VR is dying. How do we fix this?
“The VR industry is dead”. Yes, that happened.
An industry in which more than $10B had been spent in less than two years, with magical technology that finally works great after four decades of iteration and in which every serious tech company in the world is working, apparently happened and disappeared in less than three years, according to some smart journalist.
Obviously, this is not true. But we are not doing great either and maybe it’s about time to think how to fix this. We have done a lot of things wrong.
I have been the CEO of Future Lighthouse for three years, one of the leading narrative studios on immersive content and when I say we I mean we as an industry and we, as a company.
I’ll share a dirty little secret with you: we were doing great but we are closing down our business.
Let me explain: We are working with some of the greatest companies on the planet (Oculus, Sony, Anonymous content), we recently got representation from one of the biggest talent agencies in the world (UTA), our content is selected in the best festivals in the world (Tribeca, La Biennale di Venezia), we are winning awards and working with incredible Hollywood talent (Robert Englund, Rupert Grint). We did (almost) everything right. And still… we didn’t manage to secure investment to continue our operations.
We trusted too much in just a few investors… made a couple of wrong decisions… had a bit of bad luck on the timing… bet too high too fast… and never saved anything for the swim back.
We’ve been working for over a year in two original projects that people LOVE… But we are a few weeks away of running out of cash.
This is the dark side of an industry that has the potential to change everything… but that is growing slower than it should.
Or is it?
Wait a second, and let me explain myself. Look at this chart:
We can safely say that the iPhone is one of the most successful tech stories in the history of mankind, right? And yet, they only sold M1.39 of that clunky iPhone 1, with no 3G and no apps. And then… wow, 11 million units on the second year. Not bad. The number almost doubled each year. And it wasn’t only the hardware, it was all the apps and business that flourished on this ecosystem that turned into a billionaire industry that transformed the world as we know it, right?
Why then do we start having apocalyptic articles about the failure of VR when on it’s first year (yep, that’s when the first Oculus Rift launched in 2016, not the kickstarter prototype) the industry sold about 6 million units and on it’s second the forecast is close to 20M? How can a potential multibillion industry be born and then die in less than 24 months?
Well, because of the Hype cycle and the Trough of Disillusionment. And a few other things too that we did wrong (hint: $700 smartphones were subsidized by the cell phone companies, so there was no excuse not to buy one. Oh, and they focused on content/apps like there was no tomorrow).
So here we are, two years later, screaming that winter is coming, feeding self fulfilled prophecies of stagnation, going into “cockroach mode” and waiting under our blanket to see if some miracle makes people who actually don’t need a vr headset buy thousands of them to watch almost non-existent quality content.
That’s… not gonna work, guys. I’m sorry. An industry is not created overnight. It requires patience. And effort. And smart moves. And then some more patience.
And you know what? We might close down and fire the 25 beautiful minds that have worked for us and just be one more of those companies that didn’t make it through the winter. And it’ll be fine, but we think we can do better. As a company, and as an industry.
So… How do we fix this?
Well, to start, let’s chill out. Building new industries takes time. And they require long term vision.
No more overhyped or apocalyptic articles would help (journalists? please? help us out here).
We need for people to try VR. And to love it. That means more VR cinemas to go to and to try before you buy. That means absolute dope content on them. Not one IMAX vr theater in one city. We need hundreds. Thousands.
In China, more than 4,000 have been opened. And once again, we can look into the past. When the idea of the internet and computers being pervasive and turning into one of the biggest industries on the planet seemed laughable, some people started opening internet cafes. Because you didn’t have one of those expensive computers at home. Because of the social experience. Just because. That’s how it started. And then everything else happened. Let’s put vr cinemas out there. Let’s put headsets in public libraries, in universities, in night clubs.
We also need to stop thinking VR and AR are different industries and to try to compare them (looking at you, Robert Scobble).
VR and AR are the same thing. It’s just about the number of digital layers you have in front of your eyes and, obviously, they will be used more for certain things. AR for daily interactions and industries and social and getting rid of our smartphone screens and tvs and a bunch of useful things and probably a little less for storytelling and entertainment. VR more for evading reality and traveling to places, imagined or real. But here is my bet: it’s all gonna be the same device. More or less layers, but same device. I would bet an arm on this.
What else? Oh yeah, THE MOST IMPORTANT THING.
Content.
I’ll say that again: Content.
I’ll say that 44 more times: Content. Content. Content. Content. Content. Content. Content. Content. Content. Content. Content. Content. Content. Content. Content. Content. Content. Content. Content. Content. Content. Content. Content. Content. Content. Content. Content. Content. Content. Content. Content. Content. Content. Content. Content. Content. Content. Content. Content. Content. Content. Content. Content. Content.
That’s the only single reason you would move your ass to a Best Buy to buy a vr headset for a thousand bucks. Because it has blown your mind and you can’t wait to see what else is in there. What other surprises it holds for you.
