Project Acacia, led by Afghan Scholars in collaboration with Next Lab during Fall 2024, explores using 3D technologies to create high-fidelity digital twins of real-world environments. These 3D, interactive models enable stakeholders to explore, analyze virtually, and plan spaces, with applications in urban planning, retail attraction, and infrastructure development. Project Acacia demonstrates the power of…

The digital twins for Maricopa County are crucial tools for understanding and addressing disparities in broadband access across diverse communities in Maricopa County. By creating a virtual representation of the county’s infrastructure, including broadband connectivity and accessibility, we aim to uncover data-driven insights to better serve underserved areas. Access to reliable broadband is essential for…

The Technical Artistry, Modeling, Animation, & Concept (TAMAC) Guild is developing an interactive VR Art Gallery that showcases artwork created by Next Lab Associates and anyone in the community who wishes to join in and have their artwork featured. The gallery serves as a living and evolving space for digital creativity combining 2D, 3D, and…

Global Culture Explorer is a VR experience designed by Next Lab’s User Experience & Research Guild to help users discover cultures through everyday life, not just tourist landmarks. The project aims to make cultural learning more immersive, authentic, and empathetic, allowing users to virtually stroll through local streets, observe habits, and engage in simple interactions…

Next Lab’s Digital Storytelling Guild is excited to begin its first guild project with the launch of their Literary Magazine, The Future! The purpose of this magazine is not only to tell exciting, thought provoking, and complex stories, but also for guild members to improve and expand upon their skills as writers and collaborators. The…

PONG is a collaborative Unity game project created by Next Lab’s Game Engine Guild, exploring incremental mechanic evolution within a classic arcade format. Each round begins as standard Pong, but every subsequent level introduces a unique gameplay gimmick—altering physics, controls, objectives, or level rules. These gimmicks do not stack; instead, each level has its own…

The Next Lab Game Engine Guild’s take on Conway’s Game of Life turns a classic math toy into an interactive, kaleidoscopic sandbox built in Unity. Instead of a single “alive vs dead” state, cells can take on multiple colors—each with its own ruleset and behavior. The result is a deterministic but endlessly surprising system: swirling,…

The Arizona Water Metaverse project, launched in 2024, leverages EngageVR to create immersive learning experiences focused on water conservation and Arizona’s water scarcity challenges. This initiative offers a metaverse platform for educators and students to develop sustainable water management strategies through virtual simulations.  The Arizona Water Metaverse project leveraged immersive technology to address Arizona’s critical…

Next Lab studio associates are using ChatGPT to create detailed user personas for testing projects to enhance partner engagement and demonstrate practical use cases. These personas are developed based on Arizona demographics and the behaviors, interests, and motivations of target audiences. The team employs a personalized storytelling approach by illustrating how these imaginary users would…