You’re building a career in AR. What’s the most important thing to consider?

If you are building a career in an evolving technology like AR, be ready to learn and innovate every day. Here's my advice: 1. Learn the existing AR tech and yet be keen enough to learn more as the technology matures. 2. Conduct user research to understand what they embrace and what fails to appeal to them. You will be able to craft captivating AR projects. 3. Pick no-code tools like PlugXR to ease the burden of coding day and night. It will help you put more brain into ideating projects and overseeing the creative aspect rather than living endless nights coding and maintaining tech. Practising things is the way to go about advancing in a career of all types. So, go ahead and start practising things bit by bit as you learn and advance.

Augmented reality is nothing but overlaying of virtual object in real world. The choice of the platform depends on the use case, cost etc, Smartphones come with the necessary hardware for AR, including cameras, depth sensors, and gyroscopes. And SDKs like ARKit in iOS and ARCore in Android bringing in AR experience in mobile applications . AR based phone application is generally used for 3D view of products in retail, applying of Face filters for fun like snapchat and location services. Where as Head Mounted devices like HoloLens 2, 3 , Vuzix glass and Magic leap are used for training in industries, overlay of information on equipment for trouble shooting, remote assistant etc. They are costly and used for industrial application.

First of all, you need to decide the AR pathway you want to follow. There are main 3 different directions you can follow in the AR area: Native AR: you need to learn native development languages (Objective-C/Swift for iOS, Java/Kotlin for Android) or Unity (C#). WebAR: Javascript, Three.js or Babylon and/or some web3D framework such as A-Frame or ReactThreeFiber. Platform-based AR: LensStudio (Snapchat), SparkAR (Instagram and Facebook), TikTok EffectsHouse (for TikTok). For the first 2 options, you need to be a developer with good skills in these languages. For the last one, development skills are important but you can build an AR experience without any line of code. Reflect about your skills and choose the right pathway for you!

Some of the popular AR Tools used for building application on phone and HMD are given below: a. ARKIT can be used for developing application on iphone using Xcode b. ARCore for application to run on Android devices and build using Android Studio c. Vuforia offers SDKs for platforms, including Unity, Unreal Engine, and native development tools for Android and iOS. d. Hololens applications are build in Unity using Windows Mixed Reality (WMR) toolkit e. AR Spark from Meta creating face filters in facebook.

-Essential tools for AR: ARKit (Apple) and ARCore (Google), Vuforia are the cornerstones. These frameworks integrate with game engines like Unity and Unreal Engine, allowing you to build interactive AR experiences. -AR Filters: Snap AR by Snapchat and SparkAR by Instagram are creation tools specifically designed for building AR filters. These user-friendly tools are perfect for beginners or those wanting to explore AR filters. -3D Modeling: Software like Blender or Maya equips you to create 3D models. While AI advancements might simplify this in the future, mastering these tools offers a valuable skillset. -Coding: A solid foundation in programming is highly beneficial, C# for Unity, C++ for Unreal Engine.

Augmented Reality (AR) is more than just a tool; it's a blend of art, science, and tech skills. Its value to businesses is best understood through practical experience, not by forcing it into workflows. AR enhances operations and customer engagement, offering a gateway to new possibilities. Builds applications, test with users, get feedback, and improve.

AR applications, combination of technical skills, design and understanding of the AR landscape is needed * C#, C++, Java, and Swift programming language * AR Frameworks like ARKit (iOS), ARCore (Android), or the SDKs provided by HoloLens, Magic Leap or Vuforia. * Knowledge of 3D modeling and animation. * Usage of tools like Blender, Maya, or 3ds Max * AR applications exist within the real world, so you need to understand how to design user interactions and information overlays with user's physical environment. Aspects like spatial awareness, depth perception etc is need. *  AR interfaces is minimal, it needs to designed intuitive and user-friendly visual cues integrated within the real world view