Today we’re excited to announce the opening of our new design research studio in London with visionary VR/AR filmmaker Keiichi Matsuda, who will lead the new office and assume the role of VP of Design and Global Creative Director.

With this new London office, we’re building on our team of world-class creatives and engineers to further our mission to design robust, believable and honest visions of a world elevated by technology, with human input at the center. Leap Motion’s efforts will seek to set a new standard for interaction design with the digital world, and define the core user experience for the next generation of mobile and all-in-one headsets.

Our vision is a world elevated by technology, with human input at the center. Click To Tweet“Virtual and augmented reality are at a critical point in their evolution,” said Michael Buckwald, Leap Motion CEO. “With the rapid adoption of VR/AR over the next few years within industries, and integration into how we live, work, and play — it is essential that we lay the groundwork for a magical user experience through a unified design philosophy.”

“We can’t predict what everyday life will look like in the future. What we do know is that technology will completely transform the world,” said Matsuda. “It is our responsibility to find a path through the dangers and challenges ahead, and construct a positive and inclusive vision of a world that we want to live in. I want to bring my experience in design and world-building to bring about this change.”

Matsuda is a celebrated filmmaker and designer whose research explores how emerging technology will impact future lives. His multi-disciplinary approach fuses video, interaction design, and architecture to create vibrant “hyper-real” environments where the distinctions between physical and virtual start to dissolve. Matsuda’s award-winning work includes provocative shorts, such as HYPER-REALITY and Augmented (Hyper) Reality: Domestic Robocop, and the upcoming short film Merger.