Augmented Reality: Entrepreneurial Opportunities and Challenges

*September 19 update - we are currently sold out for this event. Please contact blankcenter@babson.edu for more information.*

Registration begins at 5:30pm
Opening Remarks/Discussion begins at 6pm

Pokémon Go’s global success has revealed the business potential of augmented reality (AR). The technology has become the first widely-adopted AR implementation. Despite glitches and performance issues, Pokémon Go’s app has reached a critical technology maturity level that, combined with a well-thought value proposition, serves as an initial proof-of-concept with great potential for monetization. Entrepreneurs interested in entering the AR space need to understand the unique business and revenue models enabled by AR technologies, and the challenges to the emergent AR enterprises—particularly those related to customer privacy. In this panel discussion, we will discuss and debate answers to the following questions:

• What business models lend themselves best to AR startups and why?
• What considerations are unique to AR startups and how should entrepreneurs prepare themselves to tackle them?
• As AR companies become more pervasive, how should entrepreneurs deal with the inherent challenges of privacy and behavior changes that can create a "dark side" to using the tech?
• What's next for Pokemon Go and how will it influence the next crop of AR startups?
• How will our physical connection (devices, wearables) to AR change over time?
• How will social media play a role in AR powered companies?

Our panel will feature:


Sarah Downey – Principal, Accomplice
Sarah A. Downey is a writer, marketer, and attorney, and currently a Principal at Accomplice (FKA Atlas Venture). She joined Accomplice after a year as Director of Marketing at Ovuline, a women's reproductive health startup making fertility and pregnancy mobile apps, and three years as Manager of Content and Communications at Abine, a consumer online privacy startup. Sarah received her J.D. from the University of Connecticut School of Law, where she obtained a certification in intellectual property and was a Pudlin First Amendment scholar, and holds a B.A. in Psychology from Hamilton College. Sarah’s comments have been published in over 250 publications, including The Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, Forbes, The Economist, CNET, and CNN. She is a marathon runner and video gamer.

Ruben Mancha – Professor, Babson College
Ruben Mancha is an Assistant Professor of Information Systems in the Technology, Operations and Information Management division. His primary research areas are digital innovation and sustainability. His work has been published in journals such as Decision Support Systems, Journal of Environmental Psychology, International Journal of Technology Transfer and Commercialisation, Journal of Information Technology Management, and Journal of Intelligent systems in Accounting, Finance and Management. He has also contributed essays to a number of edited books, such as Contemporary Perspectives in Data Mining II and Encyclopedia of Research Design. At Babson, he teaches graduate courses in information technology and business analytics in executive education programs.

Ross Finman – Founder, AR Spirit
Ross Finman is a Ph.D. Student in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. His research is focused on the intersection of computer vision and robotic mapping applications by using theory developed for the former in the new data domain of the latter.