Speakers for 2025

Gregor Finger

OO aims to make prototyping spatial experiences exponentially more intuitive, powerful and fun. Previously, Gregor worked as a Creative Technologist and Spatial Computing Lead and conceptualised, prototyped and led R&D and commercial projects for International leading brands such as IKEA and BMW.

Co-Founder & CEO, Ordinary Objects

Dr. George Ioannidis

Specialising in digital content management, AI, and XR solutions. With a PhD in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science and an MBA in innovation management, Dr. George has over 30 years of experience in European R&D, leading numerous projects in multimedia, accessibility, and cultural heritage.

PhD, Founder & Director/ IN2 Digital Innovations GmbH

Camilla Jakobsen

10+ years in recruitment and job-seeker support. With a background in education, Camilla focuses on empowerment and skill-building. She has integrated VR into career guidance to help job seekers practice interviews, manage stress, and build confidence. With a focus on innovation and inclusion, she uses immersive tools to create safe and engaging learning environments.

Advisor/ Nav Sandefjord

Vikash Katta

Previously researcher at IFE, specializing in cybersecurity and systems safety engineering of critical systems.

Cofounder & COO/ Eventwood

Sia Søndergaard

A visual storyteller with a Master’s in aesthetic learning processes and multimedia. With 20+ years at The Animation Workshop/VIA UC, Sia works at the interseaction of science communication, animation and education. Head of the science visualization network Sci-Vi.

Danish producer

Martina Scarpelli

An award-winning Italian filmmaker working in animation, visual arts, and experimental storytelling. Based in Denmark, Martina co-founded PLASTIC Collective and is a researcher at The Animation Workshop/VIA University College.

Creative Director/ Museum Wibergis AV

Ivan Fuusgaard Sørensen

A trained architect from the Aarhus School of Architecture and has worked for two decades in the intersection between architecture and design. Since 2018, Ivan has been working at Viborg Museum on the development of a new upcoming city museum.

Exhibition Architect/ Viborg Museum

Lars Hemmingsen Nørgaard

Technical Director, Producer, and CG Artist based in Denmark. Educated at The Animation Workshop and Animation Sans Frontières, he specializes in VR, projection mapping, and installations. He leads 3D Service, co-founded Plastic Collective, and teaches Mixed Reality at Aalborg University.

Technnical Director/ Aalborg University

Håvard Sørli

Works as a project manager at the Tindved business incubator and leads the VRINN node in Trøndelag. Also serves on VRINN’s board. Tindved is the Norwegian partner in the DACCHE project and has been responsible for bringing Graybox into the project.

Project manager/ Tindved

Jo Adrian Haavind

20 years of experience in Norway’s cultural and creative sector, including roles at the National Theatre, MUNCH Museum, National Library, and XR studio Glitch. As CEO of InPresence, he bridges art and technology to drive social impact, helping clients bring creativity and reflection to the forefront.

CEO/ InPresence

George Lar

Bachelor's Degree in 3D Art and Animation at the University of Inland Norway.

Currently Art Lead at Graybox Software, specializing in 3D Modeling.

Head of Art/ Graybox Software

Nick van Breda

ICT & Education Coach, social entrepreneur & technology enabler. Hosting hackathons, unconventional events and creative collaborations to make interesting partnerships possible that can solve complex challenges together. Actively scaling up XR in Vocational & Higher Education.

ICT & Education Coach/ Avans University of Applied Sciences

Hoa Binh Nguyen

Hoa helps Subject Matter Experts transform their knowledge into impactful VR training experiences.

Project Manager/ NextLayer

Kurt Nedenes

Master’s degree in Health and Social Informatics from the University of Agder (2023). With a strong focus on innovation in healthcare, Kurt has researched the use of VR as a tool to strengthen competence within MAP (Meeting Aggression Problems). 

Sørlandet Sykehus HF

Håvard Snarby

10 years of experience in developing and researching VR-based training in healthcare. Technical Lead at the VR company CTD AS.

Technical Lead / CTD AS

Kari Lillemoen-Johansen

An operating room nurse with 14 years of clinical experience and a Simulation Facilitator at SimOslo since 2022. With a master’s degree in health professional simulation and a background as cabin crew, she brings expertise in safety culture, teamwork, and structured VR training design as part of SimOslo’s core VR group.

