HIT Lab NZ

Name

HIT Lab NZ

Legal name

Human Interface Technology Laboratory New Zealand

Website

https://hitlabnz.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2002

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Human Interface Technology Research

NAICS

Scientific Research and Development Services (5417), Other Scientific and Technical Consulting Services (541690), Testing Laboratories and Services (541380)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731), Services-Testing Laboratories (8734)

akta.pro primary industry

Virtual Labs, Remote Labs & Hands-On Practice Tools (EDAFABAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Simulation-Based Learning & Virtual Labs (EDAGAEAG), Research & Lab-Based Short-Term Programs (Undergraduate/Graduate) (EDAIAIAF), Research Collaboration & Joint Labs (International Partnerships) (EDAIABAC)

Keywords

• Human interface technology
• Virtual reality research
• Augmented reality research
• Immersive training simulation
• Applied games research

Headquarters

HQ city

Christchurch

HQ country

New Zealand

HQ region

Oceania

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Research Grants and Funding: HIT Lab NZ operates as a university research center funded through competitive research grants from government agencies including MBIE Endeavour Fund, SfTI National Science Challenge, Health Research Council, and other funding bodies

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

HIT Lab NZ is a university research laboratory at the University of Canterbury that conducts research in human interface technology (VR, AR, applied games, haptics, AI), supervises postgraduate students through Masters and PhD programs in Human Interface Technology, and delivers collaborative research projects for industry, government agencies, and Māori communities. Its outputs are research prototypes, serious games, and immersive training platforms rather than commercially sold products.

Product overview

HIT Lab NZ operates as an academic research laboratory at the University of Canterbury focused on Human Interface Technology. Their portfolio comprises research prototypes, serious games, and immersive training platforms rather than a unified commercial product. The offerings include: CityViewAR mobile app for historical AR visualization; educational games (Talk Town for DHH children, Volcanic Explorer NZ, 5 Minute Volcano for volcanic hazard education); VR training tools (VR Baby Training Tool, firefighter training, athlete mental imagery); AR research platforms (ScenicAR for tourism, pedestrian safety analysis); multi-sensory simulation platforms; and 360-degree video production tools. Their core research focus areas are virtual reality, augmented reality, applied games, haptics, and artificial intelligence, delivered through academic programs (Masters in Human Interface Technology, PhD research) and collaborative industry projects.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• AIGI (Applied Immersive Gaming Initiative): Research initiative focused on applied immersive gaming at HIT Lab NZ, founded in 2019 with Tertiary Education Commission NZ funding.

Products and services

• CityViewAR A mobile AR app that allows users to see panoramic photos of Christchurch immediately after the 2011 earthquakes, supporting both map and list views with GPS functionality for location-based panorama discovery. Available free to the general public via app stores.
• Talk Town Game A social pragmatic skills game for deaf and hard of hearing children to practice communication skills, co-designed with stakeholders including Ko Taku Reo Deaf Education New Zealand and the Deaf community.
• Volcanic Explorer NZ A single-player educational game for school-aged children teaching volcanic and tsunami hazards through six mini-games covering emergency preparation, volcano types, and scientific data collection.
• VR Baby Training Tool (VRBTT) A virtual reality baby simulation that allows students to interact with a simulated baby in a safe environment for developing confidence in edu-caregiving skills and relational pedagogical practices in early childhood education.
• ScenicAR A mobile AR prototype investigating how handheld AR experiences can enhance emotional connections between tourists and destinations through place attachment mechanisms for regenerative tourism.
• 5 Minute Volcano A collaborative hazard identification game about volcanic risk for primary-aged children in Aotearoa NZ, co-designed with a Māori language school using cultural imagery and concepts including Taniwha characters.
• 360-Degree Video Platform Platform for creating, editing, and viewing 360-degree video content with support for desktop PCs, web browsers, mobile devices, Google Cardboard, Samsung Gear VR, PC VR headsets (Oculus Rift, HTC Vive), and standalone devices (Oculus Quest, Go).
• AR Pedestrian Safety Research Platform Research platform exploring cognitive and physiological effects of AR head-mounted displays while walking, using bio-signals (gait, eye tracking, heart rate variability) to measure attention and distraction.
• Immersive Telediagnostic Platform An immersive VR platform for remote sessions in sensitive relationships (counsellor-patient) requiring rich communication cues including non-verbal behaviour and physiological signals analyzed via deep learning.
• VR Mental Imagery Training for Elite Athletes VR tools for elite athletes to visualize competition slopes, experience race environments, rehearse pre-race warm-ups, and train mental readiness for events such as the Winter Olympics.
• AR Movement Analysis Platform Research platform exploring how AR HMDs affect gait, movement parameters, and user experience by collecting normative movement data compared against AR HMD wearing conditions.
• ARrive Location-Based AR Game Multiplayer location-based AR game design exploring how co-located and remote players connect through AR technology using LiDAR scanning for real-world environment integration.
• Immersive Regenerative Tourism Platform Research platform exploring novel interactive and immersive tourism experiences for regenerative tourism using AR experiences, interactive storytelling, and mobile AR games.
• VR Math Game Platform VR math game platform for school-aged children exploring integration of VR technology into formal education with attention and engagement studies.
• Air Attack Wildfire Training Simulator Multi-sensory training simulator for airborne rural firefighting teams using VR to create realistic high-stress decision-making environments with radio communication disruptions.
• VR Firefighter Training Environment Custom VR learning environment for firefighters set in forest environments with fire propagation based on vegetation, terrain, wind, teaching core fire and vegetation behaviour concepts.
• Masters in Human Interface Technology (MHIT) Postgraduate degree program in Human Interface Technology offered at HIT Lab NZ, University of Canterbury, covering research training in VR, AR, applied games, haptics, and AI.
• PhD Research Supervision Doctoral research supervision in Human Interface Technology across topics including VR, AR, haptics, applied games, AI, multi-sensory technology, and Kaupapa Māori co-design.

