PTC’s Vuforia takes top spot in ABI Research’s augmented reality platforms competitive assessment

Scottsdale, Arizona - 09 May 2017

ABI Research ranks PTC’s Vuforia platform as the leader among 19 augmented reality platform competitors, with Re’Flekt and Ubimax securing first and second runners-up positions. Recently acquired by PTC, Vuforia’s expansive platform offering and demanding market share now combines augmented reality (AR), IoT, and enterprise expertise. This positions Vuforia as the leader in AR platforms, especially when considering the dominant enterprise focus in the market.

“Vuforia’s story has several facets that are responsible for its favorable position: ample market experience, a complete portfolio, and a competitive enterprise supplement through PTC,” says Eric Abbruzzese, Senior Analyst at ABI Research. “The importance of a strong enterprise play cannot be understated. While the consumer market may be the key to eventual AR ubiquity, the enterprise market is this industry’s foundation.”

ABI Research’s competitive assessment broke competitors into three groups to better reflect the nature of the platforms: software development kit (SDK)-focused, application-focused, and usage-focused. While Vuforia, Re’Flekt, and Ubimax take the top three spots among all companies, each group has its own, distinct winners.

Vuforia, Wikitude, and ARToolKit are top suppliers in the SDK-focused group mainly due to strong machine vision and cloud device support. Aurasma (by HP), Augment, and Blippar score highest in the application-focused group thanks to strong customer footprint, fair pricing, and good developer accessibility. Re’Flekt, Ubimax, and Upskill Skylight are the main three in the usage-focused group due to their strong device support, IoT synergy, and smart glasses support.

“The transition from mobile-first augmented reality to glasses-first augmented reality will create the largest shift among platform players in the future,” concludes Abbruzzese. “Mobile device support is a differentiator currently, but platforms with strong smart glasses support, IoT synergy, and integration-ready accessibility position these platforms favorably for the upcoming market transitions.”

These findings are from ABI Research’s Augmented Reality Platforms competitive assessment. The full report details the complete list of companies and scores, along with detailed scoring reasoning, category definitions, and market positioning insight.