Pokémon GO developer Niantic has released a new platform for building “real-world metaverse” apps. The platform, called Lightship, will help other developers to build their own augmented reality applications. Most of the software is free. Niantic will charge for a feature that allows multiple devices to access shared AR experiences. Niantic has also announced a $20 million fund to support developers who “share our vision for the real-world metaverse”. The company is already planning a major update to the platform that will introduce a “visual positioning system” for AR glasses. Niantic’s vision of the metaverse is very different from Meta’s purely virtual experience. Niantic CEO John Hanke wants to connect the physical and digital worlds, rather than create a completely virtual space