AIXTRA

AIXTRA, a consortium consisting of LEFX GmbH and MindPort GmbH, successfully addressed two significant and recurring challenges in VR-based training: overcoming language barriers and enabling rich human-to-human interactions without the need for multiple participants to be physically present. MindPort is the company behind VR Builder, the free and open source Unity plug-in for VR app development. With over 10.000 downloads and a consistent 5 star rating for almost 4 years since publishing, it is one of the most successful add-ons for VR in Unity. LEFX specializes in interactive digital formats. Since 2011, they have delivered high-quality real-time visualizations, product presentations, and VR/AR applications across several sectors. LEFX excels in enterprise-level XR and real-time 3D applications. LEFX has been a strong project contributor to VR Builder since its inception.The primary objective was to create a more effective and accessible VR training environment, ultimately advancing VR training methodologies and technologies within the broader VOXReality project. By integrating AI-based in-VR translation and an AI-based virtual training partner, AIXTRA achieved enhanced communication, make learning more inclusive, and simulate human-to-human interactions for more impactful single-user training scenarios.

AIXTRA’s core innovation is the integration of VOXReality’s AI capabilities directly into VR Builder, an open-source Unity plug-in. The system supports flexible deployment, either locally hosted or run on a private cloud backend, ensuring high data security. The entire solution is delivered as a plug-and-play Unity package, simplifying integration into existing VR Builder projects.

The conducted user study demonstrates that the developed AI capabilities were recognized as extremely helpful by VR users. In the single user scenario, the AI-based training partner was widely perceived as helpful and intuitive, enabling all single-user participants to complete their training sessions effectively, while in multi user, the real-time translation agent proved overwhelmingly positive in multi-user settings.

AIXTRA transforms VR training by integrating VOXReality technologies with the VR Builder toolset, making advanced, AI-enhanced training scenarios easier to develop and implement. Developer interviews highlighted a 3x – 4x acceleration in AI feature development, enabling a faster time-to-market for AI-enhanced products, coupled with the cost-saving and flexibility benefits of its open-source, modular, and self-hostable design. This will broaden the reach of VOXReality technologies, connecting global teams and driving the adoption of cutting-edge AI solutions.

By enabling simpler yet comprehensive training scenarios, AIXTRA enhances collaboration, inclusivity, and the overall effectiveness of VR training, contributing significantly to the future of professional development and education. This has already led to the technology’s adoption in two other large projects which instantly benefited from the value that the AIXTRA technology provides.