What is a Hologlyph?

Definition

Hologlyph is a term that describes a new category of digital expression — a lightweight, self-contained augmented reality presentation, sent from one person to another, designed to convey meaning in a visual, embodied way. Think hologram + hieroglyph. Hologlyphs are typically three-dimensional, often animated, sometimes lightly interactive — but they don’t trigger functional code or serve a utilitarian purpose.

Think of a hologlyph as a digital gesture: a wave, a nod, a tiny celebration. It’s not a message on its own—but it adds feeling, tone, and texture to whatever you’re trying to say.

They’re meant to be:
Expressive, like a visual exclamation point.
Spatial, dropped into the real world, not just a screen.
Lightweight, fast to send, delightful to receive.

Unlike a hologram, a hologlyph isn’t a live capture or volumetric broadcast. It’s generated content — graphical, crafted, intentional. And unlike a traditional message, it doesn’t rely on words, though it may include them.

In the landscape of digital communication, hologlyphs sit beside emoji, GIFs, and memes: compact visual expressions that punctuate how we connect — only now, they live in the world around us.

Hologlyph isn’t meant to be owned, it’s meant to be shared. If you’re building something that fits this concept — you’re already building hologlyphs. You can call it that too, if you’d like.

Examples

For hands-on understanding, open these hologlyphs on a device running iOS or visionOS: