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Magic Leap Preps Augmented Reality SDK

 & Stephanie Mlot Contributor

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Magic Leap will soon open its doors to developers working in augmented reality.

Chief Creative Officer Graeme Devine this week teased an upcoming software development kit, with support for Unity, Unreal, and custom 3D engines.

"Excited we've got our SDK working," Devine tweeted on Tuesday. "Releasing soon, stay tuned!"

A Magic Leap spokesman told PCMag that "at some point in the near future, our SDK [will be available] for outside developers, designers, and storytellers to experiment with."

In March, Magic Leap teased its advanced AR tech—a game played with physical props and a headset. Unlike the entirely immersive virtual reality worlds built for the Oculus Rift and Samsung Gear VR, augmented reality superimposes images and videos onto the real world.

Founded in 2011 and headquartered in Florida, Magic Leap was born out of the idea that people should come first, and that computing and technology fit our needs.

Silicon Valley seemed to agree: Last fall, Magic Leap pulled in $542 million in funding from giants like Google and Qualcomm. As part of the deal, Google senior vice president Sundar Pichai now sits on the board of directors. In December, meanwhile, science-fiction writer and game designer Neal Stephenson joined the firm as "Chief Futurist."

But Magic Leap isn't the only company exploring AR: Microsoft has its HoloLens headset. Redmond's device, which wowed the crowd at April's Build 2015, also comes with the Windows Holographic Platform—a toolkit for developers to create HoloLens apps for Windows 10.

About Our Expert

Stephanie Mlot

Stephanie Mlot

Contributor

My Experience

  • B.A. in Journalism & Public Relations with minor in Communications Media from Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP)
  • Reporter at The Frederick News-Post (2008-2012)
  • Reporter for PCMag and Geek.com (RIP) (2012-present)

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