Header Banner
Next Reality Logo
Next Reality
Mobile AR News
nextreality.mark.png
Apple Snap AR Business Google Instagram | Facebook NFT HoloLens Magic Leap Hands-On Smartphone AR The Future of AR Next Reality 30 AR Glossary ARKit Dev 101 What Is AR? Mixed Reality HoloLens Dev 101 Augmented Reality Hololens How-Tos HoloLens v. Magic Leap v. Meta 2 VR v. AR v. MR

Apple AR: Real World Objects Disappear Thanks to Textures and ARKit

A small white bird walking on a wooden surface.

When we think of augmented reality, we usually think of it as adding things to our reality. A new demo has shown that using Apple's ARKit, we can not only add to reality but subtract from reality as well.

The demo was posted by Laan Labs who just yesterday created a demo that had an iPhone levitating. This demo shows a few different real life objects, including a statue of a bird and an iPhone, placed on different surfaces. Suddenly, seconds later the object disappears.

This is done using live textures that are placed over the object. Laan Labs ripped the spot that they were going to have the object set, and then placed the spot over the object to make it disappear. The textures are live, meaning that when the user walks around the surface, the object doesn't reappear, the texture simply reshapes to remain where it is.

The live texture overlaying isn't perfect by any means yet, you can still kind of tell where the overlay is, but technology like this could be part of a new wave of AR. Digital Media Innovator Jay Samit talked about using AR to subtract from reality in an interview with Next Reality News. He said that the future of AR is walking into a supermarket and having your AR technology programmed to subtract all the things you don't want from the aisles, making it easier to find what you're looking for. You can check out the full interview with Jay Samit here.

Cover image via laanlabs/YouTube

Apple's iOS 26 and iPadOS 26 updates are packed with new features, and you can try them before almost everyone else. First, check Gadget Hacks' list of supported iPhone and iPad models, then follow the step-by-step guide to install the iOS/iPadOS 26 beta — no paid developer account required.

Related Articles

Comments

No Comments Exist

Be the first, drop a comment!