1 00:00:04,400 --> 00:00:07,800 Speaker 1: Welcome to text Stuff, a production from I Heart Radio. 2 00:00:12,200 --> 00:00:14,960 Speaker 1: Hey there, and welcome to tech Stuff. I'm your host, 3 00:00:15,200 --> 00:00:18,600 Speaker 1: Jonathan Strickland. I'm an executive producer with I Heart Radio 4 00:00:18,720 --> 00:00:22,200 Speaker 1: and I love all things tech and Back in the 5 00:00:22,320 --> 00:00:26,720 Speaker 1: nineties nineties, when Nirvana was teaching us how to have 6 00:00:26,880 --> 00:00:32,320 Speaker 1: all the fields, virtual reality appeared ready to transform the world. 7 00:00:32,640 --> 00:00:36,000 Speaker 1: The hype for the young technology was reaching peak levels. 8 00:00:36,320 --> 00:00:40,240 Speaker 1: Hollywood made movies that incorporated the idea, suggesting that we 9 00:00:40,280 --> 00:00:43,599 Speaker 1: would soon be able to jump into computer generated worlds 10 00:00:43,600 --> 00:00:47,520 Speaker 1: and do everything from navigate file systems in three dimensions 11 00:00:48,120 --> 00:00:52,440 Speaker 1: exciting I know, to taking off like Superman. But as 12 00:00:52,479 --> 00:00:55,880 Speaker 1: people got a chance to actually try out virtual reality 13 00:00:55,920 --> 00:00:59,760 Speaker 1: set ups in the nineteen nineties, they became disillusioned. The 14 00:00:59,800 --> 00:01:02,600 Speaker 1: tech chnology just couldn't live up to the hype. You 15 00:01:02,680 --> 00:01:06,760 Speaker 1: could get an immersive experience, but the graphics were primitive. 16 00:01:07,000 --> 00:01:09,280 Speaker 1: The headsets were typically so heavy they had to be 17 00:01:09,319 --> 00:01:13,759 Speaker 1: suspended from the ceiling with cables. Your movement was limited, 18 00:01:14,040 --> 00:01:16,560 Speaker 1: and system latency caused a lot of folks to get 19 00:01:16,600 --> 00:01:21,120 Speaker 1: motion sickness while trying one out. Interest in VR plummeted, 20 00:01:21,400 --> 00:01:25,199 Speaker 1: and the industry found itself the proverbial redheaded step child 21 00:01:25,360 --> 00:01:28,360 Speaker 1: of the tech world as well as the investment world. 22 00:01:28,840 --> 00:01:31,679 Speaker 1: A lot of people continued to work on VR hardware 23 00:01:31,720 --> 00:01:34,959 Speaker 1: and software, but it was much more challenging to get funding. 24 00:01:35,240 --> 00:01:38,560 Speaker 1: Progress was slow. It typically meant that you were appropriating 25 00:01:38,640 --> 00:01:42,080 Speaker 1: stuff from other industries like the video game world or 26 00:01:42,200 --> 00:01:46,520 Speaker 1: smartphones in order to get your stuff done. Thirty years later, 27 00:01:46,680 --> 00:01:51,840 Speaker 1: we're seeing something similar with dedicated augmented reality headsets. Magic 28 00:01:51,920 --> 00:01:54,800 Speaker 1: Leap a company that at one point was so exciting 29 00:01:55,120 --> 00:02:00,960 Speaker 1: that it raised around three billion dollars that's billion with 30 00:02:01,240 --> 00:02:04,640 Speaker 1: a B. Much of that money, by the way, was 31 00:02:04,760 --> 00:02:08,320 Speaker 1: raised years before the company had anything significant to show off. 32 00:02:08,919 --> 00:02:11,120 Speaker 1: It seemed to be on a pretty similar path as 33 00:02:11,200 --> 00:02:14,360 Speaker 1: VR back in the nineties, and sure enough now in 34 00:02:14,400 --> 00:02:18,079 Speaker 1: twenty twenty, the company scrambled to secure a three fifty 35 00:02:18,160 --> 00:02:22,920 Speaker 1: million dollar lifeline investment after laying off about one thousand 36 00:02:22,919 --> 00:02:27,200 Speaker 1: workers plus the founder of the company has stepped down. 37 00:02:27,560 --> 00:02:31,160 Speaker 1: Today we're going to explore Magic Leaps story, and while 38 00:02:31,720 --> 00:02:34,600 Speaker 1: like a Leap, there's a rise and a fall, this 39 00:02:34,680 --> 00:02:38,639 Speaker 1: story is not yet over. Magic Leap could potentially recover, 40 00:02:39,040 --> 00:02:41,960 Speaker 1: or they might fade into obscurity, or it may just 41 00:02:42,080 --> 00:02:45,520 Speaker 1: become a company lesser than what it was intended to be. 42 00:02:46,120 --> 00:02:48,520 Speaker 1: But before we get into the history of the company, 43 00:02:48,560 --> 00:02:51,320 Speaker 1: it is good for us to define terms like virtual 44 00:02:51,440 --> 00:02:55,000 Speaker 1: reality and augmented reality, both of which fall into a 45 00:02:55,080 --> 00:03:00,000 Speaker 1: spectrum of technologies that a lot of folks call mixed reality. 46 00:02:59,840 --> 00:03:01,960 Speaker 1: And it all has to do with a combination of 47 00:03:02,120 --> 00:03:07,480 Speaker 1: real world experiences and computer generated experiences and meshing them 48 00:03:07,520 --> 00:03:10,919 Speaker 1: together in some way. So if you think of mixed 49 00:03:10,960 --> 00:03:14,920 Speaker 1: reality as a spectrum, on one extreme end, you've got 50 00:03:15,000 --> 00:03:19,600 Speaker 1: pure virtual reality. In VR, computer is providing the sites 51 00:03:19,960 --> 00:03:23,960 Speaker 1: and sounds, and theoretically it could provide other sensations as well, 52 00:03:24,160 --> 00:03:29,239 Speaker 1: including touch through haptic feedback peripherals, or scent through various 53 00:03:29,320 --> 00:03:33,560 Speaker 1: perfumes or oils and dispensers, though not many VR systems 54 00:03:33,560 --> 00:03:36,920 Speaker 1: go as far as replicating smells, and very few, as 55 00:03:36,920 --> 00:03:39,840 Speaker 1: far as I know, replicate taste. But the idea is 56 00:03:39,840 --> 00:03:44,640 Speaker 1: that the computer generated sensory input is substituting for what 57 00:03:44,720 --> 00:03:47,800 Speaker 1: we would see in our real world. So instead of 58 00:03:47,800 --> 00:03:51,520 Speaker 1: seeing a boring office or a retail space in a 59 00:03:51,600 --> 00:03:54,560 Speaker 1: shopping mall, as was the case when I first experienced 60 00:03:54,600 --> 00:03:58,200 Speaker 1: VR back in the ES, we would be transported into 61 00:03:58,280 --> 00:04:03,160 Speaker 1: say a rainforest, or a pirate ship, or a fantasy realm, or, 62 00:04:03,440 --> 00:04:06,800 Speaker 1: as was my case, a bunch of vector graphics of 63 00:04:07,240 --> 00:04:11,680 Speaker 1: really blocky tero dactyls flying around. Using a control system, 64 00:04:11,880 --> 00:04:15,360 Speaker 1: we can navigate these virtual environments and we can interact 65 00:04:15,480 --> 00:04:19,600 Speaker 1: with them. A true VR experience should be both interactive 66 00:04:19,920 --> 00:04:23,400 Speaker 1: and immersive, and not all VR is created equal. Some 67 00:04:23,520 --> 00:04:27,000 Speaker 1: VR experiences are fairly light touch, with only a bit 68 00:04:27,040 --> 00:04:31,360 Speaker 1: of interactivity and primitive graphics. Typically, the hardware for VR 69 00:04:31,440 --> 00:04:35,000 Speaker 1: includes a head mounted display so that your vision focuses 70 00:04:35,080 --> 00:04:38,280 Speaker 1: only on the world that's created by the computer, and 71 00:04:38,360 --> 00:04:41,840 Speaker 1: some headphones, plus some sort of control system. There may 72 00:04:41,880 --> 00:04:45,280 Speaker 1: also be external cameras to help track your motion and 73 00:04:45,360 --> 00:04:48,839 Speaker 1: translate that into what you experience in the virtual environment, 74 00:04:48,920 --> 00:04:51,760 Speaker 1: giving you a little more nuance to your actions. But 75 00:04:51,839 --> 00:04:54,280 Speaker 1: in the end, the thing to remember is that the 76 00:04:54,320 --> 00:04:57,960 Speaker 1: stuff you are experiencing through your senses is in large 77 00:04:58,000 --> 00:05:03,119 Speaker 1: part computer generated. Augmented reality is closer to the other 78 00:05:03,360 --> 00:05:07,200 Speaker 1: end of the spectrum of mixed reality. With a R, 79 00:05:07,760 --> 00:05:10,599 Speaker 1: you have a view of the real world through some 80 00:05:10,640 --> 00:05:13,600 Speaker 1: sort of display. It could be a head mounted display 81 00:05:13,680 --> 00:05:15,920 Speaker 1: like VR, or it could be something as simple as 82 00:05:15,960 --> 00:05:19,680 Speaker 1: a smartphone or handheld game system. But whatever it is, 83 00:05:19,880 --> 00:05:22,719 Speaker 1: it has to be able to overlay digital information on 84 00:05:22,839 --> 00:05:26,479 Speaker 1: top of your view of the real world. So let's 85 00:05:26,520 --> 00:05:29,839 Speaker 1: imagine a pair of glasses that can display information on 86 00:05:29,920 --> 00:05:32,640 Speaker 1: the inside of the lenses so that you can see it. 87 00:05:33,000 --> 00:05:36,040 Speaker 1: The lenses themselves are transparent, so you are looking at 88 00:05:36,040 --> 00:05:38,240 Speaker 1: the world as if you were just wearing a normal 89 00:05:38,279 --> 00:05:40,960 Speaker 1: pair of glasses. And maybe you put on a pair 90 00:05:41,040 --> 00:05:44,400 Speaker 1: while you're walking in an unfamiliar city, and the glasses 91 00:05:44,400 --> 00:05:47,960 Speaker 1: start to display information on the inside of those lenses 92 00:05:48,360 --> 00:05:51,520 Speaker 1: about the area around you. Maybe they provide you directions 93 00:05:51,640 --> 00:05:55,240 Speaker 1: so you can get to a specific destination. With augmented reality, 94 00:05:55,560 --> 00:05:58,760 Speaker 1: the whole idea is that a computer system isn't replacing 95 00:05:58,960 --> 00:06:02,760 Speaker 1: your real world ex experience, but instead it's enhancing or 96 00:06:02,920 --> 00:06:07,680 Speaker 1: augmenting your experience in the real world. Between true VR 97 00:06:07,839 --> 00:06:11,920 Speaker 1: and a R is a whole band of mixed reality technologies. 