Guest lecture at MIT for the Hacking XR Speaker Series

In May of 2019, I visited Dr. Sandra Rodriguez at MIT Open Doc Lab to give two lectures on touch, the landscape of haptic feedback technologies, and HaptX’s approach to simulating touch in virtual reality. I was invited as part of the 2019 Hacking XR Speaker Series, which also included speakers from Meta/Oculus, Johns Hopkins, and filmmaking legend Douglas Trumbull.

From their web page: https://opendoclab.mit.edu/presents/andrew-mitrak-haptx/

FUTURE APPLICATIONS: FULL BODY SENSES & HAPTICS

How do we extend other human senses? This year has been a game changer in appearance and resurgence of haptic devices, and exploration of new senses in immersive experience. How do we bring touch, heat, cold to VR?

Andrew Mitrak is the Director of Marketing at HaptX, the startup bringing touch to virtual reality. Prior to HaptX, Andrew produced marketing videos for companies including Microsoft, Hasbro, and AT&T. One of his VR pieces with HaptX debuted at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival. Andrew earned his Master’s in Communication from the University of Washington in Seattle.

Speaking in front of audiences, microphones, and video cameras is an area in which I’m actively trying to improve. Here are a few other recent speaking engagements.

The New Storytellers: Panel on Full-Body Immersion

Curated by Phi and New York's Future of StoryTelling (FoST), The New Storytellers conference is gathering creative leaders to explore how storytelling is evolving in the digital age. I joined this panel to discuss HaptX and immersion beyond your eyes and ears.

SolidWorks World Expo: HaptX Partner Spotlight

I served as the HaptX company spokesperson for this demo + interview that was live-streamed on SOLIDWORKS social media channels.