ARShow

ARShow developed an innovative, creative AR solution, overall changing the viewers experience for every live show, from music concerts, through tourism and all the way to the theater's stage, turning them all to a 'first-of-its-kind experience' never seen anywhere before.

With an estimated market size of $75B and the successful launch of "Gulliver" in Gesher theater, the first AR show in the world to combine AR content in synchronization with live actors on stage, ARShow definitely looks like the next hottest company in the market.

ARShow Provides AR Solutions in 3 Levels

1. Software Solutions – ARShow developed an AR content creation and AR show management platform. The system allows creators and artists to create their own show with their own personal adjustments using a "Drag&Drop" method, create real-time interaction between the AR characters, actors, AR content and the audience. In addition, the platform enables full synchronization of the show in real-time to an unlimited number of viewers, special directing and rehearsals tools and many more exciting features.

2. Hardware Solutions – every venue interested in holding an AR show, requires a proper infrastructure. ARShow is the expert in the field for providing comprehensive AR infrastructure, including assembling, wiring, and fully equipping the venue with an operating system for the AR headsets. Most important, ARShow is laboring over the development of AR headsets targeted for specifically being used in a collective experience and live shows. The products the market has to offer nowadays, are for an individual use and a solitary experience only. ARShow is the first in the world to develop AR headsets for a collective experience, with an unlimited number of users.
3. Content Solutions – ARShow is, for now, the first and only company in the world to create a full length AR show. AR segments are combined throughout the entire duration of the show, with full interaction of the AR content with the actors on the stage as well as with the crowd. Being the first in the field, ARShow provides content consultancy and services for AR shows creation for tourism and production companies desiring to be the first in their country to present an interactive, breathtaking AR content combined with a live show.

The Problem

The entertainment markets ARShow is targeting, such as tourism and museums, fall way behind when it comes to progress and use of technology. In the current reality people consume thrilling experiences unlike ever before, and every object is gaining immediate significance and visual materialization, the markets of tourism and stage arts are required to re-invent their content to make sure they remain relevant. Imagine a show that awakens to life, breaking the boundaries of the stage, surrounding the viewers and even allows them to influence and navigate the storyline. A show of this kind will instantly become a unique experience with no competition, on which the viewer is an active participant, rather than passive, and is gaining a meaningful, augmented experience.

The Solution

This vision was materialized by ARShow. In December 2017, ARShow winning team of entrepreneurs, tech experts, animators and stage artists, presented the world with "Gulliver" the first theatrical show in the world to combine interactive AR content live on stage. "Gulliver" became overnight to a smashing success, with over 20 pre-sold shows and more than 20,000 spectators. According to expectations, "Gulliver" was ARShow's opening shot, proving beyond any doubt, that AR can be successfully implemented into live shows and that ARShow's technological development are beyond successful.

Where Will You See ARShow?

In Tourism:

1. Transforming ancient ruins into a virtual recreation of the impressive monuments they once were, using AR on historical sites.
2. Bringing historical figures back to life to tell their story first hand and on site, using Augmented Reality.
3. Stage epic historical, mythological and biblical scenes using AR on site. 

In Music Concerts:

1. Enhancing live music experience with breathtaking AR effects.
2. Performances by deceased mega stars depicted with AR, accompanied by a live music band.

In Theater:

1. Creating mesmerizing realistic settings and animated characters that until today were beyond theatrical reach and capabilities.
2. Stretching the artistic boundaries to new extents and establishing a brand new artistic creative field.
3. Breaking the boundaries between stage and audience. The show is now occurring everywhere and all around, creating a collective immersive and interactive experience.
4. Universality - after the local performance, each theatrical home-production or co-production can be adapted by the international market and franchised to theaters around the globe.

A Whole New Experience

ARShow recognized the crying need in the fields of tourism, museums, theaters, movie theaters, etc. All longing for a technological development able to bring the experience they offer to the 21^st century. To attract today's audience, the experience must "speak" the current language and make sure to offer "the next best thing". ARShow allows the viewer to become an active participant in the experience, and to go through it in a more significant method. Augmented Reality allows the viewer an unforgettable experience, such that will stay with him long after. ARShow turned the AR experience from individual to collective, for the first time in history, and by doing so, enabled not only to augment the artistic experience by use of technology, but the augmenting of the human experience, enabling an interpersonal communication between the viewers.

