Rokid Co-founder Xiang Wenjie: All AR manufacturers are looking forward to Apple's participation | Innovator

Author | Yu Huiru Editor | Zhang Xiaoling

The release of the Apple XR device has brought the AR (Augmented Reality) industry to a new turning point.

Last year, amidst the metaverse craze, the AR track was bustling. This year, amidst the AI boom, the AR industry has returned to calmness.

However, in early June, the release of the Apple XR device injected new vitality into this somewhat desolate industry. Despite being criticized by analysts for its high price, short battery life, heavy weight, and the impact of its split power supply design on user experience, Apple Vision Pro may become the flagship product that will dominate the industry until 2023.

"It can be considered an iconic product and the starting point for consumer-grade AR products." said Xiang Wenjie, co-founder of Hangzhou Rokid Technology Co., Ltd. All AR manufacturers are looking forward to Apple joining the "game". As the most influential player in the industry, Apple's participation can accelerate the rapid growth of the market.

As one of the "Four Little Dragons" of AR in China (Nreal, Thunderbird Innovation, Rokid, and Yingmu), Rokid may also usher in greater development opportunities.

Differentiating itself from its competitors in terms of product direction, Hangzhou Rokid Technology is making efforts in both industrial-grade and consumer-grade products. So far, its AR glasses lineup includes the B-end X-Craft, Glass 2, and the C-end AIR, MAX, among others.

National Grid AR Operation and Maintenance Inspection Source: Provided by interviewees

This "dual-track" strategy in the B-end and C-end markets, with controllable risks, has become an important factor for Hangzhou Rokid Technology to navigate through industry cycles.

As a result, Rokid has also become a "hot potato" in the eyes of investors. According to Tianyancha, since its establishment in 2014, Rokid has raised multiple rounds of funding, with a lineup of top-tier institutions including IDG Capital, Yuanjing Capital, and Temasek. In April of this year, Rokid completed a new round of financing worth 100 million yuan.

The following is the content of the interview between All-Weather Technology and Xiang Wenjie, co-founder of Hangzhou Rokid Technology, sorted out by All-Weather Technology:

"Apple Vision Pro is the starting point for consumer-grade AR products"

All-Weather Technology: Did you watch the Apple event? How do you evaluate Apple Vision Pro?

Xiang Wenjie: People inside and outside the industry have been discussing this recently. Apple's product has been delayed for too long, and everyone has been looking forward to it. However, because there was already a lot of information online before the release, the event didn't bring much surprise.

Before the release of Apple Vision Pro, the industry's focus on the XR industry was more on the VR direction. But now it's different. People have realized that AR is the true future of personal computing terminals. We have two understandings of Apple Vision Pro. First, the industry is transitioning from VR to AR. Secondly, although it may not become a milestone product like the first generation of Apple, it can be considered as a iconic product and the starting point of consumer-grade AR products.

All-Weather Technology: What does Apple's entry mean for the XR industry and the entire consumer electronics industry?

Xiang Wenjie: The book "The Innovator's Dilemma" proposes the gap between early adopters and technology users, and bridging this gap is an important challenge for technological innovation. The current users in the AR industry are all alpha customers (early adopters). Only by bridging the gap can ordinary users achieve rapid growth.

At this stage, all AR manufacturers are looking forward to Apple joining the "game". As the most influential player in the industry, Apple's entry can accelerate the market's rapid growth, lead everyone to cross the gap quickly, and make more ordinary consumers aware of and understand AR products.

All-Weather Technology: According to third-party statistics, the shipment volume of AR glasses has not been high in the past few years.

Xiang Wenjie: Industry data shows that the consumer-side AR market was almost zero before 2021, but it suddenly took off in 2021 and reached 300,000 units in 2022. However, compared with other consumer electronics industries, the current market size of AR is still too small. We expect that this year's shipment volume will at least double, and the growth rate in the consumer market will be faster than that in the business market.

All-Weather Technology: Some institutions predict that the shipment volume of consumer-grade AR glasses will reach 50 million units by 2025. What do you think?

