Texas A&M Graduate Casey Jensen Talks Virtual Reality, Offers Feedback On Students’ Projects
Casey Jensen, Texas A&M graduate and vice president of sales and marketing for Metaverse solutions company Rooom, visited students in two virtual reality classes (VIST 477 and VIZA 677) on April 6. Jensen discussed the technologies that Rooom provides, showcasing the versatility of 3D interactive experiences when used for businesses and marketing, especially in a post-COVID-19 and online-shopping-centered world.
Jensen emphasized the interactivity of virtual reality and immersive web-based platforms. He shared how some companies choose to hold meetings in virtual reality rather than on Zoom, and how virtual storefronts are becoming a more common form of shopping, especially for immunocompromised people or people with disabilities.
After the presentation, Jensen worked with student teams to give feedback on their semester-long projects. Guided by Edgar Rojas-Muñoz, assistant professor, students have been assigned to faculty advisers in other areas of the university to create virtual reality research projects, ranging from nursing to engineering to the humanities.
Rojas-Muñoz said the students were interested in how immersive technologies are being used “in the real world,” and that it encouraged them to think outside the box.
“They saw a lot of opportunities to use the knowledge they are receiving in the visualization program in a context that differs from a traditional animation approach,” he said. “While the students recognized that a lot of improvements are required before immersive technologies are ready to be used in our day-to-day, they were happy to be delving into these topics. Learning about virtual reality is elevating their skillset in preparation for a highly competitive and modernized world.”
