Carl BOEL has over 6 years’ experience in immersive learning, i.e. learning and training using immersive technologies such as augmented, mixed and virtual reality. In this daily practice, he combines research with field expertise. Carl is a researcher in immersive learning at the Thomas More University of Applied Sciences and received his PhD on the subject in 2023. He leads several research projects on immersive learning, both nationally and internationally. Carl is the principal author of a framework for implementing virtual learning in education nationwide, the first of its kind in the world. In 2017, he founded Virtual Learning is Reality as an independent XR consultant, and has designed, developed and tested multiple learning experiences for companies, organizations and government institutions. In the process, he noticed a need for scalable XR solutions, which led to the birth of Dexr in 2022, a code-free authoring tool for creating your own XR training, guided by evidence-based instructional design principles. With Dexr, he aims to democratize XR technologies for learning, supporting the widespread adoption of XR technologies in education and industrial training. Finally, he continues to expand his XR network as co-chair of XR Valley, content curator for Immersive Tech Week and member of the Immersive Learning Research Network organizing committee.

Rebecca Fribourg is a lecturer at the Ecole Centrale de Nantes, France. His research focuses on the theme of avatars, i.e. digital representations of users in a virtual continuum ranging from virtual reality to augmented reality. Prior to this, she obtained her PhD at the University of Rennes 1 within the Inria research institute in 2020, after which she completed a 6-month post-doctoral internship at Trinity College Dublin. His research offers scientific contributions to the study of avatars, combining new theoretical concepts, innovative technological developments and experimental methodologies, as well as the more psychological aspects that can explain the success or otherwise of these technologies.

Consultant Human Factors Specialist & PhD Airbus Helicopters

A political scientist trained in Switzerland and the United States, Laetitia Bochud led the communication and marketing department of a luxury brand for the Swiss market, among other project management activities. In 2017, she joined the stimulating scene of immersive technologies with Virtual Switzerland. This association, initially supported as a National Thematic Network (2017-2020) by the Swiss Innovation Agency Innosuisse, fosters and promotes the development, integration, and technological transfer of Swiss XR according to 3 axes: 1) production and creation, 2) industry and integration, 3) innovation and research. Besides managing projects and facilitating productions and initiatives, Laetitia is also a university CAS lecturer, jury member, curator, and public speaker. Elected Digital Shaper 2022, Laetitia chairs the board of XR4Europe, an association that supports and federates European XR professionals, and that is involved in Horizon Europe projects. She is also and ambassador for Women in immersive Tech in Switzerland, and the global lead for the IMPULSE Programme – the European XR Accelerator, one of the initiatives she helped co-create.

Miriam Reiner studies neuroscience applied to advanced human-centered technology (VR/AR). She has published over 150 research articles, two books, been a keynote speaker at numerous academic and industry conferences, and filed numerous patents. She has been a part-time visiting professor every year at Stanford, as well as at Nanyang Technological University, UNC, University-College London and many others. Miriam works with leading international companies in the field of human-machine interfaces and participates as an expert on key EU committees on future innovative technologies. She founded and directed the VR/AR and Neurocognition Laboratory at Technion, mainly thanks to EU grants, and has trained some 40 PhD and MSc students. His work lies at the interface between neuroscience and model-based machine learning, and aims to develop new technologies for human enhancement. Key results include VR/AR methods to accelerate memory consolidation, improve spatial intelligence, speed up problem solving, and error potential-based brain-computer interfaces to restructure neural patterns for faster rehabilitation. Her current focus is on extracting neural biomarkers from eye dynamics in VR/AR for improved synergy between eyes and brain machine (VR/AR).

Some of her patents have been commercialized and, in 2017, she co-founded a company, BrainVu, based on her research. BrainVu was acquired by Mantis Vision in the third quarter of 2018, and it and its team acted as a stand-alone group until autumn 2020. In 2021, she founded NeuCogs, which focuses on human-machine cooperation and the integration of human brain responses with AI, to generate a type of hybrid intelligence that could be applied to improve collaboration between humans and machines.

After a multi-disciplinary research career leading him to work on experimental approaches and to develop new tools taking advantage of new technologies (virtual reality and haptic feedback in particular), Marc specialized in the design of virtual and augmented reality systems for professional applications in the broadest sense. He has participated in the development of two immersive headset projects, including the Lynx R1, which is now available.