ARShow's Technology

ARShow created and develops “Pinocchio”, an AR design and operating platform, enabling the creation of AR content along with its proprietary operating system for live shows. The system provides a unique immersive and group experience in a variety of scenarios: theaters, music concerts, tour guiding, conventions, events, group games, movies, museums and more. 

The product includes 2 parts

1.  SDK plugin and tools to create the show.
2.  Operating system and hardware to operate the show and modify it in real time with an easy to use dashboard.

ARSHOW's Creator SDK (Build a show)

In order to create an AR show, we created a set of tools all wrapped in our SDK, which allows and helps animators, directors and developers to create a full show with Augmented Reality. It has built-in tools to create cues, add special effects, set the world and environment to match the real venue and more.

Pinocchio's Blackbox Nano (Operate the show)

Our end-to-end solution includes hardware and software with the ability to control the show while it's running, make changes, operate and sync the show with Ableton live and DMX servers, send monitors to show operators and more.  The blackbox is a complete hardware solution in one box that includes all the components to run a successful AR show.

Revolutionary Approach to the Creation of Augmented Reality Headsets (AR)

Existing Headsets

• Many models: Magic Leap, Hololens, etc.

• Investment in the development of such headsets - billions of dollars
  • Magic Leap:
    • $2.3 billion investment
    • High cost per unit ($ 1000-3000)
    • Individual use only
    • Good resolution of objects at short distances (up to 2-3 meters)
    • Complex and Unstable positioning system
• Due to a large number of functions (for example, tracking the sight direction) the headsets are heavy, allowing use for only short periods of time.
• Due to the small dimensions of devices and the heavy weight of the headsets, processing is insufficient for quality AR.
• A weak device causes poor image quality.

Collective Applications of AR

• Tourist facilities
• Museums
• Theaters
• Stadiums & sports events
• Concerts, corporate events, dance balls, etc.

The Multibillion-Dollar Market

Headsets sale is not for individual customers, but for businesses, able to afford setting up the system and infrastructure, assuming the price is less than 200$ per unit.

A New Approach                          

• A system for simultaneous support of multiple headsets instead of one processing unit in a single pair of headsets. 

• Use headsets only for image display, location detection and direction of view
• The headsets only support a high quality of image, carried through a long distance.
• The system manages image processing, centrally and collectively for all headsets.

Benefits:

• Reduced weight of headsets (no processor, reduced battery)

• Significantly better image quality due to a tenfold increase in power processing devices
• Improved field of view, high resolution camera
• Reduced cost; the cost of the processor determines the total cost

Development status

• Designed and tested prototype
• The analysis showed that a planned cost price of <200 $ is already achieved on 15 headsets.
• Further development requires:

1. Development of an optical system of two lenses
   (based on a preliminary study)
2. Development of a communication system between the headsets and the central server (WiFi based)
3. Development of a positioning system based on infra-red marks
4. Headsets electronics development
5. Development of headsets design
6. Development of audience interaction processing system

Financing

• Required time for development of 1^st generation system - 1 year
• Development time for the 2^nd generation system - 2 years
• Required funding - $ 4M for the first phase
• The second stage includes the putting together the mass production of headsets, will require additional investments of $8M.

Market's Reaction - Enthusiasm!

• Pilot system tested in both the theater ("Gulliver" theater production, over 20,000 spectators, sold-out months in advance) and a touristic site (Jacob's Ladder, Jaffa)

• There is great interest by a large number of potential consumers:

• Theater:

  • "Nutcracker" ballet, Moscow

  • New York (musical of Claudio Quest)
  • Berlin (performance Snow Queen)
  • Israel (the Ginny, Eilat)

• • Tourism

    • Moscow (Museum of Tolerance)

    • Israel (City of David)
    • Jaffa (Museum of Science),
    • Belgium (Waterloo)
    • Monaco.

  • Events

    • International dance balls (Beijing)

    • Corporate events (USA), etc.

  • Sports screenings - a joint project with an Israeli company ASOCS, allows downloading up to 6GB / sec

Total: The Revolution in the Market of Mass Spectacles

• • Multi-billion market - collective viewing of AR

  • The existing technology is not suitable due to high cost and poor quality
  • A new groundbreaking technology that solves ALL major problems
  • Centralized processing of visual information
  • Working prototype, elaborated development plan
  • Relatively small investment
  • Strong, professional and experienced team
  • High threshold for competitors
  • The market of mass spectacles realizes the enormous potential of AR technology
  • Very high probability of SUCCESS!