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AR lenses to cure the visually impaired?

These days most of us wake up to the sight of a smartphone screen, so why not cut out the middle man completely? 

Thanks to the likes of Elon Musk and Drew Perkins, I can scarcely remember a time where nutty human tech projects weren’t ‘close’ to commercialisation. Nowadays, stories are leaking out of Silicon Valley and NASA almost as frequently as celebrity gossip in the tabloids. 

While convenience with technology and revolutionary entertainment are often high on the agenda, the golden ticket for serial entrepreneurs like Musk is harnessing tech to improve the quality of human life. And that’s something we really Stan. You may recall we previously covered stories on Neuralink; the mysterious brain control implant that aims to eradicate neurological diseases at their source, and the Tesla Glove; which realistically simulates the sense of human touch for the physically impaired. 

This latest innovation from Mojo Vision falls very much into the latter approach of medical rehabilitation, in that it doesn’t involve permanent integration, like a brain chip for example, to work its magic. Augmented reality has been frequently touted as the next paradigm shift in computing, and Mojo Vision are looking to seal this milestone with an exciting product aptly named the Mojo AR Lens. ‘Eyes up, the future is here’.

Mojo has had the patents for the development of AR lenses for more than a decade, and with over $160 million in funding it’s finally ready to show us the fruits of its labour. Employing the fundamentals of ‘Invisible Computing’, this product will work just like an everyday contact lens – it just happens to be chock-full of micro LEDs, AR hardware, motion sensors, heads-up displays (HUDS), and batteries.

Startup Mojo Vision Seeking FDA Approval for First Augmented ...

Placed over the whole eye, as opposed to the cornea, this rigid lens will reportedly be ‘more comfortable’ than regular contacts and will overlay digital information to the wearer’s field of vision completely hands free. Promotional materials on the website depict users able to see vibrant outlines of constellations in the night sky and turn-by-turn directions on the street, similar to Google AR. 

It would certainly be nice to film Thred Dailys with invisible cues ticking by in my periphery, or to have a digital mock-up of a blasted flatpack when the IKEA instructions aren’t cutting the mustard. On that front, the everyday applications are nigh-on endless.

However, it’s the technology’s medical uses that have the biggest potential. It has to be reiterated that the project is still in the research and development stage (R&D), but seniors at Mojo are confident that the lens is almost ready for clinical trials. The hope is that through providing real-time enhancements to contrast and lighting, lenses can be tailor made to serve a whole range of disabilities characterised by low visibility. Oh, and it has zoom capabilities to eradicate short sightedness for good too. 

Pre-market trials are next up on the agenda for Mojo, but considering public concern derailed Google’s iteration of real-world AR in 2013 – Google Glass – it may be pre-emptive to suggest that Mojo AR Lens is a matter of when and not if in relation to a mainstream release. The medical benefits will surely play a huge part in shifting public perception this time around though. I could be sticking my neck out here, but I don’t foresee any digital dystopia in the near future. I think we’re ready. 

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