98 00:06:12,360 --> 00:06:15,960 Speaker 1: Some are headsets allow wearers to have experiences in which 99 00:06:16,040 --> 00:06:20,640 Speaker 1: the display they use inserts visual elements into their physical space. 100 00:06:21,080 --> 00:06:24,240 Speaker 1: So you could wear a mixed reality headset, look at 101 00:06:24,240 --> 00:06:26,720 Speaker 1: the room around you and watch as a video game 102 00:06:26,800 --> 00:06:30,440 Speaker 1: character like I don't know, like Mario or Master chief 103 00:06:30,520 --> 00:06:34,320 Speaker 1: or crash Bandicoot just walks right into the room. A 104 00:06:34,400 --> 00:06:38,560 Speaker 1: tabletop might become a virtual battleground for a little toy armies. 105 00:06:38,839 --> 00:06:41,640 Speaker 1: A wall could become a window into a fantasy realm. 106 00:06:41,680 --> 00:06:46,520 Speaker 1: The possibilities are limited only by computer processors, the software, 107 00:06:46,640 --> 00:06:50,880 Speaker 1: and the imagination of developers. VR and a R share 108 00:06:51,000 --> 00:06:53,920 Speaker 1: a lot of history, and a lot of tech engineers 109 00:06:53,920 --> 00:06:57,200 Speaker 1: have repurposed technology intended for one and used it for 110 00:06:57,240 --> 00:06:59,799 Speaker 1: the other. And I think it's safe to say that most, 111 00:07:00,080 --> 00:07:04,000 Speaker 1: but not all VR implementations have a head mounted display 112 00:07:04,040 --> 00:07:06,960 Speaker 1: that can track where someone is looking and then adjust 113 00:07:07,000 --> 00:07:09,720 Speaker 1: the point of view in the virtual environment accordingly. So 114 00:07:09,760 --> 00:07:13,120 Speaker 1: that way, if you turn your head left, your virtual 115 00:07:13,160 --> 00:07:16,680 Speaker 1: point of view also turns left. And that's incredibly important 116 00:07:16,720 --> 00:07:20,040 Speaker 1: if you want an immersive experience. Just imagine how disorienting 117 00:07:20,040 --> 00:07:22,240 Speaker 1: it would be if you put on a headset and 118 00:07:22,320 --> 00:07:24,640 Speaker 1: you're looking at a video game world and you turn 119 00:07:24,720 --> 00:07:27,120 Speaker 1: your head to look up at the sky, but your 120 00:07:27,200 --> 00:07:30,520 Speaker 1: view looks down at your feet. That would really throw 121 00:07:30,560 --> 00:07:34,760 Speaker 1: you off. Likewise, not all a OUR implementations have a 122 00:07:34,880 --> 00:07:38,920 Speaker 1: head mounted display, but many do. These displays have to 123 00:07:38,920 --> 00:07:41,440 Speaker 1: do something a little different from VR. They have to 124 00:07:41,480 --> 00:07:44,640 Speaker 1: present a view of the real world. Now, they either 125 00:07:44,760 --> 00:07:48,520 Speaker 1: do that through a transparent view screen or through a 126 00:07:48,640 --> 00:07:52,320 Speaker 1: video screen that's got a video feed of the real world. 127 00:07:52,400 --> 00:07:54,320 Speaker 1: So in other words, that screen has to be paired 128 00:07:54,360 --> 00:07:58,080 Speaker 1: with a camera that's feeding a live image to the screen. 129 00:07:58,600 --> 00:08:01,560 Speaker 1: To do that, thee has to be able to analyze 130 00:08:01,920 --> 00:08:06,520 Speaker 1: what someone is looking at in order to overlay relevant information. Right, 131 00:08:06,640 --> 00:08:09,440 Speaker 1: it doesn't do any good if you just get random information. 132 00:08:09,760 --> 00:08:11,520 Speaker 1: I mean, if you were to wear an a R 133 00:08:11,640 --> 00:08:14,920 Speaker 1: headset and you're walking through Paris, but then the headset 134 00:08:14,960 --> 00:08:17,320 Speaker 1: starts to giving you directions as if you're on a 135 00:08:17,400 --> 00:08:21,960 Speaker 1: walk in Moscow, that would be less than useless. So 136 00:08:22,200 --> 00:08:26,240 Speaker 1: the tech needs sophisticated code to interpret information. That could 137 00:08:26,280 --> 00:08:32,280 Speaker 1: include things like image recognition, compass directions, GPS, coordinates, your orientation, 138 00:08:32,400 --> 00:08:36,560 Speaker 1: and more. All of that is super complicated, and it 139 00:08:36,559 --> 00:08:39,240 Speaker 1: goes a bit beyond our story, but it's a good 140 00:08:39,280 --> 00:08:42,680 Speaker 1: thing to remember that to pull off either convincing VR 141 00:08:42,880 --> 00:08:45,960 Speaker 1: or a really useful a R experience, you need a 142 00:08:46,000 --> 00:08:49,559 Speaker 1: lot of sophisticated code, and typically you need a fairly 143 00:08:49,640 --> 00:08:53,559 Speaker 1: powerful computer system running in the background, whether it's on 144 00:08:53,640 --> 00:08:57,200 Speaker 1: board in some sort of device you're wearing or tethered 145 00:08:57,440 --> 00:09:01,720 Speaker 1: to a smartphone or tethered to a PC. VR and 146 00:09:01,800 --> 00:09:05,360 Speaker 1: a R are not interchangeable, but they are close cousins. 147 00:09:05,600 --> 00:09:09,120 Speaker 1: Augmented reality is probably the more productive member of the family. 148 00:09:09,760 --> 00:09:13,560 Speaker 1: Many but not all, of virtual realities applications relate to 149 00:09:13,880 --> 00:09:17,760 Speaker 1: entertainment in some way, and many but not all of 150 00:09:17,800 --> 00:09:22,319 Speaker 1: augmented realities applications relate to productivity. Okay, that's a good 151 00:09:22,440 --> 00:09:26,680 Speaker 1: overview of two of the big subcategories of mixed reality. 152 00:09:26,720 --> 00:09:29,360 Speaker 1: Though I should point out there are many other aspects 153 00:09:29,360 --> 00:09:32,120 Speaker 1: of mixed reality that I've not covered, but that could 154 00:09:32,120 --> 00:09:35,520 Speaker 1: be its own episode. Now let's move on to Magic Leap. 155 00:09:35,920 --> 00:09:39,880 Speaker 1: The company's founder is Ronnie Abovitz. Abovitz was born in Ohio. 156 00:09:40,240 --> 00:09:42,400 Speaker 1: His family moved to Florida when he was a kid, 157 00:09:42,440 --> 00:09:45,240 Speaker 1: and he went to the University of Miami, where he 158 00:09:45,400 --> 00:09:49,520 Speaker 1: ultimately earned a master's degree in biomedical engineering. So I 159 00:09:49,559 --> 00:09:53,240 Speaker 1: think it's safe to say he is pretty darn sharp. 160 00:09:53,760 --> 00:09:57,480 Speaker 1: He earned his master's in nine and the following year 161 00:09:57,520 --> 00:10:01,280 Speaker 1: he would co found his first company, e CAT that's 162 00:10:01,320 --> 00:10:05,440 Speaker 1: a Z hyphen k a t Z. CAT was a 163 00:10:05,480 --> 00:10:08,839 Speaker 1: medical technology company. The focus of the company was to 164 00:10:08,880 --> 00:10:14,280 Speaker 1: develop technologies to assist in minimally invasive surgical procedures, which 165 00:10:14,559 --> 00:10:18,600 Speaker 1: have numerous benefits including a reduced risk of infection and 166 00:10:18,720 --> 00:10:23,360 Speaker 1: faster recovery times. The company developed robotic tools that surgeons 167 00:10:23,360 --> 00:10:28,400 Speaker 1: could control to make precise, delicate incisions. The control systems 168 00:10:28,400 --> 00:10:32,040 Speaker 1: could translate surgeon commands into steady and small motions with 169 00:10:32,080 --> 00:10:35,760 Speaker 1: the robotic arm removing jitter and other muscular movements that 170 00:10:35,800 --> 00:10:38,600 Speaker 1: would make these kind of procedures difficult or impossible with 171 00:10:38,640 --> 00:10:41,880 Speaker 1: that level of precision. In two thousand four, the company 172 00:10:41,960 --> 00:10:44,960 Speaker 1: chose to spin off its robotics division into a new 173 00:10:45,120 --> 00:10:49,679 Speaker 1: entity called Mako Surgical Corporation. And the logo for Mako 174 00:10:49,800 --> 00:10:52,920 Speaker 1: was super cool too, reminiscent of a shark's fin makos 175 00:10:52,960 --> 00:10:56,079 Speaker 1: a type of shark, and as a side note, the 176 00:10:56,160 --> 00:11:00,240 Speaker 1: Magic Leap logo is reminiscent of a leaping whale, So 177 00:11:00,360 --> 00:11:03,680 Speaker 1: there's a very marine theme going with Abovitz's work. So 178 00:11:03,800 --> 00:11:06,760 Speaker 1: Abavits served not just as a co founder of Mako, 179 00:11:06,800 --> 00:11:10,880 Speaker 1: but the chief technology officer and chief visionary officer for 180 00:11:10,920 --> 00:11:14,720 Speaker 1: the company. Like z Cat, Mako would develop technologies to 181 00:11:14,720 --> 00:11:17,760 Speaker 1: help surgeons as well as implants for stuff like knee 182 00:11:17,800 --> 00:11:21,880 Speaker 1: replacement surgery. The MAKO systems gave surgeons the information they 183 00:11:21,880 --> 00:11:25,359 Speaker 1: needed to make real time decisions during a surgical procedure, 184 00:11:25,600 --> 00:11:29,120 Speaker 1: including feedback systems to alert surgeons when they were getting 185 00:11:29,280 --> 00:11:31,959 Speaker 1: close to the border of a predefined safety zone for 186 00:11:32,000 --> 00:11:35,000 Speaker 1: a particular procedure. It's all super cool stuff that helps 187 00:11:35,040 --> 00:11:38,679 Speaker 1: minimize any impact to quality of life during the recovery period. 