Immersive Communication Training for Professionals

Virtual Communication Training develops AI-supported avatar dialogues as a sustainable learning format for professional communication in vocational and higher education. Based on the XARA platform by afca, the project enables learners to practise challenging conversations with virtual counterparts in desktop and immersive XR environments, followed by structured reflection with a virtual coach.

Within IMMERSE, this approach is being developed beyond isolated prototypes and prepared for long-term implementation in different educational contexts. At PH Zurich, prospective teachers train demanding conversations with parents and guardians, for example around school anxiety, transition decisions or cyberbullying. This strand is being integrated into teacher education and has gained public visibility through a report by Swiss public broadcasting SRF. At the Zentrum für Ausbildung im Gesundheitswesen Winterthur (ZAG), the same basic logic is transferred to patient communication, where learners practise emotionally demanding conversations and reflect on empathic communication, active listening and professional relationship-building.

Further use cases are currently emerging at ZHAW and in other vocational and higher education settings.  Together, these strands show how AI-based communication training can be sustainably embedded across professional domains, combining repeatable practice, protected learning spaces and reflective professional development.