Virtual Human Therapeutics Lab

Sharon began her research career at the San Francisco VA in Health Psychology. She has worked as a research associate at Harvard Business School and Text Analyst at MIT (DARPA-funded NLP study). Joining ICT in 2015, she progressed from Research Analyst to Associate Director of MedicalVR. Her research blends psychology, medicine, VR and virtual humans to enhance clinical interventions. 

Andrew’s professional work focuses on medical application and military training simulation development, as well as the integration of novel, multisensory VR systems. He directed and edited “A Soldier’s Tale,” an immersive VR narrative exhibit for the Heroes Hall veterans museum. Andrew has a background in video game production, film and animation.

Sarah is the Content Lead, designing and producing character narratives and interactions for our virtual humans. Her work focuses on content design in Battle Buddy, and supporting ongoing Virtual Human Fidelity research. A passionate storyteller, Sarah combines her skills in learning design and immersive technology, with empathy at its core.

Takuma is a skilled product and interaction designer with over ten years of experience. His expertise lies in creating user interfaces across various media types, including consumer-facing websites, mobile apps, VR, AR, and immersive experiences. In addition to his design background, his experience as a product owner has equipped him with the ability to effectively facilitate a variety of projects, showcasing a unique capacity to bring abstract concepts into tangible designs.

Miru is a recent graduate from USC, where she majored in Computer Science and minored in 3D Animation. Her research interests have spanned across XR, HCI, and HRI, and she aims to contribute to the cutting edge of multimodal interactions with agents in XR environments. Her current focus is Estuary, a framework for developing SIAs, which she hopes will democratize and standardize the process for researchers and hobbyists alike. She volunteers at VHTL while working in the US Navy.

Spencer is a master’s student at USC studying computer science with a research focus in XR and affective computing for building artificially intelligent and spatially-aware holographic companions.  He is an active researcher at ICT with the Virtual Human Therapeutics Lab and Mixed Reality Lab as well as with the Mobile & Environmental Media Lab at the USC School of Cinematic Arts.  Along with his research contributions, he leads and develops Estuary, an open source multimodal framework for developing realtime low-latency socially interactive agents.  He previously developed for the Immersive Archive project, which won an AUGGIE Award at AWE 2024.  Additionally, he led and contributed to the NASA SUITS challenge for two years, designing an AR heads-up display concept with an integrated off-cloud digital assistant to assist astronauts on Martian and lunar surface explorations.

Max is a skilled 3D animator technical artist with over 8 years of experience in the games industry and a bachelor’s degree in animation and visual effects from New Mexico State University. He’s worked on multiple game studios such as Bixelium Entertainment, The Dreamerians, 360 Devlab and Supernova Studios. Max thrives in collaborative settings, bringing meticulous attention to detail and a strong work ethic. Max’s versatile skill set and commitment to staying current make him a valuable addition to any creative project.

Pranav, a USC Computer Science Master’s student, dedicates himself to developing middleware for the BattleBuddy project at VHTL. Driven by a passion for XR, gaming, and immersive applications, he actively focuses on refining expertise in these dynamic fields.

Basem is an AI Engineer and Researcher. From Egypt, where he earned his bachelor’s in Computer Science and Engineering at the German University in Cairo (GUC). His thesis on Automatic Speech Recognition was done at Hof University in Germany. He recently got his master’s in AI at USC, where he worked with the NLP Research Group of USC Information Sciences Institute (ISI) on employing LLMs, worked with USC ICT Learning Sciences Lab on multi-modal content understanding, collaborated with startups through the Viterbi Startup Garage, and led the AI/ML of USC Team in NASA Suits Challenge.

Tanmay is a student volunteer at VHTL and is pursuing his Master’s degree in Computer Science at USC. His work focuses on the development of the Battle Buddy project.

Arman worked as a research consultant for ICT, where he played a role in drafting research papers and organizing and assessing data regarding virtual human fidelity. He is currently pursuing his JD at Loyola Law School.

Andres, a determined problem solver and mechanical engineering student at the University of San Diego. He volunteers at the VHTL, focusing on analyzing datasets for the virtual human fidelity scoping review. Set to pursue a master’s in data science at UT Austin, he is dedicated to expanding his expertise.

Chris is a USC sophomore pursuing a bachelor’s degree in Game Art within the School of Cinematic Arts. He is working with VHTL on Bravemind MST. He enjoys using Blender and learning more about the XR field.

Tejas, a Computer Science Graduate student at USC, is a student volunteer at VHTL. He crafts efficient solutions and extracts meaningful insights from data. He has passion for Game Development and wants to contribute to the innovative endeavors through extensive research and development opportunities.

David Cobbins is a former United States Army Non-Commissioned Officer and Combat Medic. He holds an undergraduate degree from the University of Wisconsin and a graduate degree from the University of Southern California’s School of Cinematic Arts. David has previously worked for the Department of Veteran Affairs and Warner Brothers Studios. He currently serves as a creative Producer for ICT’s Mixed Reality Lab, and as a Project Leader for the Emerging Leader Immersive Training Environment (ELITE) and the Digital Interactive Victim Intake System (DIVIS). David has also been a writer and creative consultant on game, television, film and military related projects over the last 10 years.

Anthony is a published author, video producer, and graduate of USC’s Writing for Screen and Television Program. Having served in the Marine Corps as a Combat Videographer and Video Chief, he brings authenticity and experience to his work at the USC Institute for Creative Technologies. He has created numerous informational videos, contributed to multiple military training games, and written futurist fiction in support of military research. His work has been featured at Congressional briefings and conferences such as LANPAC, I/ITSEC, andUnified Quest.

Joanna, pictured with her service dog Rio, served as an active Marine Corps JAG (attorney) in Okinawa, Japan, where she defended Marines and litigated complex federal cases. Today, she serves in the role of Project Administrator for the USC Center for Body Computing–a digital health research and innovation center at USC ICT–to assist the CBC in its mission to create technology-driven health and human performance solutions for a modern age.

Sumith, a Computer Science graduate student at the University of Southern California, focused on developing additional new features for the Battle Buddy project. He strives to delve deeper into game development projects and wants to expand his expertise in the software domain.

Akshil is a computer science graduate student at the University of Southern California. He works at VHTL and his work focuses on development of the Battle Buddy project. He has a passion in game, mobile development.