Imperial College Business School holds conferences with holograms as speakers

This London business school offers its students conferences with professors and speakers, represented by holograms, with whom they can interact live.

The technology, developed by hologram company AHRT Media and adapted by the Edtech Lab of Imperial College Business School, will allow professors and guest speakers to present their presentations in real time, through holograms, from studios located in a variety of global locations including the United States, Canada and Singapore.

The hologram will allow speakers to appear as life-size 3D entities within one of the school's conference theaters and, instead of projecting a prerecorded message, can interact with students in real time, respond to audience reactions and questions via camera link, as if they were physically present in the conference room.

The ability to display hyper-realistic human holograms from AHRT Media, as well as all types of dynamic 3D content, allows for a truly immersive experience and makes the speaker feel like they are really in the room.

The technology will also allow Imperial College Business School to host lectures in multiple classes and locations simultaneously, as well as holding panel discussions and roundtable events with a mix of in-person and virtual speakers.

“Introducing hologram technology into the classroom will break the limitations of traditional teaching by creating an interactive experience that benefits both students and academics.. Instead of replacing or reducing real-life lectures, hologram technology will provide greater flexibility for academics by allowing them to continue teaching while traveling, ensuring consistency and quality for students. It will also expand the scope to invite global leaders and industry influencers to give talks to students, thus enriching the learning experience.”, explains David Lefevre, director del Edtech Lab.

The hologram is the latest addition to the catalog of technologies currently used by the Edtech Lab to create more effective forms of learning. Other recent innovations include a robo-tutor, an Artificial Intelligence chatbot to support distance students in MBA programs and an online Masters in Business Analytics.