This document presents two possible futures for augmented reality technology: one dominated by closed proprietary systems focused on advertising revenue, and one based on open web standards that empower users and creators. The open future is described as having browser-based AR, payment systems to reward creators, open trust networks, an augmented reality domain name system, and accessible authoring tools to promote sharing and remixing of content. This future is presented as better supporting creativity, problem solving and community building.

1. A Tale of Two Futures
Open Accessible AR
27/08/2018 @anselm PDX Design Reality
(note these thoughts are my own and do not speak for my employers)

2. Choose your own Adventure!
Welcome to 2023.
You wake up in the morning and reach for one of these two choices:
SuperSenses (™) CyberGlasses
Go to Page 3
Open Web enabled AR Glasses
Go to Page 8
(‘Ice Glasses’ art by Baku Maeda)
STATUS: Just waking up. Excited. CYBERKITTIES: 100

3. SuperSenses(™)
CyberGlasses!
• Looking for a morning bite - you’re overwhelmed with ads
and it is hard to tell offers apart.
• But you distract yourself catching a rare cryptokitten!
• And waste some time arguing with somebody on the net
(who is totally wrong about President Pence).
STATUS: Distracted, Hungry, Slightly Depressed. CYBERKITTIES: 101

4. This future is most similar to the well known vision by
Kelichi Matsuda entitled ‘HyperReality’

5. Looking closer at this future
• A literally in your face version of what the web already is:
• 1) Walled Gardens
• 2) Advertising based revenue ecosystem
• 3) Read Only Internet
• 4) Siloed Data
• 5) Privatized Trust
• 6) Self soothing

6. Apple could release augmented reality glasses by
2020, highly-respected analyst Ming-Chi Kuo
predicted in a TF Securities research note
distributed on Tuesday:
“We predict that AR is the next-generation
revolutionary UI; we therefore think that AR does
not need any killer applications given it is a killer
application already.”

7. You die of ennui - try again?

8. Open Web Enabled AR
(‘Tomato Robot’ by Maywa Denki)

9. • Your friends and friends of friends made an app that
shares secret breakfast places (easier to have a voice)
• There’s an opportunity to volunteer on a stream
daylighting project (money is not so dominant)
• There’s a Saturday Market and you can get a cryptokitten
just for visiting (true payment systems not just adverts)
• You’re about to get into an argument with somebody but
realize they’re not even real (minimal trust scores)
Open Web Enabled AR
STATUS: Fed, Made Friends, Avoided Drama. CYBERKITTIES: 101

10. The 5 parts of this future
• More than AR Glasses - new Infrastructure is required
• 1) Browser Based
• 2) A Caloric Internet
• 3) Open Trust Graphs
• 4) Augmented Reality DNS
• 5) Accessible Authoring

11. • The browser is a collection of slow moving standards
• A bridge between people; a common language
• A bridge to commodity hardware
• Consistent Security Model -> Fights for the user
• Ease of Authoring
• Systems with no center
• By the people for the people
1) Browser Or Open Based

12. • To get outside of siloed AR experiences we’ll need to
formalize some kind of Augmented Reality DNS
• Not totally clear how this is going to happen yet.
• All kinds of unexpected security and privacy issues here.
• A critical part of the fabric as well.
2) An Augmented Reality DNS

13. • The previous Internet had no “calories” - no built in billing
- it was designed in academia where money didn’t matter.
• Web Payments (and other emerging solutions) will make it
easier to directly reward content creators.
• A novel concept of “paying people for what they make”
• Advertisements end up being reduced
• Expect to see a super bloom of creativity beyond
anything you may have imagined - when 2 billion people
are suddenly empowered to make and tell stores.
3) A Caloric Internet

14. • Trust is currently siloed inside of trust brokers such as
AirBNB, Lyft, EBay, Amazon.
• Growing a trust identity over time, becoming credible and
authenticated by other people around you.
• Useful for fighting spam, noise, fake news and actions of
bad actors who are not acting in good faith.
• Expect to see an explosion of services that require
transitive trust.
4) Trust Networks

15. • Critically we need to push for new accessible authoring
tools.
• Remix culture
• View Source
• Super quick, super easy, competitive with AAA.
5) Accessible Authoring

16. You win!

17. What do you win?

18. 1) Place Making

19. 2) Just in time problem solving

20. 3) Reverse Search

21. 4) Being able to see better

22. Thank you
@anselm