Reality Virtually Hackathon

Join the MicroSoft Mixed Reality Team...

Wed, 02 Jan 2019 09:00:00 +0000

Join the MicroSoft Mixed Reality Team at the 2019 Reality Virtually Hackathon

The Microsoft Mixed Reality team is excited to return to the Reality Virtually Hackathon! Microsoft and the Mixed Reality team have a long history of supporting hacks such as this, starting with our initial round of HoloHacks, followed by supporting many community and educational hacks as this industry has grown and matured.

With the ever evolving landscape of Mixed Reality, we are often left in awe of the amazing things that happen when you get the right people, with the right ideas, the right equipment, and the right passion into a room and unleash them on this crazy medium where we can bend and stretch, and even break the rules that ground us in the real world.

As part of our continuous effort in supporting a diverse community of creators, the team will be attending the hackathon to teach best practices for creating experiences with OpenVR and Mixed Reality Toolkit.

Microsoft will also be supporting the hackathon with mixed reality hardware so every team and attendee has an opportunity to prototype their ideas.

Learn more about Microsoft Mixed Reality here: http://aka.ms/mr. Don’t forget to register for our developer program, which gets you the latest updates on mixed reality and special offers here: http://aka.ms/iwantMR

Meet our Mentor:

Jesse McCulloch is a Mixed Reality Developer Relations Program Manager at Microsoft. Starting as a Mixed Reality Developer in 2016, he built up a strong community around HoloLens and Immersive Headsets, and then joined Microsoft in 2018.

This gives him a very unique perspective and strong desire to advocate strongly for the developers who are supporting the platform.

He is often found hanging out in the HoloDevelopers Slack group, and on Twitter trying to keep up with everything going on in this rapidly growing space.

Come to our Workshop: OpenVR, Mixed Reality Toolkit, and you

As many people are aware, the Immersive headsets that run on the Microsoft Mixed Reality Platform are capable of running the many of the same apps as the HoloLens, due to a shared api surface.

However, many people are not aware that you can also write OpenVR applications that work on them as well. This allows you to write an app or game that supports multiple platforms, and other channels of distribution.

Taking this a step further, Microsoft and the community have been working on a new version of the Mixed Reality Toolkit that allows you to create apps for multiple platforms.

Through the use of profiles, we keep your scenes clear of the plumbing so you can focus on creating the content of your app, and not all the extra stuff that makes it work.

Join us as we give you an intro to where to get the tools, how it’s all structured, and the basics for getting started.

Invitation to the Greater Boston Medical Community...

Wed, 02 Jan 2019 09:00:00 +0000

Invitation to the Greater Boston Medical Community to participate in the Reality Virtually Hackathon

The Reality Virtually AR/VR hackathon at the MIT Media Lab invites members of greater Boston’s healthcare and medicine community to apply to participate in the hackathon. The healthcare and medicine category has produced innovative submissions during the last two hackthons. The hackathon organizers’ goal is to reach deeper into the healthcare and medicine community to increase the number of participants in this category.

Learn the latest in AR/VR technology, collaborate on groundbreaking new projects and work with state-of-the art loaner gear during the Reality Virtually Hackathon from January 17-21 at the MIT Media Lab.

Who should attend?

Doctors and and other professionals who envision AR and VR as a solution to a scientific, healthcare and/or medical problem, who could join as a domain expert to build a team to prototype this solution.

Engineers, scientists, designers and software developers working in the healthcare and medicine community who want to apply their skills as particpants on interdiciplanary teams to create original and innovative work.

Healthcare and medical innovation executives, the hackahton with 80 teams is a wonderful place to investigate AR/VR and to crowdsource new ideas and innovation.

Healthcare and medicing developers and designers who want access equipment. The hackathon will have HTC Vive Pros, Magic Leap, Oculus Rift and Google ARCore headsets and devices to loan. Dell Alienware are shipping beefy machines to drive the headsets.

On the first day of the Hackathon January 17, three tracks of workshops will run concurrently on imporant topics ranging from software design and development using Unity, PTC Vuforia and Studio, to building with Holens, HTC Vive, Oculus Rift, Google ARCore and general workshops on advanced topics like AR interaction design.

People with talent and passion should apply. It is not essential to have had experience building AR/VR projects.

The hackathon is a five-day learning experience designed to deepen our understanding of how immersive technologies can be applied to solve real-world problems. The participants will be 50% students and 50% working practitioners.

The event will bring together 400 participants to Cambridge where they will form interdiciplanary teams and develop innovative and original applications in virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR).

Learn more and apply today at https://realityvirtuallyhack.com

Magic Leap to Sponsor Reality Virtually Hackathon at the MIT Media Lab

Wed, 19 Dec 2018 16:00:00 +0000

Magic Leap is sponsoring the 2019 Reality Virtually Hackathon at the MIT Media Lab from January 17—21, 2019.

