Could Holograms Soon Take Over Your Desktop Virtual Meetings?

During last year’s Venice Biennale, organizers found themselves in a crunch when an opening artwork couldn’t make it in time to the show due to the ongoing Ukraine-Russia conflict, leaving just a sad printout to take its place. 

That’s when Christie’s came up with the brilliant idea to beam the sculpture into its rightful exhibit instead, installing a holographic likeness of Edgar Degas’ Petite danseuse de quatorze ans (Little Fourteen-Year-Old Dancer).

Just how exactly did they do this? The incredible task was projected via a hologram designed by Los Angeles-based Proto (formerly PORTL), which first made headlines in 2020 when it showcased its “portal” that allowed individuals to project a 3D image of themselves. 

Now, in a recent report by Interesting Engineering, a follow-up question is being asked: in the age of remote working, could hologram technology overtake video messaging platforms, such as Zoom or Skype?

It seems industry experts are in favor of the possibility, considering the firm’s patented desktop device, the Proto M, was announced yet again as a CES 2023 Innovation Award Honoree for the second year running. 

The tablet-like gadget retails for US$6,900, and allows a person to beam his or her image to anywhere in the world, while still creating a perception of depth that can somewhat be “felt,” unlike the video messaging services we’ve grown accustomed to. 

Its capabilities have expanded since the pandemic, now not just focusing on two-way communication, but the ability to add and play pre-recorded messages, including realistic 3D images of products or digital tokens. 

Even more impressively, the tool seems to have caught on in the medical sector, and is already in use at the University of Central Florida’s College of Health Professions and Sciences, where a doctor from Australia was “beamed in” for a lesson. 

FierceHealthcare reports that students have taken a shine to the uncommon technology, with the 3D patient simulation module providing more opportunities for them to improve their in-class clinical and surgical skills. 

In addition, the publication noted other medical schools could soon be interested in acquiring the device, in order to help with Parkinson’s disease diagnoses, speech-language pathology, or physical therapy. 

Within the entertainment sphere, many celebrities have already tapped into Proto M’s capabilities to make themselves more accessible to fans, such as famed athletes Manny Pacquiao, Usain Bolt, and Lewis Hamilton. 

If a tabletop hologram seems too small-scale, the company has created a larger, human-sized Epic that resembles a box. The seven-foot-tall machine allows one to view the entire body of a person, giving the impression they’re actually within its confines even if they’re miles away. 

Unfortunately, the life-sized rendition will set you back at least US$65,000, so it may be out of reach for most of the population at the moment. Could 3D, full-body communication take over talking heads as the standard in the near future? Quite possibly. 

[via Interesting Engineering and FierceHealthcare, images via Proto]