Independent research using VirtualSpeech
Universities across ten countries have run studies using our platform and published the results. We didn't commission any of them, we don't review findings before publication, and the criticism is listed alongside the praise.
2021–2026
published between
10
countries
12+
published studies naming the platform
The strongest evidence we have
Two studies with control groups and statistical tests. Everything else on this page is smaller, qualitative, or both.
Randomised controlled trial · 50 adult learners
Exploring adult learners' experience with VR-generated feedback for improving online presentation
Quek Choon Lang, Tan Seng Chee & Kenneth Y. T. Lim · Nanyang Technological University · ASCILITE 2022, University of Sydney · doi.org/10.14742/apubs.2022.145
A randomised, single-blinded two-group pre-test/post-test study in Singapore. Fifty adult participants presented three times; the VR group received VirtualSpeech's automated feedback, the control group received computer and human feedback. Listenability was scored by the system at each stage.
8.56
VR group listenability, final stage
2.56
control group, same stage
p < 0.05
significant difference between groups
The authors are explicit about the limits: at 25 per group the sample is too small to generalise.
Pre/post study · six-week deployment · US college
The Virtual Stage: virtual reality integration in effective speaking courses
Adam Patterson (University of Connecticut), Cathy Temple, Nikki Anderson, Chris Rogalski & Kevin Mentzer (Nichols College) · Information Systems Education Journal 23(4), 57–68, July 2025 · doi.org/10.62273/IMLU5983
Students on a required Effective Speaking course took Meta Quest 2 headsets home for six weeks with VirtualSpeech installed. All platform use was voluntary and ungraded. Pre- and post-surveys were analysed with a Wilcoxon signed-rank test.
p = 0.026
significant drop in speaking anxiety
p = 0.033
significant rise in confidence
4.5 hrs
average voluntary use per student
Fifteen students completed both surveys, there was no control group, and the authors note likely response bias. The 4.5 hours is worth noting on its own: nothing was assigned or graded, and students used it anyway. Funded by a US Department of Education grant.
Course integration and classroom studies
How institutions have built the platform into taught courses, and what students reported.
Journal article
Virtual reality in marketing education: experiences, challenges, and the development of the 3E framework for presentation skills training
Ilia Gugenishvili, Nia Chunashvili & Anna-Greta Nyström · Åbo Akademi University, Finland · Journal of Marketing Education, published online 23 January 2026 · doi.org/10.1080/10528008.2026.2621017
The only study here that asks faculty as well as students. Eleven marketing students each completed a 90-minute session in the university's VR lab before presenting their marketing plans to a seminar of peers, faculty and industry guests; 21 teachers across marketing, law and accounting were trained and then interviewed. Participants valued lower anxiety, repeatable practice and real-time objective feedback. Reported challenges: physical discomfort, technical problems, limited access, and a lack of tailored content.
The authors state why they chose the platform: one of the few built specifically for soft skills training, and practical and scalable compared with research-grade platforms requiring custom development. Their 3E framework — experience, evaluate, excel — is drawn from the study.
Named in method - Faculty perspectives - Presentation skills - Anxiety
Journal article
Undergraduate students' perspectives of virtual reality applications in an intercultural communication course
Haixia Liu · Grand Valley State University · Intercultural Communication Studies 34(1), 4 (2025) · doi.org/10.53941/ics.2025.100004
Forty-eight students compared three VR applications on Meta Quest 3. VirtualSpeech scored highest of the three for internal reliability (Cronbach's α = 0.89) and rated at or above 4.0 on every measure: confidence with diverse audiences 4.3, effectiveness of feedback 4.3, and adapting to multicultural audiences 4.4, which 100% of participants agreed with.
Named in method - Comparative study - Public speaking - Confidence
Journal article
Virtual reality software as preparation tools for oral presentations: perceptions from the classroom
Mohamed J. Alsaffar · Saint Michael's College · Theory and Practice in Language Studies 11(10), 1146–1160 (2021) · doi.org/10.17507/tpls.1110.02
A qualitative case study of international Academic English Program students and their instructor, using learning logs, surveys, one-to-one interviews and observation of live presentations. All participants recommended the platform as a preparation tool, and most reported higher confidence speaking English afterwards. VirtualSpeech is a listed keyword on the paper.
Named in method - Language learning - Presentation skills
Journal article
Virtual reality integration in psychology education: a systemic approach to meaningful learning
Cecilia M. Drach & Marcelo R. Ceberio · Universidad Argentina de la Empresa / Escuela Sistémica Argentina · Journal of Psychosocial Systems · doi.org/10.23823/v67rjr80
Students on a Group Dynamics course interviewed an avatar representing the psychoanalyst Enrique Pichon-Rivière, built in VirtualSpeech. Reported increased motivation and better understanding of key concepts. The authors also flag real constraints: technology access and the need for teacher training.
