The State of the AR Market
AR technology is transforming the way companies design, manufacture, operate, and service products—and fast. Explore research findings and AR trends to discover how digital transformation is driving the future of industry.
Proving value in workforce optimization
The latest edition of our bi-annual report explores how augmented reality solutions are being leveraged to reduce traking time and costs to bridge the worker skill gap. Our research finds industrial enterprises are the highest adopters of AR solutions and are seeing dramatic results in driving worker efficiency and quality, while lowering costs. The augmented reality industry report report includes actionable insights on use cases and beneficiaries, as well as detailed real-world examples.
AR adoption by industry
Which industries are moving quickly to capitalize on the AR opportunity?
AR market use case distribution by role
How is AR being applied to produce business results?
Digital design review - 47%
Using AR to inspect and test 3D digital prototypes, complimenting traditional prototyping.
Augmented design review - 36%
Superimposing changes or design enhancements on top of a physical product or prototype.
Operator & assembly work instructions - 25%
Overlay in-context detailed assembly and manufacturing instructions on how to perform processes, operate machinery, or assemble parts.
Maintenance work instructions - 25%
Overlay in-context detailed maintenance instructions on how to repair and perform upkeep on complex machinery.
Quality assurance - 13%
Validate production quality by comparing overlaid 3D digital CAD models to physical productions. AR also enables workers to add photos and videos to a quality assurance report.
Virtual layout planning - 13%
Production facility planning using AR to overlay, change, and validate floor layout designs.
Performance dashboards & alerts - 15%
View overlaid real-time equipment KPIs in context.
Virtual product companions - 45%
Augments users experience and makes the product more engaging.
Augmented brand experience - 35%
Leverage AR-enabled advertisements to create more engaging and dynamic experiences.
Service manual & instructions - 27%
Augmented training materials enable a faster response and decision making and increased first-time fix rate as service technicians can rapidly access information hands-free.
Service inspection & verification - 21%
Service training is more efficient, situational, and realistic than traditional training through paper manuals.
Remote expertise - 20%
Remote expertise (i.e. AR collaboration) bridges the gap between technical experts and a lesser skilled workforce.
Customer self-service - 17%
Overlaying in-context detailed product instructions to help improve the end customer self-service experience.
Guided work instructions - 14%
Overlaying floating arrows and simple text checklists on instructions means solving a problem.
Augmented operator manual - 33%
Displays product operation information and instructions for product usage and simple repairs overlaid in context of the product.
Head-up display - 24%
Provides real-time access to safety alerts, maps, and other dynamic content overlaid on the user’s dashboard or line of sight.
Augmented interface - 22%
Extend the product’s means to be controlled through an augmented user interface. The augmented interface can enable the removal of physical interfaces (i.e. button).
Digital product extension - 20%
Overlay digital graphics and information on physical product to enhance overall customer experience.
Job-specific training - 35%
Interactive and situational training that overlays 3D instructions for job tasks and assignments enabling hands-on and traditional training simultaneously.
Safety & security training - 18%
Overlaying of 3D instructions on security and safety procedures to prepare employees to handle potentially life-threatening or dangerous situations.
Expert coaching - 21%
Remote expert collaboration enables employees to access insights in real-time on specific job processes or tasks.
Knowledge transfer - 20%
Enabling employees with remote expert collaboration to access insights in real-time on specific job processes or tasks.
Collaborative Design Review - 2%
Engineers and designers use a shared view in AR to collaboratively review and develop products
AR trends: Hardware usage in the AR market
Which devices are AR experiences being delivered through?
Smartphone
Tablet
Other resources
Transform your business with Vuforia AR
Want to learn about how augmented reality technology can drive digital transformation for your business? Explore the Vuforia AR platform and read industrial AR use cases and market research.