The organizers of Augmented World Expo 2015 are proud to announce an incredible lineup of speakers and presenters at this year’s event. AWE 2015 will showcase a trio of keynotes including David Brin, scientist and world-known author, Dr. Tom Furness, a pioneer in human interface technology and grandfather of virtual and augmented reality, and Steve Mann, legendary wearable computing pioneer.

AWE 2015 will be held June 8-10, 2015 at the Santa Clara Convention Center in Santa Clara, CA. Augmented World Expo, now in its sixth year, is the world’s largest international event for augmented reality, wearable computing, gesture devices, and the Internet of Things. The AWE 2015 program includes keynotes by industry luminaries, classes and tutorials, more than 200 products and startup demos, the largest collection of industry use cases, The Auggie Award Competition, the Art Gala and reception, talks by 200 industry leaders covering business, technology and design, and 33,000 square feet of exhibit space. More than 3,000 professionals are expected to attend.

About the Headliners

David Brin’s novels have been New York Times Bestsellers, winning multiple Hugo, Nebula and other awards. At least a dozen have been translated into more than twenty languages. His 1989 ecological thriller, Earth, foreshadowed global warming, cyberwarfare and near-future trends such as the World Wide Web. Brin serves on advisory committees dealing with subjects as diverse as national defense and homeland security, astronomy and space exploration, SETI and nanotechnology, future/prediction and philanthropy. His scientific work covers an eclectic range of topics, from astronautics, astronomy, and optics to alternative dispute resolution and the role of neoteny in human evolution.

Dr. Tom Furness is a pioneer in human interface technology and grandfather of virtual reality. As the Founding Director of the international family of Human Interface Technology Laboratories (HITlab), based at the University of Washington with satellite labs in New Zealand and Australia, Dr. Furness is exploring the next generation of augmenting human potential with profound and ubiquitous virtual world experiences. Much of the product technology that is now being popularized with the announcements from Oculus Rift, Magic Leap, Google Glass, and Microsoft HoloLens is based, in part, by early inventions and demonstrations that Dr. Furness and his protégés created over the decades.

Dr. Furness served a combined 23 years as an U.S. Air Force officer and civilian at the Armstrong Laboratory at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, where he developed advanced cockpits and virtual interfaces for the Department of Defense.

“Dr. Tom Furness is the foremost authority on virtual- and augmented reality and has been contributing to the advancement of our industry for more than 50 years,” said Ori Inbar, executive director of AWE 2015 and cofounder of Augmentedreality.org. “It will be an honor to hear Dr. Furness take us through the history of virtual- and augmented reality, starting from the very beginning of our industry.”

“The power of virtual worlds is not in the achievement of technological capabilities, but in the creative possibilities of the human imagination that transform the limits of reality,” explains Dr. Furness. “At Augmented World Expo, I’ll be discussing how the human side of innovation has driven my research, and how I and my colleagues explored how to extend the human the potential by seamlessly interfacing people with technology.”

Steve Mann, legendary Wearable computing pioneer, is a professor at University of Toronto and Chief Scientist of the Rotman School of Management’s CD Lab. He invented the MannGlassTM HDR welding glass, the EyeTap Digital Eye Glass, and has been recognized as “the father of the wearable computer”, the “father of wearable AR”, and founder of wearable computing as a new discipline. He has been described as a modern-day Leonardo da Vinci, and is also a sculptor, artist, and inventor of the hydraulophone, a public water feature that is a fun and playful musical instrument installed as public art around the world.

Incredible Program at AWE 2015 Unveiled

AWE 2015 features three days of workshops, tutorials and panels from the world’s leading brands including Qualcomm, Microsoft, Epson, Samsung, Google, Intel, Nvidia, Bosch, Autodesk, Boeing, DHL, Accenture, SAP, IEEE and the most innovative startups including Daqri, NGRAIN, Vuzix, Metaio, Blippar, ODG, APX , Marxent Labs, Occipital, Softkinetic, and more.

The complete roster of companies presenting at AWE 2015 can be seen at:http://augmentedworldexpo.com/participating-companies/

Topics include:

• Epic talks from additional industry luminaries including Jay Wright (VP, Qualcomm), Mark Billinghurst (Director HIT Lab NZ), Steven Feiner (Professor, Columbia University) and Chris Stapleton (Simyosis);
• A full day enterprise track on how to implement AR in industrial settings;
• Micro-talks by top innovators about new products and a collection of industry use cases demonstrating the value of AR, VR, wearables and IoT in a variety of verticals;
• Case studies showing how AR can create actual business value in a variety of vertical applications including advertising, retail, sales, real estate, architecture, urban design, healthcare, education, art and culture;
• Smart glasses presentations by over a dozen vendors;
• Industrial use cases including utilities, logistics, asset management and remote expert assistance;
• Tutorials on Rapid prototyping for Wearables, Interoperability and creating the Open Web with AR, and IoT: Integrating Augmented Reality with M2M;
• Tutorials on 8 market leading tools for AR;
• Best practices for startups and agencies;
• A variety of entertainment and play use cases including video games and physical play;
• Automotive and Aerospace use cases including car design and HUDs from Honda and Jaguar Land Rover and more;
• Over a dozen new startup pitches in front of investors;
• Panels on topics including Authoring Reality, VR in advertising, privacy and security and building an industry roadmap

The complete roster of distinguished speakers can be seen athttp://augmentedworldexpo.com/speakers/.

The full conference program including workshops, panels and tutorials can be found athttp://augmentedworldexpo.com/conference-program/.

For more information and to register to attend, please visit www.AWE2015.com. Special, discounted early bird pricing is available through the end of March.

Please follow Augmented World Expo on twitter at @ARealityEvent and #AWE2015.

Journalists can request a complimentary press pass to Augmented Reality Expo 2015 through the contact information above.

More about Augmented World Expo

Augmented World Expo, now in its sixth year, is the world’s largest international event for augmented reality, wearable computing, gesture devices, and the Internet of Things. Last year show took place May 27th through May 29th at the Santa Clara Convention Center. AWE 2014 boasted over 200 exhibits from elite brands like Epson, Qualcomm and Intel to pioneering startup such as Daqri, Arqetype, Ngrain, and many more. Attendees also experienced a FashionWare show produced by Living in Digital Times, the Auggie Awards, a wearable tech Hackathon, the Glass Class: Designing Wearable Interfaces by Mark Billinghurst and 100 additional talks, including keynotes from Robert Scoble, Tim Chang and Hiroshi Ishii.

To stay up to date about AWE and others news in the Augmented World sign-up to our newsletter at: http://eepurl.com/HGFtH.

More about Augmentedreality.org

AugmentedReality.org is a 501 (c) non-profit organization with institutional supporters and individual members from across the world. It unites hundreds of companies, and thousands of entrepreneurs, engineers and designers — committed to advancing Augmented Reality — an emerging technology that digitizes interaction with the physical world.

Members tap into valuable members-only resources: major discounts to industry events, networking opportunities with industry leaders, up-to-date educational programs and technical training, unparalleled market research, exposure in extensive promotional programs, and representation in the voice of the industry.

AR.ORG also owns and produces Augmented World Expo (AWE) — the world’s largest international event for augmented reality, wearable computing, gesture devices, and the Internet of Things. All profits from AWE are reinvested into AR.ORG’s industry services.

Augmentedreality.org and Augmented World Expo are led by its co-founders, Executive Director Ori Inbar and Chief Content Officer Tish Shute.

— AugmentedReality.org