Microsoft have been hinting for a while that the current version of the HoloLens is only ‘version 1.0’. New information has now emerged suggesting what Microsoft has in mind for the future of its mixed reality (MR) headset.
Microsoft Research engineer Doug Burger has revealed some details about the upcoming revision of the HoloLens to Bloomburg, explaining that there will be a new version of its ‘Holographic Processing Unit’ or HPU that will feature an Artificial Intelligence (AI) coprocessor to complement the HPU and allow better data analyses using deep neural networks.
Neural networks are a major part in how modern artificial intelligence works and provide the basis for the extremely rapid data processing needed for AR, a feature that could be extremely helpful when processing the ‘real world’ data required for true MR applications.
Burger also mentioned Microsoft’s plans to develop ‘The number one AI cloud’, with the new HoloLens featuring AI technology, it seems likely that it will fit inside that framework, though exact details on how that will work have not yet been revealed.
The current iteration of the HoloLens is currently only available to developers and is still waiting on a commercial release. The latest news has already sparked speculation that Microsoft are planning on waiting for the arrival of the ‘HoloLens 2’ before marketing the product commercially.
There is no word on when an official release date for the HoloLens 2 can be expected, though some analysts are predicting that it will arrive some time in 2019.
VRFocus will continue to report on new developments regarding Microsoft’s HoloLens as it becomes available.
via Mint VR