The Technological Developments We’ll See in 2023

Technology has never evolved as quickly as it does today and that certainly won’t change in 2023.

Many of the world’s biggest companies are locked in a race to beat their competitors to bring new and improved products to market, including a mix of iterative improvements to existing lines and entirely new concepts. 

Some trends are easy to see, though others are a little more left field or hidden in the background. Regardless, they’re likely to change the world in the months and years to come.

Virtual Reality

Virtual reality is not a new concept. Companies like Samsung, HTC, and Sony have been selling VR headsets to the public for over a decade now, though it goes back even further than that.

In the mid-1990s, Nintendo attempted to create a VR games console called the Virtual Boy, though it was a huge flop as the technology wasn’t ready. 

Today, VR hardware is more accessible than ever, with Google’s Cardboard meaning it’s possible to enjoy an entry-level experience for a very low price. 

2022 is expected to be a big year for VR with several of the biggest players in the industry releasing new products. One of the most anticipated of these is Meta’s Quest 3.

Formerly known as Oculus, the company’s Quest 2 (see VPN for Oculus Quest 2 for more information) is one of the best-selling headsets on the market today. 

Current rumours suggest that the product won’t actually be called the Quest 3, though it will be a successor to the current hardware.

It will likely be a major step up in picture quality, battery life, and weight — three of the biggest barriers to mass adoption. 

In addition to the new hardware, more VR content will be released in 2022, including early metaverse platforms (more on that later). 

Augmented Reality

VR isn’t the only technology promising to change the way we experience the world.

Augmented reality could, arguably, play an even bigger role as it would be safe to use while walking around outside. 

Rather than projecting a video feed that replaces what we would see normally, as in VR, AR adds or changes the real world by overlaying graphics and data.

An early example of this was Google Glass, though it failed to get mainstream adoption due to privacy concerns and the fact that it was clunky. 

As the hardware improves, AR could have many different applications. In engineering, AR glasses could be worn by technicians as they perform certain tasks.

They would beam instructions or checklists as they work, removing the need to keep referring to hardcopies and searching through pages and pages of documentation. 

Meanwhile, in sport, technology has already been a huge influence.

Smartphones have given fans improved access to more data about games through companion apps from the news outlets and leagues themselves.

In addition to this, sportsbooks often offer a lot of live data including up-to-date scores, odds, sport or game-specific free bets, and more through their apps and websites.

AR could take this to a whole new level, with companies like Immersiv.io developing tools that would allow fans inside stadiums to get this same information and other information broadcast to their glasses. 

The Metaverse

The metaverse is one of the most-hyped (or possibly over-hyped) technologies on the planet right now.

The idea has been promoted heavily by Meta who are planning to invest billions of dollars in developing a digital VR world for us to spend time in, though they certainly aren’t the only player in the market. 

The company released its Horizon Worlds app to the public in early December 2021.

This early metaverse product lets users who own one of its VR headsets to create an avatar and then interact with other users and play games with them in its digital environment. 

This is just the first step in a long journey for the company, which clearly has a long-term vision for this new technology. 

Even if the metaverse eventually comes to nothing, either due to technical constraints or a lack of interest from the public, it will be a major factor in 2022 as Meta and its rivals try to gain an advantage over each other. 

If you’re interested in the metaverse and other topics surrounding technology you can see our articles here which cover the topic of metaverse statistics, facts & market size data.

You may also like to read about the future of the gaming industry.