Checkout XReality Pro Podcast #65: Brain-Computer Interfaces, VR, and the Future of Human Memory with Eileen Wu Are Smart Glasses the "Final Form Factor" for AI? 👓🤖 I recently sat down with Qiuxuan (Eileen) Wu, Program Manager at Google and researcher from the MIT Media Lab, for a mind-bending conversation about the future of embodied AI. We didn’t just talk about chatbots. We talked about a future where your AI isn't just on a screen—it’s seeing what you see and hearing what you hear. In this episode, we dive deep into: The "Final Form Factor": Why Eileen believes smart glasses will become our extended memory and "ambient" partners. Bridging the Gap: How we ensure high-tech tools (like VR/AR) are accessible to everyone, including those with disabilities. The Workforce Revolution: A look at our pilot program for training EV technicians using VR headsets at California Community Colleges. 🚗⚡ Agentic AI: Moving from AI that "chats" to AI that does—automating the mundane so humans can focus on strategy. If you’re interested in how we transition from "staring at phones" to "interacting with the world," this episode is for you. Connect with Eileen: https://lnkd.in/gd5y738j 👇 Listen to the full episode here: 📽 YT: https://lnkd.in/gyDmMk4f 🍎 Apple: https://lnkd.in/gv9cNEuF 🎙 Spotify: https://lnkd.in/gbYp5ZJ2 Quick note for listeners working at the intersection of AI, education, and workforce. Futures Summit 2026 takes place September 9–10 in Santa Clara, focused on Human Skills in an Autonomous World. It’s a convening for people doing the real work—educators, technologists, and partners building equitable, scalable solutions. If your organization wants to connect with California Community Colleges leaders, sponsorship opportunities are open now. Details at bit.ly/FuturesSummit26. Partner with GatherVerse #AI #SmartGlasses #FutureOfWork #EdTech #AugmentedReality #Podcast

🧠 Today at Optima Academy Online I led a segment of our professional development with an activity demonstrating how AI can be used as a thinking partner to deepen historical perspective and empathy — not replace it. Using ENGAGE XR, we stepped into two protest movement perspectives: a 1968 Chicano student organizer and a 1973 American Indian Movement activist at Wounded Knee. AI generated a starting voice. Teachers identified one core grievance then posted one inquiry question to drive deeper understanding. Next, they entered movement-specific VR spaces to test their assumptions against historical evidence. Did historical context confirm your understanding, complicate it, or challenge it? AI can spark perspective. But evidence must ground it. #EducationInnovation #AIinEducation #HistoricalThinking #VirtualReality #EngageXR #ProfessionalDevelopment #EdTech

New on The AI/XR Podcast: Most of the real XR action isn’t in flashy metaverse worlds – it’s in train yards, onboarding programs and store layouts. In our latest AI XR Podcast episode, Boston Consulting Group partner Kristi Woolsey, of BCG, explains how XR and AI are quietly changing how big companies work. She shares a Swiss Rail project where maintenance techs wear simple AR glasses that recognize the train car in front of them, fetch the right procedures and use AI to turn thick manuals into clean checklists. Wear the headset and your shift gets logged automatically; skip it and you are stuck doing paperwork at the end of the day. We also talk about BCG’s VR onboarding experience for new consultants, why VR “test stores” are becoming a go-to tool for understanding shopper behavior and how AI-generated 3D models are pushing us toward a world where every major building or interior is explored digitally before it exists in real life. Plus, we touch on Anthropic’s big raise and ethics drama, powerful Chinese generative video tools, and Meta’s seven million Ray-Ban AI glasses as early signs of where wearable AI is headed. Link in bio.

I recently joined the "AI XR Podcast" to discuss how immersive and AI-enabled technologies are being applied inside real organizations, not as experiments, but as experience design tools. We covered the expected topics but also: • Redesign of employee workflows • Elevating customer experiences • Moving innovation from pilot to scaled adoption The conversation wasn’t about hype, but instead about applying emerging tech in ways that meaningfully improve performance and engagement and what needs to be true for adoption to stick. It was a pleasure reconnecting with Charlie Fink who was the moderator in my CES panel this year and Rony Abovitz Boston Consulting Group (BCG) Senior advisor. Conversations that blend perspective, experience, and practical application are always energizing.