RN, Simulation Facilitator/ SimOslo

Stine Wold

An intensive care nurse with 20+ years of critical care experience. Since 2019 she has been part of SimOslo, serving as Senior Simulation Facilitator since 2022. As one of three core members of SimOslo’s VR development group, she contributes creative direction and clinical expertise to produce immersive VR training that bridges realism and educational design.

RN, Senior Simulation Facilitator/ SimOslo

Lucas Stephane

PhD & a senior scientist at IFE, contributing to several EU and OECD training-related projects, XR courses (Østfold University College, University of South Eastern Norway - Hønefoss Campus), and human-centered AI (Research Council of Norway).

PhD & Senior Scientist/ Institute for Energy Technology

Oliver Kadel

An award-winning sound designer, recording and mixing engineer specialising in spatial and interactive audio for immersive media. Oliver has worked with Meta, Apple, Google and Dolby, and is currently pursuing a PhD in spatial psychoacoustics.

Senior Sound Technologist for Immersive Media

Hilde K. Kjøs

Norwegian director and visual storyteller working at the intersection of art, film, and immersive media. She explores themes of memory, identity, and human connection through poetic, emotionally-driven narratives.

Owner/ Mica film

Scarlett Perdereau

A movement artist, choreographer, and educator working across stage, film, and multimedia performance. Her immersive solo work Echoes Of Time blends choreography with digital media and is now in development toward XR integration with VIP Studio (Nottingham).

Independent, Freelance Artist

Erlend Bekkestad

Over 30 years’ leadership experience in the Norwegian Armed Forces and Ministry of Defence, including roles as Deputy Director in MOD, Military Academy Commandant, and Battalion Commander.

Senior Advisor Defense/ Fynd Reality

Thomas U. Fosseli

Art Director and Production Designer with a strong background in XR and immersive storytelling. A graduate of the Norwegian Film School, he has worked on acclaimed TV series including Occupied, Mammon, and Snøfall, and co-created the award-winning Nøkken VR. Based in Kristiansand, Thomas freelances across film, TV, theater, and immersive media, while also contributing to Glitch’s newest XR project.

Art Director & Production Designer/ Glitch Studios

Andrew Perkis

Chair of Media Technology and head of Sense-IT team running Interactive Digital Narrative related projects and a setting up directions and visions within art and technology and directions for innovations in Immersive Media Technology Experiences

Director NTNU Sense-IT lab

Rob Pereira

Commercial Director for Healthcare, Training & Education at PICO XR, one of the world’s leading XR hardware manufacturers. With 15+ years’ experience, he has driven global projects in VR/XR, eye tracking, biometrics and behavioural analysis, advancing their adoption in academia and industry.

Commercial Director / PICO XR

Katja Reinikka

M.Sc. Economics & Business, is Producer at the EIT Culture & Creativity Regional Hub North. With experience in event production, communications & project management, she previously worked at Aalto University as Event Curator and co-led a pre-incubator program for the creative industries with a focus on digital creativity.

EIT Culture & Creativity

Joakim Vindenes

An XR enthusiast with a strong background from startups, academia, and industry. Since completing his PhD on VR User Experience, Joakim has been working with immersive technologies at Equinor.

Here, his team explores the potential of Immersive VR for Communication, Collaboration, Training and Design.

PhD, Head of XR Team / Equinor

Sathiya Kumar Renganayagalu

Research Scientist at IFE's VR/AR department with 12+ years of experience. Specializes in XR applications for design and training, with expertise in user-centered design, usability studies, and data-driven systems including digital twins and IoT. Focuses on advancing immersive technologies for safety-critical industrial applications.

Research Scientist / Institute for Energy technology (IFE)

Eirik Wahl

24 years of experience in software development, including 9 years in 3D graphics/game technology and 7 years in digital twins. Erik works with technology and product strategy, as well as hands-on in development projects, both as a project manager and developer.

CTO and system developer/ Weave Reality

Sanu Mana Vamanchery

Associate Professor at the Universty of Inland Norway. They both have a common interest in Indian Knowledge System inspired methods for design.

