The World Immersive Learning Labs Symposium 2024 brought together leading figures in immersive technology, each offering unique perspectives on integrating advanced digital tools in education and other professional fields. Held in Tokyo, Japan, from March 25-27, this symposium served as a vital convergence point for discussing the innovative applications and ethical implications of augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), and artificial intelligence (AI) across various disciplines.

Navigating Big Tech’s AI Casino: Is the House Always Winning?
Picture stepping into a Las Vegas casino: you’re ushered in with ease, but finding your way out is another story. The absence of clocks ensures you lose track of time, and every amenity is designed to keep you playing. This is precisely how I see AI being woven into our digital lives by tech giants like Google and Microsoft. Like the casino’s one-way escalator, these companies use AI to tighten their grip, often shaking up built-up agreements with content creators, journalists, small businesses, and educators.

Google’s AI now directly extracts answers from web content, effectively bypassing traditional traffic and revenue models. Meanwhile, Microsoft’s latest Surface laptops feature an AI key, embedding users deeper into their ecosystem. This level of AI integration raises significant concerns about competition, innovation, and user autonomy. As I prepare to teach my upcoming coursework on GenAI, these are the pressing issues I’ll be discussing with my students. We’ll explore how these developments are reshaping the digital landscape and why it’s urgent to decouple AI from these dominant platforms.

I would like to share some AI research that paints a future of teaching and learning with AI, which leans more towards the hopeful explorations of Star Trek than the grim battlegrounds of Ender’s Game. Imagine this: AI starts eating its own homework, and instead of conjuring up a digital wonderland, it ends up turning…

In the dynamic field of immersive technologies, educators and technologists across Asia, including our network of immersive learning labs in Japan, have been grappling with the complexities of mass adoption of VR/AR/XR/AI. These challenges, ranging from technological integration to pedagogical acceptance, have been at the forefront of our explorations. It’s against this backdrop of innovation and inquiry that I seized the opportunity to engage with Dr. Shannon Putman, a trailblazer in the realm of virtual reality education in the United States. Dr. Putman, as the principal consultant behind the most extensive deployment of VR devices in public K-12 schools in the US to date, offers a unique perspective on navigating the hurdles of immersive education. This article delves into the heart of these challenges, showcasing how Kentucky’s pioneering initiative under Dr. Putman’s guidance is not just confronting, but also surmounting, the barriers to incorporating immersive technologies into mainstream education. Join me as we explore the insights and strategies propelling Kentucky’s schools towards a future where VR/AR/XR/AI are integral to learning experiences.

As artificial intelligence becomes increasingly integrated into educational settings, students and teachers face new challenges in navigating the complex terrain of copyright law. The capacity of AI to access, utilize, and generate content based on copyrighted materials raises pressing questions about the boundaries of fair use in academic projects. This shift prompts a critical examination of how educational institutions can foster innovation while ensuring that the use of AI respects intellectual property rights. How can the academic community balance the transformative potential of AI with the legal and ethical considerations of copyright? This article delves into the intricacies of these issues, exploring the delicate equilibrium between advancing education and safeguarding creators’ rights.

As we harness spatial computing to dissolve the boundaries between digital and physical learning spaces, do we risk diminishing the significance of physical presence in our classrooms?

Our journey into spatial computing in education is not just about leveraging new tools for the sake of innovation; it’s about critically assessing how these tools affect the educational landscape. It’s about asking whether, in my pursuit of more engaging and empathetic learning experiences through Spatial Computing, we might inadvertently overshadow the spontaneous, unstructured moments of connection and insight that occur when learners come together in physical spaces. These moments, often undervalued and overlooked, are where the seeds of curiosity, collaboration, and critical thinking germinate and flourish. Through the lens of projects like the U Theatre, we’re pioneering ways to integrate XR into educational settings without losing sight of the classroom’s social fabric. This endeavor challenges us to design learning experiences that not only captivate minds but also nurture the communal spirit of education.

Drawing on his expertise in immersive technology and digital innovation, Hawkinson sheds light on a concerning trend: the increasing sophistication of phishing scams in the age of AI. He examines how these scams, once straightforward attempts to deceive via email, have transformed into complex schemes that now involve AI bots impersonating humans and even other AI bots.

“Star Trek” has long been celebrated for its uncanny ability to predict the future, but its foray into the specifics of the year 2024 is both eerie and disturbing in its accuracy. The Star Trek canon, rich with visionary ideas, has always blended the realms of science fiction with prescient insights into technological and societal…