Emerge is building a new product category to bridge distance and time—through sight, sound, touch and brain activity, all powered by an emotion AI platform to allow users digitize and transmit their emotions. www.emerge.io

The World Economic Forum’s Global Future Councils are the world’s foremost interdisciplinary knowledge network dedicated to promoting innovative thinking to shape a sustainable and inclusive future for all.The network convenes more than 700 of the most relevant and knowledgeable thought leaders from academia, government, business and civil society, grouped in expertise-based, thematic councils. It is an invitation-only community, and members are nominated for a one-year period.As hardware prices decline and compelling use cases increase, Virtual and Augmented Reality (VR/AR) technologies are becoming mainstream and entering daily life. Experts and stakeholders have begun to identify areas where these technologies can drive positive social impacts (health and education), and areas where they may lead to negative consequences (more complex data protection questions, risks of virtual harassment and safety risks). Building on its 2018 mandate, the Global Future Council on Virtual and Augmented Reality will explore and raise awareness of the positive and negative aspects of these technologies’ widespread adoption and translate dialogue from the first year of the council’s existence into tangible outputs.

The Global Shapers Community is a network of Hubs developed and led by young people who are exceptional in their potential, their achievements and their drive to make a contribution to their communities.

The Hydrous is a 501(c)3 organization that is dedicated to Open Access Oceans. They are focused on harnessing immersive and beautiful visualizations to translate scientific data and allow understanding of ocean issues by the public. The Hydrous has led over 1MM virtual dives with Immerse, and their work has been featured in WIRED Magazine, Forbes, TED, and Fast Company. The Hydrous is a program partner with the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science. www.thehydro.us — In 2013 I started a small project in Hawaii that has grown into an international community. My first solo expedition in Palau led to projects in 8 countries in the following 2 years. In my time running The Hydrous I raised funds from Autodesk Foundation, and learned the operational art of assembling consortiums of international governments, institutions (Smithsonian, US National Park Service), scientists, and corporate sponsors (Google, Autodesk, and Lenovo). In total, I've spent over a month of my life underwater (500+ scuba dives) in 10+ countries.The company has now grown tremendously under the leadership of our awesome CEO, Dr. Erika Woosley.