Following my recent interview with the national newspaper Die Zeit, I’ve received a growing number of messages and inquiries. Media stories can always take different directions — and this one chose to focus primarily on the personal dimension. While that perspective resonated with many readers and has given hope to quite a few people, the conversation I am most passionate about goes further. As a management consultant and technology expert — and as someone who has experienced the healthcare system firsthand — I am deeply convinced that AI and immersive technologies such as VR are about to fundamentally transform healthcare. Diagnostics, treatment pathways, prevention strategies, and long-term care will be redesigned. Access to high-quality medical expertise will no longer depend solely on geography or infrastructure. We are standing at the beginning of a shift that can improve outcomes for millions of people worldwide — especially those who currently lack adequate medical access. If you are interested in exploring how AI and VR can reshape healthcare delivery, organizational structures, and patient outcomes — I would be delighted to contribute to that conversation, whether in the form of keynotes, expert panels, workshops, or interviews. https://lnkd.in/dwsHuzk6

New on The AI/XR Podcast: Most of the real XR action isn’t in flashy metaverse worlds – it’s in train yards, onboarding programs and store layouts. In our latest AI XR Podcast episode, Boston Consulting Group partner Kristi Woolsey, of BCG, explains how XR and AI are quietly changing how big companies work. She shares a Swiss Rail project where maintenance techs wear simple AR glasses that recognize the train car in front of them, fetch the right procedures and use AI to turn thick manuals into clean checklists. Wear the headset and your shift gets logged automatically; skip it and you are stuck doing paperwork at the end of the day. We also talk about BCG’s VR onboarding experience for new consultants, why VR “test stores” are becoming a go-to tool for understanding shopper behavior and how AI-generated 3D models are pushing us toward a world where every major building or interior is explored digitally before it exists in real life. Charlie Fink Rony Abovitz Plus, we touch on Anthropic’s big raise and ethics drama, powerful Chinese generative video tools, and Meta’s seven million Ray-Ban AI glasses as early signs of where wearable AI is headed. Link in bio.

Before location based entertainment became a global trend, Lucasfilm’s Rebel Arts and Technology group was pioneering the intersection of simulators and storytelling. Vicki Dobbs Beck highlights how project based learning was a core pillar of their early innovation. This historical perspective offers vital lessons for today's XR and AI educational developers. Watch the full episode for the deeper discussion with Rony Abovitz Ted Schilowitz and Charlie Fink on The AI/XR Podcast #XR #AI #Metaverse #EducationInnovation #InteractiveLearning #Storytelling #Lucasfilm

A comparative look at how the U.S. and Latin America are approaching AI investment and XR adoption across education and healthcare. This brief analysis highlights regional trends and the implications for immersive learning and simulation. #AI #XR #ExtendedReality #DigitalTwins #HigherEducation #EdTech #Innovation #LatinAmerica #AIAdoption #FutureOfWork #ImmersiveLearning #Simulation #AIinEducation #TechLeadership #DigitalTransformation #Healthcare

This week’s AI XR Podcast about AI policy with Charlie Fink, Rony Abovitz and Alvin Wang Graylin is of real importance for business and society. The discussion on our future with AI between Charlie, Rony and Alvin operates at a very high level and surfaces insights with wide implications for industry, capital markets, public policy and society more broadly. It is not a narrow technology conversation. It is a strategic one. Alvin Wang Graylin is a co-author of the book "Our Next Reality" There were more than ten substantial themes explored in this podcast. Five that stood out for me were the following: The AI Cliff - Speed Without Governance The US is accelerating toward advanced AI with enormous momentum, but without matching regulatory guardrails. Innovation is exponential. Institutions are not. The risk is not just technical failure, but systemic misalignment at national and global scale. Economic Shock And Workforce Displacement AI is moving beyond augmentation into replacement of cognitive labour. The transition could be faster than previous industrial revolutions. The question for boards and executives is not whether change is coming, but whether workforce strategy, retraining and social settings are moving at comparable speed. AI + XR Convergence One of the more forward-looking insights is the merging of AI and immersive technologies. Intelligent agents will not remain text-based tools. They will become spatial, embodied and persistent inside XR environments. This has major implications for education, training, property, tourism, defence and advanced manufacturing. Capital At Risk - The Capacity and Data Centre Bet There was discussion around the scale of capital flowing into AI infrastructure. Hundreds of billions of dollars are being committed to new data centres, compute capacity and AI services. The risk is that some of this expansion may prove uneconomic if demand projections, pricing models or energy constraints shift. This is not just a technology issue - it is a capital allocation and systemic risk issue. The Next Reality - Human Augmentation From Our Next Reality, AI and XR together redefine cognition, perception and identity. The future is not simply smarter machines. It is humans operating in AI-mediated environments, with intelligence layered into daily work, learning and life. What I took away from this very important podcast episode is that AI policy is not a future problem. It is a present leadership test. Business executives, investors, policymakers and governments must engage actively with both the opportunities and the threats right now. Hoping the transition will simply work itself out is not a strategy. The upside may not automatically materialise, and the downside risks for business and society are real and potentially significant. #AI #XR #FutureOfWork #AustralianBusiness #TechLeadership https://lnkd.in/g4hs8RHN?

Before location based entertainment became a global trend, Lucasfilm’s Rebel Arts and Technology group was pioneering the intersection of simulators and storytelling. Vicki Dobbs Beck highlights how project based learning was a core pillar of their early innovation. This historical perspective offers vital lessons for today's XR and AI educational developers. Watch the full episode for the deeper discussion with Rony Abovitz Ted Schilowitz and I on The AI/XR Podcast . #XR #AI #Metaverse #EducationInnovation #InteractiveLearning #Storytelling #Lucasfilm