What’s up 👋
It’s Jack

Welcome to this new edition!
Here we discuss the latest news & opportunities in spatial computing.

🔗 Shortcuts:

• 📡 News in figures (adoption & market)

• 📍 Spatial projects (tools & resources)

• 📚 5 Side Business to build in Spatial Computing

In this edition, I wanted to present you 5 side-business ideas to develop around spatial computing. The ideas (and the problems they solve) have been validated by Vision Pro & Quest users. They're easy to develop and can be very lucrative. Let's go 👇

📡 News in figures

25%

That's the percentage of American teenagers who say they play games with a virtual reality headset. The survey involved 1,453 American children aged 13 to 17. By gender, 32% of boys and 15% of girls reported playing games on a virtual reality headset.

$300

This is the estimated price of META’s future headset, which will probably be called "Quest 3 Lite" or "Quest 3S". Intended as a more affordable version of the Quest 3, it will probably be equipped with the same Snapdragon XR2 Gen 2 chipset as the Quest 3 but will use the Quest 2's old fresnel lenses to reach a price of around $300.

📍 Spatial projects

This week, I'm sharing a series of Apple Vision Pro apps that I found very cool:

• Spatial Physics Playground:
  This is an immersive spatial app for your Apple Vision that transforms your environment into a limitless arena for physics experiments. The app is really nice and satisfying. Strangely, it relieved me of stress and allowed me to see the potential of the Apple Vision Pro to the fullest.

• WowDance: (WTF!)

  This app digitizes dynamic real-life female dancers, featuring various types of enchanting dancers that can be viewed from multiple perspectives in MR mode.

• Spatial Gomoku:

  A Gomoku Game which supports SharePlay to play with friends during Spatial Persona time.

As a reminder, you can find the complete list in Spatial Applist

📚 5 Side Business to build in Spatial Computing

This week, I want to dive into a topic that keeps coming up in my conversations lately: How to start a side business in Spatial Computing. So, I’ve decided to dedicate this edition to sharing what I’d do if I were starting a side hustle in Spatial Computing industry from scratch in 2024.

First off, let’s define what a “side business” is for those who might not be familiar. A side business is a venture you develop alongside your main activity. This could be alongside university studies, a full-time job, or even during your retirement (Yes, many retirees maintain an online side hustle 😂).

A side business is a great way to dip your toes into entrepreneurship without making drastic decisions that might put too much pressure on you—something that isn't feasible for many.

Here’s my take: if you’re aiming to build a highly ambitious business and you’re full of energy, dynamic, and have minimal life commitments, go ALL IN. That means 100%, not 50% or 20% (which is what you’d put into a side business). Going all in will push you faster and harder. The sense of urgency and chaos, while intimidating, can be a significant accelerator. But, if you have commitments or just aren’t ready for that level of intensity, I totally get wanting to start on the side and I encourage you to go for it.

When it comes to your organization, know that a side business still requires a fair amount of work. All my side businesses took up my weekends and evenings for about 6 to 8 months before taking off. Be aware of what you’re getting into. If you enjoy it, the time will fly by and you’ll want to do more!

This brings us nicely to the next point: Enjoying what you do.

Choosing a side business should be driven by what you love, what interests you, what obsesses you.

If you’re reading this newsletter, you’re probably pretty interested in spatial computing. So let’s take it a step further. Here are five types of side businesses you can develop:

1. Niche Communities

Communities are easy to start and grow, and they’re very easy to monetize. This is the first type of side business I often recommend, especially in spatial computing. The idea is to bring people together in a very specific niche, even more precise than spatial computing. It could be spatial designers, spatial developers, spatial marketers. You can narrow it down further: spatial designers for Apple Vision Pro focused on UX, for example. Decide your roadmap and how you’ll monetize this audience: Premium access? External partnerships? Paid associated tools?

2. Niche Courses

Like communities, creating a course is quite easy and quick. There’s no technical barrier, which is why it’s one of my top side business recommendations. Again, the key is to focus on a very specific topic: How to develop a game on Apple Vision Pro? How to design a Quest app? Be precise. Be focused. And most importantly, be ready to become the go-to expert in your area. If you want your side business to last, you need a personal content strategy that aligns with your business’s editorial line. You need to be personally recognized as a “good developer” to offer a “good course”.

3. Templates & Scripts

Another easy-to-launch side business with great potential involves creating pre-made scripts dedicated to spatial computing. Platforms like Envato list digital assets such as scripts, designs, audio tracks, etc. You can list spatial application scripts (Apple Vision Pro), dedicated logos, or even spatial sounds.

4. Viral Applications

Many people aim to develop complex and costly spatial applications. If you want to start a side business, I’d recommend focusing on creating a small, easy-to-develop app with viral potential. You could offer in-app purchases with a premium tier to monetize the app. Look to viral iPhone apps for inspiration. For example, right now there are viral apps helping people find clothing colors that match their skin tone. Maybe there’s a concept like that for VR?

Remember, 80% of the work is in distribution.

The WowDance app I mentioned earlier could explode if it were distributed more. A few TikTok videos could make it go viral!

5. Micro Tools

The last type of side business that is easy to launch and has potential is the creation of micro-tools specialized in spatial computing. This could be as simple as a niche job board platform that allows companies to find spatial computing freelancers (such as SpatialFreelance.com). There are many other ideas that can be easily monetized. We can discuss these further in the community - I have a list of over 30 micro-tools that can be easily monetized. Again, distribution is key. Don't start developing a tool you can't distribute 🙂 .

I hope you liked this edition!
If you want daily tips on spatial computing, let’s chat on Twitter🤝