Through this sponsorship, Magic Leap will help interdisciplinary teams build original work for Magic Leap One Creator Edition. As it enters its third year, the Reality Virtually Hackathon builds on its reputation for fielding many diverse teams of pioneering individuals that stretch the limits of immersive technology and extend our understanding of how immersive technology can be applied.

In 2018, Magic Leap launched Magic Leap One Creator Edition and expressed a deep commitment to supporting developers and creatives.

Through flagship events like L.E.A.P. Conference as well as co-hosting the AT&T Mixed Reality Hackathon, Magic Leap invites its community hands-on opportunities to understand and build for its platform.

Magic Leap’s sponsorship of the Reality Virtually hackathon is a continuation of its grassroots initiative to provide a personal, in-depth guide to producers, designers, and developers.

Magic Leap Creator Edition targets a wide range of designers and developers with spatial computing skills or the desire to start creating for this new medium. Select teams will be able to check out the spatial computing technology and explore it as the platform for their projects.

Magic Leap will be bringing hardware and peripherals for teams who wish to hack on the Magic Leap One. Furthermore, Magic Leap engineers and designers will be on-site to teach workshops on how to design and build content for the Magic Leap One, including a session that focuses on integrating Magic Leap with industry-standard tools. Participants can ask specific questions about how Magic Leap One, APIs and development environment work together. Throughout the hackathon programming session, Magic Leap expert mentors will be available to help teams to ideate, refine project design, and understand how to build for Magic Leap One.

Teams can avail themselves to the company’s online learning resources during and before the hackathon. Registered hackathon participants can get started by visiting Magic Leap’s Creator Portal at http://creator.magicleap.com

Stay tuned for more news on Magic Leap’s participation at the Reality Virtually Hackathon as well as workshops and potential prizes for the best use of the Magic Leap Platform.

For more information please visit:

MagicLeap.com

Reality Virtually Hackathon will run on Alienware

Wed, 19 Dec 2018 09:00:00 +0000

Reality Virtually Hackathon will run on Alienware

Alienware is shipping a couple dozen beefy systems on loan to the hackathon. These machines are built to drive high-end headsets that will also be available for hackathon participants to check out for the hackathon. This is going to be an amazing experience for teams building with HTC and Oculus.

Alienware is a leader in powering a virtual reality. Alienware PCs are designed and tested to provide the best experience possible for VR. From high-end processors, graphics and memory components, to thermal and quality standards that exceed the competition, Alienware PCs are purpose built.

Alienware’s in-house validation of every VR config ensures the best experience, no matter which headset or VR hardware you choose. We make it easy to find the right PC for your reality through our “Ready for VR” branding.

VR branded systems go through rigorous rounds of testing, including industry benchmarks, before being labeled as “Ready for VR”. Alienware works together with top VR hardware suppliers in the industry to ensure compatibility and seamless functionality. Whether you need the portability of a notebook or prefer a desktop, you can count on Alienware PCs to deliver on the performance, quality, and reliability that has made Alienware a leader today.

Check out www.Alienware.com for more info.

WayRay to bring its True AR SDK...

Tue, 18 Dec 2018 09:00:00 +0000

WayRay to bring its True AR SDK to the Reality Virtually Hackathon and award cash prizes

Calling all designers, developers, and engineers! WayRay is challenging you to start creating AR applications for cars with its True AR SDK at the Reality Virtually Hackathon next month. WayRay will award $5,000 in cash prizes as well as ongoing mentorship, for the best use of the True AR SDK in the Automotive category.

Founded in 2012, WayRay develops holographic AR solutions including Navion, the first-ever aftermarket holographic AR navigation system for cars; the embedded Holographic AR Display, a built-in solution for carmakers; and the True AR SDK, an AR development platform to create AR apps for cars. At the MIT Media Lab, WayRay will demonstrate its holographic AR display prototype to the visitors and participants.

“The hackathon is a great opportunity for us to connect with talented developers and designers from different backgrounds, to observe how they apply our True AR SDK to bring their ideas to life”, says Leonid Striga, the True AR SDK Product Owner. “We are looking forward to developers’ feedback, to identify SDK’s top strengths and areas for improvements, and grow the product to the next level.”

WayRay’s mentors will be there to lead a workshop on the key functionalities and components of the True AR SDK beta. This includes the API, emulator, simulator, toolset, AR application structure, and lifecycle, as well as the operating principles of WayRay’s in-car holographic AR displays.

The mentors will also be available throughout the hackathon to assist teams in applying the technology to their projects.

About WayRay

WayRay was founded in 2012 and is headquartered in Zurich. As a deep-tech startup, WayRay creates fundamental innovations in holography, optics, design, hardware, and software engineering to develop breakthrough technologies like new lasers, new materials and tools for prototyping and production.

In keeping the full R&D process under control — from product concept to prototype testing — WayRay has morphed from a startup into a full-cycle manufacturer of holographic optical systems, hardware, and software.

