New call for proposals offers up to $1M in grants to support creators and nonprofits using immersive media to drive climate action and civic engagement

LOS ANGELES, May 12, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Agog: The Immersive Media Institute, a philanthropic organization focused on extended reality (XR) for social good, announced today that it has distributed nearly $6.5 million in grants to date, supporting creators, nonprofits, and field-building efforts that use immersive media to deepen public understanding of urgent social and environmental challenges. Agog is now opening its support to a wider pool of creators through its first public open call, offering up to $1 million for climate-focused immersive storytelling and projects.

Since publicly launching in 2024, Agog has worked to strengthen the ecosystem for immersive storytelling by funding projects, supporting creator labs and development programs, partnering with nonprofits, and bringing together artists, technologists, and cultural leaders. The open call reflects a deepening of Agog’s investment in exploring how immersive media can bring climate stories to life in more immediate, experiential ways.

“After more than three decades working as a journalist focused on climate change, I believe immersive storytelling is a powerful way to help people connect with what’s happening now — and imagine and build what a better future could be,” said Chip Giller, co-founder and executive director of Agog and founder of climate news organization Grist. “Immersive media represents a step change in communications. These technologies put you in the story itself, allowing you to experience it viscerally as a participant. Using them, you can travel to Greenland to experience melting ice sheets, visit low-lying islands in the Pacific threatened by sea-level rise, or even embody a tree growing from a seed to a towering old growth. It’s wild — and the changes in these media are happening fast. We hope this open call encourages more people to learn about immersive media and put it to use in the fight for a livable climate.”

“Climate change is a challenge so immense that it can be hard to grasp, even as it affects every one of us,” said Wendy Schmidt, co-founder of Agog. “Immersive storytelling has the ability to bring the effects of climate change — whether it’s melting glaciers, raging storms, or disappearing coastlines — not only before our eyes but all around us, reaching all of our senses. As Agog deepens its focus on climate storytelling, we hope that this powerful technology can, by helping us all experience these changes, spur us to action for our communities and our planet.”

Agog’s grantmaking supports immersive impact storytelling across climate change, racial equity, Indigenous knowledge, and journalism, alongside broader ecosystem investments. Climate-focused projects include “Out of the Ashes,” a virtual reconstruction of communities impacted by the Los Angeles wildfires. Work in racial equity includes support for wider distribution of “The Book of Distance,” a critically acclaimed virtual reality (VR) documentary exploring memory, migration, and state-sanctioned racism. Agog has also invested in Indigenous-led storytelling through projects like “OurWorlds” and a funding initiative with the Indigenous Screen Office, supporting community-led narratives, language revitalization, and land-based knowledge. In journalism, Agog has supported efforts like the Experiential Journalism Lab at the Investigative Reporting Program at UC Berkeley Journalism, training emerging reporters to develop immersive, experience-driven forms of storytelling grounded in rigorous reporting.

Beyond individual projects, Agog has invested in the infrastructure that allows this work to grow — from creator labs and residencies with partners like PHI, Black Public Media, and Electric South to incubators such as WORLDING and Reality Hack at MIT, in addition to wider distribution initiatives. Together, these efforts support projects from concept to audience engagement and impact.

“Immersive media has the power to have a generational impact on our society, the land, and humanity,” said idris brewster, founder of Agog grantee Kinfolk Tech. “Agog has recognized the power of and need for this technology, and its support has made this kind of storytelling possible for Kinfolk Tech and many other creators and organizations.”
 

A New Phase: Climate Futures + Immersive Media Open Call

Agog’s 2026 open call, Climate Futures + Immersive Media, supports projects that use immersive media to engage people more deeply in climate issues and expand pathways for participation and action.

The initiative invites proposals from XR creators and mission-driven organizations new to immersive media, with a focus on projects that move audiences from awareness to action. The review committee will consist of Agog leadership and climate and XR experts, including Myriam Achard, chief of new media partnerships and PR at PHI; Jerome Foster II, sustainability and social impact consultant; Anthony Leiserowitz, Ph.D., director of the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication; and Jacqueline Patterson, founder and executive director of The Chisholm Legacy Project.