Named in method - Higher education teaching - Custom scenario
Journal article
"Another arrow in the quiver": student perceptions of integrating virtual reality into the public speaking course
Samuel Allen, B. F. Batista, Lily Zhang & Kaitlyn Haynal · Communication Education 74(1), 27–51 (2025)
A semester-long integration into a college public speaking course, with students completing four structured practice sessions: orientation, group informative, individual informative and persuasive speech. Published in a leading communication education journal.
Named in method - Higher education teaching - Public speaking
Journal article
Educational innovation in engineering: integrating virtual reality and artificial intelligence in first-year student training
Jorge Alvarez, Fernando De Lima Caneppele, Roberto Gómez Tobias, Cristian Segura-Dominguez, Miriam Navarrete-Bear & Jorge Hidalgo · IEEE · 2025
A four-week module for first-year engineering students combined a separate VR simulation with VirtualSpeech for AI-based communication practice. Students reported high immersion and acceptance, and the authors recommend wider use. Useful as evidence that the platform fits technical disciplines, not only communication courses.
Named in method - Engineering education
Clinical, language and methodological work
Journal article
Virtual reality: a viable strategy for public speaking anxiety in university students and graduates
Gabriela P. Ayala-Almarza, Vanetza Quezada-Scholz, María Consuelo San Martín & Mario A. Laborda · University of Chile and University of the Andes · Iberoamerican Journal of Psychology and Public Policy 3(1), January 2026 · doi.org/10.56754/2810-6598.2026.0044
Two single-group pre-test/post-test studies of a brief VR exposure therapy protocol, one delivered in person over five sessions (n = 9) and one remotely over six to eight sessions (n = 5). Both showed significant reductions in negative self-verbalizations and significant improvements in public speaking confidence; the remote study had full adherence and a clinically significant decrease on two CORE-OM subscales. The only clinical protocol in the set.
Named in method - Clinical - Anxiety
Journal article
Speak like a pro: boosting language proficiency, engagement, and reducing anxiety in virtual reality through innovative media transition with MondlyVR and VirtualSpeech
H. Shafiee Rad · Learning: Research and Practice (2024)
Language learners used VirtualSpeech alongside a second platform, with reported gains in proficiency and engagement and reduced anxiety. Because two tools were used, the effect can't be attributed to ours alone.
Named in method - Language learning - Anxiety
Journal article
Developing soft communication skills with virtual reality and artificial intelligence
Leon Bohinc & Igor Perko, 2026
A methodological framework for studying soft communication skills, built around a pre-test/post-test experiment using two VirtualSpeech simulations. Notable for combining the platform's AI-generated behavioural metrics with surveys and transcript analysis — researchers treating the scored data as a research instrument rather than just a training output.
Named in method - Research method
Master's Thesis
Improving interview skills through virtual reality with behavior skills training for students with disabilities
G. DuBois · University of South Florida (2023)
Vocational training research combining VirtualSpeech with behavioural skills training to help students with disabilities develop and generalise interview skills.
Named in method - Employability - Accessibility
Conference Paper
Learning with virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR)
Maria Jorge Azevedo & Ana Amélia A. Carvalho · University of Coimbra · ICLEL 2023, Atlantis Highlights in Social Sciences, Education and Humanities 17, 118–127 · doi.org/10.2991/978-94-6463-380-1_11
A review of three digital tools in higher education, with VirtualSpeech as one of three case studies alongside Harvard's Giza 3D and MoleculARweb. Describes the real-time feedback on pacing, eye contact and loudness as freeing educators to focus their own feedback on curriculum content.
Named as case study - Review
Peer-Reviewed Teaching Case
VirtualSpeech: harnessing virtual reality for soft skills development
Ilia Gugenishvili & Nia Chunashvili · Åbo Akademi University School of Business and Economics · SAGE Business Cases Originals, 15 January 2026 · ISBN 9781071906507
A teaching case following the founders and the company's growth, written for business school classrooms - students analyse the business model, sustainable growth, data protection, and scepticism about VR training. It is evidence that the company is studied, not that the product works, so it sits in its own category. Worth noting separately that business schools now teach VirtualSpeech as a case.
About the company - Business school teaching case
See it with a conversation your teams actually have
Tell us what your people find hardest and we'll build it into a scenario on the call - then show you the feedback a learner gets and the data you'd see as an admin.
What happens on the call
Discuss your training goals
Customize learning live on the call
Rollout options and pricing
We reply within one working day.