Diving into an Infinite Workplace

10

October

2022

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How VR will shift our work routine

The COVID-19 pandemic caused a widespread shift in work routines from physical spaces to digital remote spaces. While this undoubtedly mitigated the spread of the virus, it also unexpectedly increased employee productivity, according to research (Natalia Emanuel & Emma Harrington, 2020). This effect came mostly from employees turning physical commuting time into fruitful working time at home. Now that the pandemic-mitigation measures have been (nearly) ultimately lifted, organizations are carefully evaluating their next steps ˗ stay fully online, implement a hybrid working model or completely return to the physical workplace. While the positive effects on productivity might suggest that staying online is the way to go, organizations fear that the current digital tools that facilitate such an approach do not provide the employee with an authentic connection to their workmates. However, the rapid development of Virtual Reality (VR) might be a solution to this dilemma.

The past few years have been the bottom line for an explosion in mainstream adoption of VR technology, which has been boosted by the recent hype that the Metaverse has caused. Accordingly, organizations look upon the developments of VR favourably. In essence, the implementation of VR technology as an enabler of remote communication would allow the creation of digital immersive workspaces, replicating the physical office in the virtual world. This could make employees feel as if they were in the same location as their teammates and grasp the workplace experience, while still enjoying all the features of digital collaboration (Murray, 2022). Such a space would work as a creation and collaboration platform where the possibilities are infinite from deeply interactive group meetings to real-time product prototyping and co-edition. Additionally, the immersive nature of VR would make workers perceptually ‘leave’ their homes and ‘enter’ the workplace without factually leaving their houses.
As this possibility gains momentum, several tech organizations have taken the first steps by developing promising virtual workspace VR platforms. Meta seems to be the one leading the race with the development of Infinite Office, a digital collaboration platform meant to replicate the physical office in the Metaverse. This space allows the employee to define the boundaries of their virtual office through a complete customization and availability of a wide range of tools that can improve their output and productivity (Chakraborty, 2022).

The implementation of such technology within the workplace is still relatively far considering several potential drawbacks that developers and organizations must carefully evaluate. Substantially, business data privacy continues to be a great concern for organizations, which must ensure the digitalization of their operations does not compromise their confidentiality. Additionally, employee mental health is a delicate issue to be assessed in this regard. A fundamental replacement of physical connections between the workforce might undermine the value obtained from real-world interactions between employees (Giusino & Toscano, 2021). But if this new virtual world is to arrive, organizations will have to cautiously adapt to this revolution and try to create a win-win situation between them and their employees.

References

Chakraborty, K. (2022, August 23). The Future of Remote Work: 7 Technologies to Watch. Techopedia.com. Retrieved October 10, 2022, from https://www.techopedia.com/the-future-of-remote-work-7-technologies-to-watch/2/34559

Giusino, D., Bowman, N., & Toscano, F. (2021, July 28). Work From Home (WFH) During COVID-19: Is Virtual Reality (VR) a New Solution to New Problems? Journal of Occupational &Amp; Environmental Medicine, 63(10), e755–e756. https://doi.org/10.1097/jom.0000000000002339

Murray, A. (2022, April 4). Inside an “infinite” workspace: What it’s like to do your job completely in VR. ZDNET. Retrieved October 10, 2022, from https://www.zdnet.com/article/inside-an-infinite-workspace-what-its-like-to-do-your-job-completely-in-vr/

Natalia Emanuel & Emma Harrington. (2020b, November 16). “Working” Remotely? Selection, Treatment, And the Market Provision of Remote Work. Harvard University. Retrieved October 10, 2022, from https://scholar.harvard.edu/files/eharrington/files/harrington_jmp_working_remotely.pdf

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Using Metaverse and VR to enhance education

15

September

2022

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The Metaverse is a concept that was already created 30 years ago by fiction novel author Neal Stephenson (Momtaz, 2022). For a long time, the Metaverse received only a limited amount of public attention, until large technology companies such as Facebook and Microsoft started to invest heavily in this futuristic technology (Brown, 2021). Simply put the Metaverse is a virtual world which enables people to use avatars (digital human which can be freely created) to take part in social and economics interactions (Lee et al., 2021; Momtaz, 2022).

Many popular examples of today’s Metaverse are in the context of gaming and simple social exchanges within the Metaverse. However, it is proposed that the Metaverse in combination with VR technology could also be used to significantly enhance the way today’s education is done (Ragav et al., 2022). According to (Suh & Ahn, 2022), the use of the Metaverse in an educational setting can actually have beneficial effects on the performance of students. So how could the Metaverse for educational purposes look like?

