Eirmersive Launches with a Celebration of Ireland’s Thriving Immersive Technology Sector

Eirmersive, the voice of the Irish Immersive Technology sector, launched its network at a special event on the 11th of September at the O'Reilly Theatre, Belvedere College, Dublin. This event marked a significant milestone for the sector, bringing together industry leaders, innovators, and stakeholders to celebrate the achievements of Irish immersive technology companies and set the stage for future growth.

Aaron Jay, CEO at Emagine with Camille Donegan, Interim CEO at Eirmersive and Minister Dara Calleary at the launch of the Eirmersive network in the O'Reilly Theatre, Dublin

Dara Calleary TD, Minister of State for Trade Promotion, Digital and Company Regulation, was present to officially launch the Eirmersive network, met with the Irish Immersive companies demoing at the event, and addressed the large audience about the recognition from the government of the importance of the Irish Immersive Technology sector.

The event, titled OUTWARD, showcased the ambition and global reach of Ireland's Immersive Technology sector, where 80% of businesses were already exporting their innovative solutions worldwide. Attendees had the opportunity to engage with immersive technology demonstrations, heard success stories, and learned about the latest developments in the industry.

Niall Campion, founder at VRAI with Minister Dara Calleary at the launch of the Eirmersive network in the O'Reilly Theatre, Dublin

Eirmersive envisions Ireland becoming a global hub for immersive technology by 2030, capitalising on the country’s rich IT and creative talent. With an estimated global growth of €800 billion by 2030 and a potential 860,000 new jobs created by 2025, this launch event represented a pivotal moment for Ireland’s digital future.

The evening featured a keynote address by Michael Barngrover, Managing Director of XR4Europe, an influential industry association actively shaping the future of virtual worlds in Europe. Michael provided an overview of the European landscape, including key strategies such as the Finnish Metaverse Strategy and the EU Virtual World initiatives, highlighting opportunities for Irish companies to engage with and benefit from these initiatives. The Embassy of Finland was also in attendance.

The event featured Lightning Talks from end-users of Immersive Technology Solutions built by Irish Immersive companies:

• Dafydd Hall Williams, Artistic Director of Ulster Touring Opera, spoke about how Belfast-based company Ulster Touring Opera harnessed the technology developed by Dublin-based immersive technology company Volograms. Dafydd covered two specific use cases where Volograms' volumetric capture technology played a central role: AR Don Giovanni and the Yardmen Trail AR Stories app.

• Ger Corbett, Chief Executive Officer at Sandyford Business District, spoke about the implementation and use of a VR digital twin of Sandyford for the EU project, IB-Green, which was all about greening strategies for industrial areas of cities that were traditionally poorly served by public amenity green spaces.

• Mary Walsh O'Shea, Adult Education Officer responsible for Certified Training & Adult Education Guidance Service at WWETB, spoke about using Virtual Reality for Immersive Healthcare Simulations with PulseXR built by Emagine.

Minister Dara Calleary with Camille Donegan Interim CEO at Eirmersive, Dr Zeta Dooly from SETU, and Dualta Ó Broin, Director of Public Policy from Meta

The Immersive Education Working Group, supported by Meta, also presented during the event. This group had been developing recommendations for the Irish government on integrating Augmented Reality, Virtual Reality, and Mixed Reality into educational curricula at all levels. Their work highlights successful use cases from Ireland and explored how immersive learning could enhance education, upskilling, and professional training. Dualta Ó Broin, Director of Public Policy from Meta, spoke of their strategic ongoing support to Eirmersive while Dr Zeta Dooly from SETU detailed the Key recommendations from the working group.

The evening concluded with demonstrations from a dozen immersive technology solutions developed by Irish companies, offering attendees an opportunity to explore the innovative ways in which immersive technology was being applied across industries.

Eirmersive is supported by the Creative Ireland Programme and benefits from Government funding as part of the Digital Creative Industries Roadmap 2024-2026, launched in February 2024. This roadmap is designed to strengthen Ireland’s digital creative industries, with Eirmersive playing a pivotal role in advancing the country’s immersive technology sector on the global stage. Eventbrite for the event can be found here: https://www.eventbrite.ie/e/outward-tickets-957022830047

For more information, please contact: Camille Donegan / Interim CEO / camille@eirmersive.com