5 Ways to Elevate Your Industry XR Applications for Success

As technology rapidly evolves, extended reality (XR) is transforming the way businesses operate. By 2029, the XR market is anticipated to reach $615 billion USD, expanding at a compound annual growth rate of 40.61% from 2024 to 2029. This growth will lead to unlimited opportunities for industries like healthcare, automotive, manufacturing, and retail to adopt XR to revolutionize human experiences and interactions.

Below you’ll discover five actionable strategies to optimize your XR applications and lead in creating impactful experiences.

Navigating the complexities of industrial XR

Developing XR applications comes with its own set of challenges. Some of the common XR challenges developers face include:

• Complexity of data integration: Handling and optimizing large detailed 3D models, metadata, and non-visual data is crucial for seamless XR experiences.
• Hardware compatibility: Ensuring applications work across various devices, from modern headsets to legacy systems, requires careful planning.
• Access to accurate data: Developing effective digital twins and real-time data integration is essential for applications that truly mirror physical environments.

Addressing these challenges is key to creating impactful XR solutions. By understanding and preparing for these complexities, developers can streamline their workflows and achieve better results.

1. Define clear use cases

Start your XR journey by pinpointing the specific problem your application will address. Clear, focused goals not only streamline development but also ensure your solution provides tangible value. For example:

• In healthcare: Develop immersive VR training scenarios for complex surgical procedures to enhance medical education without risks.
• In manufacturing: Use AR-driven maintenance tools to guide technicians in real-time, improving safety and reducing downtime.

Pro tip: Collaborate with end-users during the planning phase to ensure your solution aligns with their needs.

2. Leverage existing assets

Save time and resources by using existing 3D models and data. Integrating these assets into your XR application can accelerate development and reduce costs. For example:

• In retail: Create MR-enabled shopping experiences with existing models that let customers virtually try-on before purchasing.
• In automotive: Adapt detailed CAD models for real-time 3D simulations to enhance design collaboration and visualization.

3. Optimize for real-time 3D

Simplify and prepare CAD data for XR environments using techniques like level of detail (LOD) systems to manage 3D models more effectively while maintaining the performance necessary for smooth, immersive experiences.

Jerome Maurey-Delaunay, senior solution architect on the industry team at Unity, recommends to “dissociate your application from your data, externalize the data. That's really important because the next hardware that's going to come out, you might need to rework the data to fit within the hardware requirements of that platform. If your data is embedded into your application, it's going to create a whole lot of work to reopen the project to ingest the data.”

4. Adopt a forward-looking approach to your project

The XR landscape is rapidly evolving. To stay ahead, design your applications with flexibility and scalability in mind:

• Ensure compatibility with emerging hardware and software standards
• Regularly update your application to support new features and devices
• Consider building intelligence into your application.

5. Start small, then go wide

Launching an XR application doesn’t mean you need to tackle every use case at once. Start with a focused solution that allows you to:

• Simplify development and reduce initial complexity
• Test and refine the app in a controlled setting.

This approach not only minimizes risks but also makes it easier to demonstrate the return on investment, paving the way for broader adoption within your organization.

Explore industry best practices for XR

Want to dive deeper into these strategies? Check out our e-book, Best practices to develop XR industry applications. It’s packed with expert insights, real-world examples, and actionable advice to help you create standout XR solutions.