MINOR + LAB
Generative AI, machine learning, and intelligent systems — applied to creative and business contexts.
Design immersive experiences across VR, AR, and MR with industry-grade tools at the Emerging Tech Lab.
Program intelligent robots for social and creative applications.
About the Minor
The Emerging Tech Minor + Lab at Inholland University of Applied Sciences is designed specifically for creative and business-minded students who want to understand and apply the technologies shaping our world.
No technical experience required. This minor is for curious minds from all study backgrounds — together we explore how AI, XR, Robotics, and IoT are reshaping creative and business contexts.
Alongside the minor, the Emerging Tech Lab runs applied research for the creative industries, building knowledge that feeds back into both education and practice.
"This minor completely changed how I think about technology. Coming from a marketing background, I never thought I'd be building AR prototypes — but here I am."
"I came in as a design student and left as someone who can prototype with AI and pitch to real clients. Unlike anything else I've studied."
How We Learn
Expert-led sessions with industry professionals, researchers, and practitioners — bringing real-world perspectives into every topic.
Get your hands on XR headsets, robots, 3D printers, and AI tools inside the Emerging Tech Lab — learning by building and experimenting.
Multi-disciplinary team challenges with real industry briefs. Develop prototypes, strategies, and presentations for actual clients.
Visits to tech labs and innovation hubs in the region, plus international hackathons — including past collaborations in Denmark.
Programme
Discover how AI, XR, Robotics, and IoT are transforming the way we work, create, and connect — and learn to apply these technologies in real contexts.
Work with real clients and design solutions that tackle business and societal challenges — from virtual tourism to AI-driven storytelling.
Join a multidisciplinary team, learn to take initiative, and grow into a confident professional ready to guide innovation.
Turn research and creativity into tangible concepts and prototypes that win stakeholder buy-in.
Assess the ethical, environmental, and social impact of technology, and design for a sustainable future.
Core Technologies
From generative models to real-world AI deployment — understand how intelligent systems reshape creative practice.
Design and prototype in VR, AR, and mixed reality using Unreal Engine and the Emerging Tech Lab XR hardware suite.
Build and deploy robots that act in the real world — social robots in care and interactive installations.
Research & Education Hub
The Emerging Tech Lab is a strategic research and innovation hub at Inholland University of Applied Sciences. Our mission is to inform and inspire educational programs on the possibilities of emerging technology, identify field-specific needs, and execute impactful projects through a global network of partners.
Aiding research centres in utilizing emerging tech as a research method, tool, and object of research — fostering experimentation that is informed by research and manifested through practice.
Educating staff on integrating emerging tech as pedagogical tools to enhance student learning trajectories, and supporting the creation of content for creative and business-related ends.
Conceptualizing and executing long-term projects, aiding in grant writing, and acting as a linking pin between international educational institutions and industry partners.
Project development and execution, including curriculum development and integration.
Access to journals, whitepapers, and high-level educational resources.
Guidance and connection to funding schemes such as COECI and NWO.
Experimental lab space dedicated to prototyping emerging tech solutions.
Direct access to our international network of educational and industry partners.
Comprehensive teaching materials, guest lectures, and pedagogical toolkits.
Access to high-end HMDs, high-performance PCs, and robotic systems.
Specialized software access, including No-Code platforms, Unity, and Unreal Engine.
Our Work
A research project digitally preserving Dutch graffiti culture using Gaussian splatting (3D imaging), VR, and AR. Co-creative design sessions with young people build interactive experiences, with a replicable toolkit for cultural institutions across Europe.
Sept 2025 – Sept 2026 · Partners: Dutch Graffiti Library, OBA Next Lab, European Cultural Foundation, Amsterdam Immersive Alliance · Funded by The Europe Challenge
Read more ↗Research exploring how VR and AR can strengthen social connection in an increasingly individualized world. Collaborates with dance company Another Kind of Blue to prototype XR experiences centred on empathy, inclusivity, and collective engagement.
Led by Dr. Pawan Bhansing · Team: Shant Bayramian, Mark Jacobs · Partner: Another Kind of Blue
Read more ↗A proposed research project investigating how VR can be used as a medium for postcolonial storytelling — exploring immersive narrative formats that center underrepresented historical perspectives.
