B.N. (Brandi Nicole) Hongell

Immersive technologies, such as virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), and mixed reality (MR), can transform how we perceive, interact, and communicate with the world and each other. The future internet will be immersive, and according to Forbes, it is currently among the top 5 technology trends. The related market is expected to rapidly yet sustainably grow over the next decades, as confirmed by major consulting firms such as Accenture, McKinsey, and Gartner. The tremendous impact of these new technologies is already visible in many sectors today, including education, entertainment, health, and socialization.

There are many concrete examples that illustrate the benefits of immersive technology. In industrial work environments, AR can be used for equipment inspection and maintenance, providing real-time data overlays and interactive guides to ensure accuracy and efficiency. In health, for hearing and vision-impaired individuals, AR glasses can offer significant enhancements to daily life and social interactions. Additionally, virtual training can reduce learning time and costs (e.g., Accenture, Police). The possibility for remote interaction and supervision also reduces CO2 emissions, as many real-world displacements can be replaced. The ability to capture, analyze, and review user actions with machine precision is relevant for many domains, such as sports (e.g., athlete performance analysis) or the medical sector (e.g., Alzheimer/Parkinson behavior analysis). Having control over the virtual environment is a key aspect to investigate specific scenarios in such contexts. Virtual content itself is beneficial in various ways; for example, realistic depictions can serve for virtual exhibitions or previsualization of architectural elements. Furthermore, immersive data visualization is a field that holds tremendous promise but has received little attention.

We’re launching the Immersive AI Lab, a joint research collaboration between researchers from Erasmus University and the Technology University of Delft, sponsored by Convergence of AI, Data & Digitalization. Our aim is to unlock the potential of immersive and AI technologies by exploring fundamental questions and innovative application contexts. Our goal is to gain insights that are generally applicable while simultaneously opting for concrete outcomes that can make a difference in specific domains today. In this way, we believe it is possible to build a basis for the long-term effectiveness and sustainability of the lab. The initial themes have been carefully chosen with the duality of impact and fundamental research in mind, focusing on: multimodal augmentation for user-centric solutions, social interactions and collaboration, virtual environments, and immersive data visualization.

We are seeking highly motivated PhD students with demonstrated academic ability who are passionate about immersive technology and AI, and who want to contribute to the research in our Immersive AI Lab. Ideal candidates will possess a commitment to interdisciplinary research on significant information technology and management issues and a desire to pursue an academic research career in this field. You will be part of the Business Information Management (BIM) section within the Department of Technology & Operations Management at the Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University.

Applicants must have strong quantitative training, with preference given to candidates who have earned an MSc, MPhil, or Research Master in economics, computer science, econometrics, statistics, or a related field. Successful candidates should have proficiency with R, SQL, Python, or other programming languages.

As a Ph.D. student, you will gain the training and experience necessary to conduct independent research through coursework in information systems, economics, econometrics, machine learning, and large-scale data analytics. You will work closely with the advisors to define, develop, and execute your own research. The Ph.D. dissertation will be defined by you with inputs from the advisors, requiring creativity, self-direction, and a passion for scientific inquiry.