Xiang Wenjie: That's an exaggeration. We think it will be close to tens of millions. It may still take two to three years for the market to cross the gap. There is one point here, Apple Vision Pro is not a high-volume product. Although the target is expected to be 1 million units, the target volume is already decreasing. Apple Vision Pro is aimed at early alpha customers or developers and is a productivity tool product. If Apple wants to achieve high volume in the consumer market, the product must be "Apple Vision" with a price of 10,000 yuan, similar to the current high-end Apple products.

All-Weather Technology: If Apple's products reach a million units, can the shipment volume of consumer-grade AR glasses reach tens of millions?

Xiang Wenjie: It can be said that it will be difficult to reach tens of millions without Apple in the consumer-grade AR glasses market.

Image source: provided by the interviewee

"The consumer market has not yet reached the differentiation stage"

All-Weather Technology: Some AR manufacturers focus on the consumer market, while others emphasize the business market. Your company is taking both paths. What is the consideration behind this business model? To Wenjie Xiang: Strictly speaking, we are not just an AR company. Our positioning is a company that focuses on human-computer interaction. We hope to change people's work, life, entertainment, and industrial status quo through new interactive methods. Therefore, when building technology and product frameworks, our principle is "providing excellent interactive services," rather than confining ourselves to the consumer or business sectors.

We have accumulated enough technology and reserves, and it is not difficult to pursue both directions simultaneously. In January of this year, we separated the two teams internally and established two independent companies, each targeting the consumer (To C) market and the business (To B) market, respectively.

All-Weather Technology: In March, you released Rokid Max, and some comments said that this product did not bring much innovation. What is your opinion?

Wenjie Xiang: In many people's minds, AR should be as cool as it is in science fiction movies. In fact, this is an unrealistic imagination and a loss of focus on technology. Frontline users are practical. What they need are products that are more practical, simple to use, and can bring real value, rather than just cool things. Only industry professionals will emphasize innovation and technology.

We hope to hide the technology behind the product and define and innovate the product around the user. Regarding the new product Rokid Max, its iteration and innovation mainly revolve around several points: lighter weight, better display effect, larger field of view, more convenient and simple operation, and richer ecosystem. All of these are user-centric.

All-Weather Technology: For consumer-grade products, what is your target user group?

Wenjie Xiang: The current AR market is similar to the early stage of the mobile phone market and has not yet reached the stage of differentiation. The reason is simple: the early market targets similar groups of people. What manufacturers can do is to create a single explosive product. Only when more people enter the market will there be products that cater to different groups, such as students, women, and business professionals, and then corresponding segmented markets will emerge. In the next three to five years, everyone will focus on perfecting a single product first. If there is a need for differentiation, it may be done through basic models and high-end models.

Seizing the Market Vacated by Microsoft

All-Weather Technology: What is the overall sales system of Hangzhou Lingban Technology?

Wenjie Xiang: There are three directions: the consumer end, targeting individual consumers; the digital cultural business end, targeting museums, scenic spots, education, and other fields; and the industrial end, targeting energy, power, high-end manufacturing, and other industries.

Starting from the sales channels, online is the battleground for all manufacturers, so we will ensure our online presence is leading. Of course, offline channels are also becoming increasingly important, and in the future, we will adopt a dual-channel strategy.

All-Weather Technology: Earlier this year, Microsoft announced the complete dissolution of its Industrial Metaverse team, which had only been established for four months. Google also announced the official discontinuation of its enterprise edition smart glasses (Glass Enterprise 2). What impact does this have on you and the industry?

Wenjie Xiang: In fact, neither Google nor Microsoft is particularly suitable for hardware. Their real expertise lies in software. In terms of the direction of industrial AR glasses, we have two main competitors, one is Rovio and the other is Microsoft. Now that Microsoft has withdrawn, its previous customers need to choose new partners, and there are not many companies worldwide that can provide good B-side products. So, this is an opportunity for us. We are ready to gradually capture the market share it has given up.