Quantifiable outcome

• New Zealand achieved its best-ever Winter Olympic and Paralympic medal results using VR training tools
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability8 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• High Performance Sport New Zealand (HPSNZ)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024Collaboration on human augmentation research for elite athletes, including development of the Rhythm Profile system for training optimization and VR skiing simulations for Olympic athletes.
• Snow Sports NZcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Partnership to develop VR mental imagery training tools for alpine athletes, enabling visualization and rehearsal of competition environments and procedures.
• Fire and Emergency New Zealand (FENZ)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Research collaboration to develop immersive VR training environments for rural firefighter training, addressing high-risk and high-cost training scenarios.
• University of CanterburycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPrimary institutional host providing infrastructure, faculty support, and administrative resources for HIT Lab NZ operations.
• University of OtagocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on immersive regenerative tourism experiences research, with Prof. Holger Regenbrecht as programme lead.
• University of AucklandminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch collaboration on AR impact on movement and spatial navigation as part of the AR pedestrian safety project.
• University of South AustraliaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborative research on AR HMD impact on human gait with Prof. Mark Billinghurst.
• Niantic, Inc.coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with James Everett on location-based AR game 'ARrive' and Portal Hunter Adventure, leveraging Niantic's platform technology.
• GNS SciencecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLead organization for Beneath the Waves programme on volcanic hazard education, with HIT Lab NZ contributing game-based learning components.
• Ko Taku Reo Deaf Education New ZealandminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSupport partner for Talk Town game development supporting psycho-social wellbeing in deaf and hard of hearing youth.
• Māori Communities (Various Iwi)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCultural partners including Te Whānau-ā-Apanui, Te Rau Aroha Marae, Te Rūnanga o Awarua, and others collaborating on Ātea digital marae and Matariki MR projects.
• Auckland War Memorial MuseumminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on museology immersion research for ocean literacy, with museum staff as advisors and research participants.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• CMU Human-Computer Interaction Institute: CMU HCII is a leading university research institute in HCI, VR/AR, and interactive systems. It is directly comparable to HIT Lab NZ as a graduate-degree-granting HIT research center with industry partnerships, multi-sensory interaction research, and applied VR/AR deployment.
• Stanford Virtual Human Interaction Lab: Stanford VHIL is a university research lab focused on VR/AR for human behavior, training, and education. It directly parallels HIT Lab NZ in mission, academic structure, and grant-driven research into VR applications for training, sports, and social impact.
• University of South Australia — Mawson Institute / Mark Billinghurst group: UniSA's AR/VR research group, led by Prof. Mark Billinghurst (a HIT Lab NZ collaborator), is one of the most recognized academic AR/VR groups globally. It is directly comparable given shared research themes (AR HMD impact, spatial interfaces) and an existing active research partnership.
• University of Otago — HIT Lab NZ's partner institutions: University of Otago is an active research collaborator with HIT Lab NZ (Prof. Holger Regenbrecht and Prof. Stefanie Zollmann), with overlapping AR/VR/immersive tourism research. It is a direct peer as a NZ-based university partner conducting parallel HIT research.
• EPFL Computer Graphics and VR Lab (ICUB/IIG): EPFL's ICUB/IIG labs conduct university-anchored VR/AR, haptics, and immersive interaction research. They are directly comparable to HIT Lab NZ as multidisciplinary HIT research groups producing graduate researchers, conference publications, and industry collaborations.

Emerging players

• Purdue C Design Lab (Christos Mousas): Purdue's C Design Lab conducts VR/AR research into training, haptics, and immersive experiences. It is an emerging academic peer in HIT research with comparable publication and grant-funded research outputs.
• Talespin: Talespin builds enterprise XR training and learning platforms, including soft-skills and immersive simulation. It is an emerging commercial player in the same training-and-simulation category HIT Lab NZ researches with FENZ and sports partners.
• Strivr: Strivr is a US-based company commercializing VR training for sports, retail, and enterprise. It is an emerging commercial counterpart to HIT Lab NZ's sports and emergency-services VR training research, though operating as a for-profit vendor rather than academic lab.
• Mursion: Mursion provides VR-based human-interaction simulations for workforce training (healthcare, education, leadership). It is an emerging commercial peer in the same immersive-training category where HIT Lab NZ develops VRBTT, Talk Town, and related prototypes.

Broad incumbents

• MIT Media Lab: MIT Media Lab is a long-established interdisciplinary research lab (founded 1985) pioneering human-computer interaction, wearable computing, and immersive media. It is broadly comparable to HIT Lab NZ as a university-anchored multidisciplinary HIT research organization with strong industry partnerships and a similar grant-and-collaboration funding model.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/hitlabnz/videos
• Facebookfacebook.com/HITLabNZ
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/hit-lab-nz
• Xx.com/hitlabnz

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about HIT Lab NZ