Jay Latta, and Amy Peck, discuss the rise of digital twins and new headsets from HTC VIVE and PICO
Digital twins are a popular 3D data asset replicating real-world objects or spaces with a broad range of usages in enterprises across mining, architecture, and warehouse management industries-among others. Professionals can view digital twins through various end devices; however, XR hardware providers believe that devices like VR/MR headsets, AR smart glasses, and upcoming XR monitors are the best way to interact with highly detailed digital twins.
Moreover, digital twins come with an extensive range of integrated data sets, and depending on the use case, this data can provide critical information for improving workplace operations. Mixed with additional technologies like AI and simulation, digital twins can reach incredibly sophisticated use cases such as smart city management, as seen by the Orlando Economic Partnership, a group which leverages a digital twin to showcase the city for prospective investors, real estate teams, and city planners, with the large scale digital twin including location-specific information and metrics.
The global digital twin market is experiencing rapid growth at a CAGR of 41 per cent and is expected to reach a value of $240.3 billion by 2035. This significant growth is due to the emergence of new use cases for digital twins across a wide range of enterprise environments. Currently, firms like Siemens, HPE, and Amazon are all working with digital twin technologies to a certain degree.
Leading digital service and hardware providers are taking note; earlier this year, NVIDIA marked significant investments into digital twin and simulation technology for enterprises at its GTC event. CEO Jensen Huang said, “The future of heavy industries starts as a digital twin.” He also explained that NVIDIA’s digital twin and AI platforms unite to usher in the next generation of industrial workflows. For example, they help robots navigate and understand factory environments through virtual simulations.
To discuss the rise of digital twins while also speaking on new headsets from HTC VIVE and PICO, Jay Latta, Founder of The Fusionists, and Amy Peck, Founder/CEO of EndeavorXR, spoke with XR Today on the most recent Big XR News Show to explain why these topics matter to enterprises.
The Continual Rise of Digital Twins
The value of digital twins seems to be increasing, with hardware and software providers looking for ways to make digital twins more accessible so that more businesses can take advantage of this emerging technology.
However, the technology’s adoption curve, like overall XR technology, is still in its early rise, and many lessons need to be learned before the digital twin reaches its perceived heights.
Both Latta and Peck noted that their current experiences frequently see them working with enterprises on digital twin technologies.
Latta noted that digital twins are set in the business world while also noting funding for the technology is “not deep,” remarking that the XR industry is potentially prone to repeating past mistakes such as making UX/dashboard services or immersive spaces which do not solve a problem “which on the business level is not the right thing; people are trying to do stuff but do not have a plan,” Latta remarked.
Peck also explained that she is currently very focused on digital twins. Speaking on Latta’s comment, Peck explained how many enterprise UI/UX teams are taking a more human-centric approach to creating personalised XR solutions “from the very beginning.”
That human-centric approach crosses over to digital twin technologies also, Peck added:
What Jay is talking about is having a personalized experience, and I think we will get there. We’ve seen glimpses of that in adaptive learning, where we’re able to leverage some of the biometric data to understand how an individual user might move through an experience, especially in a learning environment, to understand whether or not they’re grasping the concepts and then deliver a curriculum that is very specific to how they learn.
Peck also notes the challenge of creating robust XR workplace solutions due to security concerns and the privacy of a worker’s personal information. Both XR headsets and digital twins require a lot of sensitive information, which a firm and XR service provider must handle adequately.
Peck explained:
It is challenging because, again, it collects a lot of personal data. Then, in applying that personal data, how much data do we trust with our employer? We will need to put a lot of guardrails on those data flows, such as where that data lives and who owns it. We need to be able to have our own databases, manage our own databases, and have an AI agent that can help us be the interface between what data is made available and for what purpose.
Digital Twins and Interoperable Distribution?
Thanks to ecosystem approaches—from dedicated industry service providers like Bently Systems to NVIDIA’s massive Omniverse platform—digital twins are finding a way into many workflows. This is due to existing familiarization with CAD-esc assets and digital twin’s reasonably accessible nature, as well as various additional elements such as RT3D streaming and multiple compatible end devices that help users access the technology.
However, an enterprise’s existing IT frameworks can still present hurdles for adopters to overcome. Each type of enterprise sector leverages different hardware and software to complete its goals. Moreover, not all technical elements of an IT infrastructure may be fully optimised with legacy devices and software rooted deep in a business at times.
Peck notes that while enterprise digital twins have considerable proposed value, integrating the technology into frameworks that include legacy hardware and software can be challenging.
Peck explained:
I think it’s very clear how it [digital twins] can be leveraged. I think as you’re explaining some of the value of digital twins to clients, they immediately get it. I wouldn’t say it’s easy necessarily to implement because you’re dealing with legacy systems.
Latta also expressed optimism about the ability of digital twins despite some pain points in adoption. Latta notes that digital twins, combined with robotics, advanced simulation, and AI, can help companies discover pain points in operations before they occur, such as assembly line bottlenecks.
Latta remarks:
The beauty of the digital twin is that as soon as it’s within the company, you’ve developed the right mindset. The right mindset is, for example, that I do not keep my data for myself; it’s about sharing data that brings valuable information.
Thoughts on New Hardware from PICO 4 and HTC
Recently, PICO and HTC VIVE started unveiling new XR headsets. It seems that the market will be flooded with new products by the start of 2025, with Meta Connect also bringing new products. Meanwhile, LG, Samsung, and Sony are all working towards debuting headsets.
Latta feels that Bytedance is trying to get a piece of the XR cake by launching a device focusing on user data. Speaking on HTC, Latta notes that while the firm’s work in the field is impressive and business-orientated, the vendor does not have “human centricity in scope.”
Latta said:
It’s simply to get the biggest piece of the cake, Bytedance and PICO. What are they interested in? It’s more or less the data, so it will not be human-centricity. When it comes to HTC, of course, they are a well-positioned partner. They are doing some cool stuff. They want business-oriented value towards digital twins. However, I don’t think they have the human centricity in scope.
On the other hand, Peck notes that based on her experiences working with HTC, “they do take human centricity into account.”
Peck added:
As someone who’s worked with many OEMs, including HTC, I will say they do take human centricity into account, and they are very, very, very good at producing hardware.
However, Peck notes that device vendors must address human/user-facing issues, notably “the usability of these [XR] devices.”
Peck explained:
We call them wearable devices, but they’re not really wearable, depending on your tolerance for having this thing on your head. Unfortunately, we are hamstrung by the size, weight, power consumption, and specs that these devices carry at this moment.
Peck notes that the form factor will change, mentioning Meta’s success with its lightweight Ray Ban Stories, an AR smart glasses product that is “flying off the shelves” because they are progressing towards fixing this goal.
However, the rise of less invasive XR wearables presents a new hurdle. Peck explains that everyday privacy becomes a parrel hurdle, remarking, “There are some privacy concerns about that. We will start to see a backlash, with people asking: Why suddenly am I being recorded by somebody’s glasses?”
In conclusion, Latta added, “More people should be part of the whole discussion. The data that the headsets collect should be yours. All the headsets that we currently have are not really mobile. You still have your controllers and so on.”
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