Distributed Presence in Buildings (PhD)

Date of publication: March 19th, 2026 ; I&I research group (Prof. Denis Lalanne)

This PhD investigates how buildings can become active mediators of distributed human presence — moving beyond screens as mere substitutes for co-location toward genuine, embodied presence across space. The research will design multimodal architectures that operate across three dimensions: (1) presence gradation, from ambient awareness to high-fidelity immersion; (2) spatial anchoring, from portable personal artifacts to large-scale shared installations; and (3) AI mediation, from minimal to active facilitation of attention and mutual understanding. Design studies and in-the-wild deployments will explore configurations ranging from foldable personal presence kits to lab-to-lab wall portals, examining how fluid transitions between nomadic and co-present occupants can be supported while preserving privacy and user agency. Expected outcomes: Nomadic and multimodal prototypes, controlled and in-the-wild user studies, and publications in venues such as CHI, CSCW, TOCHI, and TEI.

Profile sought: CS or Engineering background with strong HCI orientation and advanced prototyping skills (wearables, sensors, interactive displays) — a Maker-type HCI researcher.

The project is embedded in a collaborative network spanning the Smart Living Lab (with EPFL) and international partners in the US and Japan.

Start: as soon as possible. Applications reviewed from April 1st, 2026.

Location: I&I research group, Human-IST Institute, University of Fribourg, Switzerland — with Prof. Dr. Denis Lalanne, Website: https://lalanne.human-ist.ch

Application: Upload a single PDF (containing motivation letter, CV, publication list, selected publications) named PhD_Presence_YYMMDD_YourName.pdf to https://drive.switch.ch/index.php/s/ccZJP6b6umrkEJj (password: Humans_are_Best_2026!!), then send a brief notification to denis.lalanne(AT)unifr.ch. Only applications with a single PDF file as requested submitted via the link will be considered; applications sent by email will not be accepted.