188 00:11:39,320 --> 00:11:45,079 Speaker 1: Sometime around twenty Orlen Abovitz began to think about another project. 189 00:11:45,360 --> 00:11:49,680 Speaker 1: The surgical assistance technologies rely partly on augmented reality tech. 190 00:11:50,280 --> 00:11:54,520 Speaker 1: Digital information would augment the surgeons operating room, but A 191 00:11:54,640 --> 00:11:58,840 Speaker 1: Pivitz saw possible applications for this kind of technology that 192 00:11:58,920 --> 00:12:02,440 Speaker 1: extended not used into the medical field, but beyond. He 193 00:12:02,600 --> 00:12:05,960 Speaker 1: called the project Magic Leap, and he would create a 194 00:12:06,000 --> 00:12:10,239 Speaker 1: corporation under that name INN. But as for the details 195 00:12:10,320 --> 00:12:14,520 Speaker 1: of what Magic Leap was all about, that remained a mystery. 196 00:12:14,720 --> 00:12:19,080 Speaker 1: Things didn't exactly coalesce the following year when Abavits put 197 00:12:19,120 --> 00:12:22,320 Speaker 1: together a presentation for the two thousand twelve ted X 198 00:12:22,360 --> 00:12:26,840 Speaker 1: event in Saratoga, Florida. The presentation is on YouTube and 199 00:12:26,960 --> 00:12:30,720 Speaker 1: it's really more performance art than anything else. It actually 200 00:12:30,760 --> 00:12:34,160 Speaker 1: reminds me a lot of the interactive art experiences from 201 00:12:34,280 --> 00:12:37,199 Speaker 1: meal Wolf, a collection of artists out of Santa Fe, 202 00:12:37,320 --> 00:12:42,040 Speaker 1: New Mexico, and perhaps by no coincidence, Meal Wolf is 203 00:12:42,559 --> 00:12:48,079 Speaker 1: listed as a potential artistic partner with Magic Leap. By 204 00:12:48,080 --> 00:12:52,240 Speaker 1: the way, if you're interested in art, performance, tech, and absurdism, 205 00:12:52,280 --> 00:12:55,320 Speaker 1: I highly recommend you check out Meal Wolf. Their work 206 00:12:55,520 --> 00:12:59,640 Speaker 1: ranges from whimsical to unsettling. Anyway, I don't think I 207 00:12:59,679 --> 00:13:03,800 Speaker 1: could describe the ted X presentation from two thousand twelve effectively. 208 00:13:04,520 --> 00:13:07,839 Speaker 1: It's just kind of weird. If you want to check 209 00:13:07,880 --> 00:13:11,000 Speaker 1: it out. It is on YouTube and it's called the 210 00:13:11,040 --> 00:13:15,360 Speaker 1: Synthesis of Imagination. And I'll just say this, there is 211 00:13:15,480 --> 00:13:18,560 Speaker 1: no hint at all what the heck Magic Leap is 212 00:13:18,600 --> 00:13:22,920 Speaker 1: about in that video. Now, that was sort of okay. 213 00:13:22,960 --> 00:13:26,600 Speaker 1: At that point, the company name wasn't widely known, and 214 00:13:26,640 --> 00:13:29,400 Speaker 1: you would be forgiven if you were walking away thinking 215 00:13:29,480 --> 00:13:33,040 Speaker 1: magically was some sort of art collective that was particularly 216 00:13:33,120 --> 00:13:36,640 Speaker 1: obsessed with fudge. Seriously, you need to watch the ted 217 00:13:36,800 --> 00:13:39,320 Speaker 1: X talk from two thousand twelve to understand that reference. 218 00:13:39,720 --> 00:13:42,840 Speaker 1: The team began working on a longer term goal of 219 00:13:42,880 --> 00:13:47,439 Speaker 1: creating a mixed reality system capable of generating really compelling, 220 00:13:47,600 --> 00:13:51,720 Speaker 1: impressive digital overlays on top of our real world, not 221 00:13:51,840 --> 00:13:56,160 Speaker 1: even just on top of incorporated into our real world. 222 00:13:56,720 --> 00:13:59,800 Speaker 1: In two thousand fourteen, more people would begin to take 223 00:13:59,800 --> 00:14:02,400 Speaker 1: note of Magic Leap as it held a round of 224 00:14:02,440 --> 00:14:06,559 Speaker 1: investment funding and brought in fifty million dollars in the 225 00:14:06,600 --> 00:14:09,920 Speaker 1: first quarter of the year, But Magic Leap had yet 226 00:14:09,960 --> 00:14:13,360 Speaker 1: to get truly widespread fame at that point. That did 227 00:14:13,440 --> 00:14:16,280 Speaker 1: begin to change once people heard who some of these 228 00:14:16,320 --> 00:14:20,280 Speaker 1: investors were. One of them was Richard Taylor, the Oscar 229 00:14:20,320 --> 00:14:23,720 Speaker 1: winning special effects guru who worked on movies like Lord 230 00:14:23,720 --> 00:14:27,200 Speaker 1: of the Rings and Peter Jackson's King Kong. Other prominent 231 00:14:27,240 --> 00:14:31,280 Speaker 1: figures in fields like video games and tech companies also 232 00:14:31,440 --> 00:14:34,280 Speaker 1: were among the number of investors, and in October two 233 00:14:34,320 --> 00:14:39,840 Speaker 1: thousand fourteen, Magic Leap received five hundred forty two million 234 00:14:40,160 --> 00:14:45,520 Speaker 1: dollars from numerous investors, including Google. It also didn't hurt 235 00:14:45,920 --> 00:14:50,520 Speaker 1: that Abavits had recently seen his company Mako get acquired 236 00:14:50,920 --> 00:14:54,680 Speaker 1: for a significant sum of money, more than a billion dollars, 237 00:14:54,680 --> 00:14:59,040 Speaker 1: so things were going pretty fast and furious at this point. Now, 238 00:14:59,080 --> 00:15:03,040 Speaker 1: clearly something special had to be happening, right, But what 239 00:15:03,080 --> 00:15:06,480 Speaker 1: was it? As we'll see the mystery would be part 240 00:15:06,600 --> 00:15:10,520 Speaker 1: of the selling point and the problem for Magic Leap. 241 00:15:11,040 --> 00:15:14,200 Speaker 1: But before we get to that, let's take a quick break. 242 00:15:21,440 --> 00:15:24,320 Speaker 1: Abevids and crew made a choice to be secretive and 243 00:15:24,440 --> 00:15:28,360 Speaker 1: mysterious with the goal of the company, which did drum 244 00:15:28,440 --> 00:15:31,360 Speaker 1: up a lot of speculation and buzz about Magic Leap. 245 00:15:31,960 --> 00:15:35,120 Speaker 1: But that can be a double edged sword, because while 246 00:15:35,120 --> 00:15:39,360 Speaker 1: people were starting to talk about this enigmatic company, it 247 00:15:39,400 --> 00:15:41,240 Speaker 1: also meant that they were left to fill in the 248 00:15:41,280 --> 00:15:44,880 Speaker 1: gaps of their knowledge by themselves. And here's a little 249 00:15:44,920 --> 00:15:47,680 Speaker 1: secret for all of you out there. The odds are 250 00:15:47,720 --> 00:15:51,480 Speaker 1: that whatever thing you're really working on is unlikely to 251 00:15:51,520 --> 00:15:56,040 Speaker 1: match up to unfettered imagination. And this is why horror 252 00:15:56,080 --> 00:15:58,760 Speaker 1: movies that leave stuff up to the imagination of the 253 00:15:58,800 --> 00:16:02,200 Speaker 1: audience can have a much longer lasting effect than a 254 00:16:02,240 --> 00:16:05,600 Speaker 1: movie that just shows you everything. The same is true 255 00:16:05,640 --> 00:16:09,400 Speaker 1: for technology. If you don't lay out your vision, people 256 00:16:09,800 --> 00:16:12,680 Speaker 1: kind of do that for you. And if that vision 257 00:16:12,800 --> 00:16:16,880 Speaker 1: doesn't line up with reality, you're setting yourself up for failure. 258 00:16:17,040 --> 00:16:20,000 Speaker 1: As you know, you're bound to disappoint people in the end. 259 00:16:20,560 --> 00:16:24,320 Speaker 1: But maybe I'm jumping ahead too much here. The company 260 00:16:24,400 --> 00:16:27,000 Speaker 1: did give a few members of the media some early 261 00:16:27,040 --> 00:16:31,200 Speaker 1: glimpses into technology it was working on. One of those 262 00:16:31,440 --> 00:16:35,400 Speaker 1: journalists was a New York Times reporter named John Markoff. 263 00:16:35,680 --> 00:16:39,520 Speaker 1: Magically demonstrated some early technology to mark Off, not a 264 00:16:39,520 --> 00:16:42,320 Speaker 1: production model, just something that was sort of in the 265 00:16:42,440 --> 00:16:46,600 Speaker 1: R and D department. This implementation wasn't a wearable headset. 266 00:16:46,680 --> 00:16:50,680 Speaker 1: Markoff described it as looking like quote, something from an 267 00:16:50,720 --> 00:16:54,880 Speaker 1: optometrist's office end quote, And it was projecting what is 268 00:16:54,920 --> 00:16:59,360 Speaker 1: called a digital light field into his eyes. So what 269 00:16:59,440 --> 00:17:02,000 Speaker 1: the heck does that mean and why is it necessary 270 00:17:02,040 --> 00:17:04,840 Speaker 1: at all? Well, Markoff goes into the fact that one 271 00:17:05,000 --> 00:17:07,960 Speaker 1: of the challenges with both VR and a R has 272 00:17:08,040 --> 00:17:11,000 Speaker 1: to do with depth and the way we perceive depth. 