Qualcomm Partners With Pokémon Go Developer to Develop XR2-compatible AR Glasses

At Snapdragon Tech Summit 2019, one of the leading developers of chip technology, Qualcomm, revealed its new and more powerful SoC for extended reality headsets. On top of that, the firm announced its partnership with Niantic, the creator of popular mobile game Pokémon Go.

Under the MoU, both the firms will team up to develop reference hardware, software, and cloud-based technology for augmented reality glasses. In a statement, Qualcomm stated that the collaboration is for more than a year and is aimed to fast pace the development of AR software and hardware; however, gaming enthusiasts might have to wait for some time.

Niantic’s Real World Platform host some well-known online mobile games like Pokémon Go and Harry Potter: Wizards Unite. The new product will allow developers to alter the programming for making it XR2 compatible. During the event, Niantic’s Chief Technical Officer, Phil Keslin, stated that the product would be made available to every user in the Niantic Creator Program launching in 2020 as the XR2-optimized platform is ready to be used.

As per reports, the new product will be optimized for Qualcomm’s XR2 platform. Besides, it will be the first 5G-enabled extended reality system with the capability of 8K and 360-degree video playback, says Qualcomm officials. Through this new H/W and S/W integrator, Qualcomm will also try to figure out the specifications and feasibility of a pair of XR2-powered glasses.