What is IX?
IX stands for Immersive Experiences: an immersive experience where digital and physical elements come together. It is not about the technology itself, but about the experience and its impact. IX therefore goes beyond hardware such as VR and AR glasses. Think of it as an extra, digital layer added to reality that makes deeper experiences possible.
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BUNNY_LIBRARY_ID=272518b9-4b44-4804-a1af-cc5346491b96 Immersive Experiences are experiences where technology influences our sensory perception such that we feel immersed in another (digital) reality.
Possible applications of IX
Beyond games and entertainment, IX is above all suited to societal challenges.
Content and experience
Everything you see, hear, and experience in an immersive environment: avatars, 360° videos, virtual objects, storylines, and games.
Platforms
The digital environments where IX takes place, such as Meta Horizons, Roblox, YouTube, Netflix, and SteamVR.
Hardware & infrastructure
The technology that makes IX possible: VR headsets, 360° cameras, 5G, haptic feedback, holograms, and GPUs.
Fundamental technologies
The foundation IX runs on: blockchain (ownership/transactions), identity management, payments, render farms, and cybersecurity.
Together, these four levels create an interactive, immersive, and safe IX experience.
From spectator to participant
The essence of IX is not the technology, but the shift in how people absorb information. From passive to active, from distance to presence.
Watching
You observe from the outside. Film, television, a presentation.
Interacting
You have control, but remain separated. An app, a game, a dashboard.
Experiencing
You step into it. You are no longer a spectator, but a participant.
Important: IX is not a replacement for existing media, and not the "next wave" in computing — that's AI. But for specific applications where experiencing is more effective than explaining, IX offers unique possibilities.
What is IX used for?
IX is not an end in itself, but a means. The question is not "how does VR work?" but "what problem are we solving?" Four domains where immersive experiences offer proven added value:
Training & Simulation
Learning by doing in a safe environment. Making mistakes without consequences, practising situations that are rare or dangerous in real life.
- Practising surgical procedures
- Running through crisis scenarios
- Training technical maintenance
Experience & Imagination
Experiencing stories, heritage, and art in new ways. Not just looking at the past or future, but stepping into it.
- Historical reconstructions
- Immersive exhibitions
- Interactive narratives
Participation & Input
Making complex plans understandable. Letting residents and stakeholders experience how a new building, neighbourhood, or policy feels.
- Urban planning visualisations
- Exploring policy scenarios
- Citizen participation
Therapy & Wellbeing
Treatment and support through immersion. Controlled environments for confrontation, relaxation, or rehabilitation.
- Exposure therapy
- Pain management
- Cognitive rehabilitation
About the technology: IX encompasses VR (fully digital environments), AR (digital layers over reality), and MR (interaction between digital and physical). But most immersive experiences today take place on ordinary screens, tablets, and phones — not only in headsets.
The most impactful technology is invisible — it disappears into the experience it makes possible.
Application areas
IX is applied in virtually every sector. From culture to healthcare, from education to industry.
Culture & Heritage
Museums, theatres, festivals, and heritage institutions
Education & Training
Simulations, skill training, and educational experiences
Healthcare & Wellbeing
Therapy, rehabilitation, and mental health
Urban Development
Participation, visualisation, and public space
Media & Entertainment
Games, film, live events, and broadcasting
Industry & Technology
Digital twins, maintenance, and engineering
IX with impact — and attention to public values
Immersive technology offers unprecedented possibilities, but also raises new questions. How do we protect privacy in environments that record everything? How do we ensure everyone can participate? CIIIC ensures these questions are addressed from the start.
Seven public values are central:
The Netherlands and IX
The Netherlands has a unique ecosystem where creators, researchers, and governments collaborate on the future of immersive experiences. The hardware largely comes from Silicon Valley — the methodologies and application insights can come from the Netherlands.
CIIIC is building knowledge about how to deploy IX effectively and responsibly. With attention to public values, in collaboration with the creative industries, and with a focus on societal challenges where IX truly makes a difference.