The Augmented World Expo (AWE) 2020 is here. However, considering the current situation – with the COVID-19 pandemic shutting down most people’s international travel plans, and the original venue being converted into a temporary hospital for patients of the virus – this year’s event is different. For 2020, AWE has gone virtual, and the event is hosted as “AWE Online”. The program is on a 4-day run and multiple virtual meetups fill the time slots. Ticket holders can access the live streaming of the conference.
If you haven’t gotten your tickets or aren’t aware of the ongoing event, here is what you should know.
Those attending will be given a link following which they can set up their online profile for online.awexr.com. This will also work as the user portal via which they can visit virtual exhibitor booths, tune into the live streams of talks, and connect with numerous other attendees. This results in the portal doubling up almost as a ‘digital business card’ for AWE. Similar to an AWE-focussed social media page, users can update their profile info here.
While speaking in an AWE Online Orientation Webinar about the conference, Co-Founder Ori Inbar said that the week would be an extremely busy one. He recommended that everyone accepts it as if they are actually going to the AWE event.
Inbar is among the various speakers at this virtual event. He started things off with the AWE 2020 Welcome Address. Speakers from big-shot companies like Marvel Studios, Warner Bros Entertainment, Sony Pictures, Unity Technologies, Niantic, Qualcomm, Google, Samsung, Microsoft, Intel and many more are holding presentations in the event.
The standard presentations and talks are all be covered by live stream and the ticket holders can re-watch it for one full year through the online platform. Apart from this, events are also organised in virtual reality, including a meet up in Mozilla Hubs, a virtual Art Symposium, and a happy hour in Altspace VR. However, real dedication is expected from attendees on Pacific Time. As per the AWE VR Events listings, they need to be awake at 5:00 am.
Such an event undoubtedly focuses on networking, where people from all parts of the world get together under one roof to share innovations, thoughts and goals, building everlasting connections. This year, the same may not be happening but ticket holders can schedule meetings and discussions with other attendees, making AWE Online a truly virtual networking experience.
Sadly, those who do not have the necessary gadgets at home may not be able to fully enjoy all the latest in VR and AR tech. But for those who are able, they can virtually visit exhibition booths for virtual demonstrations and try-outs. Although it is not the same as the original event, pulling off a fully virtual 4-day conference is an amazing feat. It can almost be said that this covers the whole extended reality market. AWE Online started on 26th May at 8:00 Pacific Time. It will end on 29th May in the afternoon.
