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Augmented World Expo

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Augmented World Expo
Information
Industry Augmented Reality, Virtual Reality, Technology
Founded 2010
Founder Ori Inbar, Tish Shute
Notable Personnel Ori Inbar (co-founder and CEO), Tish Shute (co-founder and chief content officer)
Products AWE 2015, AWE USA, AWE Asia, UnitedXR Europe (with Stereopsia), Auggie Awards, XR Hall of Fame
Parent AugmentedReality.org
Website https://www.awexr.com/, http://www.augmentedreality.org/

Augmented World Expo or AWE is an annual conference and expo for AR, VR, wearable tech and IOT produced by AugmentedReality.org.[1] The first AWE took place in 2010.[2] In 2026 the organizers described it as the longest-running and largest event dedicated to augmented reality, extended reality, virtual reality, robotics and AI.[3] In 2015, AWE described itself as a gathering of technology professionals "passionate about making the world a more interactive place"; its stated mission in 2026 was "Advance XR to Advance Humanity".[1][4]

Winners of Auggie Awards are announced at AWE.[1][3]

The event was co-founded by Ori Inbar and Tish Shute.[1][5] The main US show started in Santa Clara, California, where it was last held in 2023, and has taken place in Long Beach, California, since 2024.[6][7] AWE also runs AWE Asia in Singapore and co-produces UnitedXR Europe in Brussels. Several XR products and chips have been announced on its stage, including Snap's 2026 Snap Specs glasses and the Qualcomm Snapdragon Reality Elite platform.[8]

Reviewed 27 September 2026. Re-checked every cited source for founding (ARE 2010), founders, AugmentedReality.org, edition dates, venues and attendance figures, UnitedXR Europe, AWE Asia, Auggie Awards, XR Hall of Fame and the 2025-2026 announcements. About review dates.

History

Founding as ARE (2010)

Ori Inbar, who had started the AR company Ogmento in 2009, said in a 2019 interview that there was no other event for the young AR industry at the time, so he "joined forces with a few other players in the industry" to create one. The first event took place in June 2010 in Santa Clara, California. In its first year it was called ARE (Augmented Reality Event); the name was changed to AWE a couple of years later.[9] Inbar has put the first event at 300 people and 20 exhibitors, focused only on AR.[2] The event's archived site lists ARE editions for 2010, 2011 and 2012.[1]

AugmentedReality.org, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to advancing augmented reality, was set up to produce the event and to support other industry activities; Inbar said it had set a goal of one billion AR users by 2020.[1][9] Its board has included Brian Mullins.[5]

Growth and the addition of VR (2014-2019)

According to its organizers, AWE 2014 had more than 200 demos, 150 speakers and nearly 2,000 attendees. AWE 2015, the sixth edition, was held at the Santa Clara Convention Center on 8-10 June 2015, with a program of keynotes, tutorials, startup demos, the Auggie Award competition and 22,000 square feet of exhibits.[1] Inbar said that in 2015 AWE partnered with UploadVR and combined AR and VR into one conference, because the two technologies were "part of the same spectrum".[2]

By its tenth edition, held in Santa Clara from 29 May 2019, Inbar said the event had grown to 7,000 attendees and 250 exhibitors. At that point AWE was running events in the United States, Europe and Asia, and had held events in Tel Aviv, Israel, since 2018.[9]

Move to Long Beach (2023-present)

AWE USA 2023 was the last US edition in Santa Clara, held at the Santa Clara Convention Center from 31 May to 2 June 2023.[6] The 15th-anniversary edition, AWE USA 2024, took place in Long Beach, California, on 18-20 June 2024; AWE listed more than 6,000 attendees, 300 exhibitors, 500 speakers and 150,000 square feet of expo space.[7]

AWE USA 2025 opened in Long Beach on 10 June 2025 with more than 5,000 attendees, 250 exhibitors and 450 speakers, according to the organizers.[10] Its theme was "XR Is Going Mainstream".[2] AWE USA 2026, the 17th edition, ran from 15 to 18 June 2026 in Long Beach under the theme "I, Spatial: Humans Empowered by Spatial AI", again with more than 5,000 attendees, 250 exhibitors and 400 speakers.[4][3] The next US edition, AWE USA 2027, is scheduled for 14-17 June 2027 in Long Beach.[11]

