Once the data is in 3D, how are people actually seeing it and working with it in practice?
Suzanne Borders: Most of the time, it is a combination of a headset plus a 2D window into the immersive analytics environment. You might have one or more people wearing the headset, and then a display of what they are seeing on a phone, tablet, or flat screen so others can follow along. Sometimes everybody is in a headset collaborating together, but that is not always realistic. There is usually someone who does not want to wear a headset, or they do not have enough hardware. That is why it has been very important for us to support that window into the environment. In some workflows, we also export what people did into familiar formats, like a PDF report, so the output can fit into existing systems.
At what point in the immersive analytics workflow does 3D or immersive technology add the most value?
Suzanne Borders: In my experience, the value really starts once people know what data they want to look at and that data has been cleaned up. That is when the immersive layer becomes useful. People bring the prepared data into the environment, collaborate around it, interact with it, filter it, and analyze it together. That is where they often discover insights they might not have found in a 2D workflow. After that comes the presentation phase, where they share those findings with leadership or other decision makers. We added a presentation mode to support that, where one person can guide the experience and make recordings that are easier to share. So 3D is strongest after the raw data work is done.
How has AI changed BadVR’s approach to data analytics and immersive analytics interfaces?
Suzanne Borders: We have actually been working with AI and machine learning for a long time, mostly on the backend. A lot of our patents reference it. We are working with edge AI models for computer vision that enable real-time awareness of environments without needing heavy data centre resources. Meanwhile, AI has become more powerful, and we have been able to integrate it further and bring it closer to the user experience instead of keeping it mostly at the base layer, driving things behind the scenes.
Can you give some examples of how users can actually interact with or benefit from that AI layer?
Suzanne Borders: One example is streaming video feeds inside an immersive command and control center. You can add an AI layer that identifies things within those feeds, whether that is naming the type of tree, identifying the type of car, or finding certain facial expressions. Another example is using an AI agent to guide the user through the experience itself. It can recommend what to look at based on a stated goal, point out interesting areas, or suggest which dataset to explore next. That is especially useful when the environment or the application might otherwise feel daunting. So the value is not only recognition and labelling. It is also guidance and making the experience more approachable for the person using it.
Who are BadVR’s clients today, and which industries are actually using this technology and immersive analytics?
Suzanne Borders: A lot of telecoms are using C-Signal. We have a public partnership with Telia, and we have also worked with several other telecoms in North America and Europe. We have worked with large insurance organizations as well, including Munich Re and Unipol in Italy. But the majority of our work today is with the U.S. government. That includes defence, public safety, and related government use cases. If I had to break it down, I would say it is probably around sixty to seventy percent government, defense, and public safety, with the remaining thirty to forty percent in the private sector, primarily telecom and insurance. So it is a fairly broad mix, but government is definitely a major focus.
What has it been like to work on large contracts in government and enterprise, and what helped you get in?
Suzanne Borders: The sales cycles are long in telecom, but government is on another level. It takes forever, and it is a very closed world where everybody already knows each other. For us, one of the biggest doors was the SBIR program in the United States, especially through the National Science Foundation. It gave us non-dilutive funding, but beyond that, it gave us credibility. It also created matchmaking opportunities where people could introduce our technology to groups inside the Navy, Air Force, and other areas to see whether there was a fit. We also spent a lot of time speaking at conferences, demoing the technology, and building relationships. That SBIR lineage really helped us get traction.
What advice would you give to founders, especially women founders?
Suzanne Borders: To be honest, I am almost always the only woman in the room, except maybe for the receptionist or secretary. I have had people say outrageous things to my face, not as a joke, but like they were doing me a favor by telling me that my life would never be fulfilled unless I got married and had children. My advice is simple: do not listen to them. You cannot control what other people think. You can only control your own success. I do not waste energy trying to debate every person who says something ridiculous. I focus on building a strong product, doing good business, getting paid, moving forward, and not letting anyone stop me.
How do you personally navigate doing business with people whose views you strongly disagree with?
Suzanne Borders: I am realistic about it. If someone wants to say some crazy stuff to me, I am not going to turn every interaction into a fight. I will still do business with them. I am not there to debate politics, feminism, or whatever strange opinions they want to share with me. I am there to provide a good service, build a good product, make money, and keep going. Hopefully, by being accomplished and capable, I might change somebody’s mind over time, but I am not trying to force that conversation. People are people. They all have upsides and downsides. At the end of the day, I do not give them the power to stop me. That is what matters most to me.
What still inspires you today, both in technology and in the bigger picture of what you are building?
Suzanne Borders: A lot of things inspire me. I get inspiration from everywhere. I love birds. I love the world. Even some of our designs came from experiences outside tech, like the Data Stadium, which was inspired by going to the World Cup in Russia and seeing a stadium in person. But in terms of technology, what inspires me most is helping set the groundwork for the next generation of innovators. I have a goddaughter who is turning ten this year, and I think a lot about the world she is going to grow up in. I hope it is full of amazing technology, and I hope it is friendlier to her than this world has been to me. That thought, along with the idea that my patents can outlive me, keeps me going.
