How gaming technology is changing the business world
When Notre-Dame erupted in flames in 2019, many feared that all the details of the centuries-old cathedral would be lost to history and that any attempt to restore the building would fail to capture the many unique features that millions of visitors visit every year. amazed visitors.
The story goes that an unlikely helping hand came to the rescue in the form of Ubisoft, the French video game studio behind the runaway success story of the Assassin’s Creed series. Each incarnation of the game is set in a different historical world, allowing players to explore everywhere from ancient Egypt to Renaissance Italy. The anthology has won millions of fans around the world, thanks in no small part to its incredibly accurate and lifelike replicas of real-world buildings, allowing players to clamber over the Pyramids of Giza, London’s Bank of England and the Uffizi in Florence . Gallery.
With Notre-Dame – captured in all its glory – at the heart of its 2014 entry for Revolutionary France, Ubisoft quickly offered up the 3D modeled designs it had captured as part of its efforts to restore the cathedral.
Whoever said, “Never let the truth get in the way of a good story,” might have been on to something. While 3D modeling proved crucial in the reconstruction of Notre-Dame, the real helping hand came from American software company Autodesk, which developed a full 3D model of the cathedral. The model was created by comparing laser scans of the structure before the fire with scans after the fire, and combining them to create a 3D BIM model of the 12th century building.
But the very fact that Ubisoft believed its technology provided an answer is a telling reflection of how far the gaming industry has come in shaping the way we view and interact with the world around us.
Potential that goes beyond gaming
The gaming sector contributes over £10 billion to the UK economy and is growing steadily at 15% per year. It is a thriving industry that is constantly pushing the boundaries of what is possible with its technology. From expansive open-world games to immersive platforms such as Augmented and Virtual Reality (AR/VR), gaming technology is among the most advanced available. Its potential outside of entertainment has long been overlooked, but now we’re seeing a shift as organizations start using this technology to solve real-world problems.
In healthcare we see the latest developments in VR technology being used to support real-time operations and improve precision, while advanced databases developed for the Football Manager game are being used by real technical staff to create player profiles to understand.
The creative and inventive application of gaming technology in real world environments has the potential to not only address productivity and efficiency challenges, but also invites us to look for solutions in unexpected places to drive the future of business.
These are just a few ways companies are integrating their strategy with gaming innovation.
How large-scale virtual worlds help us map complex real worlds
The largest open world game in existence is No Man’s Sky – a game that is the size of 18 trillion planets, which is 31,7000,000,000,000,000,000,000 km2. The scale of building virtual worlds is literally galactic, and the technology developed to build these worlds can also be used to create digital twins of existing environments, down to the smallest detail.
Digital twins have long been used in corporate environments to manage warehouses, businesses and even entire cities, but the advent of AI is expanding their capabilities. With AI, a digital twin can make predictions about events that will impact its physical counterpart, using real-time data to support decision-making and prevent potential disruptions.
This is perhaps most crucial in the world of supply chains, where disruption costs the UK £12 billion in lost sales every year. Amazon – one of the most expensive and complicated supply chains in the world – has implemented AI and simulation technology to support the function of its highly complex automated warehouses, revealing increased efficiencies, reducing costs and improving performance.
Inspired by large-scale virtual worlds for computer games, business leaders can use AI-powered simulations to broaden their periphery and anticipate how external factors, such as extreme weather or political unrest, could impact their operations. This foresight is critical in today’s fast-paced, interconnected world, where the ability to quickly anticipate disruptions and adjust strategy accordingly is essential for navigating the complexities of global business.
Using the concept of ‘multiple lives’ in a business environment
In the gaming world, mistakes help players to improve tactically and think to move to the next level. However, in the business world, companies do not have “multiple lives.”
When it comes to large projects that dramatically change business systems or expand into new markets, decision makers must carefully weigh the risks and make decisions with confidence, but this is difficult to do when consultants paint only half the picture.
Gartner estimates that 55% to 75% of all ERP projects fail to meet their objectives, and a key reason for this is that decisions are made in functional silos without anyone having the bigger picture in sufficient detail. For example, robotics system manufacturers will tell you the productivity benefits of automating a specific aspect of the warehouse or a particular operational task, but they will struggle to prove the ROI the entire warehouse will deliver, or how a broader rollout across the offering can take place. chain will impact your business.
By using an AI-powered digital twin early in the transformation program, companies can apply this concept of “endless lives” to a business environment, using real-time data to test and rehearse how different decisions will impact their business in a secure way to influence. and controlled environment. Companies can stress test organizational systems and see what would happen if they plugged in automation at different stages. With this foresight, business leaders can identify potential problems and make plans to solve or avoid them accordingly, and get a better idea of the ROI before making an investment.
Improve your team with new skills
It’s also true that the more advanced you become in a video game, the more your avatar needs the right experience, tools, and skills to overcome obstacles. The same goes for businesses, in that teams need the right tools and training to overcome complex and evolving challenges, take their business to the next level, and advance in their own careers.
In highly technical disciplines such as surgery or aviation, the latest developments in Augmented and Virtual Reality (AR/VR) software play a crucial role in training. These simulations allow professionals to practice complex operations or drive vehicles in a risk-free environment, helping them hone their skills and build confidence before setting foot in the operating room or cockpit.
From the perspective of business operations transformation, using AI and digital twins of business operations is akin to improving x-ray vision. You gain the ability to look into the future and understand whether investments made now are likely to deliver on their promise in the future, and how to best navigate to the best possible outcome.
These technologies are designed for an enhanced user experience and, when used in a business environment, can improve stakeholder engagement, collaboration and alignment in decision-making by increasing visibility, as well as creating a safe space to refine skills and strategy.
Prepare your company for the future
In today’s fast-paced, interconnected world, businesses face increasing complexity and uncertainty. To stay competitive and tackle critical challenges – whether increasing productivity or taking the lead in AI and automation – organizations must explore emerging technologies across industries. The gaming industry in particular offers powerful examples of how advanced technology can bring a new level of confidence to strategic investment decision-making, and gaming-inspired user experiences drive much better stakeholder engagement and collaboration. As more industries adopt a similar approach, they can unlock new levels of efficiency, creativity and growth, propelling their businesses to new heights.
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