Like the magicians of the 19th century, our job is to create wonder. And we better start to get better at it fast, because people is not lining up at the door of our magic show.
Some companies are doing a great job on supporting the incredible artists of our industry and financing content. Some others are being too cautious (Movie studios, looking at you, it’s about time to jump in. You got late to the music industry revolution party and the internet revolution party, don’t waste this opportunity too, please?).
Overall, we need more content. We need to start using talent on our experiences to draw audiences. We need to start thinking big. We need to start thinking about marketing (no, I promise you, it is not enough to put your brilliant creative piece out there and wait for the masses to go and buy it). We need to support each other and do more. Work harder. Advocate for this industry. Stop engaging on depressing prophecies and start owning our own destiny.
It’s us who will make or break our future. And don’t get me wrong: I believe in VR. I still believe it’s gonna be one of the biggest transformations of our time. It will change how we see ourselves and how we relate to each other. It will redefine our narrative as human beings. And also, it’ll be hell of an adventure to redefine how we tell stories while we create a new language. VR is all of that and more and I can’t wait to see it happen.
“Wait, all of this sounds like a pretty cool article and I mostly agree, but you said your company is about to die. How can you be so damn calmed talking about industry stuff and so and so?!!”-
Well… you are right. But it was part of the deal. It was part of leaving a ten year career and getting into a completely new industry, starting from scratch. It was part of the contract we signed, in which we were going to feel the excitement and vertigo of the pioneers every single day. In which we wouldn’t consider our job a job but a playground. In which every single day we learned something new and we unlearned about a hundred old things. In which we created some of the most amazing narrative experiences of our careers and made people cry for twenty straight minutes. In which we danced and partied about our achievements and celebrated our fuck ups too, because life is too short to whimper.
Being part of Future Lighthouse has been the most exciting adventure of our lives and, regardless of what happens next, we’ve loved every single day of it.
We’ve contributed to this industry in, I believe, a big way. We’ve created jobs, taught people and learned ourselves. We’ve created some magic and discovered some cool things that others will use in the future. We’ve had genuine fun.
But sometimes, it doesn’t work. Sometimes trying is not enough. And it’s beautiful to accept your defeats too.
“Try. Try again. Try harder”.
I remember that crazy expedition Shakelton put together with a mysterious ad one day:
I was born thirty years ago and founded my first company when I was nineteen years old. Instead of finishing my degree I ventured into the craziest adventure I could have ever dreamed of.
I lead a team of 200 people to create a film called The Cosmonaut, that ended up being a case study all around the world and of which more than ten doctoral thesis have been written about.
It was one the first crowdfunded films in the world, when Kickstarter barely even existed, and one of the most successful ones, raising over half a million dollars by thousands of people. It was also the first day&date premiere in history, being accesible in every platform at the same time, and for free on the internet, thanks to its Creative Commons license, which allowed people to copy, share and remix it at will, while we also uploaded almost 180 hours of raw footage.
When we premiered in fourteen countries and eighty cities in events organized by fans, we didn’t only premiere the film, but also all its transmedia elements: 36 additional short films, a facebook fiction and a book.
We were pioneering the future of film the same way, at Future Lighthouse, we’ve pioneered the future of storytelling. Asking every time what’s next.
The same month I founded the lighthouse, I got selected to attend Singularity University, a beautiful dream put together by Peter Diamandis and Ray Kurtzweil with support from NASA and Google. In there, some of the lucky ones who got selected were taught about exponential technologies and we transformed our mindset to prepare ourselves for the future.
And we prototyped it too.
Now, once a again, it’s time to move on. Isn’t that the fun of it all and why the world keeps spinning? It’s time for new adventures. WOW!
I’ve been CEO and Creative Director for over a decade and I’ve learned a few lessons but the most important one is this:
People are the only important thing.
And that’s my only goal and wish for what’s next: to work with incredible minds around the world.
It’s time to fly high and reach new goals. To explore new boundaries through storytelling, technology and experiential design, which are my main skills. To discover what the future of communities is going to be. To work together with some of my incredible friends and prototype possible utopian futures. To tell more and better stories. To create experiences.
My next adventure is related to my long term passion: Food. I want to learn more and better from the people I admire the most. That’s why I’ve decided to become an intern again.
The Chef’s Intern is a show I’m preparing.
Cocina Sagrada is my new company.
We are a collective of versatile storytellers, experience designers, musicians, chefs and artists putting all our passion for immersive experiences at the service of food.
We help Chef’s around the world to craft the stories of their dishes and design better experiences for their guests.
What’s written in the menu or in your check? What does it tell you beyond a list of ingredients? How can we add stories and turn a simple dinner into an immersive experience?
Is the background music part of the experience, carefully selected to create emotion?
Working hand on hand with the Chefs, we use our own Design Thinking Methodology to thresh all the story-layers of the restaurant experience and transmute a delicate but ordinary dinner into an extraordinary experience.
Let’s work together and continue creating beautiful things.
Because we are not our CV or our bank account.
