Professor Bob Stone - XR Pioneer since 1987

Prof Bob Stone is an XR Pioneer since 1987, Emeritus Professor & Human Factors Specialist., "XR's loveable curmudgeon" In this episode of the Tech Pulse Healthcare podcast we sat down with Prof Bob Stone, an XR pioneer with nearly 40 years of experience across defence, healthcare, space, and heritage—and one of just 10 people inducted into the AWE XR Hall of Fame in 2024 (the only British/European in the inaugural class). What struck me most? After four decades, Bob is still saying the exact same things about XR adoption that he was saying 30 years ago. And very little has changed. Here's what we discussed: The Human-Centred Design Difference Why the MIST surgical trainer became the de facto standard across Europe for 10 years (hint: no headsets, no gloves—just a screen and laparoscopic instruments)How 4 afternoons watching a surgeon work beat years of technical iteration. The critical difference between putting humans first and keeping them involved throughout Why Headsets Are Killing Adoption Contact lenses, AR, and neural interfaces are the actual future—not fancy consumer headsets The real barrier? Getting people to wear bulky equipment they don't trust when you take VR into hospitals, care homes, hospices, full headsets are impractical and counterproductive The Hype Trap (Then and Now) VR nearly died in the late 90s due to false promises. We're repeating the exact same cycle today the tech is good. The content can be created. The problem is implementation and people—not the technology itself. What Actually Works The Wembury Bay project: nature-based VR for physical and mental restoration, now deployed globally (Hawaii, Arctic, UK hospitals)—started as a small project for amputees returning from the Middle EastMotomed + VR + spriometer = measurable patient outcomes. Why iterative design with real users changes everything The Bottom Line We're leaving massive value on the table in healthcare XR adoption. The tech isn't the bottleneck. People, processes, and human-centered design are. And if we don't learn from the last 30 years, we'll keep repeating the same failures. If you're working in healthcare tech, XR implementation, or digital health, this is essential listening. Special thanks to Prof Bob Stone for 40+ years of wisdom and for calling the industry out on what actually matters.