[Meta (Facebook) has been working on a haptic glove to enhance presence in virtual and augmented reality, as reported in this story from The Verge; note the discussion at the end about the degree of realism required for effective illusions. See the original story for two more images and for more details see the Tech@Facebook blog; videos are available from VR Trailers & Clips via YouTube and Facebook. TechCrunch reports that startup HaptX says the new device is “substantively identical” to its own. –Matthew] Meta’s sci-fi haptic glove prototype lets you feel VR objects using air pockets A new sci-fi…

[Here’s an interesting discussion about the nature of immersion and presence; different ways of merging of the mediated and nonmediated for entertainment and profit; the relative importance of fidelity, lag and other causes of immersion/presence; and how and when we’ll use VR headsets in the future. The interview with the head of AR and VR at Unity is from Wired, where it includes two more images. –Matthew] [Image: Credit: Gabriel Bouys/Getty Images] Unity’s Head of VR Offers a Much-Needed Reality Check Timoni West, the head of augmented and virtual reality at Unity, talks to WIRED about the future of XR.…

[The new spatial audio product described in this story from DesignTAXI enhances presence by beaming sound to individual listeners even as they move around a room, essentially making the technology invisible; the company’s press release says it produces an “immersive” and “magical sensory experience” that “breaks down the remoteness of remote-working with video-callers feeling like they are in the same room and supports vital at-home wellness.” The original story includes five different images and one of the several videos available on the company’s YouTube channel. –Matthew] [Image: Microphone held next to a woman’s ear as she hears sound from the…

[In this story from The Washington Post several experts including our colleague Robby Ratan comment on the promise and perils of the metaverse, and the roles of presence in both. Robby is also quoted in a Popular Science story about a new study of the Proteus Effect, “Athletic virtual reality avatars might make exercise feel easier; Participants who cycled while using athletic VR avatars had lower heart rates.” –Matthew] [Image: Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg speaks to an avatar of himself in the metaverse during Facebook Connect. His vision of the future could have wide-ranging — and potentially ill-advised — effects.…

[As someone with a lifelong visual impairment I’ve looked at various times for both low and high tech simulations to illustrate to others how I experience the world, including online simulators (e.g., The Sight Center of Northwest Ohio) and apps (e.g., Perkins School for the Blind), so this story from Chicago’s Daily Herald about a new “virtual reality screening room” (a CAVE) at Chicago’s Hadley Institute for the Blind and Visually Impaired is of particular interest. A 10 minute July 2021 story from WGN News available via YouTube features a visit to Hadley and a demonstration of the new room…

[This story from The Washington Post summarizes the evolution of robots for the home and how it’s leading to social robots that evoke medium-as-social-actor presence and become our “emotional companions.” See the original version for three more images and links to related stories. –Matthew] [Image: Credit: Illustration by Andrew Nye for The Washington Post] The next generation of home robots will be more capable — and perhaps more social Tech titans and upstarts alike are working to deepen our relationships with their robots By Chris Velazco November 10, 2021 Wander around any big-box electronics store long enough and you may…

[This CNN story about a more physically and psychologically realistic virtual influencer named Angie raises interesting questions about the appeals of and reactions to the interactive artificial humans increasingly being used to market products. For example, it says that “[d]espite knowing she’s not real, many of Angie’s followers eagerly tell her about their day in two group chats on Douyin” and a millennial follower is quoted saying “The reason why I like her is that Angie is more realistic than many people who are actually real.” In a new story in RADII that includes more details about Angie and her…

[A press release from Verizon reports some interesting findings related to medium-as-social-actor (and actor within medium) presence in the context of customer service. For much more information follow one of the links to the whitepaper below. –Matthew] What makes a digital connection human is changing, global study finds November 9, 2021 Media contact(s): Erin Cheever erin.dowling@verizon.com What you need to know: New Longitude survey of over 5,600 people across 16 countries highlights acceptance of automated machines is growing among consumers, but transparency is key As Artificial Intelligence (AI) chatbots and other intelligent tools take on more human-like attributes, human involvement…

[The opinions in the Big Think story below by an augmented reality pioneer highlight the promise and especially the peril of the presence-evoking technology. See also “Hey, Facebook, I Made a Metaverse 27 Years Ago. It was terrible then, and it’s terrible now.” by Ethan Zuckerman in The Atlantic; here are the last three paragraphs: “Facebook can claim originality in at least one thing. Its combination of scale and irresponsibility has unleashed a set of diverse and fascinating sociopolitical challenges that it will take lawmakers, scholars, and activists at least a generation to fix. If Facebook has learned anything from…

[This story from IBC describes the process a group of technology experts and musicians used to create a series of live, high definition audio and video performances in the challenging genre of jazz across three cities; it seems likely that such distributed live music performance experiences that allow artists and audience members to overlook the role of technology will become common in the future. See the original story for more pictures. –Matthew] How Blue Note Used Networked AV for Distanced Jazz Concerts Thanks to the efforts of a close-knit technology partnership, jazz musicians in three US locations were able to…

[If you’ll be in Adelaide, Australia this month you might want to experience presence in a new attraction described in this story from InReview; see the original story for more pictures and a 55 second trailer (also available via YouTube). Coverage in CityMag adds these details: “Immersion is presented within the Ellipse, a purpose-built room at Light which has been created with a 360-degree LED display stretching 13m by 8m in an oval shape and reaching 4m in height. [Event director Nathan] Bazley describes the audience experience as being like virtual reality ‘but shared with 39 other people and not…

[This story from 5280, “Denver’s Mile High Magazine,” reports on one person’s quest to create valuable long-form presence experiences for trail explorers and racers; see the original story for a second image. –Matthew] [Image: Credit: Run Infinite] Run Infinite’s Virtual Reality Library Helps Viewers Hit the Trails A local coaching company is creating the world’s first 360-degree VR trail library one trail run at a time. By Sarah Banks November 4, 2021 Brandon Yonke wants you to experience the iconic Leadville 100 trail race, and he’s doing the hard part for you. This past August, using his own macgyvered GoPro…