PICO Dev Jam 2023: Unleashing VR innovation

The 2023 PICO Dev Jam is a groundbreaking global competition organized by PICO, a leading VR company. With a mission to drive innovation and immerse participants in the world of extended reality (XR), this competition promises to reshape the way we perceive and interact with virtual environments. Let’s delve into the details of this exciting event.

Challenges and Timeline

The 2023 PICO Dev Jam is set to run from September 25 to December 10, featuring a series of campus tour sessions across the US and EU. The timeline includes registration, submission, judging, and the announcement of potential winners, concluding with the final reveal on December 10.

The core theme of this competition is to “Redefine XR: Beyond Imagination, Into Innovation.” Participants are encouraged to craft VR and mixed reality experiences that push the boundaries of creativity and functionality. This theme invites developers to explore various avenues within XR technology.

What to Build

Participants are tasked with building a demo app or designing a document that aligns with the theme of the competition. This can encompass game design, productivity solutions, entertainment experiences, educational tools, financial and medical applications, desktop utilities, multi-user scenarios, and even the transformation of mobile apps into 3D or VR experiences. Developers are encouraged to incorporate PICO’s specialized SDKs to enhance their projects.

Submission Formats

Participants have flexibility in submitting their projects, which can be in the form of a design document, online document, a demo app, or a video demonstration. Various formats, including slides, Word documents, PDFs, and videos, are accepted. The submitted projects must be capable of consistent installation and operation on the intended platform or emulator.

PICO SDK Integration

Developers are encouraged to leverage PICO’s SDKs to enrich their projects. The PICO Sense Pack offers solutions for mixed reality development, including features like spatial calibration and spatial anchors. The PICO Interaction Pack focuses on hand tracking and supports Unity’s XR Hands pack, adhering to the OpenXR standard.

Prizes

The 2023 PICO Dev Jam boasts a generous prize pool of $49,500. The prizes are divided into various categories, ranging from 1st to 5th prizes, recognizing exceptional entries. Furthermore, there are awards for the best game app, best non-game app, best MR design, and best hand tracking projects. Winners will be selected from different regions across the globe.