Just as it was announcing at the 2022 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) a slew of technologies designed to drive its presence in automotive markets, chip giant Qualcomm Technologies has also hit the accelerator pedal into the metaverse, announcing a partnership with Microsoft to expand and hasten the adoption of augmented reality (AR) in the enterprise sector.
Both companies believe in the future of the metaverse, and Qualcomm Technologies said that is embarking on work with Microsoft across several initiatives to drive the ecosystem, including developing custom AR chips to enable a new wave of power efficient, lightweight AR glasses to deliver rich and immersive experiences. It also has plans to integrate software such as Microsoft Mesh and Snapdragon Spaces XR Developer Platform.
The collaboration will tap into Qualcomm Technologies’ existing experience and expertise in spatial computing and what the firms said is its desire to create transformative experiences for the next generation of head-worn AR devices as businesses head into the metaverse.
“This collaboration reflects the next step in both companies’ shared commitment to XR and the metaverse,” said Hugo Swart, vice-president and general manager of XR at Qualcomm Technologies.
“Qualcomm Technologies’ core XR strategy has always been delivering the most cutting-edge technology, purpose-built XR chipsets and enabling the ecosystem with our software platforms and hardware referenced. We are thrilled to work with Microsoft to help expand and scale the adoption of AR hardware and software across the entire industry.”
“Our goal is to inspire and empower others to collectively work to develop the metaverse future – a future that is grounded in trust and innovation,” added Rubén Caballero, corporate vice-president of mixed reality at Microsoft.
“With services like Microsoft Mesh, we are committed to delivering the safest and most comprehensive set of capabilities to power metaverses that blend the physical and digital worlds, ultimately delivering a shared sense of presence across devices. We look forward to working with Qualcomm Technologies to help the entire ecosystem unlock the promise of the metaverse.”