Pokémon Go maker Niantic is expanding developer access to the platform that powers its games, a move that could spur more AR development by letting outside developers work with the company’s technology. It’s a big step forward for the company as it seeks to build on the success of its games toward being a major provider of essential AR software.
Today, Niantic rebranded its “Real World Platform” technology as Niantic Lightship, a change accompanied by the release of new features and a move into beta access. In an interview with The Information, Niantic’s vice president of product management, Kei Kawai, said that Niantic plans to onboard developers with Lightship on a rolling basis, from now through its eventual release to the general public.
