I think it's very possible that SAO and Accel World (AW) are connected. Here is some evidence to back it up.
SAO and AW also have the same author.
In one of the AW episodes Haru looks into the history of the Brain burst finding the first version which is pretty much the Nerve Gear that they used in SAO.
In SAO2 Episode 1, Kirito states that he wants to create something that can interact with the real world, and that's what the Brain Burst can do, so it makes sense if Kirito created it.
Tell me what you guys think.
/discuss.