Areas of interest for the open call include:

Climate storytelling and civic participationCommunity power and resilienceAccess, equity, and climate justicePlanetary connection and well-beingFuture-building and world design

The open call will support projects across a range of stages and formats, from early concept to more developed work. Agog is particularly interested in projects that use smart glasses, augmented reality, spatial sound, and mixed reality to help people experience climate challenges and solutions in more immediate, embodied ways. Agog will award grants in denominations ranging from $25,000 to $200,000. In addition to funding, selected projects may receive mentorship and opportunities for partnership and distribution.

Applications close June 12. agog.org/opencall2026/ 

Agog: The Immersive Media Institute

Agog: The Immersive Media Institute is a philanthropic organization founded by Chip Giller and Wendy Schmidt that is dedicated to helping creators and nonprofit leaders use extended reality — including virtual, augmented, and mixed reality — to imagine and build a more connected, just, and compassionate world. Agog operates as a field builder and creative partner, supporting immersive storytellers whose work addresses urgent social and environmental challenges.

CONTACT: Alex Capriotti
alex@agog.org

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SOURCE Agog: The Immersive Media Institute

AI-powered product advances fuel broad-based momentum across Commercial and International Government markets

RESTON, Va., May 12, 2026 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ — Seerist, the AI-powered risk intelligence platform trusted by security and intelligence teams around the world, today reported strong first quarter 2026 results. New logo wins doubled year-over-year, and Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR) from new logos surged 85% compared to the same period in 2025, reflecting the convergence of product innovation meeting market demand.

The breadth of the quarter’s performance was just as notable. Total company ARR grew 15% from Q1 2025, while Seerist’s Commercial and International Government markets, the two fastest-moving areas of the business, posted a combined 19% ARR increase from the prior year period. Net Expansion in those markets rose 15%, and Gross Retention improved by 5%, signaling that customers are not only renewing but deepening their reliance on Seerist.

“The AI capabilities we’ve built into the platform, automating workflows that used to consume analyst hours, are genuinely force-multiplying what our customers can accomplish. Security and intelligence teams are extending their reach without adding headcount, and the outcomes are speaking for themselves. This quarter’s numbers are a direct reflection of that.”

— Barry Saadatmand, Chief Revenue Officer, Seerist

At the core of this product evolution is AskAnna, Seerist’s AI intelligence assistant. Built to synthesize vast quantities of structured and unstructured data into clear, actionable outputs, AskAnna has emerged as one of the most significant drivers of platform adoption and expansion and is transforming the speed and scale at which customers can act on global risk.

“AskAnna now puts 50,000 analyst hours fused with millions of open source signals all at the fingertips of a query that generates actionable insights in seconds. This is a categorically different way of understanding and responding to risk. Our customers are operating at a level that simply wasn’t possible before, and the market is responding accordingly.”

— Alex Berry, Chief Executive Officer, Seerist

As Seerist heads into the second quarter, the company expects to sustain this trajectory through continued investment in its AI capabilities, expansion of its go-to-market reach, and the deepening of strategic partnerships across Commercial, Federal Government, and International Government sectors.

About Seerist

Seerist, Inc. enables global corporations, governments, and organizations to navigate a volatile and uncertain world by preparing them for potential events that could disrupt operations. Trusted by more than 400 organizations, including over 20% of the Fortune 100, and over 50 government agencies, Seerist combines cutting-edge artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML)—parsing millions of data points—with expert human analysis built on decades of insight. With 10 global offices and a strategic partnership with Control Risks, Seerist delivers the foresight and clarity needed to make rapid, strategic, and reliable decisions when it matters most. To learn more, visit www.seerist.com

Media Contact

Jen Dillon, Seerist, 1 1 800 674 8398 748, jen.dillon@seerist.com, www.seerist.com

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SOURCE Seerist

Oscar-winning filmmaker Spike Jonze, media artist Refik Anadol, advocate Reshma Saujani, AR creator Paige Piskin, digital artist GMUNK, Emmy-winning motion designer Gryun Kim, and the legendary Rhizome’s 7×7 among the names confirmed

FOSTER CITY, Calif., May 12, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Replit, the AI software creation platform used by more than 50 million people, today announced a first-of-its kind AI conference  where code, creativity and culture intersect. The event brings together artists, filmmakers, designers, founders, technologists and curious newcomers to a playground to explore code as the next creative medium.