Events

Event Location Notes
AWE USA Santa Clara, California (through 2023); Long Beach, California (2024-present) Main annual conference and expo; 2027 edition set for 14-17 June[9][6][7][11]
AWE Asia Singapore (2026); Shanghai, China (2027) Held since 2015; the 2026 edition ran 2-4 February 2026 at Singapore Expo with more than 90 speakers across 60 sessions; the 2027 edition is set for 14-16 July 2027 in Shanghai[12][13][11]
AWE EU Europe Replaced in 2025 by UnitedXR Europe[14]
UnitedXR Europe Brussels, Belgium Co-produced by AWE and Stereopsia; first held 8-10 December 2025; the 2026 edition is set for 7-9 December 2026 at Maison de la Poste[14][15]
AWE Nites Worldwide Year-round events[11]

UnitedXR Europe replaced both AWE EU and Stereopsia Europe. The organizers said it combines AWE's exhibition with Stereopsia's conference program and its links to European institutions and initiatives.[14] Inbar, as co-producer, said the partnership sent "a clear and powerful message: XR is going mainstream".[15]

Awards and programs

Auggie Awards

The Auggie Awards are AWE's awards competition; the Auggie Award competition was part of the AWE 2015 program.[1] The 2026 ceremony took place on the main stage on 17 June 2026 and covered 20 categories.[3]

XR Hall of Fame and XR History Museum

For its 15th anniversary in 2024, AWE launched the XR Hall of Fame with 101 inaugural inductees, pioneers of more than 50 years of XR development. They included Ivan Sutherland, Tom Furness, John Carmack, Palmer Luckey, Steve Mann and Neal Stephenson. AWE USA 2024 also featured an XR History Museum with more than 80 vintage AR and VR devices, among them the 1992 Virtuality Viset 1, plus recreations of Sutherland's 1968 head-mounted display and Morton Heilig's Sensorama.[16] New members are added each year; the eight 2026 inductees included AR display expert Karl Guttag and Brett Leonard, director of The Lawnmower Man.[4] As of September 2026, the Hall of Fame page lists 120 entries.[17]

Other programs

AWE USA 2026 included a Gaming and LBE Hub, a Startup Pavilion, a Select Builders showcase, an Immersive Art Festival, research poster selections and an Enterprise VIP Program.[3] The research poster track accepted 15 of 40 submissions that year, and the art festival had 15 official selections.[4]

Notable announcements

AWE is a regular venue for XR hardware and platform news.

  • AWE USA 2025: Snap said it would launch lightweight consumer Specs glasses in 2026; CEO Evan Spiegel made the announcement at the show on 10 June 2025.[18] Qualcomm announced the Snapdragon AR1+ Gen 1 chip for smart glasses, which it said could run small language models on the glasses themselves.[19] XREAL CEO Chi Xu presented Project Aura, glasses designed for Android XR, and Niantic Spatial announced a multi-year partnership with Snap to build an AI-powered map of the real world.[10]
  • AWE USA 2026: Spiegel introduced the Specs in a keynote on 16 June 2026, priced at US$2,195 with pre-orders opening and shipping planned for fall 2026.[20][8] Qualcomm announced the Snapdragon Reality Elite platform the same day, with the Xreal Aura named as the first device to use it.[21] Google showed Android XR running on the Xreal Aura and said it would expand its trusted tester program for display glasses later in 2026.[8]

