“Never regret thy fall, O Icarus of the fearless flight, For the greatest tragedy of them all, Is never to feel the burning light” - Oscar Wilde.

The legend of Ikarus & Daedalus is known to us as one of greatest tales from Greek myth. The tale is often interpreted as being fundamentally about the dangers of hubris, with Ikarus' flight a metaphor for man's overreaching of his limits. However, as Wilde writes, it's an even greater tragedy not having overreached those limits. For man has evolved only by breaking barriers and doing the undoable.

Ikarus 3D has come about as one of the most trusted names in AR, VR, MR and WebAR service industry. In a short span of only three years, Ikarus 3D has achieved unbelievable numbers in production (227,385 models delivered so far, 4700 percent growth in the number of models made per month), growth in team size (830 percent), clientele (in more than 17 countries, US, Europe and Australian markets), and has made a strong footing for itself globally.

Journey so Far
Established in 2019, Ikarus 3D had a rather humble beginning out of a small cafe in Patiala, near TIET campus. The field, unheard of at the time, excited some people who got Ikarus 3D, its first partners, patrons and amazing team members who helped achieve new heights. Since the business was fully bootstrapped, bringing in the resources was a challenge. Yet, the people who believed in this startup's goals and the mission stayed despite all the speed bumps.

The CEO & founder, Ishan Kumar Giddu recalls how he started, “tried a lot of things: website and app development, crypto asset management, which made me stumble upon 3D printing and from there we got into 3D modeling. I think I always wanted to `sell the shovels', become a catalyst, become an enabling business to an already booming industry and that is how I got into 3D modelling”.

In the initial years, as Ikarus 3D entered a market with an existing need for its service, the startup focused on adoption, and positioned itself as an ally to the AR/VR industry which guarantees quality product in industry's standard turnaround time. The firm kept improving its internal processes and developed proprietary techniques, internal checkpoints, in-house QA tool and mechanisms and today, they have earned a reputation for providing the `shortest turnaround time for the highest number of SKUs'. "Market adoption of our services has been and will be fueled by the rise of revolutionary technologies like AR, VR, and metaverses. Other than the traditional uses of visualization and training, these technologies have taken up a whole field of possibilities", added Shaguna Khetarpal, Head of International Relations, CHRO and Co-founder, Ikarus 3D.

They dedicate themselves to growth by reiterating its motto of `pushing beyond limits'. The company believes that the value its clients and colleagues derive from Ikarus 3D should always grow exceedingly, just by virtue of being associated with it.

As a result, the startup has shown incredible growth by more than tripling the revenue in the last quarter of 2020-21, and maintaining a consistent quarter on quarter growth at 75 percent since July 2020.

Clients value quality and hence Ikarus 3D has a negligible churn rate. "It always fills our hearts with pride that we are their trusted

'extension of team'. We are always proud that our clients like to engage us again and again and we have been approached for multiple high stakes projects where we solidified our relationships with our clients and patrons", says Nishant Verma, Co-Founder & Vice President3D, Ikarus 3D.

A Vision to bring Originality & Inclusivity
India has various externalities working out for it. For example, the Indian Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality Market stood at USD 1.83 billion in FY2020 and is forecasted to grow at a CAGR of 38.29% until FY2027. Other than that growth in the Indian Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality Market is driven by the accelerating digital transformation of the country. But there are several things India needs to focus on if we want to be the front-runners when it comes to this industry. AR, VR, and metaverse solutions can allow for much deliberation and Indian businesses get a chance to prove their mettle by bringing in indigenious and globally scalable solutions rather than just following the west. The recent step taken by the edtech startup Byju's acquiring Whodat could be a similar trend. Businesses need to adapt and more than that they need to make sure they are ahead of their competition and AR, VR, and metaverse is a perfect opportunity to stand out.

The availability of various VR devices, growing adoption of head-mounted displays (HMDs) in different industries, emergence of startups like Absentia VR and Look mobility, advancement of technologies and growing digitization, penetration of HMDs in gaming and entertainment sectors following COVID-19, and high investments in AR & VR market are the key factors driving the growth of the Augmented Reality & Virtual Reality Market across the country. Other than the similar factors like COVID-19, which have made a significant impact on these markets other advancements like extremely fast adoption of metaverses, which is projected to grow up to $108.3 Billion by 2024, has also given a huge push to the AR, VR, and 3D industry. Metaverses have opened enormous avenues when it comes to new ways of collaborating online and buying digital stores of values, giving 3D an unlimited field to play. India, for a long time now, has been one of the major tech services hubs for the industry globally hence, the rise of these technologies will bring in new opportunities and more scope for success.

The venture is an enabler of AR, VR, MR, and WebAR technologies that are transforming industries like furniture, art decor, medical, manufacturing, education and edtech, and so many more.

(L-R)Ananya Nigam, Head of Marketing, Nishant Verma, V.P. 3D & Co-Founder, Ishan Kumar Giddu,CEO & Founder, Shaguna Khetarpal, Head of International Partnerships, CHRO &Co-Founder, Pritish Sehzpaul, Head of Technology

"Today, it's more important than ever for businesses to be able to create and deliver an engaging experience to customers. 3D tech allows one to select the elements that will enhance the functionality, appearance, and accessibility of a product, resulting in a higher conversion rate. That's why a large number of businesses are utilizing AR and VR technology to bring their products and services to life". shared Ananya Nigam, Head of Marketing, Ikarus 3D.

Pritish Sehzpaul, Head of Technology, added, "Being thought leaders now, as Google and Apple were with search and mobile devices, is the best way to capitalize on the growing interest in AR/VR and the metaverse. We want to allow enterprise customers and online retailers to transform their 2D product images into photorealistic 3D models for Augmented Reality and other 3D customer experiences. We want to build a community website where 3D Artists can interact and share their art".

In future, Ikarus 3D wants to expand further by providing 3D enthusiasts a one click integration with 3D Printers on its platform and get the final 3D printed product. So, instead of the hassle of finding a verified 3D printing service, they can rely on a single platform to get 3D printable assets. As the need for 3D assets grows, Ikarus 3D believes in wanting to bring the revolution to the masses. The venture aims to provide a cost effective and reliable source of 3D models, for both creation and printing. Hence the team has two products lined up for Q3 and Q4 of 2022-23.