Taking place June 17–18 at Canyon on Manhattan’s Lower East Side, the inaugural vibecon will bring together an eclectic group of pioneering creators turning software into apps, installations, films, tools, performances, visual systems and interactive experiences that would have been out of reach for most a year ago. For two days, vibecon will be alive with people who no longer draw a line between code and craft. The conference will feature live talks, interactive installations, hands-on workshops, art exhibits and performances designed to show what becomes possible when creators can move from idea to output without losing momentum.

Oscar-winning filmmaker Spike Jonze, the creative brain behind Her, Being John Malkovich, and iconic music videos for everyone from Beastie Boys to Björk. A boundary dissolving storyteller who’s spent decades making machines feel human and humans feel surreal. Spike will be in conversation with Replit CEO, Amjad Masad, on June 17.

Turkish-American media artist Refik Anadol, a pioneer at the intersection of AI, data and architecture, will also take the stage with Replit President and Head of AI Michele Catasta. Anadol is also the co-founder of Dataland, the world’s first museum dedicated to AI art, opening in Los Angeles.

“When we founded Replit 10 years ago, I wanted it to be the platform where creatives could build anything they wanted without learning to code,” said Haya Odeh, co-founder and head of design at Replit.  “This summer’s vibecon is the culmination of that idea we had so many years ago – a space where creativity meets code building moments that inspire you, leave you in awe, and make your imagination go wild. Code truly is the new Creative”

Jonze and Anadol are joined by a host of creators on stage and around the event including.

Reshma Saujani Founder of Girls Who Code and Moms First, executive producer of No Country for Mothers, and TIME’s Women of the Year 2026. Her TED talk “Teach girls bravery, not perfection” has 54 million views and her decade-long fight for women’s economic empowerment from childcare, to paid leave, to equal pay, has made her one of the defining activist voices of her generation.

Paige Piskin, one of today’s most prolific AR creators, who has generated more than 400 billion impressions through effects and campaigns for Netflix, Coldplay and major beauty brands. Named a “legend” by VICE and an artistic “master” by Meta, Piskin will talk about how AR has changed what audiences feel when they look at a screen.

GMUNK, digital artist and director, whose psychedelic and atmospheric work spans installations, music videos, title sequences, immersive film and the iconic Windows 10 wallpaper seen by billions of people, will take over the main stage for a talk on switching artistic media in pursuit of creative discomfort.

vibecon will also bring Rhizome’s 7×7 to the stage. The long-running art and technology series pairs artists and technologists to create new work together. It is also the program through which Kevin McCoy developed Quantum, widely regarded as the first NFT artwork.

Vibecon will also feature Lucas Gelfond, the software engineer and writer reimagining the full stack of storytelling at A24 Labs; Karyn Nakamura, the Tokyo-born, MIT-trained artist and engineer probing the hidden infrastructures of perception; Debit, the composer, producer and DJ whose research-driven records and site-specific works have reached the Whitney and the Venice Biennale; and Saarim Zaman, the Dhaka-raised creative technologist and co-founder of ITM, building at the edges of culture and code.

Beyond the stage, vibecon’s installations and workshops will immerse attendees into new worlds they never thought possible.Tigris Li, artist, creative technologist and co-founder of consumer electronics company LYCHEE, is curating a real-time perfume experience that turns memories and AI conversations into a bespoke fragrance on site. LA-born new media artist Nate Mohler, founder of Projekt Blank, will lead a workshop and installation blending AI, memory and urban landscape. Artist Kyle McDonald, who works across machine learning, computer vision and social technology, will debut a new interactive installation that invites attendees to get weird with code.

Focusing on craft, create and connect, the event will feature four distinct zones of engagement:

Main Stage: A main platform for high-velocity talks, keynotes, and performances.The Forum + The Lab: An intimate space for hands-on sessions, live demos, and deep-dive discussion.Installations: Across the entire floor, AI powered art exhibits available for viewing.Event Details Dates: June 17–18, 2026Time: June 17: 11:00 AM – 7pm PM + June 18 11:00 AM – 8:00 PM
Location:  Canyon, 145 Delancy St, NYCTickets: vibecon.ai.

For more information, contact press@replit.com

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SOURCE Replit