ArtoolkitX

Augmented Reality SDKartoolkitx.org

Company typePrivate
Founded2015
HeadquartersChristchurch, New Zealand
Headcount1–10
GTM typeB2C
OfferingSoftware

ArtoolkitX firmographics

Firmographics

Name: ArtoolkitX
Legal name: Ethar Inc.
Website: https://artoolkitx.org
Company type: Private
Founded year: 2015
Operating status: Operating
Headcount range: 1–10 employees
Ownership category
akta.pro rank

ArtoolkitX industry classification

Industry

Product category: Augmented Reality SDK
NAICS: Software Publishers (5132)
SIC: Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)
akta.pro primary industry: Creator Tools & Content Pipelines for Immersive Learning (VR lesson builders, 3D asset workflows) (EDAFAJAL)
akta.pro secondary industries: Animation Pipeline Tools & Technical Direction (Scripts, Plugins, Automation) (MPAHACAL), VFX Pipeline, Tools & Workflow Engineering (Automation, Asset/Shot Tracking) (MPAHABAH)

Keywords

Augmented reality SDK
Open-source AR
Marker-based tracking
Cross-platform AR
AR development tools

Where ArtoolkitX is headquartered

Location

Headquarters

HQ city: Christchurch
HQ country: New Zealand
HQ region: Oceania

Offices2 records

Markets served

ArtoolkitX business model

Business model

GTM type: B2C
Offering type: Software
Cost components: Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

Open Source Project (Pre-Revenue): ArtoolkitX is an open-source community project funded by Ethar, Inc. No commercial revenue model is currently in place. The project operates as a freely available SDK with no monetization strategy disclosed.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels3 records

ArtoolkitX product offering

Product offering

Core offering

ArtoolkitX is an open-source, multi-platform augmented reality SDK that enables developers to build AR applications by providing direct access to underlying AR tracking algorithms (marker-based and markerless), detection, and real-time rendering capabilities. The project continues the legacy of ARToolKit (first released as open source in 2001) and also maintains a fork of ARToolKit v5.x to support the existing developer community. Releases, including full source code and live binary builds, are distributed freely via GitHub, with planned future support for Apple ARKit, Google ARCore, and low-cost open hardware such as Raspberry Pi.

Product overview

ArtoolkitX is an open-source, multi-platform augmented reality SDK that serves as the successor to ARToolKit, originally released in 2001. The company offers two related products: (1) artoolkitX — the primary new open-source AR SDK that provides the core AR tracking, detection, and rendering capabilities; and (2) ARToolKit v5.x — a legacy fork that the team maintains to support the existing ARToolKit community. Releases of artoolkitX, including full source code, are distributed via GitHub, and live binary builds are available for download. The project is funded and supported by Ethar Inc.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

artoolkitX SDK Open-source, multi-platform augmented reality SDK providing underlying AR tracking algorithms (marker-based and markerless), detection, and real-time rendering for developers building AR applications across desktop and mobile platforms.
ARToolKit v5.x (legacy fork) Legacy fork of ARToolKit v5.x maintained by the artoolkitX team to provide continued support and updates for the existing ARToolKit developer community.

Companies that use ArtoolkitX

Customer profile

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

ArtoolkitX technology and API

Technology

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API: No
API docs
API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

ArtoolkitX partnerships and signals

Strategic signal

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

ArtoolkitX competitors and assessment

Company assessment

Emerging players

EasyAR: Commercial cross-platform AR SDK offering motion tracking, planar detection, and dense mapping with a freemium tier. Similar developer-segment and multi-platform positioning to artoolkitX, but commercially licensed rather than open source.
Onirix: Commercial AR SDK and content authoring platform aimed at enterprise and marketing use cases with marker and image tracking. Comparable as an AR SDK targeting developers and enterprise integrators, though positioned as a paid/SaaS offering versus artoolkitX's open-source model.
8th Wall (Niantic): Web-based AR SDK acquired by Niantic, enabling browser-based immersive AR experiences via WebXR. Comparable in targeting AR developers building cross-platform experiences, but specialized in web delivery rather than native SDK, and commercial rather than open source.
MAXST: Commercial cross-platform AR SDK providing marker tracking, image tracking, and SLAM across mobile and wearables. Comparable developer-facing AR SDK positioning to artoolkitX with overlapping feature scope (marker-based tracking, multi-platform), though commercial rather than open source.

Broad incumbents

Unity AR Foundation: Unity's cross-platform AR abstraction layer that unifies ARKit, ARCore, and other providers for game/interactive developers. Competes for the same multi-platform AR developer audience as artoolkitX, but as part of Unity's game engine ecosystem rather than as a standalone open-source SDK.
PTC Vuforia: PTC's commercial AR SDK offering marker and markerless tracking, model targets, and ground plane tracking with enterprise-grade support. Competes with artoolkitX in industrial and enterprise AR, but is a paid/closed offering versus artoolkitX's open-source model.
Apple ARKit: Apple's first-party AR SDK integrated into iOS, providing SLAM-based tracking, plane detection, and lighting estimation. Directly competitive at the AR SDK layer, but bundled with iOS for free and as such a structural threat to any third-party AR SDK including artoolkitX.
Wikitude (SAP): Wikitude is a long-standing commercial AR SDK offering image/marker tracking, location-based AR, and 3D rendering, acquired by SAP in 2021. Comparable to artoolkitX's marker-based tracking heritage, but positioned as a paid enterprise product serving similar developer personas.
Google ARCore: Google's first-party Android AR SDK offering motion tracking, environmental understanding, and light estimation across the Android ecosystem. Like ARKit, it competes with artoolkitX at the platform-AR layer and is free for Android developers, and is one of the OS frameworks artoolkitX plans to integrate with.

Others

OpenCV: Open-source computer vision and machine learning software library widely used by AR developers for foundational image processing, feature detection, and camera calibration. Adjacent rather than directly competitive — frequently combined with AR SDKs including artoolkitX to provide upstream computer-vision primitives.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

ArtoolkitX financial estimates

Financial estimate

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

ArtoolkitX leadership team

Management profile

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

ArtoolkitX funding detail

Funding detail

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

ArtoolkitX M&A and investment

M&A and investment

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about ArtoolkitX

What does ArtoolkitX do?

Is ArtoolkitX a public or private company?

ArtoolkitX is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.

When was ArtoolkitX founded?

ArtoolkitX was founded in 2015. It employs 1 to 10 people.

Where is ArtoolkitX based?

ArtoolkitX is headquartered in Christchurch, New Zealand, in the Oceania region.

How does ArtoolkitX make money?

One revenue line is on record: open Source Project (Pre-Revenue).

Who are ArtoolkitX's main competitors?

Emerging players on record are EasyAR, Onirix, 8th Wall (Niantic) and MAXST. Broad incumbents are Unity AR Foundation, PTC Vuforia, Apple ARKit, Wikitude (SAP) and Google ARCore. OpenCV is listed as an others.

Does ArtoolkitX have an API?

No public API is recorded for ArtoolkitX.

What industry is ArtoolkitX in?

ArtoolkitX's product category is Augmented Reality SDK. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EDAFAJAL, Creator Tools & Content Pipelines for Immersive Learning (VR lesson builders, 3D asset workflows), with a secondary code of MPAHACAL, Animation Pipeline Tools & Technical Direction (Scripts, Plugins, Automation). Its NAICS code is 5132 and its SIC code is 7372.