To Celebrate its 15th Anniversary, AWE will Be
Honoring 101 XR Pioneers and Welcoming Visitors to an XR History
Museum Featuring Over 80 Vintage AR and VR devices
LONG
BEACH, Calif., April 24,
2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The future of XR depends on
its past.
AWE, the longest running and largest event focused on Augmented
Reality and Virtual Reality (XR), celebrates its 15th anniversary
this year. As part of the celebration, the theme for AWE
USA 2024 in Long Beach, CA will be: "Learn from XR's Past
to Shape the Future."
Highlights for this year will include:
- A XR History Museum - The museum will feature over 80
vintage AR and VR devices from the past 50 years (on loan from
industry pioneers), including an experience simulating Ivan Sutherland's first Head Mounted Display
(HMD) from 1968.
- Introducing the AWE XR Hall of Fame - AWE is proud to
announce the inauguration of the XR Hall of Fame—a new platform
dedicated to honoring the pioneers whose groundbreaking
contributions have shaped and propelled the XR industry forward
(since 1968 to date). Today AWE unveils the list of the first 101
pioneers to be inducted to the XR Hall of Fame and during the event
in June all pioneers in attendance will be celebrated on stage
during the Auggie Awards ceremony.
- A Series of XR History Sessions - 14 agenda tracks will
include sessions by pioneers about the history of XR as it pertains
to each topic.
The XR History Museum will feature over 80 vintage AR and VR
prototypes and devices from the past 50 years (on loan from
pioneers) such as the 1990 Xybernaut, the 1992 Virtuality Viset 1
(one of the first commercial VR headsets), and including immersive
experiences of Ivan Sutherland's
first Head Mounted Display from 1968, and Morton Heilig's Sensorama - the first
multisensory experience.
The XR Hall of Fame list was created by the AWE team with
support from many of the pioneers on the list. The criteria for
being included on the list is: undisputed, monumental contribution
to the advancement of the AR and VR industry, with highest moral
standards, from a research perspective in both hardware and
software, entrepreneurship, creative & artistic, design and
user experience, development of use cases and driving adoption in
real world cases, advocacy.
Some of the 101 luminaries and legends on the list include:
-
John Carmack, Original Oculus VR
CTO
- Char
Davies, Pioneered new forms of visual imagery and
interaction
- Tom
Furness, widely known as "The Grandfather of VR"
- Diane
Gromala, Innovator in VR For treating chronic pain
- Palmer Luckey - founder of Oculus and
kickstarter of the modern VR era
- Steve Mann, AR glasses
pioneer and known as the "Father of Wearable Computing"
- Jacquelyn (Jacki) Morie, VR innovator blending
art, science, and education
- Gabe
Newell, Valve CEO and Founder
- Jannick Rolland, Optical see-through HMD
pioneer
- Lanny
Smoot, Disney imagineer and creator of the HoloTile
floor
- Neal
Stephenson, iconic author and inventor of the term
"Metaverse"
- Ivan
Sutherland, developed the first head mounted display
- Tim
Sweeney, Epic Games CEO and founder, and creator of
Fortnite
- Valerie Thomas, inventor of NASA's illusion
transmitter for 3D Holography
See the full list here: https://www.awexr.com/hall-of-fame/.
"It is only fitting that with our Celebration of the 15th
anniversary of AWE, we take this opportunity to look back at the
more than 50 years of innovation that led to this moment,"
explained Ori Inbar, co-founder of
AWE. "We know there are many pioneers missing from the list yet;
many that should be recognized and celebrated and even more that
are making history every day. I am pleased to share that the XR
Hall of Fame will continue to grow each year, with new groups of
pioneers being inducted and celebrated at our annual award
ceremony. In addition, we are incredibly excited about the world
premiere of the XR History Museum, which literally acts as a time
machine for every visitor to AWE. Don't miss it!"
AWE USA promises to be a
celebration of innovation, collaboration, and the remarkable
achievements of these pioneers. The celebration of their induction
into the XR Hall of Fame will resonate throughout the three days of
the event and beyond.
For the virtual ribbon cutting planned for today, April 24th, 2024 at noon
EST, two distinguished members of the newly inaugurated XR
Hall of Fame will share inception stories, and engage in powerful
discussions about the lessons learned from the past and strategies
to shape the future.
Visit this link to join the live session.
To nominate an individual for the AWE XR Hall of Fame, please
visit this page.
Don't Miss AWE USA
2024
Earlier this month, AWE unveiled its initial agenda for AWE
USA 2024, which this year includes
over 500 expert speakers presenting across 15 conference
tracks covering the breadth of the AR and VR industry. Expect
nothing less than the biggest names and the most groundbreaking
sessions yet. Check out this year's speakers and conference
talks.
Leading brands and Fortune 500 companies sharing real-world
use-cases and insights from the AWE stage include: ExxonMobil, Blue
Origin, Lockheed Martin, Target, Walmart, The Hershey Company,
Nestle Purina, Mondelēz International, Coca-Cola, General Motors,
Rolls-Royce, and many, many more!
AWE's 15 packed agenda tracks will cover the breadth of the
global AR and VR industry, across: Enterprise; Collaboration,
Training & Education; Gaming, Entertainment & Media;
Start-ups & Investors; Creator; Developer; Web3; XR Policy;
Retail & Marketing; XR Enablement; Healthcare & Wellness;
AI; and the Expo Stage.
Join more than 6,500 XR professionals, over 500 AR and VR
industry speakers, and 300+ global exhibitors at this year's
leading immersive event.
Early Bird tickets are now available, with discounts up to
$500 on a 3-day pass, through
May 9th for AWE USA 2024. To register for the conference, go
here. Attendees can also attend the AWE Vision Workshop, a
full day workshop for Apple Vision Pro, taking place on
June 17th, the day before AWE kicks
off - for an additional cost of $99.
About AWE:
AWE (Augmented World Expo) is the world's leading AR+VR
conference and expo with events in the USA, Asia and
Europe. AWE events consistently
bring together a mix of CEOs, CTOs, designers, developers, creative
agencies, futurists, analysts, investors and top press in a unique
opportunity to learn, inspire, partner and experience firsthand one
of the most exciting industries of our times.
AWE USA 2024 marks the 15th anniversary of the "must
attend" global XR industry event; now in our new home in
Long Beach, California.
The 3-day AR VR conference is packed with sessions from 500+ top
speakers across 15 tracks; covering tech and applications in many
verticals. The Expo Hall features over 350 exhibitors offering
hands-on experience with the latest spatial computing
technologies.
Pre-conference workshops, community meetups, and networking
opportunities give guests numerous ways to connect, learn, and grow
their XR businesses at AWE USA.
Media Contact: Ethan Rasiel,
ethan@lightspeedpr.com
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SOURCE AWE (Augmented World Expo)