[This story from STUFF describes a new virtual tour that provides the public with a first-person experience of a distant heritage site and it also includes an interesting example of inverse presence, where an experience not mediated by technology is perceived as mediated. See the original story for 7 more images and a 41 second video. For more information, including a different 2:31 minute video, see the Antarctic Heritage Trust website. And for a 1:53 minute news report see 1 News. –Matthew] [Image: Sir Edmund Hillary’s grandson Alexander Hillary with Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern. Credit: Abigail Dougherty/STUFF] Hillary’s Hut: Virtual…

[This story from Artsy reports on how the pandemic has encouraged new uses of presence-evoking technologies for viewing and purchasing high-end art; see the original version of the story for 11 more images. –Matthew] [Image: ArtLab, in software installation view of Ellen Gallagher’s DeLuxe, 2004-05, and Mark Bradford’s Chicago, 2019, created in HWVR. Credit: Copyright held by the artists. Courtesy of the artists and Hauser & Wirth.] Galleries and Fairs Are Turning to Virtual Reality to Connect with Collectors Justin Kamp July 29, 2020 In the months since COVID-19 shut down most traditional in-person avenues for viewing and purchasing art,…

[NZBusiness describes a promising application of technology that can create social presence with a virtual person to help people quit smoking (note there are links to two videos at the end). Co-founder and chief business officer of the New Zealand company that created the technology, Greg Cross, comments further in other coverage: From NZHub: “We would call Florence a digital person,” Greg Cross, co-founder of Soul Machines, told Morning Report. “She’s a CGI creation just as we see in the movies, but what’s unique about Florence and other digital people like her is she is … autonomously animated by a…

[A modern version of wall murals (e.g., those sold by wall26), Roomality’s virtual windows and walls use 3D and AI to create a compelling presence illusion without obtrusive headsets or even glasses. This story is from The Irish Times, where it includes a 1:41 minute video (also available via YouTube) and two more images. For more information, including a second video (also on YouTube), see the company’s website. –Matthew] Irish entrepreneur promises VR experience without goggles or headsets John Moore’s Roomality is developing ‘virtual windows’ solution By Charlie Taylor July 21, 2020 Tech entrepreneur John Moore, who sold his former…

[This short piece from PC Gamer nicely captures both prospective benefits and significant concerns about a future saturated with presence experiences, focused in this case on a new AI-driven text-to-speech technology that creates compelling illusions. The original story includes the 4:25 minute video it describes, and the video is also available on YouTube and on Sonantic’s website. More information is in stories from Yahoo! News and The Times (the latter behind a subscriber firewall). –Matthew] Oh good, someone invented the ‘first AI capable of crying’ A company has created a text-to-speech technology that doesn’t just read words, it simulates an…

[Social distancing requirements are leading producers of sports coverage – and many others – to get creative in simulating missing audience members. This story from Variety describes how Major League Baseball is addressing the issue with digital fans (see the original version for a 19 second video). SB Nation’s coverage (“The uncanny valley is full of Fox Sports’ virtual baseball fans”) characterizes it this way: “In order to make the return of baseball feel more ‘alive’ on TV, Fox is adding full stadiums of virtual baseball fans that cheer and boo along with the action. It’s a means to make…