Will Post-Pandemic World See an Uptake in AR and VR?

The current crisis caused by the novel coronavirus outbreak has a deep impact on people's daily lives. From claiming millions of lives to dampening the world economy, the outbreak has hit everything. Its impact can also be seen in the technology sector. While billions of people worldwide have advised to stay home to prevent the spread of the virus, tech companies are seeing augmenting demand of disruptive technologies. This is happening because companies have allowed their employees to work from home that is likely to curtail employees' visits to their offices. To keep running businesses in this scenario, organizations are actively turning to deep tech innovations, such as virtual meeting solutions, augmented and virtual realities, and more.

Businesses these days are vigorously seeking novel solutions to make communication between employees and their interactions more efficient. This urgency amid the pandemic has brought a new sense of innovation efforts in deep technologies. In the past, many technologies that people take for granted today are outcomes of deep tech projects, and the Internet is one of them. Now, COVID-19 is providing a unique opportunity to institutionalize a blueprint for deep tech like augmented and virtual reality (AR and VR), among others.

The seismic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has now allowed people to work, shop, talk and even socializes virtually. AR, VR and mixed reality (MR) are proving their capabilities in such a scenario, enabling individuals and businesses to connect with each other in a virtual environment. This is likely to give rise to a new phenomenon wherein individuals and businesses will become more reliant on these immersive technologies.

These technologies, which feature large application areas, vast industry potential, and wide technical span, have already contributed to the fight against COVID-19. Augmented and virtual realities have the potential to maintain social distancing as they allow people to connect virtually. For business leaders, VR-based meetings are a ready-made solution for their organizations. Retail companies are catching on to consumers' preferences by serving them virtually, while virtual events and conferences are taking place with increasing frequency.

During the pandemic, as countries and cities have imposed lockdowns, such deep tech solutions are enabling work from home, distance learning, virtual fitness class, immersive entertainment, and networked social interactivity. They are also making it possible to deliver rapid medical responses. It is now expecting that VR and AR technologies in the near future can become an integral part of people's daily lives, and the outbreak of COVID-19 will play a significant role in this.

Virtual reality and mixed reality will also impact education as students worldwide cannot attend school and university due to the current lockdowns. This will surely affect their learning, but using immersive technologies, schools and colleges will ease their worries and make it possible for students to learn through experiences. Moreover, VR will support in situations where precision is required, and help people pay attention better, during lectures or meetings, for instance.