As the Metaverse enables the creation of virtual worlds, education gets unique possibilities to let the students discover and experience topics in a more realistic way. Ragav et al., (2022) propose to combine the metaverse with virtual reality (VR) technology to let students actively engage with topics which are currently only demonstrated using books and short 2-D videos. Image a history lesson where you really dive into the past and can learn about the time as if you are there. You can experience historic events and be immersed into the historic world in a way that is not possible using traditional teaching techniques (Ragav et al., 2022). Next to experiencing historic events, this technology can also help teachers and students to experience realistic scenarios which are normally very complex and therefore difficult to grasp for students or simply not within budget for the school (Jensen & Forbes Technology Council, 2022; Ragav et al., 2022). The metaverse opens up the possibility to conduct for example physics and chemistry experiments, which are too dangerous in real life (Jensen & Forbes Technology Council, 2022). So how realistic is it?

In my opinion and looking back at my own time at school with many complex concepts which were difficult to understand using a book and short videos, I see a large potential of using the Metaverse for educational purposes. A higher engagement always enabled me to better understand the topics that were discussed. However, I just think that the technology is not quite there yet. First, the required technology to create a Metaverse as well as VR technology is just still not realistic for the public schools yet. It is too complex and especially expensive to implement. Second, looking at the high hesitation with which schools implement digital technology, I assume the Metaverse will fare even worse than common technology such as laptops and tablets. Nonetheless, I am positive that the Metaverse and combining it with VR devices will be an important step in the future to bring education and teaching quality to the next level – of course effective strategies have to be formulized specifically for this new technology.

What do you think? Is the use of the Metaverse and VR technology a step into the right direction when it comes to education? Will it increase the overall quality of our educational systems?

References

Brown, D. (2021, August 30). What is the ‘metaverse’? Facebook says it’s the future of the Internet. The Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2021/08/30/what-is-the-metaverse/

Jensen, M., & Forbes Technology Council. (2022, August 24). The Accessibility And Affordability Of The Metaverse In Education Right Now. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbestechcouncil/2022/08/24/the-accessibility-and-affordability-of-the-metaverse-in-education-right-now/?sh=6eae95017f8f

Lee, L.-H., Braud, T., Zhou, P., Wang, L., Xu, D., Lin, Z., Kumar, A., Bermejo, C., & Hui, P. (2021). All One Needs to Know about Metaverse: A Complete Survey on Technological Singularity, Virtual Ecosystem, and Research Agenda. http://arxiv.org/abs/2110.05352

Momtaz, P. P. (2022). Some Very Simple Economics of Web3 and the Metaverse. FinTech, 1(3), 225–234. https://doi.org/10.3390/fintech1030018

Ragav, A., Noen, K., Lindahl, M., & Dohler, M. (2022, August 17). Metaverse education: from university to metaversity. https://www.ericsson.com/en/blog/2022/8/metaverse-education-from-university-to-metaversity

Suh, W., & Ahn, S. (2022). Utilizing the Metaverse for Learner-Centered Constructivist Education in the Post-Pandemic Era: An Analysis of Elementary School Students. Journal of Intelligence, 10(1). https://doi.org/10.3390/jintelligence10010017

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From mourning to finding closure, VR as a potential solution?

4

October

2021

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We all know Virtual Reality as a staple in the gaming industry to play games in another (virtual) world and interact with the objects within. That premise will not change anytime soon, but Virtual Reality still has untapped potential to uncover. This blog post will discuss such potential which has been uncovered recently with VR, revisiting your passed loved ones.

The goal of the VR technology is to effectively find closure with your loved ones that have passed away. First introduced in a Korean Series called “Meeting you” in 2020, the virtual world generates a virtual avatar of your loved one, which look and sound strikingly similar using Deepfake technology. In addition, through sensory gloves, you are also able to interact and “feel” with the avatar in the program. Although not available for commercial use yet, initiatives and companies focused on therapy or grief therapy specifically have shown interest to make it happen widely available in the future (Brockwell, 2020).

Although the advancement in VR to make this possible is a milestone in itself, people do link ethical constraints with seeing “people” who are deceased, and whether it effectively works as grief therapy. Indeed, the term “Technical resurrection” has people speculating whether the deceased should be “resurrected” in VR to find closure. Others speculate and observe that, virtual reality is still in its early development stages, and cannot be used a medium for grief therapy. In addition, it might even damage the grieving process (Brockwell, 2020). Jong-Woo Kim, the producer and director of Meeting you, does indicate that due to technological and budget constaints, the VR program is scripted, not based on interactive elements (Kim, 2020)

Although the current constraints with the VR technology does introduce limitations, it does seem to work to find closure. As a Korean mother stated seeing her deceased child in the VR world: “I think I’ve had the dream I’ve always wanted” (Meek, 2020).