Associate Professor / University of Inland Norway

Sashi Komandur

 Associate Professor at the Universty of Inland Norway. Interested in Indian Knowledge System inspired methods for design.

Associate Professor

Kyungbinn Noh

PhD student at USN, exploring the use of immersive VR to support lighting design and visual perception. Currently conducting a pilot study comparing physical and virtual environments to assess VR’s potential in lighting design research.

PhD student / University of South-Eastern Norway

Hemen Heidari (Dr. Phil. Das)

Media scholar and lecturer at the University of Amsterdam with expertise in film studies, virtual reality, and archival reappropriation. Hemen holds a Ph.D. in Media Studies from the University of Basel, Switzerland and has published/lectured on film theory, cultural memory politics, and VR films.

Media scholar & lecturer / University of Amsterdam

Ieva Krastina

PhD candidate at the University of South-Eastern Norway, and part of the I-Merse Research Group and Horizon Europe XR4Human project. Ieva explores the interaction between VR technologies and common vision problems and how these affect the user experience and accessibility. 

PhD candidate / Universty of South-Eastern Norway

Aisha Chaudhry

Aisha has worked on digitizing Norwegian People’s Aid courses for 4 years. She holds a master’s degree in education from the University of Oslo.

E-learning advisor/ Norsk Folkehjelp

Mathias Tangen Leganger

5 years of experience developing VR for ambulance and rescue services. Master of Science in Industrial Economics from NTNU.

Project Manager/ Snow XR

Helge Bjordal

Helge started programming animations in the late 80's. He is the founder og Nagelld and co-founder of Spawn VR. He is currently working as a VR evangelist, travelling Norway and abroad to convince different industries on why they need to start using VR.

Co- Founder/ Nagelld AS

Stig Ekeberg

Product Manager for mental health in Making View AS, and responsible for the development of this course, teaching health employees how to deal with people with dementia.

Product Manager/ Making View AS

Sonya Seddarasan

XR UI/UX Designer specializing in human-centered spatial interactions and immersive storytelling. Active since 2019, she collaborates with XR studios in Europe & Asia, and speaks at global events like AWE, VR Days & ZipScene on the future of immersive UX.

XR UI & UX Designer / Vital Sports International

Kim Baumann Larsen

Kim is CEO and founder of Dimension Design, producing virtual environments and interactive XR experiences, and COO and co-founder of the gaming startup Viewalk. Educated an architect he, has worked in XR since 1995 and won numerous awards for his design within the fields of XR, VFX and architecture.

CEO & Founder/ Dimension Design

Michael Barngrover

Managing Director of XR4Europe, championing the organization's mission to unite XR stakeholders and advance innovation through EU-supported projects like XR4HUMAN. He connects XR professionals, institutions, and policymakers for a strong and cohesive XR ecosystem.

Managing Director/ XR4Europe

Tobias Barvik

Directing since 1999, XR storytelling since 2014, and founder of Glitch Studios (2016). Award-winning AR project with digital characters onstage (2023). Currently developing large-scale, multiuser XR narratives.

Storyteller & Co Founder/ Glitch Studios

Siti Azreena Binti Mubin

Assistant Prof. Ts. Dr. Siti Azreena Mubin is XR Studio Lead at APU, specializing in AR/VR, gamification, and game studies. She leads major XR industry-academic projects, heads a research cluster in data analytics & edtech, and serves as VRARA Malaysia secretary.

PhD, Software Engineering/Asia Pacific University of Technology & Innovation (APU)

Ellen Lande

Exploring new interactive realms through her artistic XR games, she's the director of acclaimed works like "The Digital Garden of Munch AR". Educated at the Polish film school with a MA in directing & cinematography, she has directed extensive TV-drama and numerous short films. Also an established film and art critic with 120 reviews. Munchs digitalt Garden AR, Nøkken VR-  Winner Best Virtual Production Award 2023, Nordic VR Forum.

Film & Gamedirector, Filmcritic

Marie Edin Solheim

Teacher at Storhamar Upper Secondary School with training in Health & Childhood Care. As XR coordinator,  Marie integrates VR, AI, 3D printing & design in education. Passionate about universal design, she applies chaos theory & confluent pedagogy, blending new tech with traditional teaching.

Preschool and vocational teacher/ Innlandet fylkeskommune