273 00:17:11,400 --> 00:17:15,040 Speaker 1: So let's say you're looking down the street and you're 274 00:17:15,040 --> 00:17:19,080 Speaker 1: watching a someone. Let's say it's Josh Clark, of stuff, 275 00:17:19,119 --> 00:17:22,440 Speaker 1: you should know someone this Josh Clark. He's skipping merrily 276 00:17:22,520 --> 00:17:25,880 Speaker 1: down the street towards you. And actually, yeah, that's that's 277 00:17:25,880 --> 00:17:29,000 Speaker 1: actually how he walks, and no, I don't know why 278 00:17:29,040 --> 00:17:32,560 Speaker 1: he does that. Anyway, you would see Josh Clark is 279 00:17:32,640 --> 00:17:34,960 Speaker 1: starting off pretty far away from you. You'd focus on 280 00:17:35,040 --> 00:17:38,719 Speaker 1: him in the distance, but then he's gradually getting closer 281 00:17:38,760 --> 00:17:43,680 Speaker 1: and closer, skipping, perhaps somewhat menacingly toward you. He would 282 00:17:43,680 --> 00:17:46,760 Speaker 1: appear to get larger because he's getting closer, until at 283 00:17:46,800 --> 00:17:49,320 Speaker 1: some point he would block out your vision due to 284 00:17:49,359 --> 00:17:51,480 Speaker 1: the fact that he has also and he does not 285 00:17:51,800 --> 00:17:55,600 Speaker 1: mention this very much. He's also a giant. Okay, but 286 00:17:56,000 --> 00:17:59,359 Speaker 1: let's say you're sitting with a VR headset on instead, 287 00:17:59,800 --> 00:18:04,080 Speaker 1: and this is simulating you looking down the street. Now 288 00:18:04,320 --> 00:18:08,840 Speaker 1: you see a virtual representation of Josh Clark skipping toward you, 289 00:18:09,119 --> 00:18:11,840 Speaker 1: but you're not actually looking at someone who is really 290 00:18:11,920 --> 00:18:15,520 Speaker 1: far away. Right, the virtual Josh Clark is an image 291 00:18:15,600 --> 00:18:18,200 Speaker 1: on a screen, and that screen is just an inch 292 00:18:18,320 --> 00:18:21,719 Speaker 1: or two away from your eyes. Josh isn't actually getting 293 00:18:21,760 --> 00:18:24,800 Speaker 1: closer to you. Instead, the image is getting bigger. To 294 00:18:24,960 --> 00:18:30,280 Speaker 1: simulate that sensation, you're getting visual cues that he's getting closer, 295 00:18:30,320 --> 00:18:32,760 Speaker 1: but the entire time you're focusing on something that's actually 296 00:18:33,119 --> 00:18:36,200 Speaker 1: right in front of you that screen. Now, it's hard 297 00:18:36,240 --> 00:18:39,639 Speaker 1: to create a real sense of depth on a screen. 298 00:18:39,840 --> 00:18:43,960 Speaker 1: You can create visual cues to simulate depth, mimicking what 299 00:18:44,000 --> 00:18:46,480 Speaker 1: we perceive in the real world, but then we have 300 00:18:46,520 --> 00:18:49,120 Speaker 1: a situation in which our eyes are trying to focus 301 00:18:49,160 --> 00:18:52,120 Speaker 1: on something that in our brains appears to be very 302 00:18:52,119 --> 00:18:54,560 Speaker 1: far away from us, but in fact it's on a 303 00:18:54,640 --> 00:18:57,359 Speaker 1: screen that's right in front of us. This can create 304 00:18:57,440 --> 00:19:00,240 Speaker 1: fatigue and discomfort for the viewer, and it's called old 305 00:19:00,480 --> 00:19:04,560 Speaker 1: virgins accommodation conflict. And if we move this over to 306 00:19:04,640 --> 00:19:08,600 Speaker 1: augmented reality, we can really see a disconnect. The physical 307 00:19:08,600 --> 00:19:12,000 Speaker 1: world around us has actual depth. If we want a 308 00:19:12,080 --> 00:19:16,040 Speaker 1: compelling a our experience that is more than just projecting 309 00:19:16,119 --> 00:19:18,959 Speaker 1: text in front of our eyes, we need a system 310 00:19:19,040 --> 00:19:22,800 Speaker 1: that can also incorporate depth in our virtual images so 311 00:19:22,840 --> 00:19:26,320 Speaker 1: that they fit into the real world around us. Otherwise 312 00:19:26,600 --> 00:19:29,040 Speaker 1: we'll be trying to focus on stuff that's on a screen, 313 00:19:29,400 --> 00:19:32,120 Speaker 1: even if it's a transparent one that's right in front 314 00:19:32,119 --> 00:19:35,080 Speaker 1: of us, while also trying to focus beyond in the 315 00:19:35,119 --> 00:19:39,600 Speaker 1: real space around us. Enter the light field. Now, way 316 00:19:39,640 --> 00:19:42,720 Speaker 1: back in the day, I talked about light field technology 317 00:19:42,800 --> 00:19:46,560 Speaker 1: with the lightro camera. This digital camera could do something 318 00:19:46,600 --> 00:19:49,760 Speaker 1: super cool. You could take a digital photo with it 319 00:19:49,960 --> 00:19:53,800 Speaker 1: and then after the fact, you could change the focus 320 00:19:53,840 --> 00:19:56,920 Speaker 1: of that image. Now, to understand why that's cool, let's 321 00:19:56,960 --> 00:20:01,680 Speaker 1: think about standard photography. A camera, whether film or digital, 322 00:20:02,000 --> 00:20:06,000 Speaker 1: has a lens. Typically there are cameras that don't have lenses, 323 00:20:06,040 --> 00:20:09,440 Speaker 1: but let's just talk about the lensed ones. The purpose 324 00:20:09,480 --> 00:20:12,600 Speaker 1: of the lens is to direct light. It bends the 325 00:20:12,680 --> 00:20:17,320 Speaker 1: light toward a photoreactive element, either photoreactive film or a 326 00:20:17,359 --> 00:20:21,960 Speaker 1: digital sensor. The physical curvature of the lens will determine 327 00:20:22,040 --> 00:20:25,600 Speaker 1: how much it will bend that light. By moving the 328 00:20:25,680 --> 00:20:30,040 Speaker 1: lens closer to or further from that photoreactive element, you 329 00:20:30,080 --> 00:20:34,560 Speaker 1: can direct light from different distances toward that element. You 330 00:20:34,600 --> 00:20:38,240 Speaker 1: will get a different point of focus, a different focal point. 331 00:20:38,560 --> 00:20:41,920 Speaker 1: So you might have one setting that you can capture 332 00:20:42,320 --> 00:20:44,399 Speaker 1: so that you get a clear image of a very 333 00:20:44,520 --> 00:20:47,440 Speaker 1: distant object, and then you would have a totally different 334 00:20:47,520 --> 00:20:49,520 Speaker 1: setting if you wanted to get a clear photo of 335 00:20:49,600 --> 00:20:52,199 Speaker 1: something that was much closer to you, or you might 336 00:20:52,240 --> 00:20:54,760 Speaker 1: even swap out lenses if you had to get a 337 00:20:54,760 --> 00:20:57,280 Speaker 1: wider angle, or if you wanted to really zoom into 338 00:20:57,359 --> 00:21:00,840 Speaker 1: something that was really further away. But the nitro camera 339 00:21:01,080 --> 00:21:04,880 Speaker 1: and other light field cameras are different. They capture a 340 00:21:05,000 --> 00:21:09,359 Speaker 1: light field, which describes all the rays of light moving 341 00:21:09,359 --> 00:21:12,879 Speaker 1: in all directions within a given area the frame of 342 00:21:13,000 --> 00:21:16,199 Speaker 1: view of the camera, and it includes not just the 343 00:21:16,240 --> 00:21:19,320 Speaker 1: direction of the light, but the intensity of each ray 344 00:21:19,359 --> 00:21:23,200 Speaker 1: of light. The special images these cameras produce, which require 345 00:21:23,320 --> 00:21:27,480 Speaker 1: a special app to manipulate afterward, represent all the different 346 00:21:27,560 --> 00:21:30,160 Speaker 1: rays of light within a shot, and so you can 347 00:21:30,240 --> 00:21:34,520 Speaker 1: change the focus of that image. You can choose which 348 00:21:34,720 --> 00:21:38,679 Speaker 1: rays of light you want to really focus on. So 349 00:21:38,720 --> 00:21:40,639 Speaker 1: if you've got one object that's close to you and 350 00:21:40,680 --> 00:21:43,600 Speaker 1: another that's in the background, you can actually switch focus 351 00:21:43,720 --> 00:21:46,840 Speaker 1: from background to foreground over and over again, just choosing 352 00:21:46,840 --> 00:21:49,119 Speaker 1: whichever one you want to look at at a given time. 353 00:21:49,800 --> 00:21:53,520 Speaker 1: But how the heck does this technology actually work. It's 354 00:21:53,560 --> 00:21:56,200 Speaker 1: one thing to say that the camera captures the light 355 00:21:56,359 --> 00:21:59,200 Speaker 1: field of a scene, and another to actually make something 356 00:21:59,240 --> 00:22:02,200 Speaker 1: that can do at So, your typical light field camera 357 00:22:02,440 --> 00:22:05,080 Speaker 1: has all the elements of a normal camera. That is, 358 00:22:05,240 --> 00:22:08,879 Speaker 1: has a lens to direct incoming light. There's an aperture 359 00:22:09,240 --> 00:22:12,199 Speaker 1: or a hole that the light must pass through in 360 00:22:12,320 --> 00:22:15,919 Speaker 1: order to hit a sensor for recording the image. But 361 00:22:16,080 --> 00:22:19,639 Speaker 1: the lightro also has what's called a micro lens array, 362 00:22:20,080 --> 00:22:24,280 Speaker 1: which sits between the main lens and the sensor. Now, 363 00:22:24,320 --> 00:22:28,040 Speaker 1: as that name suggests, a micro lens array is a 364 00:22:28,040 --> 00:22:32,320 Speaker 1: collection of very small lenses that can capture light coming 365 00:22:32,359 --> 00:22:36,720 Speaker 1: from different distances from the camera's sensor. If you think 366 00:22:36,720 --> 00:22:39,880 Speaker 1: of a camera as having detachable lenses where you can 367 00:22:39,880 --> 00:22:42,199 Speaker 1: put a different lens on in order to get a 368 00:22:42,240 --> 00:22:46,680 Speaker 1: different focal point. Just imagine a whole sheet of tiny 369 00:22:46,720 --> 00:22:49,120 Speaker 1: little lenses that all can do that, and each lens 370 00:22:49,160 --> 00:22:51,240 Speaker 1: has a slightly different curve to it so it can 371 00:22:51,280 --> 00:22:54,680 Speaker 1: focus at a slightly different distance. You've got an entire 372 00:22:54,880 --> 00:22:58,160 Speaker 1: array of these tiny lenses and they're all directing light 373 00:22:58,240 --> 00:23:03,000 Speaker 1: toward particular pixels the digital cameras sensor. Each micro lens 374 00:23:03,080 --> 00:23:06,760 Speaker 1: is doing the same thing and for its own focal 375 00:23:06,800 --> 00:23:09,160 Speaker 1: point that is. That means you can have different micro 376 00:23:09,280 --> 00:23:12,600 Speaker 1: lenses dedicated to those specific focal points, all capturing