Creating a Synthetic Peak Experience in VR with ‘SoundSelf’

Robin Arnott had a peak experience from a LSD trip at Burning Man, and wanted to see if he could replicate this type of peak psychedelic experience within virtual reality. The result of four years of work is a transcendent experience called SoundSelf that creates a diffuse feedback loop between your toning and a variety of generative abstract art visuals. So I had a chance to catch up with Robin to talk about using VR to cultivate a synthetic peak experience, using VR as a transformative technology, and the role of contemplative spiritual practices.

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SoundSelf is the closest experience I’ve had where I felt like I had taken a digital drug, and it’s the type of experience that is really difficult to describe. Pendleton Ward was raving about his peak experience with SoundSelf VR back in episode #410, and I expect that this could be one of many unique lived “erlebnis” experiences that you just have to try to understand.

SoundSelf raised more than $36,000 in a successful Kickstarter back in 2013 and was originally slated to launch in 2014. There’s now a beta release available at SoundSelf.com, but the full release of the experience should be launching sometime in 2017, and the experience will support the HTC Vive and Oculus Rift.

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Music: Fatality & Summer Trip