I'm building a business in the VR space -- a VR real estate aggregator that's beginning as a VR centered brokerage in NYC. We recently had our beta launch, but I've been working on it, off and on, since late 2015. So, obviously, I think VR has something special to offer. What VR does is incredible, and incredibly valuable. But it has a very limited scope.
I've been bearish about VR since the beginning. Even when it's approaching perfection, it's too socially isolating. Lots of things are as socially isolating, but few FEEL so overtly isolating. Moreover, we're accustomed to viewing things from a narrative distance -- a sort of 3rd person impersonal viewpoint. VR is intransigently stuck in 1st person. That's great for certain kinds of video games, and can be great for video once software allows for truly interactive video experiences. But it's still a deeply limited perspective. Think of all the forms of entertainment you've ever used. Now eliminate all those that aren't 1st person. That's what's left for VR.
AR will end up covering everything. We love computers, information, virtual socialization, but we also want to feel like we're engaging in those things as an extension of the world we live in on a day to day basis. AR allows an increasingly rich interpenetration of the virtual and the real. It's going to take over completely.
But I'm confident that VR will always have a place. It's like a motorcycle to AR's car. For example, VR is unquestionably the future of the home search. Being able to tour through many homes, walk neighborhoods, check out the local bars and restaurants, all without having to travel. That's invaluable. AR just won't cut it for these purposes. And VR will eventually be used extensively for 1st person gaming, a relatively small range of focused media, some art, training, and probably for home-movies (think of going back, 20 years later, to be in the room during your kid's 5th birthday!).
So I remove all the magical talk. Then look at the functionality, and I think you'll see that VR's value is tremendous, within a limited domain.
I've been bearish about VR since the beginning. Even when it's approaching perfection, it's too socially isolating. Lots of things are as socially isolating, but few FEEL so overtly isolating. Moreover, we're accustomed to viewing things from a narrative distance -- a sort of 3rd person impersonal viewpoint. VR is intransigently stuck in 1st person. That's great for certain kinds of video games, and can be great for video once software allows for truly interactive video experiences. But it's still a deeply limited perspective. Think of all the forms of entertainment you've ever used. Now eliminate all those that aren't 1st person. That's what's left for VR.
AR will end up covering everything. We love computers, information, virtual socialization, but we also want to feel like we're engaging in those things as an extension of the world we live in on a day to day basis. AR allows an increasingly rich interpenetration of the virtual and the real. It's going to take over completely.
But I'm confident that VR will always have a place. It's like a motorcycle to AR's car. For example, VR is unquestionably the future of the home search. Being able to tour through many homes, walk neighborhoods, check out the local bars and restaurants, all without having to travel. That's invaluable. AR just won't cut it for these purposes. And VR will eventually be used extensively for 1st person gaming, a relatively small range of focused media, some art, training, and probably for home-movies (think of going back, 20 years later, to be in the room during your kid's 5th birthday!).
So I remove all the magical talk. Then look at the functionality, and I think you'll see that VR's value is tremendous, within a limited domain.