Elmdon Studios is an immersive software development studio, working with AR/VR, motion tracking and haptic technologies to create applications suitable for the Metaverse. The business has been created by University of Birmingham graduate Andrew Morrin.
Andrew's story:
While in my first year studying Financial Economics at Coventry University, I took a module in financial trading. I searched for investment opportunities involving companies working with immersive technology but soon realised that I was too early; the industry was still in its infancy. The more I researched, the more opportunities I found, so I reached out to companies to learn more about what they did and technology behind it all. Over the next five years I visited exhibitions in the UK and Europe, met with these companies to test their equipment, and taught myself to code in C#. In 2020 I began studying MSc Computer Science at the University of Birmingham to further my technical ability, graduating with a distinction.
Everything I had done for the past five years was specifically tailored to get me to this point. Just before graduating, I reached out to the UOB Elevate team to discuss my plans, and though I had missed the deadline to enrol on the program, they still gave me the support I needed to secure my first paid project as a business. The University of Birmingham Dubai were looking for someone to create a virtual reality application to bring the research of some of the University's Nobel Prize winners to life, and I had contacted them at exactly the right time. When the project was over and I returned from Dubai, I used the network I had built to meet with academics, business people and anyone else who thought immersive technology could be used to improve or support their work. This has allowed me to develop a set of multipurpose, scalable products that can be used across a range of industries including research and education, professional training, asset/estate management, gaming and esports, and virtual production. As my skills have developed, so has the industry, and now I find myself ready to explore the Metaverse.
Working at the Exchange will allow me to expand my network even further, opening up new opportunities for both my business and my own professional development. I aspire to be the CEO of my own multinational company offering B2C and B2B services across a range of industries that operate in the Metaverse. I don't believe Facebook (Meta) will be the only players in this industry, and I think the world will be worse off if they are left to monopolise it. I see the potential in Web 3.0 technologies and I intend to use my abilities to revolutionise the way we use the internet.