27 - 29 January 2025
San Francisco, California, US
Winners of the 2023 Challenge

SPIE AR | VR | MR Student Optical Design Challenge

Calling all aspiring optical designers for AR-VR-MR!

Get ready to showcase your skills at the SPIE Student Optical Design Challenge 2025, held during the SPIE AR|VR|MR conference in San Francisco. 

Benefits of participating  |  Cash prizes  |  Eligibility + Requirements  |  View 2024 winners

Upcoming dates

12 December: Submission deadline
29 January: Winners announced onsite

Apply Now

This is your chance to shine: benefits of participating


Solve real-world AR-VR-MR challenges

Your design could revolutionize next generation display, imaging, or sensing technologies in this field.

Impress industry giants

Present to a jury of experts from leading AR-VR-MR companies. Network. Land your dream job. Get featured in Photonic Focus magazine.

Win cash prizes and gain international recognition

Earn bragging rights and be recognized as one of the top students in optical design for AR-VR-MR.

Hone your presentation skills

Craft a compelling 3-minute pitch that captivates the audience and demonstrates your technical prowess.

Prizes awarded


Thanks to generous sponsorship, the top three participants will receive monetary prizes. The award ceremony will take place on the Main Stage of SPIE AR | VR | MR, 29 January 2024.

Monetary prizes will be awarded as follows:

1st: $3,000

2nd: $1,500

3rd: $750-$1,250

Eligibility + Requirements


Who can apply? The presenter must be a full time registered student, working in academia or in a research institution, or working as an intern in enterprise, industry or defense sectors, including undergraduates and graduates.  Additional contributors can be from academia or industry.

Do I need to write an SPIE proceeding paper? No. But you will be required to submit a one pager summarizing the result of your work by 15 January 2025.

Do I need to be physically present at the show? Yes. A complementary Student SPIE attendee badge for AR|VR|MR will be provided to each finalist student based on the January one pager. Each student will give a 3-minute pitch on stage to a jury composed of the main industries in the field of AR|VR|MR.

How to apply: Submit your abstract by 12 December 2024. Enter:

  1. Your academic affiliation, including location (US, Europe, Asia, or other)
  2. The challenge you are taking on (display, imaging, sensors, or other)
  3. The targeted hardware platform (AR, VR, MR, smart glasses, or other)
  4. A short abstract of your intended work (3-5 sentences).

Congratulations to the 2024 Student Optical Design Challenge Winners


Prize Speaker/Author Affiliation
Winner, 1st Place Zhenyi Luo CREOL, The College of Optics and Photonics, Univ. of Central Florida
2nd Place Wan-Pin Tsai National Taiwan Univ. of Science and Technology
3rd Place Yuqiang Ding Univ. of Central Florida