all 377 00:23:12,640 --> 00:23:16,080 Speaker 1: the information to that sensor. Using the special app and 378 00:23:16,160 --> 00:23:19,879 Speaker 1: photo file type, you can then select which batch of 379 00:23:19,960 --> 00:23:22,720 Speaker 1: information you want to look at, and in this case, 380 00:23:22,760 --> 00:23:26,840 Speaker 1: the batches of information relate to different focal points. So 381 00:23:26,880 --> 00:23:28,359 Speaker 1: you can say, I want to look at all the 382 00:23:28,440 --> 00:23:32,040 Speaker 1: light that was at this object, and it brings that 383 00:23:32,119 --> 00:23:35,240 Speaker 1: object into focus. Then you click on a different object 384 00:23:35,240 --> 00:23:36,600 Speaker 1: and you say, now I want to look at that one, 385 00:23:36,760 --> 00:23:39,680 Speaker 1: and it brings all that light into focus instead. It's 386 00:23:39,720 --> 00:23:44,280 Speaker 1: just switching lenses virtually in a way. There are companies 387 00:23:44,320 --> 00:23:47,320 Speaker 1: working on technologies that will allow for light field displays 388 00:23:47,359 --> 00:23:50,959 Speaker 1: without a micro lens array, but that topic is pretty 389 00:23:51,040 --> 00:23:54,640 Speaker 1: darn complicated, even more so than just the standard light 390 00:23:54,720 --> 00:23:58,080 Speaker 1: field cameras, So I'm gonna save that for another time. Now. 391 00:23:58,119 --> 00:24:00,520 Speaker 1: The magic Leap concept that Mark of got to see 392 00:24:00,560 --> 00:24:03,919 Speaker 1: also had light field technology, but in this case it 393 00:24:03,960 --> 00:24:07,359 Speaker 1: was a light field display, and the goal was to 394 00:24:07,440 --> 00:24:11,120 Speaker 1: project an image onto the retina of the user's eye, 395 00:24:11,400 --> 00:24:15,600 Speaker 1: rather than to create a special type of digital photo. Ideally, 396 00:24:15,920 --> 00:24:19,040 Speaker 1: the goal would be to create three dimensional virtual objects 397 00:24:19,160 --> 00:24:22,399 Speaker 1: using depth cues and meshing those virtual objects with the 398 00:24:22,440 --> 00:24:25,239 Speaker 1: real environment, so that to your eye it would be 399 00:24:25,280 --> 00:24:28,600 Speaker 1: no different than if the virtual object really were there 400 00:24:28,880 --> 00:24:31,320 Speaker 1: in the same space as you. So if you had 401 00:24:31,359 --> 00:24:35,399 Speaker 1: a floating castle as your virtual object, to your eye, 402 00:24:35,440 --> 00:24:39,040 Speaker 1: it should look like the floating castle really is floating there. 403 00:24:39,720 --> 00:24:42,399 Speaker 1: Not only would the virtual objects seem to belong to 404 00:24:42,440 --> 00:24:44,880 Speaker 1: the physical space that appeared to occupy. You could view 405 00:24:44,960 --> 00:24:48,320 Speaker 1: that virtual stuff from different angles. So you're floating castle, 406 00:24:48,400 --> 00:24:52,040 Speaker 1: you could walk around it, and you let's say it's 407 00:24:52,080 --> 00:24:55,720 Speaker 1: floating at say chest level, you could walk around see 408 00:24:55,720 --> 00:24:58,480 Speaker 1: it from every single angle. It would be sitting there 409 00:24:58,480 --> 00:25:00,440 Speaker 1: in the air as if it were actually be there. 410 00:25:00,840 --> 00:25:03,240 Speaker 1: You could squat down and look under it. You could 411 00:25:03,280 --> 00:25:05,439 Speaker 1: get on your tiptoes and look at the turrets and 412 00:25:05,480 --> 00:25:09,000 Speaker 1: the parapets and everything. From the top. It would appear 413 00:25:09,240 --> 00:25:13,399 Speaker 1: to actually have a physical presence. Now, markov only got 414 00:25:13,440 --> 00:25:16,160 Speaker 1: a first glimpse at this technology, and to be fair, 415 00:25:16,200 --> 00:25:18,439 Speaker 1: the New York Times piece was really more about the 416 00:25:18,480 --> 00:25:22,360 Speaker 1: general potential of a R and VR and light field technologies. 417 00:25:22,840 --> 00:25:25,400 Speaker 1: But that piece did have a little nugget from Abovits, 418 00:25:25,400 --> 00:25:30,399 Speaker 1: who said, quote, our real market is people doing everyday things. 419 00:25:30,960 --> 00:25:33,359 Speaker 1: Rather than pulling your mobile phone in and out of 420 00:25:33,400 --> 00:25:36,240 Speaker 1: your pocket, we want to create an all day flow. 421 00:25:36,440 --> 00:25:39,040 Speaker 1: Whether you're going to the doctor or a meeting or 422 00:25:39,119 --> 00:25:41,840 Speaker 1: hanging out, you will all of a sudden be amplified 423 00:25:41,840 --> 00:25:46,000 Speaker 1: by the collective knowledge that is on the web end quote. Now, 424 00:25:46,040 --> 00:25:49,600 Speaker 1: I think the phrase that will end up being something 425 00:25:49,640 --> 00:25:51,879 Speaker 1: we'll have to look back on is our real market 426 00:25:51,960 --> 00:25:55,280 Speaker 1: is people doing everyday things. I've got to keep that 427 00:25:55,320 --> 00:25:57,480 Speaker 1: in mind when we get to stuff like how much 428 00:25:57,640 --> 00:26:01,320 Speaker 1: the actual product costs. Now the world got a little 429 00:26:01,320 --> 00:26:04,520 Speaker 1: more insight into what Magic Leap wanted to do. They 430 00:26:04,520 --> 00:26:07,359 Speaker 1: wanted to create an a R technology that could enhance 431 00:26:07,400 --> 00:26:10,359 Speaker 1: our day to day activities in various ways. But while 432 00:26:10,400 --> 00:26:13,639 Speaker 1: there were some tentalizing details fed to the general public 433 00:26:13,920 --> 00:26:17,040 Speaker 1: a lot of Magic Leaps actual work was still an enigma. 434 00:26:17,480 --> 00:26:21,360 Speaker 1: In two thousand and fifteen, Magically began releasing demo videos 435 00:26:21,440 --> 00:26:24,160 Speaker 1: of what its technology would be able to do. These 436 00:26:24,280 --> 00:26:27,320 Speaker 1: videos stated that the footage that was shot was through 437 00:26:27,560 --> 00:26:31,760 Speaker 1: the Magic Leap technology, with no special effects or compositing 438 00:26:31,880 --> 00:26:36,359 Speaker 1: used after the fact. The demos were definitely compelling. My 439 00:26:36,400 --> 00:26:40,359 Speaker 1: favorite one showed a miniature virtual representation of the Solar 440 00:26:40,400 --> 00:26:45,119 Speaker 1: system seemingly hanging in the air over a desk, and 441 00:26:45,400 --> 00:26:47,240 Speaker 1: right next to the solar system was a woman at 442 00:26:47,240 --> 00:26:51,120 Speaker 1: work on a computer. The details of the model were incredible. 443 00:26:51,200 --> 00:26:54,080 Speaker 1: They included a little rotating Earth, and they were all 444 00:26:54,520 --> 00:26:58,960 Speaker 1: had incredibly vibrant colors. It was amazing. The Sun, the planets, 445 00:26:59,000 --> 00:27:02,840 Speaker 1: the Moon's all looked solid as they moved in their pathways. 446 00:27:03,640 --> 00:27:07,000 Speaker 1: Really breathtaking stuff and those videos are still up on 447 00:27:07,040 --> 00:27:09,480 Speaker 1: YouTube if you want to check them out. The company 448 00:27:09,520 --> 00:27:12,600 Speaker 1: filed for a patent on its technology, which included a 449 00:27:12,640 --> 00:27:16,320 Speaker 1: mention of a quote photonic light field chip in the quote, 450 00:27:16,359 --> 00:27:19,919 Speaker 1: presumably the technology that could create the projection of virtual 451 00:27:19,960 --> 00:27:23,400 Speaker 1: objects to then be beamed right into a person's eyeballs. 452 00:27:23,680 --> 00:27:27,720 Speaker 1: The patent also called for quote an inertial measurement unit 453 00:27:27,920 --> 00:27:30,960 Speaker 1: in the quote or I am you. This would later 454 00:27:31,000 --> 00:27:34,119 Speaker 1: be revealed to be a device that would hold the processor, 455 00:27:34,680 --> 00:27:39,240 Speaker 1: the storage, and the battery for the Magic Leap system. 456 00:27:39,320 --> 00:27:41,159 Speaker 1: It would be something that you would have to you know, 457 00:27:41,240 --> 00:27:43,840 Speaker 1: wear on a belt, you know, clip it to a pocket, 458 00:27:43,920 --> 00:27:48,080 Speaker 1: something like that. And offloading the tech onto a tethered, 459 00:27:48,119 --> 00:27:51,040 Speaker 1: wearable pack meant that the engineers didn't have to figure 460 00:27:51,080 --> 00:27:53,920 Speaker 1: out how to cram all those components into the form 461 00:27:54,000 --> 00:27:57,000 Speaker 1: factor of the headset itself, which would help keep the 462 00:27:57,000 --> 00:28:00,560 Speaker 1: glasses more lightweight and less bulky. Also, it would help 463 00:28:00,640 --> 00:28:03,240 Speaker 1: deal with heating issues. I mean, this thing was going 464 00:28:03,280 --> 00:28:06,280 Speaker 1: to require a lot of processing, and processors can run 465 00:28:06,320 --> 00:28:08,119 Speaker 1: a little warm, and you don't want to have a 466 00:28:08,160 --> 00:28:11,520 Speaker 1: super hot processor right next to, say, your temple. Now, 467 00:28:11,520 --> 00:28:14,320 Speaker 1: the mysterious nature of Magically didn't hurt when it came 468 00:28:14,359 --> 00:28:17,640 Speaker 1: to investments. Heck, maybe maybe it actually helped a lot. 469 00:28:17,720 --> 00:28:21,000 Speaker 1: Investors convinced that this could be the next big thing 470 00:28:21,240 --> 00:28:24,920 Speaker 1: poured cash into magic Leap. In early twenty sixteen, the 471 00:28:24,960 --> 00:28:29,240 Speaker 1: company had already raised nearly