About HIT Lab NZ

The Human Interface Technology Laboratory New Zealand (HIT Lab NZ) | Hangarau Tangata, Tangata Hangarau is an international, multidisciplinary research centre which designs new ways to support people in their everyday lives with advanced technologies such as virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), and applied immersive game design.

Our research explores how people use these technologies with the end goal of improving the user experience. We take a human-centred approach by first considering the people we are looking to support, the tasks they need help with, and the environment they will be in before we design technical solutions.

Established in 2002 at the University of Canterbury, we are located within the Faculty of Engineering and recognized internationally as a leader in Human Interface Technology research and education. HIT Lab NZ engages in projects with partners, both nationally and internationally, from industry, academia, and government. We collaborate with many sectors including health, crisis management, environment, sports, construction, and education.

We offer Masters and PhD degrees around all aspects of Human Interface Technology.

We aim to provide a welcoming space for people from a broad range of disciplines related to the human condition.

Contact us at info@hitlabnz.org.

Values Statement

The people at the HIT Lab NZ strive to cultivate an open, safe and supportive environment that values creativity, diversity, enthusiasm, tenacity, integrity, honesty, empathy and collaboration in the pursuit of bettering the world through knowledge creation and dissemination.

 

Mission Statement

Our mission is to support and empower people through the study, invention, development and dissemination of knowledge, technologies and processes that solve human interface technology problems and have a positive social impact in a globally-aware context.

We aspire to this by:

  • Providing multidisciplinary, project-based experiences for students.
  • Maintaining a world-class centre of excellence for human interface technology research.
  • Developing and transitioning to industry leading-edge human-computer interfaces to accelerate economic development in Aotearoa New Zealand.

Vision Statement

The HIT Lab NZ will become the recognized world leader in virtual and augmented reality and applied immersive games research.