No-code platform brings AR to everyday printed materials

This article is a part of Startup Spotlight, a series that features young, up-and-coming startups.

Photo credit: Hovarlay

A marketer, a designer, and an engineer noticed a shared problem. Emerging technologies like Augmented Reality (AR) had huge potential, but the tools were too complex for most teams. They created Hovarlay, a platform that empowers non-developers to create immersive AR experiences without needing to code.

😟 Problem

Brands struggle to connect physical materials with digital engagement, leaving most print campaigns static and unmeasurable. While interactive AR can boost engagement by four times and brand recall by 70%, its development is often slow, expensive, and requires technical expertise. This accessibility gap prevents marketing, creative, and educational teams from using AR for everyday campaigns and projects.

💡 Solution

Hovarlay is a no-code, web-based platform for creating AR experiences. The platform offers:

• The ability for brands and creators to turn physical objects like packaging and posters into interactive content.
• Instant access to AR experiences through their smartphone browser, with no app download needed.
• A built-in analytics dashboard to track scans and engagement.

Photo credit: Hovarlay

📊 Market size

Hovarlay is initially focused on Southeast Asia, where smartphone penetration is high. The company identified a practical early addressable market of around 1,700 early customers in the region. This is based on a bottom-up analysis of key segments, which includes:

• 700 mid-to-large consumer brands.
• 500 creative and marketing agencies.
• 500 universities and design institutions.

With a conservative blended average revenue of US$4,000 per customer, capturing 5% of this market represents a US$340,000 annual recurring revenue opportunity.

🤝 Team

• Brian Tay. Co-founder. He connects technology and creativity to deliver measurable AR experiences at Hovarlay. Has a background in performance marketing and brand growth.
• Kimming Yap. Co-founder. He brings over 15 years of experience in design and creative education.
• Jason Limantoro. Leads the AR technology development. He is a former senior software engineer from Shopee.

🚀 Traction

• Collaborated with brands, creative studios, educational institutions, and packaging suppliers.
• Integrated its AR technology into multiple events, campaigns, and learning programs.
• Consistently received partner feedback on driving higher engagement, brand recall, and a “wow factor” for campaigns.

🏆 Competition

Hovarlay competes with traditional AR development studios and social media-based AR tools. Its platform differs by combining accessibility, immediacy, and measurability. It empowers non-technical teams to build, launch, and measure AR campaigns within a single workflow, removing the need for coding skills or separate analytics tools.

💰 Financials