COMM 4140U – Ways of Seeing: Immersive Communication and AI

Immersive technologies using AI have changed the way people communicate in real and virtual spaces. From creators live streaming AI-generated content from phones to people exploring visual experiences on extended reality headsets, ways of seeing and experiencing our culture are becoming more immersive. AI has led to realistic looking avatars and embodied AI agents that interact with each other for work and entertainment. This course is a primer on immersive visual communication. It probes continuity and changes in ways of seeing the world via automated visual, audio, and textual content, simulation games, interactive spaces, virtual reality (VR) headsets and augmented reality (AR) apps. In this course, students learn about relevant theories, topics and research in the field of visual communication and cultural studies, hone their visual and AI literacies, and communicate about the transformation of visual media-cultures in the digital age.