Grant application pendingThe Emerging Tech Lab is an associated partner of IX Labs — a nationwide Dutch network of facilities for research and innovation in immersive experiences. The connected hubs provide access to VR headsets, AR devices, motion capture, and 360° cameras, serving creators, businesses, researchers, and educational institutions.
About IX Labs ↗Buildings carry memories and meaning, particularly old industrial structures. This project 'plays' them as instruments through sound installations and artistic inquiry. Using archival research, interviews, and sonic experimentation, the project makes the social history of locations audible and experiential.
Pawan Bhansing (Hogeschool Inholland)
The Lab supported accreditation for the Tourism Management and Creative Business programmes by developing immersive experiences — including Gaussian splatting environments and 360° content — to present the programmes and their physical locations to external accreditation committees.
The Lab hosts an intensive one-week pressure cooker in XR for 2nd year Creative Business students. Students go from concept to prototype in immersive media — building hands-on experience in VR/AR production under sprint conditions.
The Lab collaborates with Kolding Design School (Denmark) to organise a cross-border hackathon between Emerging Tech Minor students and Kolding students — bringing together creative and tech perspectives for rapid innovation challenges.
Inholland students won first place at the Emerging Technologies Olympiad 2025 in Hong Kong, competing against 40+ international teams with AI, XR, and machine learning solutions. The Emerging Tech Lab facilitated and coached the winning teams: Team Betternative (Gold — machine vision for sustainable fashion), Team Aithos (Bronze), and Team HoloMed (Award of Merit).
Read more ↗The Lab and XR Production Lab partnered with Immersive Tech Week Rotterdam to advance XR education. 100 students and 10 staff participated, with students placing second in a national hackathon and delivering six presentations from the XR Production Lab stage.
Read more ↗A two-day Inholland event exploring how AI, AR, and blockchain will shape the future workplace. The Lab and Minor helped with organisation and event development, bringing together industry partners including KLM, ABN AMRO, BTG, and OpenAI Talks for students and educators.
Read more ↗The Lab provides strategic and educational support to the faculty-wide AI network at Inholland's Faculty of Creative Business — helping the institution develop coherent AI literacy frameworks, tools, and teaching strategies across all programmes.
The Lab has developed open learning materials in XR and AI — available for universities around the world to use freely.
The Lab developed a range of digital human formats for educational ends: 2D AI presenter videos using Synthesia, fully interactive 3D avatars, and 360° VR quiz experiences — enabling scalable, immersive learning content for students and educators alike.
Student work, prototypes, and showcases from the Emerging Tech Minor cohort will be published here.
"Looking for Togetherness" — a workshop on designing immersive XR experiences for connectedness and belonging, presented by Shant Bayramian, Dr. Pawan Bhansing, and Mark Jacobs. Interactive activities explored how immersive media can combat digital loneliness and foster collective engagement.
2 July 2025 · SURF National XR Day · In collaboration with Another Kind of Blue
View talk ↗Shant Bayramian presented research on GenAI and media innovation at the EMMA 2025 conference — sharing insights on the intersection of emerging technology and creative industries education in a European context.
2025 · #EMMA2025 #MediaInnovation #GenAI
View on LinkedIn ↗Research on how VR can be used as a medium for Videographic Criticism was presented — exploring immersive video essay formats as a tool for critical analysis and scholarly communication in the arts and humanities.
The People
Join the Minor
The Emerging Tech Minor + Lab is open to students from all study backgrounds — no technical experience required. We welcome curious, motivated students who want to shape the future of creative industries.
Eligibility — you can apply if you are:
How to apply — choose your path:
Register via the Inholland internal minor registration system.
Inholland Portal →From another Dutch university? Apply directly via the Kies op Maat platform.
Kiesopmaat →Study alongside students from across the globe in an English-taught, internationally oriented programme rooted in Amsterdam.
Graduate with hands-on experience in AI, XR, and Robotics — skills that are in high demand across every industry.
Work with real clients, attend industry events, and build a portfolio of projects that sets you apart in the job market.
