Irish Software Firm Launch Virtual Reality Learning Tool

Immersive VR Education (IVRE), the Virtual Reality software and technology group based in Waterford, has announced the official launch of their online virtual social learning and presentation tool ENGAGE, which provides a platform for creating, sharing and delivering proprietary and third-party VR content for educational and corporate training purposes.

ENGAGE is a powerful virtual reality collaboration and creation tool, allowing educators and corporate trainers to host meetings, classes, private tutorials, training sessions and presentations with people from all over the world, participating in a safe, virtual, multi-user environment.

It is designed to either complement and enhance classroom teaching, or for use in a standalone environment, providing distance learners with access and opportunities to connect level with their fellow students.

Speaking of the launch, David Whelan, CEO & Co-founder of IVRE,
“ENGAGE has been in production for over two years – it has gone through rigorous development & testing phases and is now fully functional and ready for use around the globe. We have already partnered with Shenandoah University in the US and Nokia to roll out this platform to students and staff. We are also working with leading professors from Oxford University to provide content on the ENGAGE platform, and Intel are currently promoting ENGAGE throughout the US as part of their Tech Learning Lab initiative which will be touring Europe and the UK in the coming months.

It is our mission as a company to be at the forefront of mainstreaming VR technology in education. ENGAGE is at the cutting edge of this technology’s usage in the education sector. It is uniquely placed to do two things. Firstly, help educators visualise how the technology can positively impact their profession and their ability to influence students’ participation and performance and secondly, become synonymous with the application of the technology, through its platform and content, in the ‘learning space’ which can be applied anywhere – whether it is in an interactive museum, a second level school, a university, or a work setting.”

Both Nokia Corporation, the multinational telecommunications, information technology, and consumer electronics company, and Shenandoah University, the private liberal arts university located in Winchester, Virginia in the United States, have signed up as partners to use the ENGAGE platform for training and education purposes respectively.

Commenting on these partnerships Mr. Whelan,
“The full release of ENGAGE is a transformational moment in our history and is the result of many years of hard work, cutting edge research and innovation. Being aligned to global leaders like these institutions demonstrates the potential and need for the platform.

People today all over the world say let’s SKYPE when talking about online communications and meetings. In the future we want people to say let’s ENGAGE and enter VR to communicate in a more natural way.”