Meta Connect 2022: What & How To Watch

Plan the perfect Meta Connect experience.

Meta Connect 2022 is just days away and the excitement is building. According to Meta, this year’s event will focus on the company’s XR goals and how inclusivity through user experiences and avatars will play an important role in the future.

In addition to a keynote address led by Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Meta Connect 2022 will also feature three keynote speakers for the Developer State of the Union, 30 distinct developer sessions, and a non-scripted conversation with John Carmack on the future of technology.

This year, the annual event will be hosted by Emmy-winning director of internal communications for Meta, Melinda Davenport, and well-known Instagrammer Karen X Chengnamed Inc 30 and Adweeks Creative 100 for her work in AI and AR.

To help you plan the perfect event, Meta has compiled a list of some of the sessions you can’t miss at Connect 2022. Of course you can go through the schedule yourself by clicking on it here and see which sessions resonate with you.

Developer State of the Union

Anand Dass, Chris Pruett and Yardley Pohl will focus on the latest developments in Meta’s VR ecosystem and how they can help you build and manage your business. You’ll also talk about the various tools and programs Reality Labs provides to bring these ideas into your workflow with the least amount of disruption.

Carmack Unscripted

Whatever you do. Don’t miss this one. Reality Labs Consulting CTO John Carmack will take the stage for an unfiltered, unscripted conversation about technology. Carmack joined Oculus in 2013 and worked with Palmer Luckey to develop and launch the original Oculus Rift.

He resigned as CTO in 2019, saying, “I will be working on artificial general intelligence (AGI). I think it’s possible, enormously valuable and I have a non-negligible chance of making a difference there. So by the logic of Pascal’s mugging I should be working on that. For now, at least, I’m going to take it Victorian Gentleman Scientist style, doing my research and drafting from home my son to work.”

Building bridges to the metaverse

In this talk, Alex Hopmann, Software Developer at Meta Software, and Andy Shenton, Studio Head at Unit 2 Games, will discuss how you can create compelling and meaningful connections between platforms for creating user-generated content horizon worlds and Krayta.

Design VR for women

Ellen Utrecht, Founder of MikeTeevee, Meta Content Launch Manager Richard Duck, and Ting Wang, Head of Shared Production at Resolution Games, will discuss which features and systems best engage and engage female audiences across a variety of genres. You will also talk to the developers of Angry Birds VR: Pig Island, The Last Watch Winder and The shores of Loci.

Growing communities in VR with integrity and trust

In this talk, John Connell, Head of Business Development at Modulate, WebPurify Founder Joshua Buxbaum, Meta Games Producer Mari Kyle, and Hive Sales and Business Development Director Simon Lebsekal speak to talk about how VR developers can be successful online communities.

Inclusive design and building for different target groups

Participants will gain a deeper understanding of how to develop applications that are inclusive and how to use player feedback to improve their games.

Mari Kyle, Producer at Meta Games, will talk about the different considerations that go into making a game more engaging for different audiences. Tom Ivey, executive producer of Resident Evil 4will also join the conversation to talk about the various mechanics and features intended to make the game more inclusive.

The Creator’s Journey – Bridging the Metaverse

AR Partnerships Meta Director, Chris Barbour, will introduce attendees to a variety of skills they can learn to grow their business while developing their technical knowledge. Also Metaverse Artist Denis Rossiev, Dude Studios Tech Artist and Founder Eugene Soh, VMLY&R Spatial Designer, Narrator, AR Consultant Luke Hurd; and Seeds Creative Director Mitsuko Ono, will also be on hand to enrich the dialogue.

Use spatial audio to create more immersive experiences with Presence Platform

Through the Meta Platform, developers can now create more immersive and engaging experiences by leveraging spatial audio capabilities. In this talk, Brett Gildersleeve, Product Manager at Meta, and Henry Halvorson, Sound Designer at Meta, discuss the various features and capabilities that help them create more effective and engaging experiences.

Other sessions worth mentioning here are:

• Creativity, collaboration and community Starring Aaron Sorrels, Daniel Martin García and Natalie Griffith
• Adopting a new identity: integrating meta-avatars into already established products with Jolyon Webb
• Inclusive design and building for a diverse audiences with Mari Kyle and Tom Ivey

You can see the entire Meta Connect schedule here. Sign up to watch Meta Connect 2022 in VR here and then login horizon worlds on October 11th. You can also follow the event on the Reality Labs Facebook page.

Photo credit: Meta