Lessons Learned
Brain Candy is an ongoing experiment, and user feedback is guiding every step of the process:
Audience Reactions
- 1/10 people absolutely love it — it changes their life. Some people are using it as a replacement for much more expensive devices and services
- 1/10 think it's pretty great and will try again but aren't effusive
- 1/10 absolutely hate it and find it extremely uncomfortable
- 1/10 find it kind of dull
- The broad middle seem interested and appreciative, but hard to tell if they'll follow up.
Live Demo Challenges
- People are nice — makes it hard to get pointed feedback
- Public VR embarrassment is still real
- Onboarding is brutal — far more difficult than expected
- Tutorial confusion — people get stuck and think that's the whole experience
- Premature gratitude — some take off the headset and rave about the tutorial, never experiencing the real thing
PS25
Denver, Colorado
The premier conference for psychedelic research.
No Deep Space this year (two years ago: we shared VR with hundreds in a mini, indoor burning man). Still incredible! Researchers, artists, psychiatrists, community builders who actually understand Brain Candy beyond just VR tech. The Cyberdelic Nexus was instrumental in making Brain Candy's appearance at PS25 a success. Thank you Joy & Jose!
Mind XR
Berlin, Germany
Mind XR explores the intersection of immersive technology and psychological well-being.
I was not able to attend this small conference in Berlin, but my science advisor, Till, was there sharing our poster.
AWE
Long Beach, California
The world's leading AR/VR conference and expo.
I gave a talk on flicker light stimulation in VR, Here's the deck, and got in a little plug for Brain Candy as well, a video will be coming soon!
Creative Tech Week
Brooklyn, New York
A week-long celebration of creative technology, featuring workshops, exhibitions, and talks.
200 people signed up for one of hundreds of tiny events during this fascinating week. I was able to take over the big LED wall at NYU's Tandon. Big screens are a great medium for Brain Candy!
NYVR
New York, New York
NYVR (New York Virtual Reality) is NYC's longest running continuous VR meetup.
NYVR is a staple of NY's VR community and I am always very grateful to DJ Smith for opportunities to share my work!
QRI Meetup
Amsterdam, Netherlands
A gathering organized by the Qualia Research Institute, focused on consciousness research and the scientific study of subjective experience. This meetup brings together researchers and enthusiasts exploring the nature of consciousness.
My first immersion in this amazing community.
ETH Denver
Denver, Colorado
One of the largest Ethereum and blockchain conferences in the world, featuring developers, entrepreneurs, and blockchain enthusiasts.
Brain Candy was part of a collection of experiences shown on a pop up dome and presented by the Cyberdelic Nexus. There is some corner of the crypto space that is interested in psychedelic technology. I never learned how to engage with this world and I think AI is a much better use of GPU time, but I appreciate the interest!
IVRHA
Sarasota, Florida
The International VR Healthcare Association is a conference dedicated to the application of virtual reality in healthcare and medical training.
Bob Fine was kind enough to invite us down to present our poster about Brain Candy. I learned that my sense of the state of healthcare VR was correct, nobody has cracked this nut yet. Institutions are hard to break into, the funding has dried up, and almost everyone presenting was there because of their passion for the space and not because they're riding on any big VC checks.