[This story from Amusements & Attractions describes the company Mirra Immersive’s model for large, virtual reality “arena” attractions that feature gameplay and large LED displays that engage spectators. See the original story for three more images, and visit the MirraArena website for much more information. –Matthew] [Image: A MirraArena installed at a Jackie Chan Theater in China] Involving the spectator in virtual reality Mirra Immersive’s room-scale virtual reality is seeing success after expanding into the Chinese market. By Lee WildSeptember 21, 2026 By Sam Wang’s own admission, MirraArena is deliberately different… The large-scale, immersive, premium virtual reality experience is truly…

[This story from MIT News describes a new technology in which optical fibers within a flexible sheet enable precise tracking of changes in the shape of the sheet, which “could be fashioned into a soft and pliable garment that a user could comfortably wear to physically control a video game character or a tele-operated robot.” See the original version of the story for a 2:09 minute video (also available on YouTube). –Matthew] [Image: Credit: Courtesy of the researchers; edited by MIT News] Shape-sensing sheet digitally tracks its movement as it bends and twists Developed by MIT engineers, this flexible material…

[A new multi-method study shows that presence-evoking virtual reality can strengthen the ability of teachers of English as a Foreign Language to “use language appropriately in real-world situations.” As this news release from the journal ECNU Review of Education via EurekAlert! notes, the findings suggest the positive effects were not just the result of using a virtual environment but that “the simulations created opportunities for participants to make communicative choices within sociocultural situations, receive adaptive feedback, and reflect on why particular choices were appropriate in context.” See the original story for a second image and follow the links below to…

[This story from Live Design describes how Americana singer-songwriter Willy Porter recorded his recent album to evoke presence in listeners by capturing all the richness of a live performance, an “immersive recording” technique in which the music is “performed, not manufactured.” (By the way, it’s apparent from the context, but a gobo is a “movable acoustic isolation panel.”) There are lots more details, videos and audio tracks in various formats at the “learn more” link provided in the story. –Matthew] [Image: Credit: Hummingbird Media, Inc.] Performed, Not Manufactured: How Willy Porter’s Humans In A Room Presents A New Era of…

[A professor in Japan is developing a compact, rotating chair with imaging optics (and presumably sound) to immerse and evoke presence for users, an interesting alternative to virtual reality headsets, large screens (including those in Cave Automatic Virtual Environments), and glasses. Details are in this story from New Atlas, which draws in part on a press release available from Kyushu University and EurekAlert!. The original version of the New Atlas story includes a 3:18 minute video (which is also on YouTube). –Matthew] [Image: Credit: Shogo Fukushima / Kyushu University] VR chair offers a new way into virtual worlds without a…

[SoraNews24 and Japan Today report that a second location of OrySNACK — a bar where customers are served by and converse with robots teleoperated by workers from home — will join the original location in Tokyo. For more details see coverage in Japan News that includes six images and a 54 second video (also available on YouTube); additional information and reservations are available directly from the OrySNACK website. –Matthew] [Image: An OriHime-D avatar robot toasts with customers at OrySnack in Chuo Ward, Tokyo, on Sept. 9. People who have difficulty working outside the home serve customers by remotely operating the…

[K-pop artists are the subject of increasingly large, ambitious, and “more immersive projects incorporating media art, holograms, virtual reality and interactive installations” to evoke presence and engage fans. This story is from the Korea Herald, where the original version includes three more pictures. –Matthew] [Image: Ive members Yujin and Wonyoung’s exhibition “An-Young” at The Seouliteum in eastern Seoul. Credit: Mut] K-pop exhibitions turn fandom into immersive experience Exhibitions become new fixtures in K-pop promotions for fans to step inside artists’ worlds By Lee Jung-jooSeptember 30, 2026 Immersive media exhibitions are becoming increasingly common in K-pop promotions, as artists and agencies…

[Here’s another application of presence-evoking virtual reality I’d never thought of, described in a PepsiCo press release. See the original version for three more vivid images. –Matthew] Inside the virtual potato harvester: How PepsiCo and Grimme are helping growers protect quality and reduce waste A new digital twin and virtual reality (VR) training platform gives operators a safer, faster way to learn best practices while significantly reducing waste and supporting farmer livelihoods and PepsiCo Positive (pep+). October 1, 2026 Every harvest, millions of potatoes begin their journey underground only to lose their value before they even get peeled to become…

[In this story from TechCrunch, senior venture capital and startup reporter Dominic-Madori Davis describes the experience of having a digital avatar of herself created, how she and others reacted to it, and her thoughts and predictions about similar avatars being used in corporations and in journalism. –Matthew] [Image: Digital avatar of author Dominic-Madori Davis created by Synthesia] I created an interactive digital avatar of myself — and you can talk to it By Dominic-Madori DavisSeptember 26, 2026 When Alexandru Voica, head of corporate affairs at the video-generation startup Synthesia, sent me a link this summer to the newest addition to…

[As this story from Gadget Review (also available via Yahoo! News) notes, the court hasn’t yet ruled on the matter, but the Attorney General of Florida is arguing that OpenAI should be required to change the design of its ChatGPT AI to stop “pretending to be human,” i.e., prevent it from evoking medium-as-social-actor presence. The last paragraph in the story summarizes the situation: “The case is forcing a question the industry has largely avoided. Should an AI that sounds like a person be required to make unmistakably clear that it is not one? How courts answer that question will have…

[You’re likely to have heard about Meta’s announcement of new virtual reality glasses, due in spring 2027 with a lighter form factor than VR headsets. As this story from The Hollywood Reporter notes, it’s designed to be “a ‘cinema’ a ‘computer’ and a [gaming] ‘console’ all in one.” The focus here is on how the device will provide a new form of presence-evoking immersive entertainment, with some reasons to be both optimistic and skeptical about its appeal and likely success. –Matthew] Can Imax, Dolby and New VR Glasses Help Meta Reboot Its Immersive Entertainment Ambitions? Mark Zuckerberg unveiled a major…

[There’s no explicit mention of presence in this press release from ophthalmic technology company GreenMan Vision via Business Wire, but it’s certainly implicated in the results of the reported study about the effectiveness of a virtual reality platform used to educate, and provide simulated post-operative outcomes for, patients before surgery for cataracts. Follow the link within the release for more details. –Matthew] [Image: InSightVR headset with text: “A breakthrough VR platform that lets patients preview their vision – before they choose a lens.” Source: InsightVR] Peer-Reviewed Multi-Center Study Links GreenMan’s InSightVR to Greater Cataract Patient Understanding, Advanced-Technology IOL Selection and…