Futuremark is a company well known for their 3DMark, PCMark, and most recently their VRMark tests that measure the performance of hardware and devices for users. VR First is an organization that teams with universities and science parks to provide facilities and advice for cultivating VR and AR development talent. The two entities are combining forces to develop VR industry standards, a needed practice as the young industry evolves rapidly.
“Futuremark’s extensive benchmarking experience and independent voice will be invaluable in our mission to democratize VR innovation, set industry standards, and create a global VR knowledge base,” says VR First co-founder Ferhan Özkan in a prepared statement.
With VR First’s already established position, Futuremark’s influence will help to build standards, shape the technology roadmap, and facilitate cross-platform content development.
“In a short time, VR First has made impressive progress in bringing together industry partners, creators, and educators to deliver real results,” states Futuremark’s director of engineering Jani Joki, in the same statetment. “The lack of consistent standards for VR has been widely discussed over the last 12 months. I look forward to working with VR First members to address this important issue.”
Another standard that will be conducive to the success of the VR industry and, hopefully, accelerate the industry’s progression is Khronos Group’s OpenXR. Khronos is doing their due diligence by bringing together big and small voices across VR to clean up the chaotic infrastructure within software development for all of the different VR headsets. OpenXR will also be shaping standards for augmented reality as they move into their next phase. For both OpenXR and this undertaking from VR First and Futuremark, it is great to see such things falling into place at this crucial stage of VR growth.
