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Are you interested in the metaverse, Digital Twins, VR and AR headset and applications, and what the future of digital content creation looks like?

Unity was founded in 2004 and quickly became the leading development platform for mobile game development, as well as a leader in building games for PC and console. With the rise of VR and AR content, Unity also became the most common platform for building for the Metaverse, currently powering well over half of the existing VR and AR applications.

And we're not just talking about games. Developers using Unity’s latest tools and API’s can build Digital Twins which can include sophisticated simulation environment(s) that leverage real-time 3D graphics. A Digital Twin is a dynamic virtual copy of a physical asset, process, system or environment that looks like and behaves identically to its real-world counterpart.

This presentation - the second in the Building the Metaverse series hosted by the Charleston VR/AR Meet-up group - will provide a broad introduction to Unity, and help you connect the dots to learn how Unity is providing new tools to support developers in creating custom metaverse, digital twin and other 3D solutions. Whether you're interested in building digital worlds, entering a career as a full-time 3D developer or artist, or just wanting to learn what all the hype is about, this presentation will have something for everyone.

The presenters will include:

Russell Sng

Developer Advocate - Unity Gaming Services at Unity Technologies

Russel will be speaking about working with the XR Interaction toolkit for building VR and AR experiences, as well as the latest developments from Unity for building Digital Twins.

Ben Davis

Founder | CEO of Moondog Animation Studios

Ben will be talking about the work Moondog has done and is doing with Digital Twins.

Agenda:

The presentation will begin at 6 pm - Please join us for snacks and socializing with fellow tech enthusiasts from 5:30-6:00 pm

Please note, for regular attendees, this event will be held at the College of Charleston, Harbor Walk West, Room 217, 360 Concord St, Charleston, SC

Parking info:

A public parking garage operated by the City of Charleston is located at 24 Calhoun Street. Limited metered parking is located along Washington Street and Concord Street.

Pre-registration by March 15 is required

Seating space for this event is limited - if the event fills up there is a possibility it will be live streamed to accommodate additional virtual attendees.

This event is sponsored by The Charleston Digital Corridor and The VR/AR Association of Charleston

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Maps have always been important for explorers to new lands and early travelers in The Metaverse need accurate and detailed maps to find their way to virtual or augmented destinations.

Paul Turner, Founder and CEO of Virtual America LLC, will lay out the ‘building blocks’, foundation tools and platforms that developers are already using to build virtual or augmented objects/content in spaces that collectively make up the quickly expanding Metaverse (or metaverses).

Paul’s talk is part 1 of a 3 part series on 'Building the Metaverse'. He will focus on ‘mapping the metaverse’, providing an overview of the importance of both physical and virtual mapping technologies to the growth and success of the Metaverse. Paul will highlight the work currently being done by Metaverse platform companies like Niantic (creators of Pokemon Go), Mapbox and Unity and how this work builds on prior 3D mapping applications created by ‘traditional’ digital mapping companies like Apple, Google and Microsoft.

Join others from the Charleston VR and AR development community to learn about and participate in crowd-sourcing a dynamic ‘metaverse map’ of the Charleston metropolitan area that will help you and your friends find your way to hidden content, fun activities and useful knowledge right in your own backyard.

We'll kick off at 5:30 with snacks, drinks and hands on demos, then start the talk around 6.

***** IMPORTANT FOR GETTING IN ******

The Charleston Digital Corridor is on the 2nd floor of the Charleston Tech Center. There is a paid parking garage, or you can park for free in the lot on the South side of Conroy St across from the CTC.

You will also need a code to get in to the front door and use the elevator. This changes from time to time so we will send it out to those who have signed up. If you have trouble getting in, text or call Dave at 352-214-1144.

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If you have any VR or AR demos or gear you want to share, bring that along too!

"Call for Papers"! .. if you have some knowledge to share with the community, please send a message to the organizers via Meetup or talk to Dave at the next meetup.

After Party? .. with our new location, we're right next to Revelry Brewing. If folks are interested, we can clean up at the CDC and keep the conversation going over a nice local brew.

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Are we there yet? No, but we're closer.

The new headset is a lot more comfortable, has some really great features for virtual collaboration, like a controller you can flip around and use as a pen, plus face and eye tracking to show real emotions. It also has better tracked controllers and the resolution is good enough to read fine print on websites.

It's also still expensive and still pretty big to wear it all day, but it's a huge step forward.

So, where are we at and where are we headed? Come out and try out the Quest Pro and Quest 2, and we'll talk about what other headsets are out there or are confirmed or rumored (ahem Apple ahem) to be coming.

We'll kick off at 5:30 with snacks, drinks and hands on demos, then start the talk around 6.

If you have any VR or AR demos or gear you want to share, bring that along too!

Save your seat today!

RSVP here

Email Dave Ingram charleston@thevrara.com if you would like to speak or demo

At this event, Dave Ingram, the chapter president for the Charleston VR/AR Association will give his recap of 2019 and predictions for 2020. If you're thinking about riding the upcoming wave of spacial computing in mixed reality, this is the place to be!

In addition, you'll get a chance to hear from and talk with people and companies in the community who are actively pushing forward with this exciting new technology. Not only that, we will have several devices set up for you to try, including an Oculus Quest and Oculus Go for Virtual Reality, and a Magic Leap One for immerisive Augmented Reality. We will also have Augmented Reality demos running on iPads, the AR device that many people may not even realize they own. (Do you have a device or demos you'd be willing to share with the group? Bring it along!)

This event is hosted and sponsored by the VR/AR Association, Charleston Chapter as well as Atlatl Software, the leader in visual sales tools for manufacturers.

You'll also hear about ways to stay connected with the VR/AR community of Charleston including regular meetups and online forums, plus how to connect with the Global VR/AR Association online and through events around the world.

RSVP here

At this event you'll get a chance to hear from and talk with people and companies in the community who are actively pushing forward with this exciting new technology. Not only that, we will have several devices set up for you to try, including an Oculus Quest and Oculus Go for Virtual Reality, and a Magic Leap One for immersive Augmented Reality. We will also have Augmented Reality demos running on iPads, the AR device that many people may not even realize they own. (Do you have a device or demos you'd be willing to share with the group? Bring it along!)

This event is hosted and sponsored by the VR/AR Association, Charleston Chapter, as well as Atlatl Software, the leader in visual sales tools for manufacturers.

Call for Speakers

Do you have a demo to share or a VR/AR related topic you're passionate about? Contact charleston@thevrara.com to coordinate a speaking slot for this or future events.

Agenda

• 5:30-6:30 - Experience VR/AR demos, plus Appetizers, Drinks and Networking

• 6:30-7:30 - Speakers - "The State of VR and AR in 2019" - Dave Ingram, Chapter President

• 7:30-8:30 - More networking, drinks and demos.