This week the VRARA podcast team welcomes back Tom Emrich. Tom is Director of Product, AR Platforms at Niantic. Tom leads product strategy and development of Niantic’s Lightship Unity SDK (ARDK), WebAR platform (8th Wall), and AR Ads. Come listen as we catch up with Tom and discuss the advancements Niantic continues to bring to the AR development space.

On this week’s episode we are joined by Nima Zeighami. Nima is the Director of Product for Leia Inc. where architects the company’s strategy and manages development across its entire product line. Listen as we discuss how he grew into the field of immersive technology and the ways Leia Inc. is creating new innovation in our field.

We are joined this week by Steve Lukas. Steve is the Director of Product Management, XR Ecosystem at Qualcomm and heads up Developer Experience for Snapdragon Spaces. He is helping to lead this team to develop and create amazing tools, software and SDKs for headworn immersive platforms.

This week we are joined by Dr. Tony Liao, director of the new CougAR lab at the University of Houston (www.uhcougARlab.com). Dr. Liao has taken over as the program coordinator for the Digital Media program at UH, introducing brand new AR/VR courses to the UH curriculum, and expanding the program toward what he believes is the future of Digital Media.

This week we are joined by Liv Erickson. Liv leads the team building Mozilla Hubs, an open source immersive virtual world platform that provides decentralized technology for creating online 3D social VR worlds. Listen in as we discuss the ever evolving world of technology and the ways we can bring different people and projects together to make that technological evolution more meaningful.

We are joined in this episode by Roderick Kennedy. Roderick is the Founder of Simul and Creator of Teleport VR, a purpose-built network protocol for XR. Listen in as we discuss how early work on the PSVR led Roderick to ask important questions around VR rendering and ways we can improve VR experiences to expand the potential of a true “Spatial Internet.”

We are delighted to have Ibrahim Jilani return to the podcast. In a follow up to his 2021 episode, Jilani takes us through UL’s continuing efforts in establishing UL8400 safety standards around immersive technologies. We discuss with Ibrahim what that progress has looked like since we last spoke and how a focus on legislation is critical in helping to move forward these safety regulations for consumer electronics.

For the second episode of this week’s double feature, we are lucky to have Brandon Bogajewicz join us. Brandon is the founder of Vinyl Moon, a subscription based vinyl record service that recently debuted unique AR-enabled artwork by visual artist Tyler Weitz. Listen in as we talk about the intersection of these two unique mediums  of engagement and learn more about Brandon’s involvement in the VR/AR community.

"Metaversed: See beyond the Hype",  is a joint project by authors Samantha Wolfe & Luís Bravo Martins. Serving as a no-nonsense business guide to responsibly approaching the metaverse, the book offers an exploration and “insightful discussion and analysis of the next, rapidly approaching technological revolution.” Listen in as we discuss how it came to be and more with Samantha and Luís.

This week Tyler and Sophia are joined by Guido Meardi. Guido is the CEO of V-Nova, a London-based deep tech company dedicated to improving data compression through game-changing use of AI and parallel processing. Listen as we delve deep into the more technical aspects of XR and associated computational processes.

This week’s guest is Robert Signore. Robert is the President of Thrive Pavilion. Thrive Pavillion is a non-profit organization that operates in Social VR providing real-time social activities in computer generated spaces to help older adults overcome the negative impacts of social isolation. Listen as we speak with Robert about the use of VR Technology to grow social relationships and tap into demographics that are often overlooked in the VR field.

Ever wanted to own a piece of “living” art? This week we are joined by Alex Herrity, Co-Founder of Anima. Anima is a company developing a platform and protocol for ownable, blockchain-based AR objects. Listen as we go through Alex’s unique experiences in game development and what led to the formation of this unique, creator driven platform.

Our guest this week is Diana Olynick. Diana is the Founder of M4 Method and has more than ten years of experience as an engineer. Diana has a passion for looking beyond just scope of how we create new technology and instead discover the effects that technology has on consumer health and habits. An effort to answer the question: what type of world are we creating?

