The Grainger College of Engineering
IMMERSE: Center for Immersive Computing

Program

IMMERSE Symposium - Program

April 29 & 30, 2025

 

Unlocking the Potential of Immersive Computing: What Will it Take?

 

Unless otherwise noted, all sessions will be held at the National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA) at the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign (1205 W Clark Street, Urbana, IL 61801). 

Agenda 

All times in CDT

DAY 1 - APRIL 29
7:30 - 8:00
Breakfast
8:00 - 8:15
Welcome
Susan Martinis, Vice Chancellor for Research & Innovation
Rashid Bashir, Dean, Grainger College of Engineering
Nancy Amato, Director, Siebel School of Computing and Data Science
Bill Gropp, Director, National Center for Supercomputing Applications 
8:15 - 8:35
Overview of IMMERSE | Slides
Sarita Adve, Computer Science, Illinois
8:35 - 9:45
Highlights From the Last Year 
Moderator: Sarita Adve, Computer Science, Illinois
  • Breaking the low latency wireless barrier for distributed XR | Slides
  • A human experience driven science of design for XR systems and content | Slides
  • Using generative AI for rich immersive experiences | Slides
  • XR as a driver for the semiconductor industry roadmap | Slides
  • XR+AI for empathy training for first responders | Slides
    • Caroline Cao, Engineering Innovation and Medical Simulation, Illinois
  • Breakthroughs and challenges for XR as a medium for cultural impact | Slides
  • Expanding our campus XR content ecosystem | Slides
    • Dan Cermak, School of Information Sciences, Illinois
  • Creating a new workforce: An interdisciplinary Masters degree | Slides
9:20
Discussion and Q&A
9:45- 10:10 Break
10:10- 12:30 Immersive Technologies
10:10
Keynote - The Immersive Future of Wearable, Human Centered Computing
Peter Capak, Senior Director of Extended Reality Systems, Meta Reality Labs
Moderator: Shenlong Wang, Computer Science, Illinois
11:00
Industry perspectives panel: Where are we today and what will it take?
Moderator: Kris Hauser, Computer Science, Illinois
Peter Capak, Senior Director of Extended Reality Systems, Meta Reality Labs 
David Chu, VP of Spatial Computing and XR, NVIDIA | Slides
Prashanth Hande, Senior Director of Technology, Qualcomm | Slides
Rob Shearer, Senior Director of Silicon, Meta
Chowdary Yanamadala, Senior Director of Technology Strategy, Arm
12:00 Q&A
12:30 - 1:30 Lunch - First and lower atrium floors, Siebel School for Computing and Data Science
1:30 - 2:40 Immersive Applications
1:30
Invited Talk - The Future of XR use in Procedural/Surgical Training in Healthcare | Slides
Rishi Reddy, José José Alvarez Research Professor in Thoracic Surgery, University of Michigan
Moderator: Matt Bramlet, Pediatric Cardiology, OSF Healthcare
2:00
Lightning Talks - Abstracts
Moderator: Matt Bramlet, Pediatric Cardiology, OSF Healthcare
  • Leveraging VR for Preoperative Planning and Staging in Neuroblastoma | Slides
    • Daniel Robertson, Children's Hospital of Illinois
  • Immersive Technology for Assistive and Augmentative Listening | Slides
    • Ryan Corey, University of Illinois Chicago
  • Making Extended Reality Education as Usual | Slides
    • Voicu Popescu, Purdue University
2:15 Discussion and Q&A
2:40 - 3:05 Break 
3:05 - 4:15 Immersive Human Experience
3:05
Invited Talk - Harnessing the Potential of Virtual Reality-Based Nature Immersion to Improve Wellbeing | Slides
Victoria Interrante, Professor, University of Minnesota
Moderator: Caroline Cao, Engineering Innovation and Medical Simulation, Illinois
3:35
Lightning Talks - Abstracts
Moderator: Caroline Cao, Engineering Innovation and Medical Simulation, Illinois
  • From System Signals to Felt Experience: Designing Human-Centered Mixed Reality | Slides
    • Yasra Chandio, University of Massachusetts Amherst
  • Scalable Metadata Environments to VR In-the-Round: Immersive Experience Design at xREZ Art + Science Lab
    • Ruth West, University of North Texas
  • Adaptive Extended Reality Interfaces | Slides
    • David Lindlbauer, Carnegie Mellon University
3:50 Discussion and Q&A
4:15 - 4:55 Immersive Technologies Lightning Talks - Abstracts
4:15 Moderator: Elahe Soltanaghai, Computer Science, Illinois
  • Developing a Hardware-Software Co-design Testbed for Extended Reality
    • Sophia Shao, UC Berkeley
  • Challenges and opportunities in AI system design for AR/VR | Slides
    • Hyoukjun Kwon, University of California, Irvine
  • Privacy and Security Battlegrounds in Immersive Computing | Slides

