“All industries can use immersive storytelling!”

Alexi Bergh Betancor on AR, VR, XR, MR

Volumental is a company that produces shoe recommendations by using a combination of 3D foot scans, retail purchase data, and AI. Alexi works as a Junior Interaction Designer.

– The starting point is that the shoe industry wants to reduce returns. At Volumental we believe that everyone is one-of-a-kind and should have an easy and enjoyable way to find the perfect fit. Our FitTech solutions remove the guesswork from sizing for both shoppers and retailers. I thought it was very interesting to combine this new digital technology with the fashion and retail industry. Since I have worked with shoes, I knew how complicated the process is to find the right size, with new models in different sizes from different brands – it’s really difficult.

– With our app, you can scan your feet using your phone and we use AR in the experience so there was a connection to the education. The IEC education has a lot of focus on the ideation stage – how do we develop the prototype and test this? The problem was “how do we get a person who doesn’t know what this is to hold the camera in the right way?” And then I could create the prototypes needed for testing in Unity, which we used a lot during the education.

What has the Immersive Experience Creator education meant?

– The education has given me a broad understanding of this technology that is emerging. But also, an understanding of how difficult it is for the average person to understand and use this new technology. AR and VR are still seen as futuristic, and the concepts are still abstract for many.

“You become a generalist”

– A great thing about the Immersive Experience Creator education is that you get to try many different things – you become a generalist. With the help of the education, I could tie together my previous experiences in sales and customer contact with this technology. The entire spectrum of education, from learning Unity to understanding how to pitch, what storytelling is, and how to work with sound and 360 film, has been very important for me in learning about all these aspects. If I hadn’t done that, I would have had a very difficult time understanding everything about my new role. Even though I don’t code now, I still need to understand what those who do are doing. I simply wouldn’t have ended up here without the IEC education.

What does the future hold for this field?

– Generalists will be very important at this early stage. Those who have a broader understanding of how everything is connected will be needed to tie everything together. You must know a little bit of everything to convey what you want.

– This education has something for anyone interested in this new technology, regardless of their background. Having an interest in technology is a plus, but you don’t necessarily need to have worked with something similar before. All industries can use immersive storytelling!