From December 3rd to 5th, 2024, Rotterdam hosted the Immersive Tech Week, bringing together innovators, entrepreneurs, and international thought leaders to explore the frontiers of immersive technologies. Organized by Benjamin de Wit, the festival’s director, the event was a showcase of cutting-edge showcases in their Church of VR, inspiring talks, and collaborative opportunities.
Highlights from the Week
Tom Ffiske’s Keynote: The State of IX in 2024
One of the standout moments was the keynote by Tom Ffiske, editor of the “Immersive Wire.” His talk offered a comprehensive overview of the latest innovations in immersive experiences (IX) in 2024. Follow the latest VR developments via www.immersivewire.com
After Toms Keynote, Monique van Dusseldorp hosted a session on Vision & Impact, from the newest headsets, to smart glasses, and the potential of new brain-computer interfaces.
Fashion Designer Anouk Wipprecht, Farbod Shakouri and Karthik Mahadevan, showed the audience, based on their works and companies, how the hardware and software for IX are rapidly evolving. Although all these new sensors require market regulation, in this session the opportunities of this new technology was explored, and presented via promising products.
CIIIC: Connecting Immersive Innovators
The event also featured strong representation from the CIIIC (Creative Industries Immersive Impact Coalition), hosting conversations, and exploring the various roles for stakeholders in cross-disciplinary collaboration within the immersive tech ecosystem. Through its community, CIIIC connects creative entrepreneurs, makers, researchers, festival to position the Dutch Immersive Media ecosystem strongly in an international market. If you want to read more about this Dutch programme, running from 2025-2029, visit the CLICKNL website: CIIIC programma / CLICKNL v2 – CLICKNL
Funding Pathways for Immersive Entrepreneurs
Gijs Gootjes, director EIT Culture & Creativity North West, presented in a session, together with HorizonEurope, Fedora, Creative Europe, and Cultuurloket Digitall. The room was packed for this session on funding pathways tailored for immersive entrepreneurs. The presentations highlighted the opportunities available through EIT CC’s funding programs, designed to empower startups and scale-ups in the gaming and Audiovisual sectors.
Startup Pitches With EIT Culture & Creativity Javier Arias
Javier Arias, Director Business Creation at EIT Culture & Creativity, was invited to a lot of pitching sessions from promising immersive media startups. These sessions provided a platform for entrepreneurs to showcase their innovations and EIT CC’s commitment to nurturing talent and driving economic growth within the immersive sector.
A Festival to Remember
Immersive Tech Week 2024 proved to be an essential meeting point for the creative and cultural sectors, fostering dialogue and collaboration at the intersection of technology and content creation. Special thanks go to Benjamin de Wit, who made this festival a cornerstone event in the immersive tech calendar.
As we look to the future, the insights and connections made during these three days will shape the next wave of innovation in immersive technologies. EIT Culture & Creativity remains involved in this dynamic ecosystem, supporting pioneers who redefine how we experience and interact with the world around us.
The main take away: Immersive experiences aren’t an escape from reality; they are a bridge to enrich and expand it!
