Academic Keynote
Academic Mindtrek 2026 welcomes Kai Kunze as Keynote Speaker!
We are delighted to announce that Kai Kunze will deliver a keynote presentation at this year’s Academic Mindtrek conference.
Meet Kai Kunze
Kai Kunze is Professor of Human-Centered Information Systems at TU Clausthal, Germany. He leads the interdisciplinary research group Geist and also holds an adjunct faculty position at Keio University and visiting researcher position at Tokyo University, Japan. His research in human–computer interaction and wearable computing explores how technology can augment human perception, cognition, and social connection. His interests include eyewear computing, physiological sensing, affective haptics, accessibility, and the design of shared experiences.
Before joining TU Clausthal in 2026, he was a Professor at the Graduate School of Media Design, Keio University, Japan for over 12 years. He previously held an Assistant Professorship at Osaka Prefecture University and undertook research visits at the MIT Media Lab, the Palo Alto Research Center, and Sunlabs Europe.
His recent work examines how bodily signals and feedback can shape collective experiences, alongside projects on inclusive interaction and soft robotic companions. Across these areas, his aim is to develop technologies that augment what people can perceive, express, and do together.
ACADEMIC KEYNOTE:
Augmenting Humans in the Age of AI – From Physiology to Shared Experiences
What makes a concert feel live, a shared moment meaningful, or a machine feel like a companion? My research combines design and technology to explore how we can augment human perception, cognition, and connection through wearable sensing, immersive media, and embodied interaction.
In this talk, I trace a path from recognizing everyday activities and cognitive states to designing collective experiences. I will present projects in which audience physiology shapes dance performances, thermal feedback helps evoke and share musical chills, and recordings of audience responses become part of virtual reality concert experiences.
Recent studies reveal a surprising picture: abstract visualizations of physiological data can produce stronger arousal synchrony with an original concert audience than realistic video, while people’s beliefs about what those visualizations represent can substantially shape their experience. These findings invite us to reconsider what it means to capture, recreate, or “digitize” emotion, and how bodily responses relate to the meaning people give an experience.
I will also introduce our work on soft floating robotic companions. These prototypes explore how gentle movement, physical contact, and a sense of presence can open possibilities for shared experiences and companionship.
Together, these projects investigate how sensing and feedback can expand what people perceive, express, and experience together. I will discuss the opportunities and challenges of designing technologies that become part of our bodily, emotional, and social lives.