See also

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 "About". Augmented World Expo (archive). http://archive.augmentedworldexpo.com/about/. Retrieved 2026-09-27.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Ian Hamilton (2025-06-11). "AR In VR: 15 Years Of Augmented World Expo With Ori Inbar". UploadVR. https://www.uploadvr.com/ar-in-vr-15-years-of-augmented-world-expo-with-ori-inbar/. Retrieved 2026-09-27.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 "XR and AI Leap into the Future at Augmented World Expo USA 2026 as Expo Hall Opens in Long Beach, CA". PR Newswire. AWE. 2026-06-16. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/xr-and-ai-leap-into-the-future-at-augmented-world-expo-usa-2026-as-expo-hall-opens-in-long-beach-ca-302802146.html. Retrieved 2026-09-27.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 "Augmented World Expo 2026 will Be the Most Consequential XR Event in History - Unveiling Handpicked XR Hall Of Fame Inductees, Best-in-Class Art Festival Selections, Academic Research And Much More". PR Newswire. AWE. 2026-05-12. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/augmented-world-expo-2026-will-be-the-most-consequential-xr-event-in-historyunveiling-handpicked-xr-hall-of-fame-inductees-best-in-class-art-festival-selections-academic-research-and-much-more-302770040.html. Retrieved 2026-09-27.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 "AugmentedReality.Org". AugmentedReality.org. https://www.augmentedreality.org/. Retrieved 2026-09-27.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 "AWE USA 2023 - Know Before You Go". AWE. https://www.awexr.com/usa-2023/know-before-you-go. Retrieved 2026-09-27.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 "AWE USA 2024". AWE. https://www.awexr.com/usa-2024. Retrieved 2026-09-27.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Cherlynn Low, Karissa Bell (2026-06-16). "AWE 2026: Live updates from the Snap Specs launch by Evan Spiegel, and later XR keynotes at the show". Engadget. https://www.engadget.com/2194982/awe-xr-2026-snap-live-blog/. Retrieved 2026-09-27.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 Adario Strange (2019-05-09). "After Nearly a Decade of AWE, Founder Ori Inbar Unpacks the Past, Present, & Future of Augmented Reality". Next Reality. https://next.reality.news/news/after-nearly-decade-awe-founder-ori-inbar-unpacks-past-present-future-augmented-reality-0197331/. Retrieved 2026-09-27.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 "XR Just Went Mainstream - AWE Releases Game-Changing News Highlights from AWE USA 2025". PR Newswire. AWE. 2025-06-10. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/xr-just-went-mainstream---awe-releases-game-changing-news-highlights-from-awe-usa-2025-302478051.html. Retrieved 2026-09-27.
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 11.3 "AWE - The World's #1 XR Event". AWE. https://www.awexr.com/. Retrieved 2026-09-27.
  12. ↑ "Augmented World Expo Asia 2026 Announces Agenda". PR Newswire. AWE. 2026-01-09. https://www.prnewswire.com/apac/news-releases/augmented-world-expo-asia-2026-announces-agenda-302657382.html. Retrieved 2026-09-27.
  13. ↑ "AWE Asia 2026 Concludes in Singapore, Signaling a More Grounded Phase for XR and AI". PR Newswire. AWE. 2026-02-07. https://www.prnewswire.com/apac/news-releases/awe-asia-2026-concludes-in-singapore-signaling-a-more-grounded-phase-for-xr-and-ai-302681707.html. Retrieved 2026-09-27.
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 "UnitedXR Europe 2025". The Khronos Group. https://www.khronos.org/events/unitedxr-europe-2025. Retrieved 2026-09-27.
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 "UnitedXR Europe - The Premier AR/VR Conference and Expo". UnitedXR Europe. https://unitedxr.eu/. Retrieved 2026-09-27.
  16. ↑ "Augmented World Expo Unveils XR Hall of Fame, XR History Museum". PR Newswire. AWE. 2024-04-24. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/augmented-world-expo-unveils-xr-hall-of-fame-xr-history-museum-302126313.html. Retrieved 2026-09-27.
  17. ↑ "XR Hall of Fame - Recognizing the Pioneers Who Built the AR and VR Industry". AWE. https://www.awexr.com/hall-of-fame. Retrieved 2026-09-27.
  18. ↑ "Snap to Launch New Lightweight, Immersive Specs in 2026". Snap Inc.. 2025-06-10. https://investor.snap.com/news/news-details/2025/Snap-to-Launch-New-Lightweight-Immersive-Specs-in-2026/default.aspx. Retrieved 2026-09-27.
  19. ↑ Abner Li (2025-06-10). "Qualcomm announces smaller Snapdragon AR1+ Gen 1 chip for smart glasses". 9to5Google. https://9to5google.com/2025/06/10/snapdragon-ar1-gen-1/. Retrieved 2026-09-27.
  20. ↑ Scott Hayden (2026-06-16). "Snap Reveals Next-gen Specs AR Glasses, Priced at $2,200". Road to VR. https://roadtovr.com/snap-specs-2026-ar-glasses-release-date-price/. Retrieved 2026-09-27.
  21. ↑ Dean Daley (2026-06-16). "Qualcomm unveils Snapdragon Reality Elite for next-gen XR". MobileSyrup. https://mobilesyrup.com/2026/06/16/qualcomm-snapdragon-reality-elite/. Retrieved 2026-09-27.
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