An entrepreneur from the Scottish Highlands is hoping to revolutionise school learning using gaming technology and artificial intelligence.

Planet Pollinate hopes to alter learning experiences and make them more immersive through a 3D video game that uses “cutting-edge” tech.

The VR Hive tech integrates AI with game play, creating an effective, multi-player, immersive training experience for students. The technology could improve learning outcomes, reduce training time by 40% and improve performance by 70%.

Anne Widdop, CEO at Fuze Tech Services, and former software engineer said the VR Hive will use video gaming technology and AI to “really shake up online learning”.

“I wanted to solve a problem that almost everyone I knew had,” Widdop said.

“Kids, students and workers have been stuck at home trying to learn using out of date materials that they can’t interact with. People deserve more – education needs to be brought into the 21st century and why can’t it be fun?”

Planet Pollinate, which can be accessed through an Oculus VR headset, is the first of many products that can be used to assess core skills such as teamwork, critical thinking, communications, and problem solving.

The team are using AI and machine learning to provide “instant performance feedback” to users who will soon be supported by a digital assistant from within the game.

Additionally, Widdop said the VR Hive also has a mobile app in development which aims to provide a similarly immersive experience using a smartphone and Google Cardboard headset.

She continued: “There are big problems with online learning. Almost 90% of us who started a course online gave up because we were bored, distracted or frustrated with the content and the pace.

“Shockingly only 5% of knowledge is retained and only one third of learners improve their performance.”

Widdop added: “Clearly many others see this as a major problem, I am delighted to say that I’ve won several competitions recently.

“Being chosen to be part of the AI Accelerator at the world-class Bayes Centre in Edinburgh is a real boost and I have secured funding from Innovate UK, Highlands and Islands Enterprise and Amazon.”

Virtual reality is already being seen as a useful technology to help students learn in the classroom. With current generation tech allowing students to learn in a variety of different ways.

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As far back as 2018, Scottish councils were floating the idea of using VR in schools, with Renfrew council announcing it was to be the first local Scottish authority to introduce the tech into classrooms.

Scotland is already renowned for its burgeoning gaming sector, with some of the largest gaming companies in the world holding offices there, and Abertay University holding a prestigious gaming education course.

Abertay partnered with the University of Dundee and the University of St Andrews and has garnered numerous industry partners on a “ground-breaking” Innovation for Games and Media Enterprise (InGAME) project in 2018 to facilitate knowledge transfer and help Scotland’s gaming industry identify and overcome challenges.

Research from March last year found that more than eight in 10 people in Scotland believe digital technologies, such as the Internet of Things, will improve education across the country, with interactive learning capabilities and the potential for remote learning highlighted as key potential benefits.

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The VR Hive will be joining us at our at DIGIT Expo 2021 event, being help on the 23rd November.

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