Grand Valley's College of Computing will launch the Wayfinding, Accessible Interaction and Virtual Environment (WAIVE) Lab in the fall 2025 semester.
As part of Blue Dot , WAIVE will serve as a hub for research and innovation, showcasing navigation technologies designed to support underrepresented communities. The lab will be led by Paul D. S. Fink, who is a postdoctoral research fellow at the University of Maine's Virtual Environment and Multimodal Interaction (VEMI) Lab.
WAIVE will pioneer new AI-based technologies that redefine how technology addresses usability challenges. Fink said its mission is to improve people's independence and mobility by fusing cutting-edge research, industry partnerships and experiential learning opportunities for students.