[It’s early days, but this story from Government Technology describes a potentially life-saving approach to training firefighters and other disaster first responders using presence-evoking augmented reality and artificial intelligence. See the original version of the story (or YouTube) for the mentioned 4:16 minute video. –Matthew]

[Image: A man practices extinguishing a fire through AI-augmented training. Credit: George Mason University]

Could Augmented Reality Paired With AI Save First Responder Lives?

Training poses deadly risks for firefighters. Researchers are experimenting with new augmented and virtual reality technologies to allow first responders to learn life-saving skills without risking their own.

By Nikki Davidson
July 14, 2025

Serving as a firefighter is inherently dangerous, but not all lives lost on duty, or in the hours shortly after, are unavoidable. Researchers now believe technology, particularly augmented reality (AR) training, holds significant potential to prevent some of these tragedies.

The dangers of public safety training

Data tells a story about the dangers of firefighting that most people aren’t aware of. Of the 62 total firefighter fatalities reported by the National Fire Protection Association that occurred in 2024, (including those on duty and within 24 hours of an incident), 11 were due to training-related incidents.

Eight of the training deaths were caused by heart attacks, while two were due to heat exhaustion and one from pulmonary embolism following an injury in training.

The fallen include 26-year old recruit Cody Treatch, who was taken to the hospital on the second day of training and later passed away. According to a report from FireRescue1, Treatch’s wife was pregnant at the time of his death.

Could AI and augmented reality provide a solution?

At George Mason University, associate professor of computer science Craig Yu and associate professor of kinesiology Joel Martin are researching the potential of AR paired with AI for firefighter training. Their vision is to help firefighters train, while minimizing the environmental risks that could cause death or injury.

A demonstration of the AI-augmented training can be watched in the video [in the original story].

AR differs from virtual reality (VR) in that it is a blend of the real and simulated. The tech the researchers are working on would put firefighters in an actual training space, create a 3D model of that space, and then insert invented emergencies, like a fire, into a trainee’s field of view, with the help of artificial intelligence.

“The advantages brought about by augmented reality are that the training is done in the real space, and the trainees will still be able to see the real world surroundings and the real things happening,” said Yu in an interview with Government Technology. “In augmented reality training, you see a wall in front of you and if you go forward, you bump into the wall. It’s really there.”

Their work is supported by the National Science Foundation’s EArly-concept Grants for Exploratory Research (EAGER) program, which funds high-risk, high-reward ideas in their very early stages.

Yu explained that they’re experimenting to make this kind of training highly responsive, to the point that how a trainee positions themselves and moves objects, like a fire hose, are accounted for and will change the outcome.

“I can perform that action, and the AI behind will be able to sense whether I’m doing the right action, whether the angle, the direction and the action that I perform is correct. That would change the simulation results,” said Yu. “So in this case, let’s say if I’m shooting at the fire with the right technique, then the fires will go out after a few seconds.”

Their vision for the future incorporates AI into all of this, boosting a training system that can actually adapt to the personal features and experience level of each trainee.

“We could use AI to personalize the experience, meaning that you can have a firefighter undergoing the training, and the program should be able to analyze the firefighter’s performance based on the recorder data, and then it should also be able to apply AI to personalize experience, so as to help the person to reinforce his skill or her skill,” said Yu. “I think this is a really good example of how humans could collaborate with AI to enhance human performance in the end.”

Ultimately, Yu says, this would be a compliment to training, but not a replacement, as many factors, like exposure to heat and smoke, can’t be replicated. The pair of researchers are now working with the Fairfax, Va., Fire Department to collaborate on the project, learning from the real first responders what kind of training is the most important and effective.

Yu describes virtual reality as much more mature than augmented reality, which he says is still in the early, up-and-coming stages.

“This direction is still very, very young,” said Yu. “So we just want to explore, from the academic theoretical perspective, what we could do. But I would believe if we have some promising outcomes out of the research, there’s still a lot of things we need to work on in order to push this technology forward into the real, practical domain in the marketplace.”

Law enforcement is investing in VR training

In the meantime, several law enforcement agencies are leaning into the virtual reality technology that’s currently available.

Last Year, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost announced the state would spend $700,000 on virtual reality training for the 30,000 police officers across the state. Videos were filmed on 360-degree cameras in collaboration with Ohio University, the Athens and OU police departments, and the Athens County Sheriff’s Office.

The state purchased 160 Meta Quest 3 VR headsets to conduct the training, with a goal to release new episodes for training each year.

“These VR goggles are the next best thing to real-world experience because officers are immersed in split-second decision-making scenarios,” said Yost in a press release.

Ohio authorities say VR training is a tool, but not a complete picture of necessary training. The intention is to strengthen an officer’s crisis-management techniques by developing their critical thinking and communication skills.

What’s next?

Yu, who co-founded VR creation and consulting startup Great Victory Legends, believes the future for powerful AR and VR technologies depends in part on getting public-sector voices involved in the programming early on so when the technology is ready, it’s been built in a way that represents the true needs of people who put their lives on the line in the name of public service.

“This type of experience really is a collaborative effort that will require lots of expertise in order to deliver,” Yu said. “We will need to collaborate with people who are experts in the training, or in the evaluation of the training for people.”