one point four billion dollars 472 00:28:29,240 --> 00:28:32,960 Speaker 1: in investments. Abavits had a great reputation, his work in 473 00:28:33,040 --> 00:28:36,520 Speaker 1: medical robotics had been a proven success, and while there 474 00:28:36,560 --> 00:28:40,080 Speaker 1: had been other attempts at creating augmented reality or mixed 475 00:28:40,120 --> 00:28:44,720 Speaker 1: reality headsets, no one had really nailed it yet. Magically 476 00:28:44,960 --> 00:28:47,680 Speaker 1: claimed that the company was working on a totally new 477 00:28:47,720 --> 00:28:52,560 Speaker 1: approach to generating augmented reality experiences, which meant that maybe 478 00:28:52,600 --> 00:28:56,160 Speaker 1: it was sidestepping some of the limitations that had held 479 00:28:56,200 --> 00:29:00,560 Speaker 1: back other implementations. So instead of saying, oh, well, we 480 00:29:00,560 --> 00:29:02,960 Speaker 1: we're going to get to market after Microsoft and the 481 00:29:03,000 --> 00:29:06,240 Speaker 1: hollow lens, they could say we're doing a totally different 482 00:29:06,280 --> 00:29:11,440 Speaker 1: approach to augmented reality that is unlike what they are doing. Slowly, 483 00:29:11,640 --> 00:29:14,880 Speaker 1: the potential for magic Leap appeared to be forming in 484 00:29:14,920 --> 00:29:17,400 Speaker 1: the minds of the public, and this could be way 485 00:29:17,400 --> 00:29:20,120 Speaker 1: more advanced than a system that would let you play games. 486 00:29:20,160 --> 00:29:23,040 Speaker 1: You could use it to replace stuff like televisions or 487 00:29:23,080 --> 00:29:27,320 Speaker 1: computer displays. You could create virtual screens in your environment. 488 00:29:27,640 --> 00:29:30,960 Speaker 1: The device would remember where you put stuff, so if 489 00:29:31,000 --> 00:29:34,760 Speaker 1: you designated a segment of your wall as a giant television. 490 00:29:35,160 --> 00:29:37,800 Speaker 1: That's where it would appear. Whenever you wore the Magic Leap, 491 00:29:38,120 --> 00:29:40,480 Speaker 1: you could still look around and the screen would appear 492 00:29:40,520 --> 00:29:43,120 Speaker 1: to be anchored in that physical space, as if you 493 00:29:43,160 --> 00:29:45,920 Speaker 1: had actually hung a TV there. So with this device, 494 00:29:45,960 --> 00:29:48,640 Speaker 1: you could have multiple computer screens open, all at the 495 00:29:48,640 --> 00:29:50,760 Speaker 1: same time, and none of them would take up any 496 00:29:50,840 --> 00:29:54,520 Speaker 1: actual physical space. Now, when we come back, we'll talk 497 00:29:54,560 --> 00:29:58,160 Speaker 1: about the launch of the real Magic Leap one headset, 498 00:29:58,520 --> 00:30:01,640 Speaker 1: the tech that makes it work, and what has happened 499 00:30:01,640 --> 00:30:04,560 Speaker 1: to the company since that product launch. But first, let's 500 00:30:04,560 --> 00:30:15,240 Speaker 1: take another quick break. Magic Leap got its start into 501 00:30:15,240 --> 00:30:17,920 Speaker 1: two thousand eleven, it would not have a product to 502 00:30:18,000 --> 00:30:22,160 Speaker 1: launch for nearly a full decade. Before that, the company 503 00:30:22,200 --> 00:30:26,000 Speaker 1: did offer up a limited developer edition of the technology 504 00:30:26,080 --> 00:30:29,800 Speaker 1: called the Magic Leap one Creator's Edition, starting in August 505 00:30:29,880 --> 00:30:33,880 Speaker 1: two thousand eighteen. It would cost two thousand, two hundred 506 00:30:34,160 --> 00:30:39,120 Speaker 1: nine five dollars, a princely sum. Indeed, a journal called 507 00:30:39,280 --> 00:30:43,520 Speaker 1: The Information would later allege that Magic Leap was only 508 00:30:43,600 --> 00:30:47,160 Speaker 1: able to sell six thousand of the Creator Edition model 509 00:30:47,720 --> 00:30:51,440 Speaker 1: upon the first six months of its release, and it 510 00:30:51,560 --> 00:30:55,040 Speaker 1: also said that Magic Leap's goal was to sell one 511 00:30:55,120 --> 00:30:59,320 Speaker 1: hundred thousand units, so the goal was one hundred thousand. 512 00:30:59,600 --> 00:31:02,680 Speaker 1: Real was six thousand, so as you can imagine, that 513 00:31:02,760 --> 00:31:06,400 Speaker 1: represents a pretty severe shortfall. And between the launch of 514 00:31:06,400 --> 00:31:09,240 Speaker 1: the Creator addition in two thousand eighteen and the actual 515 00:31:09,480 --> 00:31:13,680 Speaker 1: Magic Leap one headset in December two thousand nineteen, the 516 00:31:13,720 --> 00:31:17,120 Speaker 1: company would see cutbacks. It would have a travel freeze 517 00:31:17,200 --> 00:31:19,560 Speaker 1: so that it wasn't gonna pay for corporate travel. There 518 00:31:19,560 --> 00:31:24,040 Speaker 1: were layoffs, There were a lot of departures. Beyond the layoffs, 519 00:31:24,080 --> 00:31:27,040 Speaker 1: the shine on the company was starting to dull a bit, 520 00:31:27,680 --> 00:31:30,160 Speaker 1: and it had been a long time since those early 521 00:31:30,200 --> 00:31:33,360 Speaker 1: demo videos and the market response to the Creator edition 522 00:31:33,680 --> 00:31:36,680 Speaker 1: was underwhelming to say the least. No doubt, some of 523 00:31:36,720 --> 00:31:38,760 Speaker 1: the investors were starting to get a bit an see. 524 00:31:38,960 --> 00:31:42,640 Speaker 1: After all, more than two billion dollars had already gone 525 00:31:42,720 --> 00:31:45,920 Speaker 1: to the company since it got started. Now it was 526 00:31:45,960 --> 00:31:49,400 Speaker 1: in December two thousand nineteen that Magic Leap introduced the 527 00:31:49,480 --> 00:31:53,280 Speaker 1: Magic Leap one system. The company had only held a 528 00:31:53,320 --> 00:31:57,080 Speaker 1: few demonstrations, mostly to select members of the press, not 529 00:31:57,200 --> 00:32:00,239 Speaker 1: a whole lot of public demos of this technology, and 530 00:32:00,280 --> 00:32:03,360 Speaker 1: the demo and concept videos had impressed a lot of people. 531 00:32:03,680 --> 00:32:07,200 Speaker 1: A few years before. One famous concept video showed a 532 00:32:07,200 --> 00:32:10,600 Speaker 1: school gym filled with students that were sitting on the bleachers. 533 00:32:10,600 --> 00:32:13,160 Speaker 1: They were looking into an otherwise empty gym, and suddenly 534 00:32:13,560 --> 00:32:17,520 Speaker 1: a whale appears to breach from the gym floor, leaping 535 00:32:17,600 --> 00:32:20,560 Speaker 1: high into the air and the kids all gasp. But 536 00:32:20,680 --> 00:32:22,800 Speaker 1: was that the sort of experience people could actually come 537 00:32:22,840 --> 00:32:28,120 Speaker 1: to expect with the Magic Leap One. Well maybe, but 538 00:32:28,240 --> 00:32:30,520 Speaker 1: first you would have to meet that sales price, which 539 00:32:30,560 --> 00:32:33,640 Speaker 1: was the same as the Creator Edition, a hefty two 540 00:32:33,680 --> 00:32:38,520 Speaker 1: thousand two dollars. That's still the price for the spatial 541 00:32:38,560 --> 00:32:42,520 Speaker 1: computer as of this recording. And that includes the headset, 542 00:32:42,600 --> 00:32:46,280 Speaker 1: which is officially known as Lightweare and the I Am 543 00:32:46,400 --> 00:32:49,880 Speaker 1: You now known as the Light Pack and that houses 544 00:32:49,920 --> 00:32:53,440 Speaker 1: the processors and battery for the Magic Leap. It's connected 545 00:32:53,480 --> 00:32:56,480 Speaker 1: to the Magic Leap headset with a wire and it 546 00:32:56,600 --> 00:32:59,680 Speaker 1: also includes a wireless controller that you can hold in 547 00:32:59,760 --> 00:33:02,840 Speaker 1: one hand, similar to the we nun chuck in a way. 548 00:33:03,200 --> 00:33:06,520 Speaker 1: The processor in the Magic Leap one is an Nvidio 549 00:33:06,680 --> 00:33:09,880 Speaker 1: Parker s o C. S o C stands for System 550 00:33:09,960 --> 00:33:13,800 Speaker 1: on a chip. It has six processor cores. There's also 551 00:33:13,840 --> 00:33:18,120 Speaker 1: an Nvidio Pascal graphics processing unit. Or GPU, and it 552 00:33:18,160 --> 00:33:21,200 Speaker 1: has eight gigabytes of ram uh. It also has a 553 00:33:21,200 --> 00:33:25,959 Speaker 1: one eight gigabyte hard drive, although only ninety five gigabytes 554 00:33:25,960 --> 00:33:29,240 Speaker 1: of actual storage space is available on it. The battery 555 00:33:29,320 --> 00:33:32,120 Speaker 1: in the light pack is said to hold enough juice 556 00:33:32,160 --> 00:33:35,320 Speaker 1: for three hours of use, or you can actually plug 557 00:33:35,440 --> 00:33:38,240 Speaker 1: into an a wall. You have an little a C 558 00:33:38,360 --> 00:33:40,720 Speaker 1: adapter that you can plug into a wall for sustained use, 559 00:33:40,840 --> 00:33:43,000 Speaker 1: though obviously if you do that you're tethered to a 560 00:33:43,000 --> 00:33:46,600 Speaker 1: power outlet. One thing Magic Leap does differently from other 561 00:33:46,640 --> 00:33:49,960 Speaker 1: devices is that the processing can all take place on 562 00:33:50,000 --> 00:33:53,640 Speaker 1: the system itself, unlike, for example, Google Glass, which you 563 00:33:53,640 --> 00:33:56,840 Speaker 1: would have to pair with a smartphone. So Google Glass 564 00:33:56,960 --> 00:34:00,720 Speaker 1: is more of a smartphone peripheral, whereas Magical Leap one 565 00:34:00,880 --> 00:34:03,960 Speaker 1: is a computer system all by itself. The light pack 566 