Written by Faye Maidment
As a fast-growing chapter of budding creators, developers and industry leaders in VR/AR, we’ve had quite the year. We thought we’d steal a look back to the conferences and delegations of 2018, and in turn look forward to the events of the new year! We’ve helped turn Vancouver into the second largest ecosystem in the world for VR/AR and we look to continue that growth for 2019!
January 2018
We started the year off strong with organizing a delegation with the Consulate General of Canada in LA for a visit to Virgin Hyperloop One (the future of transportation) and Warner Brothers with top VR/AR companies like Cognitive3D, Archiact and Ziva Dynamics, while also bringing down BCIT and companies ranging from AI and IOT technologies.
February 2018
Our first event of the year was our real estate and architecture event called “Formation” where we invited the top real estate developer, architects and designers to see how VR/AR is transforming the building world. It was held at Deloitte and it was a packed house!
March 2018
SXSW - 2018 VRARA BC Delegation
In Spring, several Vancouver board members travelled to Texas, in partnership with Trade and Invest BC, to attend the highly acclaimed SXSW conference. Alongside supporting 7 companies, we also hosted a panel and mixer events throughout the event.
April 2018
TED - ‘The Age of Amazement’
‘The Age of Amazement’ event was spectacular and consisted of an inspiring set of days full of talks by innovators and change makers. Members Shape Immersive, LlamaZOO, Archiact, Finger Food, Cognitive3D, Ziva Dynamics and Precision OS were amongst those companies selected to present to attendees.
May 2018
AWE - Augmented World Expo
AWE this year was a blast! Our time at the expo included an organized dinner with the VRARA Vancouver, Trade and Invest BC and top VC’s and enterprises.
June 2018
AR Everywhere: The Spatial Era is Here
In June we were lucky to have Marco De Miroz of ‘The VR Fund’ deliver an insightful keynote on the future of AR and the AR cloud.
September 2018
The VR/AR Global Summit
As the host city for this year’s VR/AR Global Summit, it was an honour to have been a part of such an event. Organized by Vancouver Chapter Board Director Anne Marie Enns, and with presentations from international experts in VR/AR and networking events throughout the weekend, the Summit proved to be an inspiring and engaging event for industry and community alike!
October 2018
The VR/AR Hub at Launch Academy
In October we partnered with Launch Academy to support our new VR/AR Hub in Downtown Vancouver. Since then, the Hub has hosted several AR community events in collaboration with Circuit Stream and AWE Nites.
November 2018
VRTL Summit in LA (Paramount Studios)
In November we organized a delegation of 8 top Vancouver VR/AR companies to travel to the ‘VRTL Summit’. Delegate companies benefited from a booth at the conference with Trade and Invest BC!
December 2018
VFS has partnership with the VR/AR Association and Launch Academy to offer members $2,500 off of their tuition for this 8 month program! The VR/AR Design & Development program.
We would like this time to thank our members, community and industry sponsors and to all of the Vancouver VR/AR community for the collaborative support this year. Vancouver is truly a global leader of emerging technologies and we can’t wait to see what opportunities the new year brings!
