From Co-existence to Collaboration: Teaming up to enable XR-based training, assistance and augmentation for mission-critical work.
This is the second edition of the XR for Challenging Environments (XR4CE) workshop series, building directly on the successful CHI 2026 workshop in Barcelona. That first gathering brought together 22 position papers and a vibrant community spanning emergency response, aviation, healthcare, industrial operations, and military contexts.
The upcoming workshop in Valencia (Nov 3, 2026) will deepen that work. Taking place within the framework of the EuroXR 2026 conference activities, in cooperation with the VWP Annual Forum 2026, the workshop explores how Extended Reality combined with Artificial Intelligence holds transformative potential for professionals in Challenging Environments (CEs) – contexts defined by complexity, risk, and unpredictability that push human decision-making to its limits. Yet XR research still struggles to meet the unique demands of embodied, mission-critical work.
Challenging environments such as emergency response, public safety, advanced manufacturing, or space missions demand high levels of human performance under stress. This workshop investigates how XR-based training, assistance and augmentation can support people working in high-stakes, uncertain, and demanding contexts. To successfully address this challenge, enabling and nurturing active collaboration among actors (practitioners, researchers, technologies, systems) on different levels is essential.
We welcome 2–4 page position papers featuring novel concepts, empirical findings, provocative statements, or case studies addressing topics including:
Paper submissions are now closed. We thank all authors who contributed to the 2nd XR4CE workshop!
Camera-Ready Instructions: Accepted papers must strictly follow the 5+1 (references) page limit (maximum 5 pages for main body text, figures, and tables + 1 additional page strictly for references) in the 1-column CEURART layout. Please consult the Instructions for Camera-Ready Submissions for the full checklist and Overleaf template guidelines.
Workshop Registration: Workshop registration closed on October 16, 2026. Registration was handled via our partner XRwise (https://xrwise.tech/xr4ce/). At least one author of each accepted paper had to register and pay for the workshop by October 16, and attend the workshop in Valencia on November 3, 2026 to present the work. The workshop registration fee of 80 EUR (incl. VAT) includes coffee break and lunch, which are served in Sala DESCUBRE in the Red Cube. For questions regarding registration or late registration inquiries, please contact raimund.schatz@ait.ac.at. Please see the Workshop Registration page for reference.
Publication: With author consent, accepted and presented papers will be published in the open-access CEUR-WS workshop proceedings.
→ Instructions for Camera-Ready Submissions (Closed Oct 22)
→ Workshop Registration & Payment (Closed Oct 16)
→ Register Interest / Express Attendance (Non-Author Participants)
We are pleased to welcome the following contributions to the workshop. Click on a paper title to view or download the PDF.
Dan Benedict and Marie Vans
Ricard Gras
Nuria Oyaga, Pablo Pérez, Ignacio Benito, Marta Orduna and Álvaro Villegas
Katarina Mišura, Mirko Suznjevic, Lea Skorin-Kapov and Maja Matijasevic
Dawid Lizurek, Bosen Zhou, Özlem Mis, Wanja Pasternak and Frank Feinbube
Arnab Chakraborty, Udayanto Dwi Atmojo and Valeriy Vyatkin
Alia Saad and Jan-Niklas Voigt-Antons
Miran Ghafoori, Hasan Aydin, Riku Ala-Laurinaho and Xinyi Tu
Adjan Hansen-Ampah, Andrea Altepost, Michael Bau and Karen Wachholz
Raimund Schatz, Helmut Schrom-Feiertag, Lea Skorin-Kapov, Jan-Niklas Voigt-Antons and Leif Oppermann
A half-day, highly interactive workshop designed to move from position papers to concrete collaboration and research actions. Please arrive well in advance (09:15) so that we can start on time.
| Session 1: Operations, AI, and Situational Context (09:30 – 10:55) | |
| 09:30 | Welcome, Goals & Framing |
|---|---|
| 09:45 | Lightning Talk: Benjamin Schuster (Johanniter) |
| 09:55 | Pitch Block 1 (3-minute pitches): papers #3, #6, #5, #8, #2 |
| 10:15 | Cluster Discussions and plenary summary 1A: Supporting operators in the field (#3, #6) 1B: Trusted data, standards, and lifecycle (#5, #8, #2) |
| 10:55 | Coffee Break & Networking (until 11:10, served in Sala DESCUBRE in the Red Cube) |
| Session 2: Training, Co-Design, and Evaluation (11:10 – 12:30) | |
| 11:10 | Pitch Block 2 (3-minute pitches): papers #10, #4, #7, #9, #1 (video) |
| 11:30 | Cluster Discussions and plenary summary 2A: Evaluating XR training (#10, #4) 2B: Designing training with people in the loop (#7, #1, #9) |
| 12:10 | Community Building & Next Steps |
| 12:30 | Joint Lunch & Informal Networking (served in Sala DESCUBRE in the Red Cube) |
* All times are Central European Time (CET). Please arrive well in advance (09:15) so that we can start on time at 09:30. Schedule is preliminary and subject to minor adjustments.
The workshop takes place on November 3, 2026, 09:30–12:30 CET at the Universitat Politècnica de València (UPV), within the Ciudad Politécnica de la Innovación (CPI). Please arrive well in advance (09:15) so that we can start on time.
Our workshop rooms are all next to each other on the 4th floor of the Red Cube:
Note: The VWP Annual Forum registration desk, demo space and main sessions are in the Blue Cube (Cubo Azul, Building 8B, Access N).
Important Note on Forum & Conference Access
The XR4CE workshop registration covers only our workshop. Attending only the XR4CE workshop in the Red Cube does not require a Forum registration.
The VWP Annual Forum 2026 and the EuroXR 2026 conference have separate registrations. Forum and conference organisers plan sessions and catering by registered participants and venue hostesses check badges. Without a Forum or conference registration there is no access to the Forum facilities, the demo space and other catering areas.
Anyone planning to attend the VWP Annual Forum or EuroXR sessions should register in advance, please by October 27, 2026 (VWP Annual Forum registration • EuroXR 2026 registration).
AIT Austrian Institute of Technology
AIT Austrian Institute of Technology
University of Zagreb
Hamm-Lippstadt University of Applied Sciences (HSHL)
Fraunhofer FIT & Virtual Worlds Association