How David Zielinski Brings Extended Reality to Life at Duke

As an augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) specialist at Duke, David Zielinski often finds himself in the middle of a lot of activity around the university — which is exactly where he likes to be. 

Whether he’s developing unique VR experiences, performing outreach to increase exposure to the technology, or mentoring student workers, Zielinski believes in the potential of extended reality (XR) to have an impact.

A Career Built on Curiosity and Code

Zielinski’s path started studying computer science at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, where a course on virtual reality sparked a shift in his focus. After graduate school, he landed at Duke’s Pratt School of Engineering to help operate the Duke immersive Virtual Environment (DiVE), splitting his days between hardware upkeep and developing custom VR environments.

Later, he moved to Duke’s Art, Art History, and Visual Studies https://aahvs.duke.edu/ using drones, LiDAR, and photogrammetry to capture castles, churches, and other heritage sites for immersive tours. Today, his appointment is split — 75 percent with Duke’s Office of Information Technology and 25 percent with AAHVS — but the common thread remains: building XR experiences that illuminate complex subjects.

Collaboration Keeps Him Engaged

Zielinski’s work is as varied as his background, collaborating with faculty and mentoring students to develop virtual reality experiences. Each has its own value and keeps him motivated differently. 

Working with faculty who have devoted their lives to very specific topics lets him dive into fields as varied as blood-flow physics and digital cartography.

“That’s one of the big perks of being in the position that I’m in,” he says. “It’s like the grown-up version of Mr. Rogers, where I get to learn something new from people who are super excited about what they do. Every project drops me into a new world.” 

Every project drops me into a new world.

Zielinski helps them realize ideas they couldn’t build alone. By translating complex research into immersive simulations, he gives faculty new tools to understand and communicate their work — and in the process, expands his own knowledge.

Just as important is mentoring the student developers who help him bring many of these projects to life. “One of the things that’s really important to me now is making sure that we’re building the next generation,” he says. 

Most students stay with the lab for one or two years, contributing directly to prototypes and often moving on to internships or XR roles in industry. “It always makes me happy to see people that I’ve inspired go off and do great things,” Zielinski says.

Zielinski also carves out time to write code himself. “That’s what I came up on, and I still claw out time to do development. Even though I’ve got other responsibilities, I like to be working on at least one project directly, because that’s the stuff that gets me excited.”

Transforming Research Through XR: Two Examples

Zielinski’s role in two recent healthcare-related projects at Duke shows how XR can translate ideas into real-world prototypes.

On the AI-powered VR nursing simulation project, Duke Health Nursing faculty members Kimberly Costan and Alhagie Sam approached Zielinski with a concept and seed funding. They were looking to create a virtual patient who could help train learners in de-escalation techniques. Zielinski’s student team built a proof-of-concept where users interact with an emotionally responsive avatar driven by a large language model. 

“We were able to develop a proof-of-concept that impressed the School of Nursing enough that they’re now applying for additional funding and thinking about how to build it out into a full training product,” Zielinski says. 

He also worked with Duke Center for Computational and Digital Health Innovation director Amanda Randles on her lab’s blood flow animation project. Her team had dense voxel data visualizing pressure and velocity in simulated blood vessels — but it was too much to display in real-time on a VR headset. Zielinski’s team, in collaboration with Augustus Wendell from the Randles Lab, developed a process to convert the data into textured mesh animations that now run on modern devices like the Apple Vision Pro. A version can be viewed in a Meta Quest at the Center’s display in the lobby of the Duke Karsh Alumni Center.

“David’s ability to take complex, high-fidelity scientific data and make it interactive and intuitive is game-changing,” says Dr. Randles. “His work allows us to transform abstract simulations into experiences that clinicians, researchers, and students can step inside — opening entirely new ways to visualize, understand, and act on health data.”

Improving Healthcare Through XR

Beyond those examples, Zielinski sees huge potential for VR in healthcare. One idea in development is a rhythm-based VR game to support occupational therapy, turning repetitive movement exercises into something patients might actually enjoy.

Patient education is another area in which Zielinski sees great opportunity. He’s talked about the idea of creating a bandage-changing training module in VR. Rather than sending patients home with a handout or video, they could use a headset to practice proper care in a guided, immersive environment.

Both concepts reflect his broader vision for XR in healthcare: making complex experiences more intuitive, engaging, and effective. “We’ve only scratched the surface,” he says.