PARACOSMA

An exceptional Augmented and Virtual Reality Service Provider Dr. Amit Mishra | Business Connect

Newer and more advanced developments in technology have been successful in bringing dynamic transformation in multitude business sectors. With a blend of new innovation and technical evolution, Augmented and Virtual Reality are revolutionizing different systems and processes to escalate enterprise growth and success.

We at Business Connect are fortunate to have with us, Ken Ehrhart, Founder & CEO, Paracosma Inc. In a conversation with him, we have covered some indispensable intricacies of Paracosma and its significant contribution to the AR/VR domain.

Please walk us through your company profile and its services. Paracosma is an Augmented and Virtual Reality (AR/ VR) Service Provider. Its services include 3D content creation, 360 videos, application development, and project implementation across a broad range of AR & VR platforms. Additionally, Paracosma creates its own content in the gaming, entertainment, tourism, enterprise and education/training spaces. Paracosma also has proprietary technology for producing, viewing, managing and distributing 360-degree photo and video content.

What kind of clients do you serve, any special mentions?

We primarily serve larger enterprise clients who are embracing the potential of AR & VR.

For AARP, the 38 million-member US non-profit serving aging consumers, we have been producing brain fitness games for their Alcove VR application for Oculus Go and also a version of Alcove for the Magic Leap AR glasses. The applications were recently demoed at the 2020 CES show in Las Vegas.

We also recently announced a partnership with UrsaLeo, an IoT (Internet of Things) company. We are producing realistic 3D digital twins of UrsaLeos’ clients’ facilities to enable them to visualize real-time sensor data on a clear representation of the actual space.

We are also providing VR Training for Oil & Gas and Medical applications; AR for manufacturing machine maintenance, holographic videos for management training, and photo-realistic 3D models for photography replacement, a 360 video distribution platform and other services.

What makes you different from others?

Paracosma Inc. is a US-based company with headquarters in San Francisco, and wholly-owned subsidiary companies in Japan and Nepal with a technical and sales office in Tokyo and development center in Kathmandu. With over 75 employees, including 45 artists and 30 engineers and developers, our scope and scale allow us to provide expertise in more areas than smaller competitors. While our offshore development center allows us to provide very high-quality services and best-in-class rates.

How do you ensure the unbreakable faith of clients in your company?

In many cases, we are providing services for companies that are not broadly available because of the fast pace of AR and VR innovations. Thus, we are usually engaged in long-term partnerships where we are working together with the client to envision what is possible to meet their requirements. We are honest about the current limitations and future potential of AR and VR to develop the most advanced solutions that are realistically possible. This type of open collaboration engenders confidence in our ability to deliver on results that exceed expectations.

How do you keep pace with the changing market trends?

Because of our large team of experts with experience across a broad range of AR, VR and 3D platforms, we are able to keep abreast of the latest innovations in the field.

Because of our low costs we are able to experiment with new technologies before they can deliver ROI (return on investment) as part of current commercial projects. Thus, when the technology matures, we already have an understanding of its unique strengths and benefits.

What’s the newer or newest technology that your Company uses?

We are focused on developing delivery platforms and processes to turn previously difficult and expensive custom solutions into low-cost, easily deployable high-quality turn-key products. This lowers the barrier to entry for clients seeking to integrate AR and VR into their current business processes.

Do you believe R&D is essential for the growth of the company?

R&D is a critical component of our planning and growth expectations. We are currently conducting R&D across numerous areas where we believe we can develop innovative new business lines and products. Because of the newness of the field, it is not easily possible to determine the timing and scale of new opportunities. Thus, having multiple projects under development simultaneously offers the greatest assurance that we will continue to grow revenues and clients faster than more constrained competitors.

Apart from work, what else do you like to spend your time doing?

Paracosma founded a team that is now one of just 77 Qualified Teams in the ANA Avatar XPRIZE Competition. It is a four-year competition to design a robotic avatar that allows a minimally trained user through VR technology to immersively interact with and help another human in a remote environment. There is no immediate commercial benefit for Paracosma’s AR & VR clients, but the competition is an exciting chance to branch out into robotics, sensor tech, machine vision, AI, telecommunications and other fields that are necessary for success.

What are the achievements and milestones of the company?

Since Paracosma’s founding four years ago, we have been able to consistently grow our team, clients and revenues at a rapid and sustainable pace. This has been possible, in large part by turning one-time projects into long-term client relationships. We now have ongoing monthly and multi-year repeat business that creates a stable base from which to grow.

The launch of our in-house developed VR game, called Unnamed VR, provides a great example of our capabilities for our enterprise clients, while providing a very entertaining experience for consumers.

What does the future hold for the company?

Paracosma plans to continue to strengthen its position in AR, VR and 3D content creation in parallel with the growth in those markets. We are excited to see the industry’s progress and are optimistic that we can continue to expand at an even faster pace.

Lastly, what message would you like to give to the readers of the Business Connect magazine?

The transition to 3D digital technology goes far beyond the scope of consumer AR & VR. Looking at the evolution from plain text to HTML websites and voice to video in the past, we see the current advance is from 2D imagining to 3D. We have retail clients saving millions of dollars a year on photography costs through the use of rendered 3D models. We see movie production moving from live-action sets to green screens combined with entire environments rendered in 3D game engines. These trends are inevitable and accelerating.