MWC 2023: Qualcomm is powering the metaverse and revolutionizing XR

Qualcomm is powering the metaverse with industry leading technologies across 5G, Wi-Fi, and XR. In these three research tech demos from MWC 2023, learn how Qualcomm is improving user experience with features like dynamic distributed compute for boundless AR, a 5G API for immersive applications, and perception-assisted wireless for improved performance.

The metaverse is an ever-present spatial internet that spans the physical, digital, and virtual worlds, where everything and everyone can communicate and interact seamlessly.

While the long-term vision for the metaverse is an ecosystem of cellular-powered AR glasses that connect directly to the cloud, our first tech demo illustrates a near-term solution where Wi-Fi powered AR glasses communicate to the cloud via a 5G-enabled phone. The demo showcases a dynamically-distributed compute system that toggles between local and remote compute modes, depending on the quality of 5G radio conditions.

Under ideal 5G radio conditions, the system operates in remote compute mode, where the pose and hand tracking information from the user flows from the glasses to the phone to the server. The server processes the data and sends back the encoded graphics via the phone to the glasses using a high-bandwidth 5G link.

But 5G radio conditions aren’t always ideal. To provide a good user experience, round-trip latency of the overall process should be kept low. Local compute provides lower latency in challenging 5G radio conditions, whereas remote compute enables higher-quality graphics and lower device power consumption.

The demo starts by showing an AR user in a vehicle whose starting point is a near-cell location with solid 5G link conditions. The system is in remote compute mode with rendering at the server, and round-trip latency is low.

As the user moves to a far-cell location, 5G link conditions deteriorate, increasing round-trip latency and over-the-air resource utilization. The system dynamically switches to local compute mode, which lowers the round-trip latency and resource utilization, thereby improving user experience and system capacity.

The second tech demo demonstrates how our 5G API enables a cloud gaming application — running on a Snapdragon-powered device using a 5G sub-7GHz network — to dynamically adapt in mobility.

Without the 5G API during mobility and handover scenarios, the video stutters several times. But with the 5G API enabled, the gameplay is much smoother in these scenarios — crucial for any serious gamer — providing a much-improved user experience.

In the third and final tech demo, Qualcomm illustrates how 5G performance can be improved by fusing XR perception with wireless technologies.

XR headsets can use sensors (cameras and inertial measurement units, or IMUs) to determine precise movements, while perception data can help devices select the best mmWave beam to switch to when environments change as the result of a movement or a blockage.

Using an XR headset powered by the Snapdragon XR2 platform, Qualcomm tested and validated the benefits of using XR perception in a 5G mmWave test network. The main benefits include significant signal improvements when fast movements or blockages are detected.

This is just the beginning. With the advent of 5G Advanced and 6G, the possibilities in the metaverse will be endless.

See more tech demos from Qualcomm at MWC 2023: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLADNcabi-P9ZUQ___XmY_Gbuzq2wGZ-L1

See more from Qualcomm at MWC 2023: https://www.qualcomm.com/company/events/mwc-barcelona

Be the first to know about the latest innovations in wireless technology: https://assets.qualcomm.com/wireless-technology-newsletter-sign-up.html   

00:00 Introduction
00:33 Demo 1: Boundless AR with dynamic distributed compute
03:12 Demo 2: 5G API for immersive applications
04:21 Demo 3: Perception-assisted 5G for enhanced XR