2nd Ethics in XR Workshop

Thank you for your submissions to the second IEEE VR workshop on Ethics in XR!

27th March - 3rd April 2021, Lisbon, Portugal (sadly remotely this year)

Instructions for joining the workshop

1. Please check the Zoom address on the IEEE VR Discord server

2. We will be using Mozilla hubs rooms. You can opt for the browser or the headset version.

3. To test Mozilla, please use this EXR Test room

4. The links to the Mozilla rooms that we'll be using in the workshop will be provided in the Zoom call at the beginning of the workshop

Workshop Programme - 2nd April 2021 1:00 pm - 4:00 pm (GMT + 1)

1st part of the workshop 1:00 pm - 1:55 pm

1. Guest talk

1:00 pm - 1:25 pm

Leon Kester (TNO)

“(UN)ETHICAL EXTENDED REALITIES - CAN WE ESCAPE EPISTEMIC DIZZINESS?”

Leon Kester has a PhD in Nuclear physics. Since 20 years he is working at TNO on AI system design. Current research is focused on AI safety, AI meta-ethics and AI governance including also XR and human enhancement technologies. The research approach is transdisciplinary considering AI, XR, systems engineering, cyber security, neuroscience, cognitive science, moral psychology, law, moral programming and philosophy of science.

2. Q&A

1:25 pm - 1:35 pm

3. Introductions of workshop participants

1:35 pm - 1:50 pm

4. Break

1:50 pm - 2:00 pm

2nd part of the workshop 2:00 pm - 4:00 pm

5. Group activity presentation

2:00 pm - 2:05 pm

6. Group activity

2:05 pm - 2:45 pm

Zoom breakout rooms for each team

7. Group presentations 10 minutes/group

2:45 pm - 3:25 pm

8. Wrap-up of group discussions

3:25 pm - 3:35 pm

9. Next steps

3:35 pm - 4:00 pm

There is an increase in and diversification of XR content with various degrees of interaction, from computer-generated VR to cinematic VR, ranging from games and short films, to serious games and social VR platforms.

In the past few years, XR consumption has also diversified with the occurrence of platforms that range from mobile VR to high-end headsets. VR has been consumed more ubiquitously than ever, outside of controlled environments such as research labs and in public places like VR arcades, escape rooms, pubs, film and art festivals.

As more and more users come into contact with XR - and given the solid body of research on the effects and role of realism, self representation through avatars, immersion and presence on VR users’ experience - we recognise that there is a need to address potential ethical aspects related to the production and consumption of VR and to discuss the challenges and opportunities that come with the increased popularity of the medium.

The Ethics in XR Workshop focuses on addressing various ethical aspects related to the production and consumption of VR, MR, AR and immersive 360-degree content.

In spite of the current explosion in XR content production and consumption, we are lagging behind in developing VR-specific ethical frameworks in which to operate. This affects our ability to rate, critique, and distribute content responsibly, which we need in order to elevate the medium to maturity.

We invite participants to discuss on the following or related topics:

• Ethics of representation in VR addressing stereotyping and biased representation of minorities (e.g. looks, behaviours, places they inhabit, etc.);

• Ethics of production and accessibility to XR for creators with various types of disability (e.g. dyslexia, colour blindness, neurological disabilities, etc.);

• Ethics of consumption of XR addressing financial barriers for adoption in highly skilled training and education (e.g. for surgery, emergency interventions, etc.);

• Ethics of self-representation and interaction addressing embodiment through avatars and social behaviour in shared VR spaces (e.g. what are socially acceptable behaviours in VR);

• Ethics of realism addressing the boundaries within which events (e.g. re-enactments of violent real events) are recreated as realistically as possible and to what end;

• Safety and data protection (e.g. motion tracking biometrics );

• Threat modelling and digital fictions for XR safety.