Described in a news release, the studio includes a 20-foot-wide by 12-foot-tall 4K LED wall, teleprompters, cinematic cameras and a cyclorama, or concave green screen. The goal is to give educators working for Stanford Online, the university's online learning portal, a space for live video calls, producing educational videos and creating immersive AI-powered learning experiences for remote students. According to the news release, the facility will allow instructors to merge live-action footage with digital elements in real time.
“This studio will enable us to create more immersive learning experiences, which we will pair with the evolution in AI to develop personalization in learning on a global scale,” Carissa Little, associate dean of the Stanford Engineering Center for Global and Online Education, said in a public statement.
For example, in a video accompanying the announcement, bioengineering professor Markus Covert used the LED wall to show a detailed representation of a cell, discussing the different layers of the cell as they appeared on the screen.
“Being able to represent cells in this way really opens up a lot of learning opportunities to really be able to see how busy it is, how crowded it is, how much is going on,” Covert said in the video.
In another case, the cameras captured a magnetic milli-spinner, a device just a few millimeters in size that professor Renee Zhao created to move through blood vessels and treat aneurisms.
Behind the scenes of the student feed, the news release said, a control room offers real-time video monitoring, audio mixing and graphics.
The studio is part of Stanford Online's 30-year anniversary celebration and the latest in a series of technological investments to support the 375 credential programs it offers. Others included the launch of digital credentials in 2023 and a 24/7 online chatbot in 2025.
“Stanford Online is the culmination of decades of experimentation and research at Stanford University in the education and online learning space, bringing to life the ability for the institution to teach learners around the world,” Little said in a public statement.
