HYDERABAD: Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) were considered as disruptive technologies when they hit the market in 2016. However, almost two years since then, they have failed to seep further into the consumer market. Industry experts blame it on the high cost of head-mounted devices (HMD), integral to the virtual reality experience. While the HMD technology has grown leaps and bounds in Western nations, most of it is still not available in India or hit the market just before they are phased out in other parts of the world. “The biggest problem is the availability of hardware,” says Loop Reality’s co-founder Jignesh Talasila. “Latest technology in this sector is available to Indian start-ups only about 3-6 months after they are launched in Western markets. The growth of start-ups in this sector has been relatively slow in the Indian market.”
Hyderabad, as such, has not been a great incubator of start-ups working on AR/VR technologies. According to a recent study by firm Growth Enabler, only 8 per cent of all augmented reality companies functioning in India are based out of Hyderabad. Similarly, the city houses only 9 per cent of all virtual reality start-ups in the country. Also, there is barely any funding provided for this nascent technology that promises to revolutionise several sectors. Only 5 per cent of AR start-ups received any form of capital investment in the past few years, again, according to the study.
“HMD manufacturers initially, around 2014, shied away from making components for us as the sector was still emerging,” says Satya Molugu, founder of Irusu Technologies. “As a result, start-ups couldn’t scale up to international standards.” “However, hype over the technology peaked in 2016, when products started hitting the market in a big way, before falling down. Currently, it’s again gaining momentum and is becoming productive across many sectors,” Satya adds.
“It has been a few tough years before the technology could boom,” says Jay Krishnan, CEO of T-Hub, adding that the trick in hand is to evangelise AR and VR beyond gaming and entertainment.
“From now however, the technology is likely to take off at a faster rate and have better market penetration.”
‘Bonfire Community to address teething troubles’
VR/AR start-ups that have come together to form a bonfire community to ease the problems currently faced by the ecosystem operational in India. “People from across the country can be part of the free knowledge-sharing platform to use headsets and experiences to tackle the current teething problems,” said Jignesh Talasila.
FB, T-Hub launch prog for VR/AR start-ups
Facebook and T-Hub partnered to launch India Innovation Hub Accelerator Program, a move that is aimed to boost the nascent sector of Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) in India. The initiative is set to build an eco-system of start-ups that work in the AR and VR space to build solutions in various sectors. Ten start-ups would be selected as part of programme & they would get an opportunity to showcase their Proof of Concept with key executives of Facebook & T-Hub.