What do you think? Should VR be used as (grief) therapy and be used as “Technical resurrection”? Or do you think that it should not be commercialized at all?

References

Brockwell, H. (2020). I long to see my dead dad – but I’m unsure virtual reality’s the answer. [online] The Independent. Available at: https://www.independent.co.uk/voices/virtual-reality-dead-relatives-daughter-mother-deepfake-black-mirror-a9332501.html [Accessed 4 Oct. 2021].

Kim, V. (2020). The Uncanniness of Watching a Grieving Mother and Her Dead Daughter Meet in VR. [online] Slate Magazine. Available at: https://slate.com/technology/2020/05/meeting-you-virtual-reality-documentary-mbc.html [Accessed 4 Oct. 2021].

Meek, A. (2020). If you could use VR to see a dead loved one again one more time, would you want to? [online] BGR. Available at: https://bgr.com/tech/vr-headset-grieving-mother-meets-dead-daughter-again/ [Accessed 4 Oct. 2021].

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Advertising in VR Gaming – Metaverse Predictions

3

October

2021

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Ready Player One (2018) is a popular movie that follows the story of Wade Watts, a typical young adult, who dives into a Metaverse system called OASIS as do many of his peers. The technology in that sci-fi movie depicts a world in which people can fully immerse themselves within the Virtual Reality game. Of course, an infamous company’s CEO Nolan Sorrento, has for objective to gain ownership over the OASIS system in order to have full advertising power over the players.

Although this is purely science-fiction, the ethical questions that the movie encompasses can become very relevant indeed, and in the near future! Facebook’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced that the company would become known as a Metaverse company. As in any industry, if there are opportunities of profit, they will be seized.

Facebook’s VR Gaming Brand Oculus has known a global success with the launch of its latest VR Headset, the Quest 2. Having sold over 5 Million units since its launch in October 2020, making it the most popular VR console ever released, surpassing HTC, Sony, HP and Valve equivalents. The Quest 2’s success is greatly attributed to its affordability at a price of about $300 for its most basic version.

Although the industry is at its beginning stages, Facebook has started making moves with regard to advertising and the future of the Metaverse. In June 2021, publisher and creator of its popular game Blastron, Resolution Games, was the first to sign up for advertising trials that Oculus was looking forward to.

First trials of putting Ads in VR Gaming

Facebook had envisioned the ads as being a background with an emphasis on context and relevance. For example, these ads may be shown as part of the virtual environment, where there would be ads if it were in real-life. As shown in the picture above, these ads would be posted in a banner-type style as additional decor.

However, due to poor communication on Facebook’s part, the news was turned with a different narrative. Instead of being passive advertising which would melt in the environment without removing any sense of immersion, the VR community believed that the ads would come in between Menu screens, and be completely detrimental to the VR experience. Many thought that this was only the start and that it would eventually resemble what the villain in Ready Player One (2018) wanted to achieve.

The players complained that it was unfair for advertising to be added to a payed-for game. Oblivious to the fact that the extra revenue stream would be destined towards the developers, the community rejected the concept and called upon a boycott. Due to a high level of backlash, Resolution Games came back on their word and decided that their game was not a good fit for advertising trials. Against their will, Facebook was forced to postpone their advertising trials.

What does the future of VR Gaming hold, and what type of advertising will be implemented?

Sources :
https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-57568039
https://uploadvr.com/facebooks-head-of-vr-responds-to-ad-criticism/
https://www.counterpointresearch.com/xr-headset-shipments-almost-triple-yoy-q1-2021/
https://www.theverge.com/2021/6/16/22535511/facebook-ads-oculus-quest-vr-apps
https://www.theverge.com/22588022/mark-zuckerberg-facebook-ceo-metaverse-interview

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Virtual Reality and Theatre: A New Immersive Experience

6

October

2019

5/5 (1) Imagine you sitting in a theatre, waiting for the performance. All of a sudden, a performer ask you to wear a visor virtual reality. The curtain rises and you are dancing with your favourite ballet dancer. The reality becomes clear a few minutes later, when the performance is finished and you are encouraged to remove the VR headset.

Virtual reality is a three-dimensional, computer generated environment which can be explored and interacted with by a person (Gigante M.A., 1993). Nowadays virtual reality technology is used in a broad range of situations, from videogames to training pilots, going through visualizing and modifying prototypes ( Reaney M., 1999). It is quite interesting also to notice that the traditional theatre industry is moving towards new technologies, such as virtual reality (Dickson A., 2019).