00:34:04,200 --> 00:34:07,800 Speaker 1: can connect via USB or WiFi to a computer and 567 00:34:07,880 --> 00:34:11,520 Speaker 1: you can use that to download or launch apps. According 568 00:34:11,560 --> 00:34:15,400 Speaker 1: to Omar Khan, the product officer for a Magic Leap, 569 00:34:15,440 --> 00:34:18,760 Speaker 1: the Magical Lea one device had some minor updates compared 570 00:34:18,800 --> 00:34:22,480 Speaker 1: to the original Creator edition, but at least on casual glance, 571 00:34:22,560 --> 00:34:26,960 Speaker 1: the two seem pretty close to identical. The headset, which 572 00:34:27,000 --> 00:34:30,439 Speaker 1: looks kind of like goggles, has speakers built into them 573 00:34:30,600 --> 00:34:34,440 Speaker 1: and that can create immersive directional sounds. So if you 574 00:34:34,480 --> 00:34:36,760 Speaker 1: wore the Magic Leap and you were playing a game, 575 00:34:37,120 --> 00:34:39,400 Speaker 1: you would be able to hear virtual things moving around 576 00:34:39,400 --> 00:34:42,080 Speaker 1: your real environment. You might be able to hear something 577 00:34:42,080 --> 00:34:44,160 Speaker 1: sneaking up on you. You'd turn around, you would actually 578 00:34:44,200 --> 00:34:47,160 Speaker 1: see it there. That's pretty darn cool. It also has 579 00:34:47,160 --> 00:34:50,560 Speaker 1: a couple of infrared emitters and sensors built into the 580 00:34:50,600 --> 00:34:53,360 Speaker 1: front of the headset, and these are used to create 581 00:34:53,400 --> 00:34:56,759 Speaker 1: a digital map of your physical environment. See to make 582 00:34:56,800 --> 00:35:00,120 Speaker 1: a virtual character appear as if it is actually in 583 00:35:00,239 --> 00:35:03,600 Speaker 1: a physical space. First, the Magical Leap one has to 584 00:35:03,640 --> 00:35:07,360 Speaker 1: know what your physical space is like. So those emitters 585 00:35:07,560 --> 00:35:11,400 Speaker 1: send out pulses of infrared light, and those pulses reflect 586 00:35:11,560 --> 00:35:14,879 Speaker 1: off the various surfaces in your space, and then they 587 00:35:14,920 --> 00:35:17,920 Speaker 1: come back and get picked up by the infrared sensors 588 00:35:17,920 --> 00:35:19,880 Speaker 1: on the front of the Magic Leap one. It's a 589 00:35:19,920 --> 00:35:23,080 Speaker 1: little bit like echolocation, and it gives the Magic Leap 590 00:35:23,120 --> 00:35:26,480 Speaker 1: one processor the data it needs to understand depth in 591 00:35:26,520 --> 00:35:29,640 Speaker 1: your environment. Measuring the time it takes the infrared to 592 00:35:29,680 --> 00:35:32,600 Speaker 1: go out and come back tells the Magic Leap if 593 00:35:32,640 --> 00:35:35,960 Speaker 1: a table is closer to you than a chair, for example, 594 00:35:36,120 --> 00:35:38,160 Speaker 1: and so when the Leap starts to project a virtual 595 00:35:38,239 --> 00:35:42,080 Speaker 1: image into your view, it can incorporate the physical environment 596 00:35:42,160 --> 00:35:47,280 Speaker 1: more convincingly. The controller has a magnetic controller tracking device 597 00:35:47,320 --> 00:35:49,920 Speaker 1: in it. The controller has an emitter, the headset has 598 00:35:49,960 --> 00:35:52,799 Speaker 1: a receiver, and the controller allows for all sorts of 599 00:35:52,800 --> 00:35:56,239 Speaker 1: interactions within a virtual environment, from playing a game to 600 00:35:56,400 --> 00:36:00,440 Speaker 1: performing simple controls with a virtual video screen. The magically 601 00:36:00,560 --> 00:36:03,799 Speaker 1: one also can track hand movements, so you can do 602 00:36:03,920 --> 00:36:06,720 Speaker 1: gesture base controls as well. So it all really depends 603 00:36:06,760 --> 00:36:09,480 Speaker 1: on the application and what you want to do. The 604 00:36:09,560 --> 00:36:12,520 Speaker 1: real star of the show would be the light field. 605 00:36:12,640 --> 00:36:17,399 Speaker 1: Projectors six small lenses lit from the side angle light 606 00:36:17,440 --> 00:36:20,440 Speaker 1: to hit your eyes, and it's really no different than 607 00:36:20,480 --> 00:36:23,680 Speaker 1: you looking at something without glasses on at all. Right, 608 00:36:24,160 --> 00:36:27,080 Speaker 1: light from the environment you are in hits your eyes 609 00:36:27,360 --> 00:36:29,680 Speaker 1: and then your brain susses out what you're looking at. 610 00:36:30,120 --> 00:36:33,440 Speaker 1: With the Magic Leap one, the light isn't coming just 611 00:36:33,600 --> 00:36:36,880 Speaker 1: from the environment, it's also coming from the device. But 612 00:36:37,239 --> 00:36:41,480 Speaker 1: if it's done well, your brain doesn't necessarily register the difference, 613 00:36:41,800 --> 00:36:44,000 Speaker 1: and so to you it appears as though these virtual 614 00:36:44,040 --> 00:36:47,399 Speaker 1: elements are really in your physical space. The headset does 615 00:36:47,440 --> 00:36:51,560 Speaker 1: restrict your field of view. However, the visual field refers 616 00:36:51,560 --> 00:36:54,200 Speaker 1: to the area of space a person can see at 617 00:36:54,239 --> 00:36:57,760 Speaker 1: any given moment. We measure it by degrees from the center, 618 00:36:58,120 --> 00:37:01,200 Speaker 1: so this includes the area you focus on as well 619 00:37:01,239 --> 00:37:05,959 Speaker 1: as your peripheral vision. So a typical visual field has 620 00:37:06,040 --> 00:37:10,080 Speaker 1: a full range of one fifty five degrees across horizontally 621 00:37:10,440 --> 00:37:13,480 Speaker 1: and one thirty five degrees up and down or vertically. 622 00:37:13,760 --> 00:37:17,920 Speaker 1: The magically one, in contrast, has a horizontal field of 623 00:37:18,000 --> 00:37:21,759 Speaker 1: view of forty degrees and a vertical field of view 624 00:37:21,840 --> 00:37:26,160 Speaker 1: of thirty degrees, So clearly it's much more restricted than 625 00:37:26,200 --> 00:37:30,160 Speaker 1: the typical one by one thirty five. A lot of 626 00:37:30,200 --> 00:37:34,440 Speaker 1: that unrestricted view is peripheral, so it's stuff you're not 627 00:37:34,680 --> 00:37:38,279 Speaker 1: necessarily really focusing on, but you still can see it. 628 00:37:38,680 --> 00:37:41,600 Speaker 1: So wearing a magically one means that you see less 629 00:37:41,640 --> 00:37:44,560 Speaker 1: of your surroundings. However, you could argue it also helps 630 00:37:44,800 --> 00:37:48,359 Speaker 1: direct your focus towards the virtual elements, so perhaps it's 631 00:37:48,600 --> 00:37:52,520 Speaker 1: also boosting the effect of having those virtual elements in 632 00:37:52,600 --> 00:37:56,440 Speaker 1: your environment. Now, I've not tried these on myself, so 633 00:37:56,480 --> 00:37:58,880 Speaker 1: I can't speak as to what it's like to actually 634 00:37:58,920 --> 00:38:02,359 Speaker 1: wear them. That being said, the reports I've read make 635 00:38:02,400 --> 00:38:05,640 Speaker 1: it sound pretty darn amazing, But at that price, the 636 00:38:05,680 --> 00:38:08,480 Speaker 1: Magic Leap was not really in the ballpark for a 637 00:38:08,480 --> 00:38:12,440 Speaker 1: consumer device. Most folks don't dish out two thousand dollars 638 00:38:12,440 --> 00:38:15,480 Speaker 1: for a fully fledged PC. I mean, the gamers do, 639 00:38:16,000 --> 00:38:19,680 Speaker 1: but most of us don't. So Magic Leap was gearing 640 00:38:19,719 --> 00:38:24,919 Speaker 1: their marketing efforts afterward towards enterprises, much as Microsoft had 641 00:38:24,920 --> 00:38:28,960 Speaker 1: with the Hollow Lens device, another augmented reality headset. They 642 00:38:29,000 --> 00:38:30,880 Speaker 1: did this pretty late in the game, though, so this 643 00:38:30,960 --> 00:38:34,480 Speaker 1: is another point of criticism people have levied at Magic 644 00:38:34,560 --> 00:38:38,280 Speaker 1: Leap because so much of their marketing early on appeared 645 00:38:38,280 --> 00:38:40,319 Speaker 1: to be directed toward the average person. I mean, this 646 00:38:40,360 --> 00:38:43,080 Speaker 1: was supposed to help us in our day to day activities, right, 647 00:38:43,800 --> 00:38:46,960 Speaker 1: But now it was becoming clear that just the cost 648 00:38:47,000 --> 00:38:49,080 Speaker 1: of producing this thing meant there was no way to 649 00:38:49,120 --> 00:38:52,080 Speaker 1: make it affordable for a consumer market. You're going to 650 00:38:52,200 --> 00:38:55,560 Speaker 1: have to market it towards the enterprise. But that was 651 00:38:55,600 --> 00:38:58,880 Speaker 1: a disconnect between the earlier messaging from Magic Leap and 652 00:38:58,880 --> 00:39:03,040 Speaker 1: that report I mentioned from the information was pretty brutal. 653 00:39:03,239 --> 00:39:05,440 Speaker 1: It painted a picture of a company that had failed 654 00:39:05,520 --> 00:39:10,000 Speaker 1: to meet both external and internal expectations worse. The piece 655 00:39:10,040 --> 00:39:13,680 Speaker 1: suggested that a second generation of the technology, a Magic 656 00:39:13,800 --> 00:39:17,520 Speaker 1: Leap to perhaps one at a lower price point, was 657 00:39:17,560 --> 00:39:21,279 Speaker 1: at least two years further down the road. And then 658 00:39:21,480 --> 00:39:27,040 Speaker 1: twenty happened, and it's still happening. It's happened like crazy 659 00:39:27,120 --> 00:39:29,040 Speaker 1: to me, and I'm one of the ones who's lucky 660 00:39:29,120 --> 00:39:32,080 Speaker 1: that it only really happened a little bit. I hope 661 00:39:32,120 --> 00:39:35,000 Speaker 1: the happening to you has been as smooth as possible. 