Taqtile is releasing a free app, Manifest Maker, for digitizing and augmenting work instructions. The app is more than just a trial of the more robust Manifest platform, but also lacks some of the functionalities and features of that full-fledged service.
ARPost got an advanced release, a sneak peek at the program, and an interview with Taqtile co-founder and CTO John Tomizuka. Let’s take a closer look.
What Is the Manifest Maker?
The free Manifest Maker app is currently available on compatible Apple devices. The app allows users to take video on that mobile device, which can be automatically transcribed, marked up, and annotated, or augmented with inset video or still images including scans of physical documents.
According to the release shared with ARPost, the app is designed to “help enterprises overcome a major hurdle to implementing and deriving value from AR-enabled work instructions.” The app itself is not AR-enabled but integrates with the AR-driven Manifest platform.
“The biggest hurdle that we see . . . is that digitizing those procedures is the number one problem,” Tomizuka told ARPost. “Part of that is learning curves with a new device. Part of it is not having anything structured.”
Both of these issues – digitizing procedures and standardizing documentation – are streamlined by the Manifest Maker app. Users of the full Manifest platform may even find that Manifest Maker provides an easier starting point for projects that they later port to Manifest to augment with the full platform’s more robust spatial computing capabilities.
“We’re trying to be realistic and meet our customers where they are,” said Tomizuka. “We’re trying to create an entry point. In the market, whoever creates the best way to get content into the system is going to win.”
Taqtile’s Freemium Play
Essentially, this announcement marks Taqtile’s entry into the “freemium” marketplace – offering basic services for free and premium utility at a price. As Tomizuka stated, this has the potential to benefit both current Taqtile customers and people that might never upgrade to the full Manifest experience. But, the company is also thinking of the third kind of user.
“The idea is to kind of introduce people to this procedure and give them some value,” said Tomizuka. “Of course, our ultimate interest is to get them into the Manifest world.”
“Of course,” the full manifest world is incredibly robust. Last summer, the platform got an update allowing combining digital twins with the Internet of Things data for real-time interactive models. And, the platform is only going to get better as last month the company announced a $5M equity raise.
“That certainly injects funding into our future roadmap and gives us more flexibility,” Tomizuka told ARPost of the funding release. “But [Manifest Maker] has been in the works for longer than that.”
So, what’s on that future roadmap? Obviously, Tomizuka couldn’t tell us everything. He did hint they are working on more multi-user features.
Step Into Manifest
This is a good thing. It’s easy to look at freemium offerings as a trap – potentially costly propositions baited with lower-hanging offerings. But, I don’t think Taqtile’s Manifest Maker falls into that category. This seems a genuine move to get more companies into AR more easily. That’s good for companies, good for AR, and good for consumers.
