The ever-famous TED conference kicks off on February 15th in Vancouver, Canada and this year will feature The VOID mixed reality VR experience, including the latest hardware from the company.
We’ve seen The Void in action several times over the course of its development, but it’s stop at the TED 2016 conference will be the debut of the experience with the company’s custom-built ‘Rapture’ hardware in action, including the Rapture Haptic Vest, Rapture Tracking and Rapture HMD (co-developed with Optimal Design).
The Void, which merges virtual reality experiences with a large physical stage, has created a stage and experience that will be deployed at TED 2016 conference next month where several thousand attendees will have the opportunity to step inside. The company teases the experience: “TED attendees will be able to feel the mist of ancient caverns, use a torch to light their way through mystical puzzles and discover a legend all while exploring the dangers and mysteries of an ancient temple.”
TED, an annual conference series focusing on technology, entertainment, and design, brings influential speakers to the stage to convey powerful ideas in short presentations. While the starting ticket price is a whopping $8,500, the non-profit conference makes presentations available for free online.
“THE VOID is pioneering a new form of cinematic virtual reality,” said Katherine McCartney, Director of Operations at TED’s Vancouver office. “We’re excited to bring them to TED’s annual conference and give our attendees an early opportunity to experience this bold new form of entertainment first-hand.”
Among a diverse group of speakers at TED 2016, from scientists to musicians to dancers, the conference will also feature presentations focusing on virtual and augmented reality. Chris Milk, the founder of VR production studio VRSE, will take to the stage as well as Meron Gribetz, CEO of augmented reality company Meta.