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Omar Wael, a 13-year-old Egyptian developer, wears a virtual reality (VR) device as he works at his home in Alexandria
Image: Mohamed Abd El Ghany/REUTERSImage: Mohamed Abd El Ghany/REUTERS

Virtual reality

Virtual reality, or VR, is the three-dimensional and interactive perception of computer-generated, artificial environments.

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All Content on this topic

DW Sendung Shift | Somnium Space

Living on as an avatar in the metaverse

A Czech metaverse start-up is developing a way for users live on as avatars in VR.
Digital WorldSeptember 21, 202401:38 min
DW Sendung Shift | Somnium Space

What's the appeal of an afterlife as an avatar?

A personalized avatar as a legacy – soon to be possible in the metaverse.
Digital WorldSeptember 21, 202402:37 min
Kenia Drohne Landwirtschaft Symbolbild

Smart Farming: Tech for sustainable food

How tech can help to make global farming more sustainable and productive.
Digital WorldSeptember 13, 202412:36 min
Kind mit Smartphone

Pros and cons of a social media ban for children

Social media ban for kids. EU’s digital twin of the Earth. And VR in schools.
Digital WorldAugust 16, 202412:34 min
DW Podcast | Science Unscripted

Gabe & Conor got burgled (true crime episode)

When both hosts see their homes get burglarized, it leads to a detective named Roland and a gut-wrenching realization.
ScienceAugust 1, 202430:00 min
DW Shift | Staatstheater Augsburg

How is technology changing the stage?

How technology is changing the theater and what potential it has for audiences.
Digital WorldApril 12, 202412:36 min
DW-Moderatorin Ha Thanh Le Nguyen testet VR-Reisen

Shift - Living in the Digital Age

The VR headset is making it easier to plan vacations and explore historic sites around the world.
Digital WorldApril 6, 202412:36 min
Künstliche Frauenfigur, Symbolfoto künstliche Intelligenz

AI and AR – the future of advertising?

Are AI and AR the future of the advertising industry? The possibilities are huge.
Digital WorldMarch 15, 202412:36 min
DW Shift - Vorschaubild - AI

China's new AI Child Tong Tong: cute or creepy?

AI video gets crazily realistic, an AI child is born, and you could get a brain chip from Elon Musk.
Digital WorldMarch 1, 202412:36 min
Thumbnails für Shift/Jugendgefährdende Inhalte in virtuellen Welten

SHIFT – Living in the Digital Age

Cyber groomers seek contact with children in VR worlds to exploit or sexually harass them.
Digital WorldDecember 22, 202312:36 min
Close-up of a man with VR glasses

How virtual reality helps cotton farmers boost yields

Cameroon’s cotton farmers are adapting to climate change with the help of virtual reality.
InnovationDecember 18, 202304:55 min
DW Eco Africa (Sendungslogo mit Partnerlogos englisch)

Eco Africa — The Environment Magazine

Cameroon’s cotton farmers turn to VR and the solar mini-grids powering communities in Nigeria
Nature and EnvironmentDecember 15, 202326:06 min
DW Afrimaxx | Sendung vom 01.12.23 |  Namibia Virtuelle Realität und das Erbe der San-Völker

The San people are playing VR games?

How Africa’s most ancient tribe is boosting its future.
InnovationNovember 29, 202302:47 min
DW Tomorrow Today Sendungslogo Composite

Tomorrow Today – The Science Magazine

A voyage of discovery into virtual visual worlds – and how they're being changed by AI and new applications for VR.
Nature and EnvironmentNovember 3, 202326:06 min
Hatsune Miku at Brixton Academy

Japan: Man married to fictional character fights for rights

Akihiko Kondo credits fictional pop star Hatsune Miku with saving him at the lowest point in his life.
SocietySeptember 15, 2023
DW Shift | Staatstheater Augsburg

Tech experiments in the theater

Opera in virtual reality and theater with augmented reality offer brand new experiences.
Digital WorldSeptember 13, 202303:37 min
DW-Moderatorin Ha Thanh Le Nguyen testet VR-Reisen

Time traveling with VR

How to developers create realistic VR worlds that connect emotionally with users?
Digital WorldAugust 31, 202302:20 min
Luftaufnahme der stadt Bitterfeld mit Kirche im Vordergrund

Using a VR headset to travel back in time

VR travel can also be used as an educational tool to visit historic sites and tour museums.
Digital WorldAugust 30, 202302:03 min
Gehirn l Symbolbild l Illustration

How does our brain process experiences in VR?

VR is meant to simulate an accurate representation of reality, but how does it trick the brain?
Digital WorldAugust 29, 202302:33 min
Ha Thanh Le Nguyen puts her hands up to her head as she adjusts a VR headset

Is VR the future of travel?

Virtual reality is revolutionizing travel, letting us travel from the comfort of our sofas with just a headset.
Digital WorldAugust 28, 202302:03 min
Virtuall reality Oculus

Kenya: How virtual reality is transforming learning

Schools in Kenya are adopting virtual reality (VR) in classrooms to enhance learning.
SocietyAugust 15, 202301:32 min
VRLernen

Learning reimagined with virtual reality

VR enables students to experience subject matter in 3D, such as planets or human organs.
Digital WorldJuly 15, 202301:50 min
Klavier

Learning real-world skills using AI

With the help of AI tools, it could become easier for people to learn the piano or even surf.
Digital WorldJuly 15, 202302:27 min
[No title]

Nature's great, but have you tried VR?

