Thousands of new startups are founded every year, despite considerable disruptions and challenges to the global economy. To introduce you to emerging technologies and startups in the entertainment sector, we analyzed a total of 1.659 global entertainment startups & scaleups.
Global Startup Heat Map reveals 5 Entertainment Startups You Should Watch in 2021
Out of 1.659, the 5 entertainment startups to watch this year are chosen through the Big Data & Artificial Intelligence (AI)-powered StartUs Insights Discovery Platform, covering over 1.3 million startups & scaleups globally. The platform gives you the most exhaustive collection of solutions and ensures you continuously discover new startups, scaleups, and technologies. This enables you to easily scout for entertainment technologies and startups that matter to you and drive innovation in your industry forward.
The Global Startup Heat Map below highlights the 5 entertainment startups you should watch in 2021 as well as the geo-distribution of the other 1.654 startups & scaleups we analyzed for this research. The 5 highlighted entertainment startups are hand-picked based on our data-driven startup scouting approach, taking into account factors such as location, founding year, relevance of technology, and funding, among others.
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HoboLoco develops Foot-Operated Controller for Virtual Reality (VR) & Gaming
Advancements in computer-generated graphics, motion capture, and sensors enable designers and developers to produce captivating visual experiences for viewers. Interactive visual technologies push movement controller design into novel paths for efficient navigation. Startups now develop tailored solutions to improve movement control in video games and virtual reality worlds, leveraging the user-experience.
The US-based startup HoboLoco devises enhanced navigation control solutions for VR and gaming. The startup’s hoverboard-like foot-operated controller enables users to replace or augment standard human interface devices (HID). HoboLoco’s controller helps people who have lost the use of their hands but can flex their feet to engage in video games otherwise inaccessible to them. Also, in VR applications, the controller’s haptic feedback gives the user a sense of movement and minimizes VR sickness.
in3D provides 3D Body Scanning App
Mapping real-world data into digital systems for VR or video games requires 3D scanners with dedicated hardware. Innovations in machine learning and 3D-mapping enable startups to develop 3D-scanning solutions from off-the-shelf devices, including smartphone cameras. This flexibility allows end-users, without any coding experience, to utilize the technology and create solutions tailored for their needs. For example, an off-the-shelf 3D-mapping system enables users to develop their digital avatars and use them in animation videos.
in3D is a US-based startup that offers a 3D body scanning app for iPhone users. The startup provides a software development kit (SDK) for capturing the exact shape and look of the human body. in3D’s smartphone app enables game developers to include player-specific characters, enhancing the gaming experience. Also, the body data further helps to reduce fashion product returns & increase conversion, and animate digital twins to create entertaining stickers.
Chordata Motion creates Open Source Motion Capture Kits
Motion capture aids character animation and also facilitates movement mapping in video games and movies. Developers utilize optical markers or non-optical sensors to track the motion of the subject and integrate it into digital format. Motion capture demands expensive hardware and software that limits its usage in small productions. Innovations in computer modeling and engineering enable startups to devise cost-effective and standalone motion tracking solutions.
Spanish startup Chordata Motion provides open-source motion capture systems as plug & play and full-motion packages. The plug & play kit features pre-calibrated sensors and comprehensive processing software and hardware, including Raspberry Pi. The open-source nature of Chordata Motion’s kits enables game designers & animators, among others, to customize it as required for diverse projects, offering optimum control.
NeoAxis builds a Royalty-Free Built-In 3D Game Engine
Game engines’ end-to-end world-building tools enable developers to build a wide variety of games and movies. However, proprietary industry-grade game engines are expensive. Therefore, startups develop open-source game development kits to help independent production houses create visually pleasing games and films. Even though some game engines are available for free, like UnrealEngine and CryEngine, open-sourced projects improve flexibility.
NeoAxis is a Russian startup that develops 2D and 3D game engines for computer games, visual training, and VR systems. NeoAxis’ 3D game engine is a royalty-free platform with its source code openly available for project-dependent customization and development. The game engine also supports 64-bit floating precision, thereby enabling complex open-world designs.
Myelin Foundry offers Edge-Device AI Solutions
Video transmission consumes a significant part of the internet bandwidth. With digital service providers switching to 4K from high definition (HD) & Full HD, end-users need broader bandwidth to accommodate the services. Advancements in artificial intelligence, video encoding, and user-end device capabilities enable startups to develop standalone solutions that minimize data consumption and provide high-quality content. For example, high-efficiency video coding (HEVC) offers better video compression than conventional encoding techniques without reducing the video quality.
Indian startup Myelin Foundry provides an experience-enhancing platform, Fovea Stream, with real-time video enhancement and 4K upscaling. Myelin’s AI engine also learns from video content to provide intelligent recommendations. The startup utilizes deep learning for content- and context-aware services to streaming platforms with a codec-independent API. Furthermore, the video upscaling feature reduces data consumption and average streaming costs, thus enhancing the viewer experience and reducing the carbon footprint.
Discover more Entertainment Startups
The 1.600+ entertainment startups are only a small sample of what we identified during our research. Explore one of our free Industry Innovation Reports for a broad overview of the industry or get in touch for quick & exhaustive research on the latest technologies and emerging solutions that will soon impact your company.
