WilhelmGerner Recruiter Access

Unity / VR / XR Software Developer

Wilhelm Gerner Building Virtual Worlds

Find out who I am, what I do and how I can assist you as a software developer. From real-time body tracking and VR animation tools to robotics interfaces and XR training systems — I turn ambitious XR ideas into working software.

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13+XR & game projects
2Degrees in VR / XR
8XR headsets shipped on
XR2ACH — multi-user VR training: avatars working together on a virtual compressor XR2ACH — Research Project Unity · XR Training · Hochschule Karlsruhe — 2025+

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Short on time? All the essential career info, compressed into a two-minute read — PDF included.

Quick profile: Unity/C# · VR/XR · research experience · based in Karlsruhe · direct contact.

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My Journey

From Cologne to a research lab

The stations that turned a passion for gaming and fantasy worlds into a career in VR and XR development — from the first lines of C# to XR research in Karlsruhe.

From the domestic nest of Cologne out into the world

My journey began in Cologne, my cherished hometown, with the desire to transform my passion for gaming and fantasy worlds into more than just a hobby. And if you believe in what you are doing, you can achieve great things. I embarked on a path that was unknown to me at this time, which has since evolved into a potentially global adventure.

Find out more about me, my values, and my attitude — and let's discover together how I can best assist you and your ideas to get the best value for you.

About me
Wilhelm Gerner in his hometown Cologne

Bachelor of Science in "Virtuelle Realitäten" in Heidelberg

After high school, I headed to the renowned and charming city of Heidelberg along with its university SRH. There, I acquired all the essential foundations in C# programming and VR development, as well as I took my first steps in Unity. My time in Heidelberg was wonderful and provided the perfect kickoff for my career.

Bachelor Projects
SRH Hochschule Heidelberg — SRH Tower / Science Park

From south to north: Master of Science in "Digital Reality" at Hamburg

After earning my Bachelor's degree, I decided to switch to the well-known HAW University of Applied Sciences in Hamburg, located in the northern part of Germany.

We all have our strengths, and I honed mine during my Master's in Digital Reality. With my assistance, you can focus more on your strengths. Take a look at the projects that shaped my time in Hamburg.

Master Projects
HAW Hamburg — Finkenau Campus

After the Master: research becomes reality

Since February 2025 I have been academic staff at Hochschule Karlsruhe. On the XR2ACH research project I build XR training environments that prepare real technicians for real machines.

The academic career really doesn't seem to want to get rid of me — and this time, I'm perfectly fine with it.

Explore XR2ACH
XR2ACH — leak detection training inside the virtual garage

Chapter 2025

After the Master: The heat pump doesn’t have a technology problem

  • Hochschule Karlsruhe
  • Academic Staff
  • Feb 2025 — end of 2027
  • XR2ACH
  • InnoVET PLUS

It has a people problem. The technology works and the demand is there — what is missing are the people who install, charge and service heat pumps and refrigeration systems. The trade needs roughly three times the skilled workers it currently has. And the craft can only be learned on real equipment, of which a workshop holds exactly one.

That is where XR2ACH comes in, the InnoVET PLUS project I have been working on as academic staff at Hochschule Karlsruhe since February 2025. In the virtual workshop the system exists as often as there are apprentices — the first large-group tests in Leonberg had sixteen of them inside it at once. A leak that would be expensive and delicate in reality turns into a task: identify the refrigerant, find the faults, get feedback, start over.

The trick isn’t the headset, it is how closely the virtual system copies the real training rig standing in the lab next door. What sticks in the simulation sticks on the metal. Until the end of 2027 I am helping build it: Unity, multi-user, haptic feedback, and the unglamorous detail work that turns a demo into a tool.

Explore XR2ACH
XR2ACH — multi-user VR training on a virtual compressor

Project Gateway

Entering the project space

Every project below is a station on the same journey: from first Unity experiments through award-winning VR prototypes to research-grade XR training systems. Step through.

My Portfolio

Selected projects

Three highlights from my work — from my master's thesis on VR animation to an award-winning shopping mall simulator.

Master's Thesis

AnimVRig 2.0

Unity Animation Tool based on Unity Movement SDK for Quest 3

AnimVRig 2.0 is a Unity VR animation tool that adapts rigged objects to movement using real-time body tracking. It combines the Unity Movement Package with the GameObjectRecorder to make animation adjustments directly in VR.

Show project
AnimVRig 2.0 — VR animation tool with real-time body tracking in Unity

Master Project

Japan Quest

VR Educational Language Learning Game

Japan Quest combines a VR learning game with my interest in the Japanese language. I used it to explore Hurricane VR, Unity animation and quest-system architecture while turning language practice into an interactive experience.

Show project
Japan Quest — VR language learning game with anime-style world design

Award-Winning Bachelor Project

VRHorizon

Infinite walking through a 639 m² virtual shopping mall

VRHorizon is an award-winning shopping mall simulator developed with five team members as our final bachelor project. It lets players explore 639 m² of virtual space within a physical tracking area of just 5 × 5 meters.

Presented at CHI PLAY '20: The Annual Symposium on Computer-Human Interaction in Play.

Show project
VRHorizon — virtual shopping mall simulator with infinite walking

More Work

Explore all projects

All Bachelor Projects All Master Projects

Other Informations

Research, industry & community

XR2ACH — multi-user VR training session with avatars around a virtual compressor

XR2ACH — Hochschule Karlsruhe

My current chapter: as academic staff I develop immersive XR learning environments for refrigeration, air conditioning and heat pump technology — from singleplayer world building to training logic.

Read more →
Fraunhofer CML — VR interface development for the Boston Dynamics Spot robot

Fraunhofer CML

During my Master's degree, I had the honor of working as a student assistant at the Fraunhofer Institute — Unity3D and XR development, hand tracking and a VR interface for Boston Dynamics' Spot robot.

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Airbus Defence and Space — Mixed Reality development with Microsoft HoloLens

6-Month Internship — Airbus Defence and Space

I completed my Bachelor's degree with an internship at Airbus. I had the chance to work with the Lenovo Explorer and the HoloLens. Due to company policies and confidentiality agreements, I am unable to provide further details.

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Meta x nextReality.Hamburg Hackathon 2024 — XR V-Commerce prototype on Meta Quest 3

Meta x nextReality.Hamburg e.V. Hackathon (2024)

An enterprise V-Commerce prototype for the Deutsche Telekom challenge on Meta Quest 3: the user takes on the role of a salesperson in a Telekom store and serves virtual customers.

Read more →

> vibe_coding --with architecture

The age of pure clockwork is over. I treat AI as an amplifier, not a replacement — generated code still needs someone who understands, steers and architects it.

Read my full take on AI & Vibe Coding →

Signal detected

Something is building in the background

Private Projects are where my technical curiosity leaves the academic roadmap and starts exploring its own direction — at the intersection of XR, AI, robotics, nature and movement.

Enter the space →

Let's build something in XR together

Whether it's Unity development, VR animation, body tracking or robotics interfaces — I'm happy to hear about your project.

Contact me