Varjo Introduces ‘Teleport’ Service for Effortless Real-World to VR Scanning

In an exciting development for the XR industry, Varjo has unveiled a new 3D scanning service designed for enterprise users, promising swift and photorealistic recreations of real-world environments. This new tool, dubbed Teleport, allows users to craft these immersive virtual spaces either on VR platforms or standard screens.

Teleport is a paid application that sets itself apart by enabling the capture and recreation of physical locations in a remarkably efficient 5 to 10 minutes, a game-changer compared to traditional photogrammetry. Compatible with a range of Apple devices, it supports iPhones from the XR model onwards and iPads starting from the 8th generation, provided they are running iOS 17 or later.

Once you’ve captured a space, these lifelike “digital twins” become accessible on various platforms, including smartphones, PCs, and even through Varjo’s own XR headsets, not to mention other popular PC VR headsets. What powers Teleport is its reliance on the latest in Gaussian Splatting technology and NVIDIA’s generative model training, which work together to ensure the models are processed swiftly in the cloud before being rendered locally on the user’s device. As a convenience, you only need an internet connection for the initial download, making further explorations seamless and uninterrupted.

Varjo offers Teleport at a subscription rate of $30 per month, enticing potential users with a seven-day free trial. This includes the ability to browse a variety of captures in standard and high-definition quality via a web viewer, with the highest resolution available through its desktop client.

This launch coincided with the expansion of Varjo’s Series D funding round, bringing in new financial backing from firms like Beyond Capital, Nishikawa Communications, and NVIDIA. While Varjo has kept the latest funding figures close to the chest, they’ve confirmed to Road to VR that this boosts their total lifetime funding to roughly €180 million (or $188 million USD).

The funds are set to support Varjo’s mission to drive the adoption of their XR technologies in the industrial sector. CEO Timo Toikkanen highlighted that they plan to harness the power of AI and machine learning to further blur the lines between physical and virtual spaces, aiming to boost both productivity and efficiency for their clients.

On a parallel note, Meta is also delving into this arena with its own project, Horizon Hyperscape, unveiled as a demonstration of their quest for photorealism back in September. While still in its nascent stages, Meta’s vision involves allowing creators to craft virtual worlds by merely using their smartphones to scan physical spaces. However, details on its availability are still under wraps.