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WHEN and WHERE: Thursday, Feb. 6 from 5 to 8 p.m. at the Donna E. Shalala Student Center, 1330 Miller Drive, Coral Gables, FL 33146
The conference continues Friday, Feb. 7 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Newman Alumni Center, 6200 San Amaro Drive, Coral Gables, FL 33146
A full agenda is available on the conference website.
Those working in the XR industry, as well as students interested in the field are welcome to attend.
University faculty and staff, as well as members of the media, should contact [email protected] for a promo code to register.
WHO: Keynote speakers will include:
- Jeremy Bailenson, founding director of Stanford University’s Virtual Human Interaction Lab and Thomas More Storke Professor in the Department of Communication, where he has served as director of graduate studies for over a decade. Bailenson also has dual appointments in education and in symbolic systems. He is a Senior Fellow at the Woods Institute for the Environment.
- Carolina Cruz-Neira, a pioneering computer scientist and a leading figure in virtual reality, known for inventing the CAVE Automatic Virtual Environment (CAVE). Cruz-Neira currently serves as the Agere Chair Professor in Computer Science at the University of Central Florida, where she co-leads the Digital Twin Strategic Initiative and heads the VARLab. Cruz-Neira’s contributions to real-time visualization, VR frameworks, and immersive technologies have earned her numerous accolades, including membership in the National Academy of Engineering and the XR Hall of Fame. Her work bridges engineering, art, and education, inspiring advancements in virtual environments and interactive applications worldwide.
- Dan O’Brien, president for the Americas at HTC VIVE, a global leader in virtual reality headsets. O’Brien is a seasoned technology executive with over 24 years of experience leading and managing the commercialization of emerging technologies, innovations, and solutions for consumers and professional customers. At HTC VIVE, he oversees the sales, marketing, product, and operations for the immersive and wireless divisions.
Since the XR Initiative launched at the University in 2018, faculty members and students have been exploring the possibilities for virtual and augmented reality in a variety of fields. Many of their applications will be on display at Miami XR, but private companies will also demonstrate their innovations.
“Extended reality is a field that is growing at an exponential rate, and we are leading the charge in education here at the University of Miami,” said Thomas Merrick, senior project manager of XR Initiatives. “At Miami XR, we want to highlight the work we are doing as a University, and to showcase the global initiatives that are taking place in the field.”
Faculty-led applications have been created in art history, surgery, engineering, psychology, architecture, ophthalmology, and marine science education, as well as a digital twin of the University’s Coral Gables Campus. In addition, at least 40 classes at the University now include a virtual or augmented reality component.
The institution has quickly become a hub for training aspiring South Florida professionals about XR technology. Its School of Communication is home to an undergraduate degree in interactive media, as well as two master’s degrees—one in interactive media, and one in experience and information design. The school is also home to the Virtual Experiences and Simulation Lab, where students, faculty, and staff members develop and test new, creative XR applications on a variety of headsets and devices. Recently, the University joined 14 other institutions as a Meta for Education Beta partner. Meta is a sponsor of Miami XR, along with the University’s Frost Institute for Data Science and Computing.
