KUCHING: The world has now moved towards digitalisation with the development of artificial intelligence (AI) technology and now we are moving forward into the era of Industrial Revolution 4.0 (IR 4.0).
The digital economy is part of the Sarawak government’s agenda in developing the state’s economic resources.
In conjunction with the ‘Sarawak Beyond Paradigm Summit 2019’, a platform was held to introduce the digital economy in Sarawak.
Sarawak Multimedia Authority (SMA) deputy chief of scientist, Prof Dr Al-Khalid Othman, said that the summit is a platform to share and provide exposure of what is needed in a digital economy.
Interestingly, virtual reality (VR) has become the main attraction during the event at Pullman Hotel recently.
In line with the state’s agenda in making every main tourism destination utilise digital technology, homebred company Aerovetics Sdn Bhd has created a VR platform for digital tourism.
Through the platform, users can experience major tourist destinations in Sarawak through digital VR.
Aerovetics did not want to be left behind and became the premier pioneer in virtual tourism in the IR 4.0 era which is part of the state government’s vision.
According to Aerovetics spokesperson Abdul Mustaqim, the existing simulation of tourism locations in the form of 360-degree images and videos are experienced through VR tools such as Vive Pro.
It also uses other multimedia elements such as sound effects, music, narratives, and texts, he said.
He continued, “With our VR platform, you can virtually travel to destinations around the world without having to leave your home and not require high commitment in terms of monetary, time and energy.
“Aerovetics also provides solutions for foreign tourists who want to go to Sarawak but have constraints in terms of information about hotspots in Sarawak.”
Mustaqim added that users can experience virtual travelling through these VR platforms provided by Aerovetics.
“We plan to expand our services and products overseas. We want to enable users to enjoy the experience abroad virtually in order to prepare the individuals before the actual trip,” he said.
Mustaqim further stated that this applies to foreign tourists too whereby they can obtain online information or input before going to Sarawak and this can attract more tourists to the state.
Aerovetics aims to make their clients experience real-life simulation of the places and this will allow people to check the destinations from their lists by using the VR platform before booking their travels.
“This will facilitate and increase the use of VR in tourism as well as help to boost tourism in the state,” he elaborated.
He also mentioned that the VR platform is well-received among members of the public.
The soft launch of the Aerovetics VR digital tourism was officiated by Tourism, Arts, Culture, Youth and Sports Minister Datuk Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah.