The company has also won prestigious industry awards — the Grand Prize at the 2017 AutoMobility LA Top Ten Automotive Startups Competition, the People’s Choice Award, and the AR category at Startup Autobahn 2018.

True AR SDK

The True Augmented Reality Software Development Kit is a set of libraries and tools for third-party developers to build, test, and debug AR apps that run on holographic AR displays and deliver a true augmented reality experience.

The SDK makes it possible to develop applications that obtain data produced by the device and enrich device output data. The kit also makes it possible to use resources for computing, storing local information, and for network transition.

The SDK also provides the software toolset for building device-specific user applications. On the device side, the SDK run-time container controls AR apps execution and limits the consumption of device resources.

Alongside development tools, the SDK provides a set of tools for testing and debugging AR applications without having to install them on a real device. The set includes an Emulator that replicates how the AR app will behave on the actual device and a Simulator that provides a virtual environment for testing AR app behavior in various situations, on the computer or inside a VR headset.

Holographic AR Display Prototype

The Holographic AR Display Prototype is a demonstrator of the advanced and more compact replacement for conventional heads-up displays (HUDs) that was developed to show how the AR content can be displayed via WayRay’s solutions. Through the visor, you can see how the multicolored AR interface reacts to different road situations that are playing on the TV screen.

WayRay’s embedded holographic AR display boasts a smaller optics and a larger field of view. It can be built into almost any car model to provide navigation details, ADAS, notifications, route-related information, and any kind of AR app content.

For more information please visit:

Website: wayray.com
True AR SDK: https://wayray.com/sdk
Hackathon: https://wayray.com/sdk/hackathon
Facebook: facebook.com/MyWayRay
Instagram: instagram.com/wayraygram
Twitter: twitter.com/WayRay
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/wayray
YouTube: youtube.com/wayray

Past Hackathon Participants Returning as Mentors...

Tue, 18 Dec 2018 09:00:00 +0000

Two immersive technology experts from Google who were past participants and winners in the in the Virtually Reality Hackathon are returning this year as mentors—and bringing some of the latest technology along with them.

Louis DeScioli and Anish Dhesikan will have 40 ARCore/Daydream compatible devices to loan to participants and will teach three workshops—one on GoogleVR Daydream, one on Unity based ARcore and one on WebXR.

Throughout the five-day the hackathon they will be available as mentors, to explain and help design and develop with Google technologies and to share their successful hackathon experience.

“If you have an idea you’ve dreamt of, this is your chance,” DeScioli says. “You’re not going to find a more encouraging environment and group of people to dip your toes in and start down this path.”

When Dhesikan came to the first Reality Virtually Hackathon in 2017, he had limited experience developing in VR and was unsure how much he would be able to contribute.

By the first night, however, he connected with a group of people who shared a common goal of building an application to support education. “We all had different skills, but we all got along really well.”

By the second day, Dhesikan found that he not only had skills to contribute but could help in training his teammates as well. “I was experienced with Unity development and game development, which is useful for VR development, so I was able to teach a lot of my teammates about using UNITY, and I also taught my teammates how to use Blender, which is a 3D modeling software.”

DeScioli went into the 2017 hackathon thinking he would just be there to learn and look over everyone’s shoulders. However, once he began engaging with the technology he quickly found his niche working in Tilt Brush.

“The parts of the hackathon that stand out to me are how diverse the skill sets and people were, and how far away the people came from to participate,” he said.

“I just loved how different it was from most tech events and hackathons I had been to. I like that they set working hours so people aren’t staying up all night, you get to walk around and try things out and meet so many people.”

“I remember meeting a monk who came to the hackathon that first year and was developing a meditation app with a chest sensor that could visualize your breathing.”

“It was this aspect of it that made me want to continue, seeing how interdisciplinary this future of software was going to be.”

Any questions?

Email organizers at team@realityvirtuallyhack.com

Reality Virtually Hackathon

Join the MicroSoft Mixed Reality Team...

Join the MicroSoft Mixed Reality Team at the 2019 Reality Virtually Hackathon

Meet our Mentor:

Come to our Workshop: OpenVR, Mixed Reality Toolkit, and you

Invitation to the Greater Boston Medical Community...

Invitation to the Greater Boston Medical Community to participate in the Reality Virtually Hackathon

Who should attend?

Magic Leap to Sponsor Reality Virtually Hackathon at the MIT Media Lab

Magic Leap to Sponsor Reality Virtually Hackathon at the MIT Media Lab

For more information please visit:

Reality Virtually Hackathon will run on Alienware

Reality Virtually Hackathon will run on Alienware

WayRay to bring its True AR SDK...

WayRay to bring its True AR SDK to the Reality Virtually Hackathon and award cash prizes

About WayRay

True AR SDK

For more information please visit:

Past Hackathon Participants Returning as Mentors...

Past Hackathon Participants Returning as Mentors to Share Google Technology and AR Expertise

Any questions?