What Happened to Holograms?

Remember how crazy people went when the Tupac hologram joined Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre at Coachella two years ago? Before Snoop Lion and before Dre sold beats for $3 billion, there was Tupac the Hologram, back from the grave to save hip hop once and for all. How many conversations did that spark about everybody’s favorite dead performers and how much they’d pay to see whom? Sure, the discussion starts with Biggy, but then it moves organically to other music genres. Mentions of Jimmy Hendrix, Frank Sinatra, and Beethoven eventually lead people to think outside of music. Listen to Abraham Lincoln give a moving speech or watch Pele juggle a soccer ball.

All this is to say that with seemingly unlimited applications and such a high level of excitement surrounding the space, where did this fail and why aren’t we talking about it? Holograms could be an #EventProfs dream come true. An artist that is guaranteed to show up on time, perform exactly how you want them to, and not demand a dressing room filled with only blue M&Ms? Sounds too good to be true.

Why don’t conferences use hologram speakers? Famous living people with wise words could lecture huge groups without ever leaving the comfort of their home. Unfortunately this post is more about proposing questions answering them. It should serve as a reminder that you have not seen the last of this awesome technology. It has, however, run into a few hiccups along the way, like the reported $100,000 – $400,000 price tag on Tupac’s 2012 Coachella set.

Music festivals may not lead the charge. They don’t have to. Tech conferences probably have the most incentive, not to mention preparedness, to take on such a feat. Just imagine the lineup for the first ever all hologram Ted Talk…

We’d love to have some experts on the subject weigh in about the costs and other barriers holding holograms back. Comment or tweet @squadup.