PhD/PostDoc Openings-XR/Haptics/HCI-EU Project – Inria Rennes, France

In the context of recently accepted EU Horizon Europe project that we are coordinating, we have one postdoc and two PhD openings on research fields related to XR, Haptics, and HCI. The recruited candidates will integrate the Seamless team at the Inria Center of Rennes University (https://team.inria.fr/seamless/). Here is the short description with the application link.

PhD 1 - Multimodal Reconstruction and Inference: The candidate will conduct research on methods for capturing multimodal information from physical environments in real time. This includes leveraging advanced techniques to infer scene properties such as location, object detection, and tactile characteristics from captured data. The work will explore the integration of foundation models to enhance scene understanding and enrich representations with multimodal information, addressing the balance between realism and plausibility.

https://jobs.inria.fr/public/classic/fr/offres/2026-10355

PhD 2 - Haptic and Tactile Rendering for Teleoperation: The candidate will design and evaluate haptic interfaces and algorithms to enable spatialized tactile rendering in extended reality. This could involve the creation of modular, lightweight wearable actuators that combine vibrotactile, force-feedback, and skin-stretch mechanisms. Alternatively, cross-modal rendering techniques will be employed to compensate for hardware limitations, and adaptive encoding schemes will balance sensory fidelity with user cognitive load. Effectiveness will be evaluated through quantitative metrics and qualitative user studies.

https://jobs.inria.fr/public/classic/fr/offres/2026-10367

PostDoc – We are seeking a highly motivated candidate, expert in one of the two above topics. The postdoc will co-supervise the PhD students on the topic, providing mentorship and technical guidance to ensure alignment with the project’s goals.

https://jobs.inria.fr/public/classic/fr/offres/2026-10362

Inquiries have to be sent directly through the recruitment portal, and interviews will be scheduled by the end of August.

Ferran Argelaguet

Inria Research Scientist (CRCN)

Head of the Seamless research team