Niantic has announced on the 11th of March, 2022 that it has acquired 8th Wall, a leading company in the field of web AR development. 8th Wall is the torchbearer for the web AR development industry and has pioneered the web AR field with innovative technologies, such as providing interactive AR experiences.
Niantic is a company that has been developing AR-driven mobile games for a long time, since Ingress. So, this announcement comes as no surprise as they aim to be a top leader in the AR-driven applications industry. Their acquisition of the 8th Wall will help them develop new, innovative ideas to help explore the AR domain like never before.
Niantic gains from this strategic acquisition
The whole gaming industry is trying to capitulate to the increasing demand for AR-driven games. The web AR development platform is unique, as it can be used without the need for users to install a separate app. In this way, the ease of access increases where users can use the platform on the go. This is being evaluated for high accessibility as it can be used on billions of smartphones, computers, and AR/VR devices.
This acquisition is the largest in Niantic’s history as they plan to support the real world metaverse, which is its vision for AR. This acquisition will allow Niantic to secure the development capabilities of the 8th Wall. In addition, by introducing new web AR technology available on mobile devices, the company plans to introduce a more advanced Lightship platform to keep pace with the ever-evolving market environment. Additionally, it has been announced that the 8th Wall platform will be composed of one axis of the Niantic Lightship platform.
At the same time, the QR code that allows you to experience web AR directly will be released. Take a QR code with a camera. One can first see the technology to be introduced in the future, such as manipulating and shooting a character in an environment implemented with web AR.
Meanwhile, the web AR development platform of ‘8th Wall’ has created more than 50,000 web apps since 2018 for Pepsi, Microsoft, Nike, Porsche, Netflix, Heineken, Lego, General Mills, Dior, and Universal Pictures.
What are your thoughts as Niantic acquires 8th Wall? Let us know in the comments below!
For more Mobile Gaming news and updates, join our WhatsApp group, Telegram Group, or Discord server. Also, follow us on Instagram and Twitter for quick updates.