Continuing on our exploration of XR technology and healthcare, we are joined this week by Greg Tarnacki. Greg is the CEO & Founder of 18Loop, a non-profit organization doing incredible work for young cancer patients. 18Loop deploys VR to children with cancer to help them tolerate treatment, recover and thrive.

This week we are delighted to be joined by Pia Behmuaras, Product Manager & Experience Designer with Foretell Reality. Pia is a multimedia artist and VR therapy advocate who leads initiatives related to mental health and wellbeing in her work. Listen as we discuss the intersection of VR/AR with medical therapies and how virtual spaces can better humanize treatment.

We are joined again by our friend Andrew Bennett who previously joined us at the Immerse Global Summit in Miami this past December. Andrew leads AT&T’s Mass Market 5G Monetization team responsible for identifying opportunities to harness the power of 5G to bring new experiences to life for AT&T’s customers.

The VR/AR Association podcast continues its Immersed Global Summit Recap Series. This week’s episode is the final episode of our recap of the amazing talent and individuals at the Immerse Global Summit in Miami, Florida at the beginning of December last year. Our guests span a wide range of professionals in the VR/AR space, each sharing with us a small window into their industry knowledge and experience.

To start the new year, the VR/AR Association podcast continues its Immersed Global Summit Recap Series. This week’s episode is part two of our recap of the amazing talent and individuals at the Immerse Global Summit in Miami, Florida at the beginning of December last year. Our guests span a wide range of professionals in the VR/AR space, each sharing with us a small window into their industry knowledge and experience.

Leading into the New Year, the VR/AR Association podcast has some special episodes lined up. This week’s episode is part one of our reap of the amazing talent and individuals at the Immerse Global Summit in Miami, Florida at the beginning of December this year. Our guests span a wide range of professionals in the VR/AR space, each sharing with us a small window into their industry knowledge and experience.

As we continue to lead into Immerse Global Summit Miami 2022, we are joined this week by Vanessa Mullin. Vanessa is the Director of Gaming, Metaverse and Social at Agora and also serves as chair for VRARA's Metaverse Committee. Listen as we step through her unique background and hear her insight into the metaverse industry.

Tyler & Sophia are joined this week by Adrian Moise, Founder and CEO of Aequilibrium. Aequilibrium is an award-winning digital services and consulting provider. Listen as we discuss Adrian’s experience and background that helped to improve his understanding of immersive technology that led to the creation of his company.

Tyler and Sophia are joined this week by Chris Walz. Chris is the CEO and Chief Game Designer of Doge Labs VR. Doge Labs VR are the creators of Big Ballers Basketball, one of the best rated Quest games in App Labs as listed by Road to VR. Listen as we talk about Chris’ beginnings in the industry and how their game has grown in the VR space.

This week’s episode features Sean Hurwitz, Founder & CEO of PIXO VR. PIXO VR's platform is an all-in-one solution for virtual and augmented reality training. With PIXO VR, Sean has been helping companies transform their training programs and usher in new advancements in workplace education.

This week’s episode features Nathaniel Hunter. Nathaniel is the CEO of InfinteWorld, a leading Web3 and Metaverse infrastructure company that helps brands drive consumer engagement and experiences with digital content. Listen as we talk about Nathaniel's humble beginnings selling comics to his growth into the world of VR/AR technology.

This week we are joined by Sid Desai. Sid is the Founder & CEO of RocketVR Health. RocketVR Health is pioneering the space of VR Therapeutics using VR-guided mindfulness. In this episode we discuss VR Mindfulness as a tool for healthcare providers, innovation in the digital therapeutics realm and how this technology furthers our understanding of care.

This week we are joined by Linda Ciavarelli, Co-Founder of HouseCallVR. Linda is a doctor of podiatric medicine and uses her expertise to connect the established world of virtual reality medicine to the virtual frontier of consumer VR platforms. Listen as we discuss the intersection of immersive social platforms and medical practice.