How would it make you feel to know a virtual reality forest could make you as happy as a real one?
ScienceJune 30, 202320:33 min
A symbolic image showing the Apple logo

Apple expected to unveil mixed-reality headset

The widely rumored release pits Apple against Meta in competition over technology where real and digital worlds meet.
TechnologyJune 5, 2023
DW Shift Sendungslogo

Shift - Living in the Digital Age

How digital technology is revolutionizing medicine.
Digital WorldApril 28, 202312:36 min
Symbolbild I Digitales Erbe

Tomorrow Today - The Science Magazine

Life without a smartphone/ what to do against digital amnesia/ guidance for the visually impaired
BusinessApril 21, 202326:05 min
A man in a VR headset controls a robot

Hannover Fair: Industrial firms get to work in the metaverse

Industry players are increasingly turning to so-called metaverse technologies to improve productivity.
BusinessApril 18, 2023
Thumbnails für Shift/Jugendgefährdende Inhalte in virtuellen Welten

Tips for safer VR gaming

Cyber grooming takes place on various VR platforms. These tips can help.
Digital WorldFebruary 10, 202301:44 min
Thumbnails für Shift/Jugendgefährdende Inhalte in virtuellen Welten

Using AI to uncover cyber groomers

Speech patterns in cyber grooming can convict perpetrators. AI helps detect these patterns.
Digital WorldFebruary 10, 202302:04 min
Thumbnails für Shift/Jugendgefährdende Inhalte in virtuellen Welten

What can platforms do against cyber grooming?

Do children need their own VR worlds, without adult access, to protect them from cyber grooming?
Digital WorldFebruary 10, 202301:34 min
Thumbnails für Shift/Jugendgefährdende Inhalte in virtuellen Welten

What risks do children face on gaming platform Roblox?

On Roblox, kids have been lured into virtual sex games. What is the platform doing against the perpetrators?
Digital WorldFebruary 10, 202301:14 min
Thumbnails für Shift/Jugendgefährdende Inhalte in virtuellen Welten

How dangerous is cyber grooming in the Metaverse?

In VR, cyber groomers can approach children anonymously. How dangerous are these platforms?
Digital WorldFebruary 10, 202301:41 min
DW I In Good Shape

How avatars can help you lose weight

It takes determination to lose weight. Here’s how avatar-based technology can help.
HealthFebruary 3, 202302:56 min
People wearing virtual reality headsets watch the film "Triumph of the Spirit"

Virtual Holocaust remembrance

Three filmmakers have found a powerful way to keep memories of the Holocaust alive as a warning to future generations.
HistoryJanuary 27, 202302:38 min
A person wearing virtual reality gear

How businesses try to make money in the virtual metaverse

The metaverse is coming. But can anyone really make money creating virtual realities or selling virtual assets?
InnovationJanuary 10, 202320:56 min
BG Konzerne mit den höchsten Profiten 2020 | Apple

Is Apple’s mixed-reality headset coming soon?

Are the rumours true? Many signs suggest Apple is gearing up for a mixed reality headset launch
LifestyleJanuary 6, 202302:44 min
A person wearing a virtual reality headset

VR gives a glimpse into life with long COVID

A Berlin hospital is using virtual reality simulation to give people a sense of what living with long COVID is like.
HealthDecember 27, 202202:14 min
Made in Germany, Sendung 21.06.2022

What is the metaverse?

The metaverse beckons with a brave new virtual world – but is it a good idea?
BusinessDecember 20, 202201:29 min
SHIFT | artgrid

Metaverse – more immersion needed

The Metaverse lacks a feeling of touch, which is why many applications still feel sterile.
Digital WorldDecember 16, 202202:25 min
SHIFT | Platzeeland

Platzeeland – a bust in virtual real estate

Platzeeland was supposed to be Guatemala's showcase project. But a lot of things went wrong.
Digital WorldDecember 16, 202202:03 min
SHIFT | decantraland

Where's the VR party at?

The Metaverse was supposed to be a place to meet. But few use it for anything other than gaming.
Digital WorldDecember 16, 202201:32 min
SHIFT | Metaverse

Which trends are Metaverse hits?

While companies have invested heavily in virtual real estate, users remain reluctant.
Digital WorldDecember 16, 202202:13 min
DW Shift Sendungslogo Composite

Shift - Living in the Digital Age

Although there's heavy investment in Metaverse projects, the virtual worlds are still empty.
Digital WorldDecember 16, 202212:36 min
DW Shift Spezial Sendungslogo englisch

Digital diversity through languages

Shift special: Voice command is becoming increasingly important but not all languages are available.
Digital WorldNovember 25, 202212:36 min
Two visitors wear virtual reality goggles at museum in Halle, Germany.

German tourism industry leaps into the digital age

The COVID pandemic catalyzed a major digitization drive in Germany's tourism industry.
TravelOctober 10, 2022
DW SHIFT - Virtual Reality

New leg-tracking in VR

With tracking sensors for the legs, running, hopping, and sweating in virtual reality can get really strenuous.
Digital WorldSeptember 16, 202201:23 min
DW SHIFT - Virtual Reality

How useful is VR-eyetracking?

New Virtual reality headsets can track users' eye movements and transfer them to their avatars.
Digital WorldSeptember 16, 202201:08 min
DW SHIFT - Virtual Reality

How convincing is VR?

How does VR affect the body? And what happens to our brains when we travel to virtual worlds?
Digital WorldSeptember 16, 202201:03 min
DW SHIFT - Meta

Virtual reality: More than gaming

Virtual reality allows future astronauts to walk on the moon and doctors to practice surgeries.
Digital WorldSeptember 16, 202201:59 min