Virtual Reality (VR) is a revolutionary technology that is disrupting many business models in today’s technology enabled business environments. Computer graphics and animation is no exception to this trend. While traditional communication methods used within information technology are effective, VR can create an immersive and impactful experience that can communicate to viewers with a lesser need for a suspension of disbelief.
Khora, based out of Copenhagen, Denmark is a leading virtual and augmented reality production house in Scandinavia, and the world’s first virtual reality store. The company’s expertise ranges from 360 video productions, to interactive 3D applications for both Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) and applying these immersive technologies within the fields of Healthcare, Mental Health, Contemporary Art, Museums, Marketing, Training & Simulation.
The founding leader
Khora was co-founded by Peter Fisher along with Simon Lajboschitz in 2015. Peter Fisher studied computer graphics and animation at DePaul University in Chicago and finished his education in 2008. He started his professional career in 2009 when he relocated to Denmark, where he worked with Digital Media Production at GN Otometrics. Among other things, Peter generated custom 3D graphics and animations for product demonstrations, training videos and tradeshows. Peter worked there for 7 years, and by the end he was part of a journey that led through 3 website redesigns and defined a complete digital strategy.
Being an educated 3D artist, stepping into his own creations has always felt like a natural step for Peter. When the Oculus DK1 Virtual Reality headset was announced in 2012, Virtual Reality became a major field of interest for Peter. Once he received the headset and started creating content for it, he was hooked and wanted to dedicate his professional life and free time to exploring the possibilities of this new immersive medium. By 2015, when many people were trying VR for the first time, Peter was one of the most experienced people working with this technology in Scandinavia. This was also the time when Peter met Simon Lajboschitz. Khora was founded and Peter is now currently running it as its CTO. Today, Khora has grown into one of the leading Virtual and Augmented Reality content production companies in Scandinavia, with more than 200 VR & AR productions across multiple industries
Overcoming the challenges
Khora works with many different industries. So, it was a challenge to find the red threads between different clients. In the end it has made Khora even stronger, and they find value within this niche industry for many different types of use cases. For example, one of the initial projects at Khora was the development of virtual tours for long term hospitalized children. Initial tests consisted of taking them on trips to the zoo, and to the aquarium, to minimize the feeling of isolation on these patients. This was a very specific use case where Khora quickly realized that the technology could also provide value in a similar way within other industries, such as tourism. Soon after, Khora started talking to the tourism organization of Copenhagen, Visit Copenhagen, to develop 360º video tours of the city. To date, this production is still being exhibited at the Copenhagen Visitor Center, one of the most visited places in town by foreigners who want to know what the city has to offer.
Work culture at Khora helping achieve the mission and follow the vision
Khora is a group of enthusiastic employees who are helping clients and partners pave the way for this new digital medium to thrive. There is a lot of hard work going on, and the company has 10 to 20 projects ongoing at any given moment, but the humor at Khora is high, and they always come together at the end of the week for a celebration.
Peter considers the company’s approach quite creative, so any time a problem is presented to them, they enjoy the creative ideation that can take place with a potential client, while jointly hunting for value.
Khora is searching for true value within VR and AR. How can this medium provide a service or solution where other mediums cannot? How can you convey ideas and concepts that will leave an impression that lasts on the viewers? Khora has recently finished a project for Carlsberg Byen, that is building several luxury apartments in an old industrial area. In order to help future clients visualize their future homes, they have created a series of Virtual model apartments where the viewer has the opportunity to visualize the feeling of the apartments and most importantly, see the accurate view they will see out of their windows. The project is currently being showcased in their showroom and both the footfall on the showroom and the social media campaigns are reflecting the project’s tremendous success.
Achievements
Khora’s greatest achievement to date was completing the Virtual Space Safari project for their client Ørsted. More than 6 million people have viewed it to date and the public reaction has been overwhelmingly positive. It proves the relevance of this medium and it carries a message that couldn’t be more relevant for the times we are living in today. In short, the experience challenges the viewers to notice the fragility of Earth and encourages people to take better care of it.
