Mozilla VR

The Mozilla VR team was created in 2014 to help bring virtual reality to the open web. I was Product and UX Lead, working with an amazing team of platform engineers and front end developers ¹. Our job was to help shape future virtual reality Web APIs by building prototypes, creating developer tools, and getting the developer community excited. I wore many hats on the team, including creating content prototypes, delivering talks, and designing browser interfaces. In 2015 we released A-Frame VR, a framework for creating VR/AR web experiences.

2014/15, Mozilla
Product Management
Interaction Design
Visual Design

Prototype: Using CSS 3D transforms and a modified version of Firefox to build a menu interface

Our initial focus was prototyping web browsing in virtual reality. We used modified builds of Firefox with experimental features enabled (e.g. an early WebVR API) and interface written in WebGL and HTML/CSS to explore VR versions of classic browsing interactions, such as entering a URL, navigating from site to site, selecting favorites, etc. These prototypes were demoed at events such as GDC 2015, and led helped inform the nascent WebVR API design.

Concept: a loading indicator appears as the user enters a new site

Prototype: loading a new world (site) from a menu

Explorations of classic browsers interactions in a floating VR menu interface

Using Cinema4D to block out interfaces in 3D space before implementing in code

An internal promotional poster for the "Horizon" prototype

Vlad Vukecevic, original creator of WebGL, Kip Gilbert, Casey Yee, Chris Van Wiemeersch, Diego Marcos, Kevin Ngo and Kevin Grandon ↩︎

Josh Carpenter / Portfolio

Mozilla VR

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