[Multiple forms of presence are involved in a new, real-life version of the 2011 film Real Steal, with human players in virtual reality (and with the help of AI) controlling humanoid robots fighting each other in a boxing ring. One person involved in creating the events says this in the news report below from KGO in San Francisco: “Robots are obviously insanely hard to do and VR is insanely hard to do… If you get them both right, what you get is this ability to feel like you are the robot.” Coverage in Unilad Tech concludes with this assessment: “It…

[The educational program described in this story from the Los Angeles Times incorporates presence-evoking augmented reality to teach preschoolers important spatial awareness skills. For more information follow the links within it, especially to the post “Mapping Fun: How Play and Tech Can Help Children Find their Way Around!” from the Education Development Center’s Insights blog. –Matthew] [Image: A child uses a tablet to play an augmented reality game meant to teach spatial awareness. Credit: Gracie & Friends®/©2014, 2022 WGBH Educational Foundation] This program is using augmented reality to teach preschoolers spatial awareness By Kate SequeiraSeptember 23, 2025 The preschoolers were…

[Researchers at the Technical University of Munich (TUM) tested the stress-reducing and trust-building potential of three different scenarios involving a virtual (technology-mediated) agent that guides patients through a procedure conducted by an autonomous robotic ultrasound system (they also tested a non-mediated, agent-free scenario). The results have interesting implications for the roles of presence in the design of user experiences in healthcare, and likely other, contexts. See the original version of the story and a second version that appears on the healthcare-in-europe.com website for more images, and read the open-access article in IEEE Transactions on Visualization and Computer Graphics for more…

[The BBC reports on a new effort by UK researchers to use presence-evoking virtual and augmented reality to help reduce the anxiety autistic people experience while learning to drive (it could be useful for other people as well). The BBC story is followed by one with links and additional details from the University of Exeter. As often seems to be the case, a quick online search reveals several similar and apparently independent projects with the same worthy goals. –Matthew] [Image: Sophy Tyler passed her driving test but said she doesn’t have the confidence to drive on her own.] Virtual reality…

[The Religious News Service (RNS) story below describes how artificial intelligence is being used to generate images, memes and videos of assassinated conservative activist Charlie Kirk, “a new form of public mourning and remembrance, one in which the dead are grieved with hyperreal but entirely fictional reconstructions crafted in seconds by AI services.” While many of the AI creations are unrealistic and/or come with notice that they’re generated by AI, it’s clear from the story that some evoke strong presence experiences in audiences. And the dangers are highlighted in a related story from Baptist News Global, which includes this: “Isn’t…

[This report from Psychology Today focuses directly and explicitly on the role of presence in the important and serious phenomenon of harassment in virtual environments. Referencing a qualitative research study, it highlights some of the practical and ethical implications of using both media form and content to provide cues that in the real (nonmediated) world represent and reinforce power dynamics and that in mediated settings can be deeply upsetting. –Matthew] Why Harassment in Virtual Reality Feels Real (Even When It’s Not) Subtle cues in VR can feel invasive and trigger real discomfort. By Matilde Tassinari Ph.D., a post-doctoral researcher at…