Austin’s always been ahead of the game when it comes to tech, and the world of virtual reality is no different. South By Southwest started the fun with an inaugural virtual reality/augmented reality track in 2016, and continued with a complete Samsung (among other major companies) VR takeover in 2017.
As a city known for its artisan class, Austin has a group of artists, musicians and other creatives who are looking to harness the power of VR and AR to enhance their performances, as well as tech startups capable of creating virtual landscapes to showcase creative games, concerts and more.
So which Austin companies are doing big things in the VR world? There are many, and new VR startups are emerging almost every month. A few of them have made big headlines recently, like when Google acquired Owlchemy Labs and when Upskill, a Washington D.C.-based AR company acquired Pristine, an Austin-based augmented reality startup.
And there are likely more deals to come.
So, let’s take a look at five of the hottest VR startups in Austin right now.
TheWaveVR
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TheWaveVR CEO Adam Arrigo (courtesy image)
Founders: Adam Arrigo, Aaron Lemke
What They Do: TheWaveVR is perfect for music lovers. They can view, host, and socialize in music shows anytime, anywhere.
Why It’s Cool: Musicians can reach a much broader audience by creating this virtual reality venue, and an audience can see a cool show in real time.
Other Fun Information: The company recently raised $4 million, and co-Founder Arrigo helped create another musical innovation, the Rock Band video game.
ThrillBox
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Founder: Soren Silkenson
What They Do: Duelboot is also a game developing shop. Silkenson is currently developing a game called Verde Station, a first-person VR experience game set on a space station. (See a clip above.)
Why It’s Cool: Imagine yourself as an astronaut, working for a year on a spaceship. Plus, the game reacts differently depending on the decisions that you make.
Other Fun Information: Silkenson was the voice actor of Gordon Freeman, a character on the Half-Life video game series.
Source: AustinInno