Niantic announces major updates to its Lightship and 8th Wall developer platforms

exist augmented reality news

June 1, 2023 – NianticProvider of augmented reality (AR) technology and creator of Pokemon GO, today at AWE USA 2023 announced a series of major updates to the Lightship ARDK and 8th Wall platform for developers.

With Lightship ARDK 3.0, Unity developers can now seamlessly mix and match Niantic's AR capabilities with Unity's AR Foundation and XR subsystems. This means that for the first time since the launch of the Lightship ARDK, developers can use Niantic's capabilities with existing AR Foundation libraries.

Additionally, this new integration will make it easier for developers to override or extend XR setups so they can easily add advanced AR features to basic AR concepts. According to Niantic, this will enable developers to mix and match the AR features they want, including semantic segmentation, occlusion, meshing, mapping, and shared AR.

Lightship ARDK 3.0 also lays the groundwork for compatibility with wearable headsets. Starting with Snapdragon Spaces-powered devices later this year. At AWE, the company announced that in partnership with Qualcomm, the first 10 AR companies will use Lightship VPS with Snapdragon Spaces to bring Niantic's accurate, persistent 3D maps of the world to XR headset development.

Lighthouse Maps for Unity

In addition to ARDK 3.0, Unity's Lightship Maps will allow developers to use the same base maps that Niantic uses for its own AR games. The updated Lightship Maps SDK will allow developers to connect their existing and new games and applications to the real world, and provide quests and game mechanics that utilize the company's world map.

8th Wall Expands to XR Headphones

对于 WebAR 开发人员，8th Wall 平台的 Metaversal Deployment 一次构建随处部署现在支持从 Meta Quest Pro 和 Meta Quest 2 开始的混合现实耳机。

8th Wall's Metaversal Deployment solution is designed for the new responsive web, where immersive websites need to adapt to an ecosystem of devices that now includes flat screens and wearable headsets. According to the company, one of the key advantages of Metaversal Deployment is that it allows users to visit the same AR-enabled website on any device and have a meaningful experience, such as a hybrid of 3D on computer, AR on mobile, and passthrough Realistically capable devices. This in turn will enable developers to make the content they create available as widely as possible.

During the keynote, Niantic Senior Vice President of Engineering Brian McClendon shared Niantic's updated tools for Lightship ARDK (3.0) and 8th Wall, and talked about the company's desire for more open cross-device development opportunities to build AR experiences anywhere vision. Phone to mixed reality headset.

Advancing the use of GenAI and AR through the Niantic Innovation Lab

In March, Niantic started its first batch of developers exploring the possibilities of genAI and WebAR. These developers took to the stage at AWE's Niantic Lounge to talk about their experiences and showcase their projects. The company is also expanding its Niantic Innovation Labs program to a second cohort of developers focused on mixed reality headsets and WebAR.

Niantic noted that its vision for AR to be ubiquitous means it will continue to use Lightship and 8th Wall to build out the features and functionality of its developer tools and platforms, and further build out the company's AR world map. Additionally, Niantic said it will continue to expand cross-platform development tools to ensure developers have the best open, cross-platform tools and services to build their own AR and location-based real-world digital experiences.

For more information on Niantic and its Lightship and 8th Wall platforms, as well as other augmented reality tools for developers, visit the company's website.

For developers who want to learn more about building with Lightship, visit Lightship.dev.

For developers wishing to learn more about building with 8th Wall, visit eighth wall.

Image credit: Niantic