In theatre the goal is to immerse spectators in the performance through a right mix of engaging storytelling, soundtracks, talented actors etc.. Theoretically, if the show is successful the spectator should escape from reality, feeling part of the performance ( Reaney M., 1999). Virtual reality could help in further enhancing and improving the audience engagement. Virtual reality is able to remove the separation betweeen actors and spectators. People have no longer a passive role, they participate firstend to the performance, this can further increase the emotions and the feelings of the plot ( Moneta A., 2017).

Virtual reality does not only improve customer’s experience but it also enlarges the screenwriter capabilities. Indeed, virtual reality allows to visualize endless combinations of environments and sets, actors can immerse themselves in the reality that spectators will experience later on, trying to understand how it can be improved ( Moneta A., 2017).  This VR implementation is also showed in the following video presentation of the Microsoft HoloLens, a state of the art VR visor launched in February 2019.

Virtual Reality has already been implemented by some theather companies in limited situations such as film festivals and other pop-ups events ( Yu K., 2019). However, considering the fast pace of VR’s technology development, new possibilities and potential for virtual theatre performances will further increase in the next year (Moneta A., 2017) and the next video is a clear example of the VR potentiality (Damiani J., 2019).

 

 

Reference:

Damiani, J. (2019). ‘Chained’ Is A Groundbreaking Exploration Of Immersive Intimacy — And Now It’s Expanding. [online] Forbes.com. Available at: https://www.forbes.com/sites/jessedamiani/2019/03/11/chained-is-a-groundbreaking-exploration-of-immersive-intimacy-and-now-its-expanding/#11001ced42a7 [Accessed 6 Oct. 2019].

Dickson, A. (2019). Will virtual reality change theatre?. [online] Financial Times. Available at: https://www-ft-com.eur.idm.oclc.org/content/0b25319e-f7cd-11e8-a154-2b65ddf314e9 [Accessed 6 Oct. 2019].

Gigante, M. A. (1993). Virtual reality: definitions, history and applications. In Virtual reality systems (pp. 3-14). Academic Press.

Mark Reaney (1999) Virtual Reality and the Theatre: Immersion in Virtual Worlds, Digital Creativity, 10:3, 183-188, DOI: 10.1076/digc.10.3.183.3244

Moneta, A. (2017). How virtual reality is changing the way we experience stage shows. [online] The Conversation. Available at: https://theconversation.com/how-virtual-reality-is-changing-the-way-we-experience-stage-shows-81542 [Accessed 6 Oct. 2019].

Yu, K. (2019). How Immersive Virtual Reality Theatre Pushes the Limits of Storytelling. [online] Medium. Available at: https://noproscenium.com/how-immersive-virtual-reality-theatre-pushes-the-limits-of-storytelling-8265b198bfc7 [Accessed 6 Oct. 2019].

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Apparel Industry: A Candidate for Digital Disruption in the Foreseeable Future?

14

September

2018

The Apparel Industry as a candidate for digital disruption.

5/5 (7) In the 2000’s, e-commerce and e-books would completely shift the paradigm in the books industry. Although it took some time to gain traction and several technological iterations were needed, the almost unlimited inventory of books offered by stores like Amazon and its low prices, allied with the convenience of home delivery and free shipping were able to shift consumer patterns and boost this type of media consumption. In short, in over 15 years, digitalization in the sector transformed the competitive landscape. In 2017 and in the U.S. alone, e-books accounted for 55% of all online book purchases in volume, of which 83.3% can be attributed to Amazon(1), and when printed book purchases (39%) are concerned, Amazon accounted for 45.5% of them(2).

Big strives for this technological up rise partly came from the costly inventory which had to be vast and consistent across brick-and-mortar stores, higher prices, low searchability and portability of books, between many other inefficiencies/factors which are inherent to a physical business model of such nature. This got me thinking of other industries that may be in a similar position and, in my view, the apparel industry presents itself as a strong candidate to follow suit in the foreseeable future.

What technologies may disrupt the Apparel industry?

Buying apparel either online or in physical stores is a chore for some. In the first case, the inherent inefficiency of the channel comes from the uncertainty of the purchase, either from the inconsistent model sizes across brands and regions or from image manipulation that may occur in webstores to make their products more appealing. In a few years, however, it may be possible to bridge the online with the traditional experience and see and try the items you desire while having the store service you may need, all from the comfort of your home using Virtual Reality(3).

