpaceVR is now working with their partners to rectify this and are a planning the launch for November 2018. Yet although the delay of the satellite launch means that the live SpaceVR images won’t be available to the Burning Man crowd, Holmes assures me the experience will be very similar.

When it does go into orbit, the Overview satellite will use 4K sensors to capture high resolution 360-degree video of earth from space and the content will be viewable on any virtual reality device, ranging from smartphones to Oculus Rift to extreme resolution devices such as the StarVR.

The video below demonstrates the quality at which the satellite will be able to eventually record the images from space:

The company will take the footage from the cameras and stitch it all into a 360-degree sphere — with live-streaming being the ultimate goal. The idea is to sell subscriptions to that footage, which will “immerse someone in space as if they were floating outside,” according to Holmes.

This article was originally published on Forbes

The Startup That Wants to Use Virtual Reality To Make The World A Better Place (From Space)https://t.co/hV4Bnt7zdj

— Forbes Tech News (@ForbesTech) June 6, 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 Making the World a Better Place with Virtual Reality appeared first on Tech Trends.

The next frontier for disruption? Public services powered by AI and Blockchain technology.

This week Europe’s first GovTech Pioneers event was hosted in Vienna at the Palais Wertheim. Ahead of the conference which begins today. Bringing together leading politicians, startups, corporations, VCs and Public CIOs, the event aimed to introduce start-up driven innovation in the public sector.

GovTech Pioneers brought together leading politicians, startups, corporations, VCs and Public CIOs to introduce start-up driven innovation in the public sector
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Attendees had the chance to meet the innovators behind a $400bn market and learn more about the latest trends in Citizen Collaboration, Blockchain and Security. Speakers included IDEO Portfolio Director Peter Jackson, whose talk covered how design can push governments forward, and Stonly Baptiste of Urban-X, who joined a discussion about accelerating GovTech startups.

If there is a service out there that is better, people will go for it. And if your government isn’t willing to change, then for you winter is coming
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With data and privacy a hot topic, it isn’t surprising to see that the winner emerging from the event’s start-up competition was Fleksy – which offers a secure keyboard that it licences to governments to protect their internal mobile communications. The Barcelona-based company ultimately saw off competition from over 350 startups, hailing from 65 countries and four continents, which applied for GovTech.Pioneers. Of the 100 selected to attend, who travelled to Vienna from four different continents, 24 were selected to pitch in four different tracks. These were Citizen Collaboration, Blockchain, Public Safety & Security, and an Overall Govtech Solutions track.

Attendees had the chance to meet the innovators behind a $400bn market and learn more about the latest trends in Citizen Collaboration
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There will be a terrestrial part of government and a virtual part. A country like Estonia has recognized there is this part that does not need to be tied to a land mass
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The audience also heard from some individuals charged with leading the digital revolution into action at both national and European level. Among them were Margarete Schramböck, the Austrian Federal Minister for Digital & Economic Affairs, and Peteris Zilgalvis, Head of Unit, Startups & Innovation, Digital Single Market, DG CONNECT at the European Commission.

Former Estonian Government CIO Taavi Kotka explained how his nation empowered individuals to take control over their data while also linking disparate systems which were previously in silos.

“There will be a terrestrial part of government and a virtual part. A country like Estonia has recognized there is this part that does not need to be tied to a land mass – and other countries are starting to recognize that. Governments are realizing that they are going to start to compete with each other like businesses.”

Sharing your data does not mean giving up your privacy. It actually gives you more control if done right. @taavikotka talks about the Estonian case study at #GovTechPioneers pic.twitter.com/FefzVIvOxl

— Alice Bonasio (@alicebonasio) May 23, 2018

“Government services should be seamless,” he said, using the example of child support payments being made to a mother automatically as soon as a child is born. “We have all the facts; we just need to connect them,” Kotka added.

Another speaker providing an interesting perspective was Carrie Bishop, who oversees the digital strategy for the City of San Francisco and contrasted the different approaches between the US and UK in designing governmental structures.

“All over the UK we’ve seen a 30% cut in funding for public services, and you only deal with that by automating,” she said, revealing that at least some parts of Europe are well ahead of the USA when it comes to government technology. “Such economic pressures don’t yet exist in San Francisco, so we’ve only just begun our journey there.”

We have all the facts; we just need to connect them. Government services should be seamless
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One of the most t thought-provoking and popular sessions of the event was delivered by Tim Draper who was an early investor in companies such as Skype, Baidu, Twitter and Tesla. Wearing an eye-catching Bitcoin tie, the legendary tech VC explained how blockchain disruption extends well beyond cryptocurrencies.

Decentralized systems could take over government functions such as currency regulation systems and healthcare
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In future, according to his vision, decentralized systems will take over government functions such as currency regulation systems and healthcare. That could be a good thing too, allowing our elected representatives and civil servants to focus on other aspects of government such as providing infrastructure, security, or waste management.

“By combining Bitcoin, Blockchain with Smart Contracts and Artificial Intelligence, we could create the perfect bureaucracy,” he said. Things like insurance, health care, and the real estate industry all offer a terribly poor service at a high cost, he explained during his keynote. But in a world where technology is breaking down geographical barriers, those governments will be forced to compete for citizens by providing better-value services. Which is why Draper himself has chosen to become a virtual citizen of Estonia.

Kotka echoed Draper’s sentiment that the arrival of virtual services means governments are now entering a competitive era.

“If there is a service out there that is better, people will go for it. And if your government isn’t willing to change, then for you winter is coming. And for a country like Estonia, that will be a perfect storm.”

“As a venture Capitalist I’m always looking for places where they’re providing the worst service at the highest cost” those are the sectors ripe for technological disruption #GovTechPioneers pic.twitter.com/ztfIOqsdLb

— Alice Bonasio (@alicebonasio) May 23, 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 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 The Future of Government is Virtual appeared first on Tech Trends.