Niantic AR will traverse the real 3D world

By Chris Burns/June 28, 2018 4:58 pm EST

Today Niantic demonstrated "Niantic Real World Platform" – an Augmented Reality platform that's mightily impressive. This is a little bit different than what's offered by Apple with ARKit, and it's not exactly like what Google has with ARCore. Instead, it's got Pokemon. Instead, it's more focused on the sorts of situations presented in Pokemon GO – since that's where their work began. What they've got this week is a demonstration that'll make you smile.

The video you're about to see shows Niantic's work with planar mapping and occlusion. The real trick in Augmented Reality at this point in history is getting everything in the mix. Where AR can handle putting an object on a plane, it has some trouble with processing objects that could get between the subject (the CG image) and the camera. If someone walks in front of Pikachu, Pikachu simply appears in front of that person, and the illusion is broken entirely.

But with the magic of computer vision and Niantic's latest in quick-mapping of objects in an AR space, reality seems a little bit closer... to reality. Watch Pikachu and Eevee run around the real world right now and get your mind blown into chunks:

Then there's real-world multiplayer Augmented Reality. No big deal, right? Are you insane, that sort of thing wasn't even part of the conversation until a coupe years ago, you monster! Look at the video below and see what's going on in the empty warehouse that is Niantic's filming space.

There's yet ANOTHER video in which Niantic plays a multiplayer AR game that you won't know how to handle. Just look at this nonsense!

Tools to accomplish the action above will be included in the Niantic Real World Platform SOON. Have a peek over at Niantic Developers to sign up for more information if you're a developer. Looks like Apple and Google finally have some competition!

Oh wait, Microsoft too.

ALSO: The Niantic Real World Platform expanded recently with Niantic's acquisition of two Augmented Reality-focused companies. One was Escher Reality – they focus on Niantic's "Planet Scale AR." Niantic also acquired the company Matrix Mill, a company aimed at computer vision and machine learning. We'll see a LOT MORE from Niantic in this sector in the very near future.