    • Zhisheng Yan, George Mason University
4:35 Discussion and Q&A
4:50 - 5:00 Remix
5:00 - 7:00 Posters & Demos
7:00 - 9:00 Dinner - First and second atrium floors, Siebel School for Computing and Data Science
 
DAY 2 - APRIL 30
7:30 - 8:00
Breakfast
8:00 - 8:50 Keynote - Under Your Nose: A Human Approach to Immersion That Doesn’t Leave the Body Behind
Dav Rauch, More Please
Moderator: Rachel Switzky, Siebel Center for Design, Illinois 
8:50 - 9:30
More lightning perspectives - Abstracts
Moderator: Katherine Mimnaugh, Computer Science, Illinois
  • TVMC: Time-Varying 4D Mesh Compression | Slides
    • Mallesham Dasari, Northeastern University
  • A Case for Cross-Layer Networked Virtual Reality | Slides
    • Sonia Fahmy, Purdue University
  • A Multimodal Framework for Interactive Learning Experience and Real-Time Analytics in XR Training | Slides
    • Jeeheon Ryu, Chonnam National University
  • From Transition to Integration: Bridging Existing Ecosystems in the XR Era | Slides
    • Fengyuan Zhu, University of Toronto 
9:10
Discussion and Q&A
9:25 - 9:35
Breakout charge
Moderator: Alice Delage, Computer Science, Illinois
9:35 - 9:55 Break
9:55 - 11:25

Breakout sessions: Each session will be a focused discussion, steered by a team of organizers with a plan for a clear deliverable to produce over the next few months.
 

Session 1

Experience-centered immersive technologies roadmap

Location: Siebel School of Computing and Data Science 2405

 Organizing team: 
Anthony Rowe, Carnegie Mellon University (Lead)
Tarek Abdelzaher, Computer Science, Illinois
Sarita Adve, Computer Science, Illinois
Elahe Soltanaghai, Computer Science, Illinois
 
This breakout session will focus on mapping out capability milestones and the associated technology gaps required for immersive technologies to go mainstream.  The goal will be to team together to develop a “perspectives” style paper like those found in magazines like CACM.  The session will start off with introductory material to set the scope and goals.  We will then break into smaller groups to answer questions related to potentially disruptive enablers, driving applications, roadblocks, the road ahead, and potential strategies for shaping innovation. The discussion will be guided by a human experience centered approach.
Link to working folder
 

Session 2

Designing a graduate curriculum for an interdisciplinary XR workforce

Location: NCSA 1030

Organizing team: 
Lisa Bievenue, Informatics, Illinois (Lead)
Bryan Wang, Computer Science, Illinois
 
This breakout session focuses on designing a graduate curriculum for the emerging interdisciplinary Extended Reality (XR) workforce. Participants will explore how to anticipate and address the needs of target students in terms of XR technologies, applications, and human experience within an interdisciplinary program and curriculum. The session will include presentations and group discussions to address challenges such as identifying essential knowledge and skills, adapting to evolving industry demands, and fostering interdisciplinary collaboration. The goal is to establish a workgroup that will draft a white paper on creating a balanced and effective graduate curriculum that prepares students for the future of XR.
Link to working folder
 

Session 3

Integrating XR in healthcare procedures and workforce skills development

Location: NCSA 1040

Organizing team:
Rishi Reddy, University of Michigan (Lead)
Claudius Conrad, CI Med, Illinois
Greg Polites, CI Med, Illinois
Amitabh Varshney, University of Maryland
 
This breakout session will address questions such as:
  • How will XR train the healthcare workforce of the future
  • What skills are easiest to train with XR
  • What verticals will be the focus for adoption (nursing/medical students/EMTs/APPs/health care workers)
  • How will we assess skill competency using XR and what other modalities are needed (SPs, clinical proctors, AI assessments, etc)
  • How will industry partner better in this space to help drive adoption
  • What are limitations to adoption and integration in health care networks
The goal is to form a working group and use the discussion as a framework for a new white paper on the breakout topic.
11:25 - 11:40 Break
11:40 - 12:05
Report from breakouts, feedback, and next steps
Moderator: Alice Delage, Computer Science, Illinois
11:40 Breakouts summary and next steps
11:55 Q&A
12:05 - 12:55
Panel: What did we get right? What did we miss?
Moderator: Sarita Adve, Computer Science, Illinois 
Lars Jan, Early Morning Opera & CalArts | Slides
Amitabh Varshney, University of Maryland | Slides
12:35 Discussion and Q&A
12:55 - 1:00
Closing Remark
Sarita Adve, Computer Science, Illinois
1:00 - 1:45 Boxed lunch
1:45 - 3:45
Advisory Board Meeting, SC 2405 (closed meeting)
6:00 - 8:00 Dinner for external guests and IMMERSE leadership (by invitation) - Big Grove Tavern, 1 E Main St, Champaign, IL 61820