In the case of physical stores, some people simply do not appreciate the stress-inducing experience of going to commercial centres to buy a product they desire or simply cannot afford to spend time on such tasks. With the continuous cost reduction and technology improvement of 3D printers, the online purchasing experience may only consist in downloading the “blueprints” of your new product and watch it as it is manufactured in front of your own eyes and is ready to be worn in a couple of hours(4).

Both these technologies have the potential to massively reduce costs. No longer will companies need to set up massive production lines to deliver the goods or to develop a complex network of product distribution. Additionally, at some point, to provide service and assistance, physical stores may stop being the first-choice for many with the use of VR, allowing companies to reduce their investment in physical retail. This way, companies could redirect their investment to design departments to both differentiate themselves as well as to increase their product offering, now that the production capacity constraint would be surpassed.

However, digitalization in apparel can also follow a different route and result from the emergence of IoT. The continued push for wearable tech will allow companies to create ecosystems of products that can act as “life companions”, continuously gathering data from the user, from biometric data, to providing nutritional and physiological recommendations, physical monitoring, and many other features, changing the fundamental nature of clothing, its lifecycle and its switching costs. In short, it has the potential to revolutionize not only clothing but medicine as well.

Despite the promise of these technologies, they may be a long way from becoming a reality in our daily lives. They still have a relatively high cost to appeal to the mainstream audience and some still need some iterative improvements, as 3D Printing, for example, that cannot replicate the current quality of clothing materials and techniques. However, this has not stopped brands such as Nike (also Adidas and Reebok) from experimenting and producing whole lines of sneakers with 3D printed components, like the Nike Flyprint(5). Also, others like IoT and wearable tech still may have to face ethical and privacy barriers when it comes to the protection and use of the data collected.

What do you think? How do you think the industry will evolve? Let us know in the comments.

Sources:

(1) https://publishdrive.com/amazon-ebook-market-share/

(2) http://authorearnings.com/report/january-2018-report-us-online-book-sales-q2-q4-2017/

(3) https://www.forbes.com/sites/currentaccounts/2016/01/28/virtual-reality-coming-soon-to-a-clothing-store-near-you/

(4) https://www.nbcnews.com/mach/science/soon-you-may-be-able-3d-print-clothing-your-own-ncna848646

(5) https://news.nike.com/news/nike-flyprint-3d-printed-textile

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A different taste of VR

5

October

2016

No ratings yet. The virtual reality world is changing rapidly, Google just announced their vision (no pun intended) on VR headsets with the Google Daydream View. Many other companies have their headset already on the market and our now developing applications for these devices (Lamkin, 2016). Consumers are slowly starting to get into virtual reality, Deloitte Global predicting that at the end of this year VR will have about $700 million in hardware sales. Of which the vast majority is focussed on video games but in the longer term VR is likely to have multiple applications (Lee & Stewart, 2016).
Virtual reality hardware offers visual and audio content to replicate a realistic environment. Immersing users into a simulation that allows them to feel like as if it was reel. However this illusion remains incomplete, only satisfying sight and hearing. So that’s why Ubisoft developed the Nosulus Rift, which will offer gamers a different immersive experience while playing the game “South Park: The Fractured But Whole”. This game has a new character whose superpower is farting. And since a fart is not visible, Ubisoft created a new VR wearable device that users need to strap onto their nose and will make them able to smell the farts of the characters (Passary, 2016). Ubisoft is showcasing this device at game conventions where people can try-out the game as well as the headset. Some of the reactions give a good indication of how well the device works. “A horrible, noxious gas” according to Farokhmanesh (2016) and Dingman (2016) says “it can make you retch and feel like you want to die!”
Then the questions arise, is this a good development for VR? Will it help VR become the next chapter in the continuing disruption in technology and innovation? The Nosulus Rift is more than just showing a new way to experience VR, it opens a large field of new opportunities in the sector of VR. Helping VR become integrated into our lives and workplaces in the near future.

Sources
https://www.wareable.com/headgear/the-best-ar-and-vr-headsets
http://www2.deloitte.com/global/en/pages/technology-media-and-telecommunications/articles/tmt-pred16-media-virtual-reality-billion-dollar-niche.html
http://www.techtimes.com/articles/174579/20160822/forget-oculus-rift-meet-nosulus-rift-this-wearable-tech-will-let-you-smell-fart-in-new-south-park-game.htm
http://www.polygon.com/2016/8/19/12550744/south-park-fractured-but-whole-nosulus-rift
http://www.pcworld.com/article/3116197/software/south-park-the-fractured-but-wholes-fart-simulating-nosulus-rift-almost-made-me-vomit.html

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