The global virtual reality market is expected to reach a valuation of $62.39 billion USD by 2032 according to a recent report by Polaris Market Research. The report, there full title of which is “Virtual Reality Market Share, Size, Trends, Industry Analysis Report, By Device Type, By Offering (Hardware, Software); By Technology (Semi & Fully Immersive, Non-immersive); By Application, By Region; Segment Forecast, 2024- 2032,” outlines key growth areas in the VR industry and shows both its current status and that projected for 2032.

Takeaways & Trends

Polaris Market Research highlighted numerous segments of the greater VR industry that performed especially well today, as well as cultural and social trends that have influenced and impacted VR’s continued growth. Along with the appeal of immersive entertainment and gaming, VR is said to provide trainees and employers in a wide range of educational and corporate fields safer, more cost-effective means of instruction and work.

The VR market in its current state is dominated by headset hardware used by everyone from gamers to medical practitioners, engineers to military personnel. Gesture recognition devices and peripherals are expected to improve on their current market share as traditional controllers and input devices are rendered more or less obsolete. Non-immersive virtual content and programming is also expected to see significant growth, most notably in educational and professional settings, as virtual workstations become more commonplace.

Key players in the global VR market, as cited by Polaris, include most of the familiar names: Meta, Microsoft, PICO Immersive, Samsung, Sony etc. Regionally, Asia Pacific is on top of the market with North American following its leads in technological advancements and superior visualization standards.

VR for the Future

Pulling from an historical data period of 2019 - 2022 and presenting a forecast from 2024 - 2032, Polaris gave an evaluation of the current VR market at USD 16.05 billion and projected it would grow to USD 62.39 billion within eight years, with a forecast compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 18.5%. These numbers, though projections that have yet to become a reality, don’t lie: VR is not only going away anytime soon, it will soon be everywhere.