3EALITY: High Tech Campus Eindhoven launches Benelux's first physical innovation hub in Metaverse and Spatial Computing technologies
High Tech Campus Eindhoven's newest innovation hub is called 3EALITY. That announcement was made yesterday during Immersive Tech Day, where 11 demo partners, including tech giants such as Epic Games, NVIDIA and Philips, showed their innovative applications to 150 business professionals. In addition, the event offered attendees an exclusive glimpse into the Campus' vision for 3EALITY.
The launch comes after Apple CEO Tim Cook's visit to NXP Semiconductors and High Tech Campus Eindhoven (HTCE). Cook has long been a booster of augmented reality (AR), and Apple is fully committed to "the era of spatial computing", announcing the Vision Pro earlier this year. With the launch of its new hub, HTCE is also actively embracing this technology trend.
Building a new community
With 3EALITY, the Campus is building an ecosystem of innovative companies working on spatial computing and Metaverse applications. Partners and tenants will be supported in presenting their applications, and the hub will actively share knowledge by organising events and initiating educational programmes with educational institutions. Office spaces and technical facilities will soon be located in and around a large common area and co-working spaces, which will encourage collaboration.
3EALITY is HTCE's fifth innovation hub. In the past, the Campus has already successfully established the 5G Hub and the AI Innovation Centre, among others, and with 3EALITY it is now adding immersive tech to its portfolio.
Next step in Campus strategy
"High Tech Campus Eindhoven has the ambition to be among the world's leading tech hubs by 2030. To achieve this, we are taking a proactive role in driving innovation by launching physical hubs stemming from technology trends. This hub adds a software layer to the strong hardware layer of the Campus; a crucial step in realising our ambition," said Otto van den Boogaard, CEO of HTCE. Philipp Werle, business developer emerging tech, added: "As an R&D Campus, we are looking 10 years ahead. We expect these technologies to have a major impact on all domains, and see the potential of the applications these technologies enable."
Connecting the digital with the physical
Yesterday, HTCE introduced 3EALITY to the general public. The mix of the two words reminds us that, amidst all the digital transformations, we remain rooted in reality; where technology adds value. The '3' represents the three-dimensional evolution of the internet and encompasses all the technologies that come with it. In a world where virtual worlds can sometimes feel like far away, 3EALITY connects the digital with the physical. Therefore, the brand and hub are designed to be in harmony with nature, creating a balance in the digital age.
Opening February 2024
The hub will take up residence on the ground floor and basement of HTC 37, the former Philips Research building. The design of the space will be optimised to foster inspiration and collaboration, which is essential to drive innovation and the adoption of technologies. Construction will take place in the coming months and the official opening is scheduled for mid-February, when the first tenants are also expected to move in. Werle: "We are currently finalising cooperation agreements with companies that will provide us with the necessary infrastructure and know-how in this area. Furthermore, we expect the first innovative companies to be based in the hub by the time it opens. This is the start of a new cluster of emerging tech companies at High Tech Campus Eindhoven."
