USC Institute for Creative Technologies to welcome esteemed guests from August 19th – 20th to its HQ in Playa Vista, CA
On Monday August 19th, Heidi Shyu, Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering (OUSD(R&E)) will speak at ICT’s 25th anniversary in Playa Vista, CA, following USC President Dr. Carol Folt’s opening remarks.
HEIDI SHYU: In her role, Heidi Shyu serves as the Chief Technology Officer for the Department of Defense (DoD), mandated with ensuring the technological superiority of the U.S. military, and is responsible for the research, development, and prototyping activities across the DoD enterprise. She also oversees the activities of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), the Missile Defense Agency (MDA), the DoD Laboratory and Engineering Center enterprise, and the Under Secretariat staff focused on developing advanced technology and capability for the U.S. military.
UARC: As a Department of Defense University Affiliated Research Center (UARC), sponsored by the US Army, the USC Institute for Creative Technologies falls under Heidi Shyu’s oversight, as she presides over a network of DoD relationships with commercial and defense industries, its ecosystem of universities, Government labs, federally funded research and development centers (FFRDCs), and university affiliated research centers (UARCs).
ICT ORIGIN STORY: In 1999, the US Department of Defense set up the Institute for Creative Technologies to harness Hollywood-derived creativity with academic innovation and military-domain expertise to make military training better: create immersive systems to improve decision-making, build better leaders, and support the acquisition of other foundational skills.
ICT ACCOMPLISHMENTS: 25 years later, ICT, now part of the USC Viterbi School of Engineering, creates photo-real computer graphics and virtual environments, delivering synthetic and adaptive experiences, which are so compelling that participants respond as if they were real. Its 16 labs develop advanced HMD Displays, digital-based human performance apps, VR-based exposure therapy (created for veterans), simulations to improve interpersonal skills, counter-terrorism strategy games, and AI-powered digital doppelgangers inside its Light Stage. ICT’s researchers have published more than 2000 academic papers, with 100,000+ citations, and we have been honored with two Science and Technology Awards from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for innovations used in more than 50 Hollywood movies and series, including AVATAR and BLADE RUNNER 2049.
ICT 25 SPEAKERS: Other speakers at ICT’s 2-day 25th anniversary event (Aug 19 – 20) will include Dr. Carol Folt, President, USC, who also holds the Robert C. Packard’s President’s Chair; Dr. Ishwar Puri, Senior Vice President, Research and Innovation, USC; Dr. Yannis Yortsos, Dean of the USC Viterbi School of Engineering, Zohrab Kaprielian Dean’s Chair in Engineering; Dr. Randall Hill, Vice Dean, Viterbi School of Engineering, Omar B. Milligan Professor in Computer Science (Games and Interactive Media, Executive Director, ICT; Robert Brown, General, USA, Ret.; and Pete Carroll, Executive and Former Football Coach.
CONTACT: If you’re a member of the Media and would like to tour ICT and interview our researchers, please contact: ictcontact@ict.usc.edu
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