662 00:39:35,040 --> 00:39:40,440 Speaker 1: But man, we're all gonna need to do over, I think. Anyway, 663 00:39:40,640 --> 00:39:44,960 Speaker 1: Magic Leap was already on shaky ground. The lackluster response 664 00:39:45,000 --> 00:39:48,400 Speaker 1: to the Creator Edition was a bad blow. The informations 665 00:39:48,400 --> 00:39:52,280 Speaker 1: report on the company wasn't much better. So Magically collected 666 00:39:52,320 --> 00:39:57,520 Speaker 1: a veritable who's who in speculative fiction, special effects, computing 667 00:39:57,560 --> 00:39:59,840 Speaker 1: and more, all of them becoming part of the co 668 00:40:00,000 --> 00:40:04,839 Speaker 1: report officers or board of directors, really elevating the perception 669 00:40:04,960 --> 00:40:10,120 Speaker 1: of Magic Leap. But that collection of luminaries began to dwindle. 670 00:40:10,440 --> 00:40:13,520 Speaker 1: Some were leaving on their own accord, some left after 671 00:40:13,600 --> 00:40:17,479 Speaker 1: offices shut down, and fewer and fewer of those big 672 00:40:17,560 --> 00:40:21,480 Speaker 1: names were still with the company. One person who stepped 673 00:40:21,480 --> 00:40:24,719 Speaker 1: down was Abo, its himself, who relinquished his position as 674 00:40:24,719 --> 00:40:27,840 Speaker 1: head of the company in March twenty. That was around 675 00:40:27,840 --> 00:40:30,840 Speaker 1: the same time that the company announced the one thousand 676 00:40:30,920 --> 00:40:36,120 Speaker 1: employee layoffs ABO its remains connected to the board of directors. However, 677 00:40:36,800 --> 00:40:39,799 Speaker 1: so what exactly happened, Well, I think in a way 678 00:40:39,880 --> 00:40:42,160 Speaker 1: we saw a repeat of the boom and bust of 679 00:40:42,239 --> 00:40:45,200 Speaker 1: virtual reality back in the nineteen nineties. There was a 680 00:40:45,280 --> 00:40:49,680 Speaker 1: hype train that inflated interest. I don't know what the 681 00:40:49,760 --> 00:40:52,600 Speaker 1: corporate culture of Magic Leap is like. I don't know 682 00:40:52,719 --> 00:40:55,480 Speaker 1: if the company indulged in extravagance the way a lot 683 00:40:55,480 --> 00:40:57,960 Speaker 1: of startups have in the past. I haven't seen reports 684 00:40:57,960 --> 00:41:01,880 Speaker 1: of lavish parties or ridiculous expense says, but just developing 685 00:41:01,920 --> 00:41:05,439 Speaker 1: that technology and getting it into a form factor that's 686 00:41:05,440 --> 00:41:09,080 Speaker 1: small enough to fit into goggles and a puck sized 687 00:41:09,160 --> 00:41:14,320 Speaker 1: clip on device, just that is an enormous challenge. Developing 688 00:41:14,320 --> 00:41:17,600 Speaker 1: the tech had to be expensive, and getting the involvement 689 00:41:17,640 --> 00:41:21,960 Speaker 1: of various big thinkers like Neil Stevenson snow Crash himself, 690 00:41:22,520 --> 00:41:24,600 Speaker 1: that had to cost a pretty penny as well. And 691 00:41:24,640 --> 00:41:27,560 Speaker 1: then you've got a lot of money going out and 692 00:41:27,719 --> 00:41:30,480 Speaker 1: not a lot coming in. You can see that things 693 00:41:30,600 --> 00:41:33,640 Speaker 1: can't go like that forever. Now. According to the Verge, 694 00:41:34,000 --> 00:41:38,520 Speaker 1: Magic Leap is dealing with some pretty tricky issues. Enterprises 695 00:41:38,560 --> 00:41:43,280 Speaker 1: aren't exactly champing at the bit to invest inexpensive experimental hardware, 696 00:41:43,640 --> 00:41:47,359 Speaker 1: particularly hardware that is designed to run apps that can 697 00:41:47,440 --> 00:41:50,839 Speaker 1: only come from a single, unproven source. You know, just 698 00:41:50,960 --> 00:41:53,839 Speaker 1: as Apple controls what apps you can run on an 699 00:41:53,880 --> 00:41:56,480 Speaker 1: iPhone by vetting them before they can go into the 700 00:41:56,520 --> 00:42:00,760 Speaker 1: app store, Magic Leap was making itself the one source 701 00:42:00,840 --> 00:42:03,560 Speaker 1: for software to run on the hardware. Developers would have 702 00:42:03,600 --> 00:42:07,480 Speaker 1: to submit software to Magic Leap for it to become 703 00:42:07,520 --> 00:42:11,240 Speaker 1: available to run on Magic Leap headsets. But if companies 704 00:42:11,280 --> 00:42:14,120 Speaker 1: aren't confident that Magic Leap is going to stick around, 705 00:42:14,400 --> 00:42:16,920 Speaker 1: it makes no sense to sink thousands of dollars in 706 00:42:17,040 --> 00:42:21,720 Speaker 1: hardware that isn't able to run other types of applications. Really, 707 00:42:21,800 --> 00:42:24,040 Speaker 1: what this does is drive home how hard it is 708 00:42:24,080 --> 00:42:27,880 Speaker 1: to do augmented reality well or mixed reality, if you prefer. 709 00:42:28,640 --> 00:42:32,360 Speaker 1: Most companies have to make compromises. You can reduce the 710 00:42:32,360 --> 00:42:36,160 Speaker 1: cost of hardware by offloading work onto a different device 711 00:42:36,280 --> 00:42:39,000 Speaker 1: like a smartphone or a computer, But if you're using 712 00:42:39,000 --> 00:42:41,239 Speaker 1: a phone, then you're gonna have limits to what you 713 00:42:41,280 --> 00:42:45,120 Speaker 1: can accomplish just based on that phone's processor and connection speed. 714 00:42:45,520 --> 00:42:47,839 Speaker 1: If you're using a computer, you have to figure out 715 00:42:47,920 --> 00:42:51,400 Speaker 1: how are you transmitting data between the computer and your device. 716 00:42:51,920 --> 00:42:54,360 Speaker 1: It might limit the uses for your tech because you 717 00:42:54,400 --> 00:42:56,479 Speaker 1: may not be able to move that far away from 718 00:42:56,600 --> 00:42:59,839 Speaker 1: the home base computer. Magic Leap was trying to create 719 00:42:59,840 --> 00:43:04,000 Speaker 1: an advice that wouldn't depend on any other gadget, avoiding 720 00:43:04,239 --> 00:43:06,759 Speaker 1: that kind of compromise, but that also meant the cost 721 00:43:06,800 --> 00:43:08,400 Speaker 1: for the device was going to be much higher to 722 00:43:08,440 --> 00:43:11,319 Speaker 1: cover the cost of all those components. On top of that, 723 00:43:11,719 --> 00:43:14,719 Speaker 1: the company was really trying to make most of those 724 00:43:14,719 --> 00:43:19,320 Speaker 1: components itself rather than rely on existing third party hardware. 725 00:43:19,560 --> 00:43:21,200 Speaker 1: That would just add to the cost because you have 726 00:43:21,239 --> 00:43:24,400 Speaker 1: to develop all those pieces. In fact, it's quite possible 727 00:43:24,400 --> 00:43:27,439 Speaker 1: that originally they were looking to develop their own processors 728 00:43:27,480 --> 00:43:30,839 Speaker 1: before they moved to the Vidio ones. In short, there 729 00:43:30,880 --> 00:43:35,640 Speaker 1: were a lot of very lofty expectations for the technology, 730 00:43:35,719 --> 00:43:39,279 Speaker 1: and even if the technology delivers upon the experience, the 731 00:43:39,360 --> 00:43:42,120 Speaker 1: expense means that most of us don't get an opportunity 732 00:43:42,160 --> 00:43:45,279 Speaker 1: to try it out, and that's unfortunate. There are a 733 00:43:45,280 --> 00:43:48,160 Speaker 1: lot of questions out there over whether or not Magic 734 00:43:48,239 --> 00:43:52,600 Speaker 1: Leap will be able to recover from this pandemic is 735 00:43:52,640 --> 00:43:56,960 Speaker 1: an added twist to an already difficult path. I think 736 00:43:57,280 --> 00:44:01,200 Speaker 1: if Magically does survive, it's going to be a very 737 00:44:01,239 --> 00:44:05,080 Speaker 1: different entity than the mysterious one we have seen, you know, 738 00:44:05,160 --> 00:44:09,600 Speaker 1: talked about since two thousand twelve or so. I hope 739 00:44:09,600 --> 00:44:12,240 Speaker 1: it sticks around. I want to see mixed reality become 740 00:44:12,600 --> 00:44:17,480 Speaker 1: a more universal technology, but it's going to take a 741 00:44:17,520 --> 00:44:20,319 Speaker 1: lot of time and development, and that cost has to 742 00:44:20,360 --> 00:44:23,080 Speaker 1: come down, and that's going to that's a that's a 743 00:44:23,280 --> 00:44:25,400 Speaker 1: that's a big challenge. I just don't know how you 744 00:44:25,440 --> 00:44:27,760 Speaker 1: managed to do it. In the short term. It maybe 745 00:44:27,880 --> 00:44:33,040 Speaker 1: years before we see anything that is truly compelling and 746 00:44:33,160 --> 00:44:36,880 Speaker 1: practical and affordable. I hope we see it. We'll have 747 00:44:36,920 --> 00:44:40,560 Speaker 1: to wait, alright, guys. That wraps up this episode of 748 00:44:40,600 --> 00:44:43,040 Speaker 1: tech Stuff. If you have any suggestions for topics I 749 00:44:43,040 --> 00:44:45,840 Speaker 1: should cover in future episodes, reach out to me on Twitter. 750 00:44:45,960 --> 00:44:49,799 Speaker 1: The handle is tech stuff h s W and I'll 751 00:44:49,840 --> 00:44:58,319 Speaker 1: talk to you again really soon. Text Stuff is an 752 00:44:58,320 --> 00:45:02,000 Speaker 1: I Heart Radio production. For more podcasts from I Heart Radio, 753 00:45:02,320 --> 00:45:05,520 Speaker 1: visit the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever 754 00:45:05,600 --> 00:45:11,640 Speaker 1: you listen to your favorite shows h