AT&T launched the first trial at a new edge computing test bed in Silicon Valley this week, kicking things off with an augmented reality (AR) and VR project from GridRaster.

The operator said it is working with the edge cloud platform provider to test low-latency access to cloud computation for enhanced AR and VR experiences on mobile devices at the facility. The trial combines GridRaster’s compute and network stack power with AT&T’s edge cloud.

In a statement, GridRaster CEO Rishi Ranjan explained moving processing power closer to devices means the companies can enable immersive experiences without lag: “By moving the processing power to the cloud, and removing the physical distance between your device and the data centre, mobile experiences will be dramatically enhanced. The software behind this edge computing test zone will help us get there, faster.”

AT&T stated the trial will give it the tools necessary to start building AR and VR edge applications, but noted the project is just the first of many tests it hopes to conduct at the facility.

The operator revealed it is also working with The Linux Foundation to launch a new open source project named Akraino which will create the software stack necessary to support edge computing. AT&T said it is handing over code for carrier-scale edge computing systems to jumpstart the effort.

Akraino is expected to release open source project code for participants in the second quarter of this year.