HIE logo
The Hypergrid International Expo (called simply HIE for short) was first held on Craft grid back in 2017. The idea of a community conference where the talks are given in languages other than English presented many opportunities and many challenges.
This is an entirely inworld event. No real names are required, there is no charge to participate, no sponsors or VIPs, everyone donates their time and talent for free to make this event happen. The emphasis is less on the interface with real life projects, and more about the reality of day to day virtual life on the platform.
Mal Burns and Thirza Ember devised the weekend event, with sessions in French, German, Spanish and Italian. It gave those whose first language is not English the chance to share their knowledge of Opensim with the rest of the community. In the years since the first HIE event, we have had presenters from the USA, Austria, France, Canada, Portugal, Costa Rica, Germany, Venezuela, Italy, Spain, Argentina, Hungary, Belgium, and Brazil.
If you are reading this and thinking that it's not for you, since you do not speak the languages of the lecturers, we have got you covered. During the event, simultaneous subtitles are provided in Group Chat so that all can enjoy the presentations. If you wish to see us on Youtube after the event, and we have an extensive archive of these talks, you will also find auto-generated subtitles in your language of choice. As of 2025 HIE is located on HG Safari Grid on a purpose-built region and it has had talks in Italian, Portuguese, French, Spanish, and German, with subtitles provided during the talks in all these languages, plus English of course. In the future we hope to include more languages and subtitles to make the event truly global.
HIE Arrival
When you arrive on HIE, the 3x3 VAR region that houses the Hypergrid Interntaional Expo, you will find yourself in a small valley.
The main features of the region are a short walk away, but if you take a moment in this area to rez and get your bearings, you will also find some useful information here. There are Group Joiners for the subtitles in the languages of the conference. If you are an English speaker, you should join the English group. That way, during the conference, you will be able to read in real time the English subtitles for each of the talks, be they in French, German, Italian, or Spanish.
In the Arrival Area you will also find the Expo Directory. This is a list of all the booths set up in the Expo Park. They are randomly distributed across four color coded areas, and this mash-up of grids and projects is intentional because it makes the Expo more surprising and fun, but if you are looking for one specific booth, the color coordinated and alphabetically listed Expo Directory can help you to figure out in whch part of the park the booth you are looking for is located. There is also a quick Teleport to take you directly to the Auditorium if you are in a hurry.
HIE Expo Park
Alongside the two day conference event is a much larger, longer, and even more inclusive event - the Expo Park. Typically, the Expo Park is open to the public for a number of months before and after the conference, so you will have multiple opportunities to visit and explore. The Expo Park is filled with publicity booths built by Opensim residents of all kinds. They are set out in a sprawling woodland park. This has been a feature of the HIE from the very beginning. We wanted to make it possible for everyone to advertise their projects, groups, their home regions and their grids in an inclusive atmosphere away from commercialization. The random, winding pathways of the park give equal importance to all the booths, and the opportunity to be amazed by the creativity of our fellow Opensimmers.
Each year, several months before the conference, we begin setting up the Expo park, and this is announced on social media. Anyone who wishes to participate can obtain a modifiable copy of the basic booth. Then, on their home grid, they can organize the contents and decoration as they wish. Everything should be full permissions - the easiest way to do that is by putting the whole thing in a box. Then they submit their booth to the organizers, following the instructions on the website and Social Media, and it will be placed in the Expo Park.
A group visit to the booths in 2025
Lampithaler's 2025 booth
If you would like to participate in a future HIE event, it's very easy to do so. The basic booth is just a starting point. For those with little time or not a lot of building skills, it's the work of a few minutes to add some textures and some landmarks to the basic structure. For those with more building skills and artistic leanings, the basic booth can be modified and personalized, and each participant can add their information, with Landmarks, Notecards, websites, posters, and freebies - the last of these are usually the most popular with the public. As with the conference presentations the watchword here is Keep it Simple. Due to the size of the Expo (more than 120 booths were submitted for the 2025 event) it's important to keep them as low lag as possible, with few scripts and a modest number of textures and freebies.
HIE Auditorium
The Auditorium building is where we hold the two day HIE conference. It is designed to have a relaxed, clublike atmosphere rather than having the feel of a classroom or conference center. The signature blue and yellow colors reflect the original build from 2017, when Mal Burns developed and modified a single-sim build by Arielle Delamerlibre so that it would work over a four region setup.
The audience is seated at tables in groups of two, three or four, so you can sit with friends or make new acquaintances. Drinks are available on most tables, however, there are no bathrooms on the region, so please make your arrangments before attending.
When HIE began, the original build was on Craft-world Grid, on regions kindly donated by Licu Rau the grid owner. The auditorium was divided across four standard size sims, three for the audience and one for the stage, with the focus of the build at the central point where the four sims met. This solved some problems but created others, like issues when crossing from one sim to another.
On the new HIE region these sim crossings no longer exist, the whole build is on the same region. Just as with the original build, the Expo Park surrounds the auditorium, however here on HG Safari Grid, it surrounds the Auditorium area on all four sides.
The HIE conference is one weekend each year, and the date varies from year to year. It is typically made up of four 90 minute sessions held over two days, one session in each language, with music events to open and close the meetup. All told, there are usually about twenty people involved in speaking or performing at this live event, and that takes much preparation, patience, and planning.
Performance by Cherry Manga and MorlitaM at HIE 2025
Backstage at the Auditorium
The experiences of ordinary residents are at the heart of HIE. Presentations typically give us insight into the history of grids and projects being developed inworld. Some speakers choose to give us a glimpse into their philosophy of virtual living, or reveal their own personal development within virtual worlds, and how they have discovered talents, interests, and friendhips thanks to our global community. These are all valuable elements at the Hypergrid International Expo. It is meant to develop our ability to understand the people around us as well as the technology of the virtual platform.
The main event is a two day conference with art presentations as well as lectures. Since figurative art needs no words, these presentations are typically accompanied by music, not a speech. Among the artists who have performed at HIE over the years are Cherry Manga, Morlita M, CapCat Ragu, Rage Darkstone, Lampithaler Artist, Tutz Zabelin, Terra Merhyem, Bink Draconia, Tosha Tyran, and Velazquez Bonetto. Presenting art at an event like this is a challenge. It's all done in front of a live audience, and requires ingenuity and skill to come up with a presentation that is not overly complex or fragile and likely to break in the presence of lag. But the results can be absolutely captivating.
During the conference
Edu3D presentation during the 2025 Italian Session
HIE music zone
The Music Zone on HIE is where we hold the Opening and Closing events for the conference each year, and also where pre-event publicity tours tend to gather. The design of this part of the build recalls the very first Hypergrid International Expo when Arielle Delamerlibre of Phandoria Grid came up with a Steampunk theme for the build.
Musicians and DJs who have performed at HIE include DJ Marlon, Whirli Placebo, Zoree Jupiter, Khiron Ametza, Ouienanda, Forest Azure, Wolem Wobbit, Zeno Voxel, Joao Frazao, and DJ Arianna Nightfire. They have provided a truly global musical experience that rounded out the event in the international language of music and dance. You can see many videos of the performances on the HIE Youtube channel.
To learn more about past events and to stay informed about the next HIE, see the HIE website.
