Audi vehicles, mainly its SUVs and sedans, will get new virtual reality (VR) features this summer.
Holoride recently made an announcement at the SXSW (South by Southwest) conference in Austin, Texas regarding its VR-based entertainment unit that is set to make an appearance in some Audi cars in the near future. It will be made available with the most current version of the MIB 3 software. This is a major announcement on part of the company and will likely be considered as a considerable development. It follows a trend of automakers turning towards different forms of immersive technology for improving the experience for consumers.
Holoride’s offering helps to combine the physical world of Audi vehicle passengers with augmented reality (AR) technology for a motion-reactive journey. The good news is, this technology will also be available to use by other automobile manufacturers.
The VR system comes with a software stack and sensor technology for observing and analysing the environment efficiently. Holoride is partnering with Sweden’s ADAS development firm Terranet for the development. The VoxelFlow system from Terranet gauges VR movement depending on the vehicle’s data parameters.
The development phase used VR asset creation software that has an open-source licence. This enables developers to develop content that they can commercialise at some point.
Currently, obtaining a headset to use the virtual reality system requires some extra cost. Other than that, there are no notable expenses for using the technology. Developers and vehicle manufacturers can utilise it to obtain revenues from vehicle owners through charging on a feature basis or by offering subscriptions. This is an indication of what is to come in terms of immersive technology developments. According to a report by Allied Market Research, the automotive VR and AR market is set to expand to go over $674 million by the year 2025.
The introduction of virtual reality entertainment in production vehicles is being interpreted as a measure for creating the content that passengers might enjoy when driverless cars make their way into the market. Holoride, a subsidiary of Audi, is optimistic about being an early innovator in the consumer-centric automotive VR solutions space. It can enhance revenue streams and even surpass figures beyond those of conventional human-driven cars.
According to Holoride, the scope of in-vehicle entertainment content development is huge as most drivers are going to be in the passenger seat once the commercial production of driverless cars starts.
Holoride, which is one of the companies taking VR development efforts to the next level, is labelling the new media category as “Elastic Content”. The possibilities are ample for passengers who don the headset, and they can be part of vivid virtual experiences. What’s remarkable is that the virtual reality experience will respond in real-time to the vehicle’s movements, including its turns and stops.
To elaborate further, the new in-vehicle technology will let passengers invest in NFTs, and also contribute to the Elrond blockchain. More updates about this development are expected in the near future.
