Dav Rauch
Under Your Nose: A Human Approach to Immersion That Doesn’t Leave the Body Behind
Dav Rauch, More Please
Abstract
XR promises immersion—but what exactly are we immersing in, and more importantly, why? We’ll look at what drives people toward immersive experiences, because if we don’t understand what folks are seeking, how can we possibly give it to them?
We’ll zoom in on the relationship between the body and the mind, especially the often-overlooked role of the body in shaping cognition and deep experience, and along the way look for new ways to create deeper immersion via the body.
We’ll close with a few examples of immersive design done well, and some guiding principles for building tech that puts people — not technology — at the center.
Biography
Once prophetically referred to as a “Pink Sheep”, dav’s career has perhaps now earned the moniker.
He began his career in the Film industry designing what the future might bring, such as “Jarvis”, Tony Stark’s augmented reality OS for Iron Man I, and the design “Bible” which guided all screen based technology in James Cameron’s Avatar.
Joining the team at IDEO, he then shifted his focus from fantasy to reality, helping organizations strategically pivot towards the future via new products, experiences & offerings.
His work has taken many forms, including the experience of a museum (Museum of the Future - Dubai, The Exploratorium), a family robot (Softbank), a wearable for the blind, an educational game for kids (Google Creative Labs), a car (Ford, Hyundai), and even a spaceship (Blue Origin). He’s worked with tiny startups, accelerators (Andreesen Horowitz & Sephora Accelerate), and occasionally with giants (Microsoft, Amazon and Mitsui).
Seeing how important culture is to innovation, dav also helps organizations design for a creative culture of innovation (McKnight Foundation, Exploratorium, Microsoft). A Taurus on the cusp of Aries, Dav enjoys jumping into the ocean rain or shine.