"Korean conglomerates prioritize whether a business will generate immediate revenue. In contrast, Chinese companies focus on 'product innovation itself' rather than profit, and have accumulated experience without fearing failure."
Ralph Jodice, Asia-Pacific General Manager and Overseas Marketing Director at Xreal, the world's top augmented reality (AR) glasses company, made these remarks in assessing why Korea, an information technology powerhouse, has ceded leadership in the AR market to China.
In a recent interview with Seoul Economic Daily in Seoul, Jodice pointed to the stark difference in approach between Korea and China in the global AR market. He cited China's "culture that tolerates failure" and "the government's full infrastructure support" as driving forces behind its lead in the AR sector.
"In regions like Shenzhen, the government has made large-scale investments to build a complete supply chain and industrial infrastructure so that companies can operate with ease," he said. "Within this ecosystem, small and medium-sized enterprises and startups have advanced their technology while being willing to risk failure, and this has created the current technology gap." While Korean conglomerates hesitate after thorough profitability reviews, China's "fast failure and innovation" strategy has seized the AR market, he said.
The global AR market is effectively dominated by Chinese companies. Xreal ranks first worldwide, followed by TCL's RayNeo in second place, with no other competitors holding meaningful market share.
Xreal's global device sales reached 50 million units last year. Approximately 25 million units were sold in China, with around 10 million units each sold in the United States and Europe. Sales in the Korean market remain at about 10,000 units. The industry paradigm is rapidly shifting from virtual reality (VR) to AR. "The domains of VR and extended reality (XR) are gradually being absorbed into AR," he said. "AR will become the mainstream device."
Jodice previewed that the company will soon expand engagement with Korean firms through a new initiative called "Project Wow." Regarding the possibility of major Korean IT conglomerates entering the AR glasses market in earnest, he expressed confidence, saying, "I hope the AR ecosystem itself grows larger. I want more players, including Korean companies, to enter and expand the market pie."
