Aussie startup JigSpace takes to the stage in Apple's iPhone 12 showcase

Aussie 3D presentation startup JigSpace has hit the global stage, featuring in the Apple Event this morning, where the tech behemoth revealed the new iPhone 12, and the LiDAR tech that comes with it.

In the keynote presentation, in which Apple unveiled its new 5G-enabled range of iPhone 12 models, Apple used JigSpace to show off how 5G networks and the new iPhone’s LiDAR capability can work for businesses.

JigSpace’s JigWorkshop tool allows users to create an augmented reality layout of what a space will look like, co-founder Zac Duff tells SmartCompany.

In the past, businesses would have to build cardboard versions of machinery, desks and equipment, to map out the layout of a facility, he explains.

This tool takes the task “from weeks down to hours”, he adds.

“That’s what was shown in the demo.”

Founded in 2015, JigSpace has since topped 3 million downloads. The startup launched its ‘pro’ product three months ago, and has seen 50% revenue growth month-on-month since then, Duff says.

The team also raised $2 million in seed funding in August this year.

For the business, being involved in the Apple Event is “pretty fantastic”, Duff says.

It’s a point of validation, he adds. The co-founder believes this tech is laying the foundation for what augmented reality will be in the future.

“Our vision is that no new product is launched without a jig,” he explains.

For every stage of the lifecycle of a durable manufactured product, there could be a jig involved, he adds.

That could be in the prototyping and design phase, in production, sales and marketing, and post-sales support. He even sees JigSpace being used in instructions and user manuals.

“We’re on the path of being the standard for sharing knowledge in 3D,” he says.

“This is the first big moment for us to validate that and put it on the world stage.”

Being used as the example tool for Apple’s newest capabilities recognises the Aussie startup as a leader here.

“If you build the stuff that’s the best in the world, you will be on that stage,” Duff says.

“When you’re a world leader, you’re recognised as such.”

“A perfect moment”

For Duff, on a personal note, this is “a great feeling”.

Having grown JigSpace from scratch, and gone through the ups and downs of startup life, this may well mark a pivotal moment for the founder.

“The biggest thing for me is, if we look back at where it’s come from, we have kept exactly the same vision,” he says.

“We wanted to be the standard,” he adds.

“To be on the way and to kick it off in pretty much the biggest way you can, to be on that stage, it’s like a perfect moment for us.”

So, for other Aussie hoping for global recognition, Duff says the key is in confidence and a little bit of blind faith.

“The thing is to not underestimate our ability to build the best things in the world,” he says.

He points to the likes of Atlassian, Canva and Aconex as Aussie businesses that are leaders in their sectors on an international scale.

“It’s really about setting our ambition ridiculously high and having a healthy dose of naivety that will get you to that point,” Duff says.

“It’s about building the best thing that you can and not getting stuck in this idea that we’re in Australia, and we’re kind of far-flung, and we might not have the resources and skills … we absolutely do.”

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