Dr. Valorie Jones

Dr. Valorie Jones has 20+ years of experience creating digital humans for visual effects, cultural heritage, and oral history. She helped develop the Academy Award winning Lightstage devices at USC Institute for Creative Technologies, contributing photoreal characters to over 15 feature films and games, including “Avatar” and “BladeRunner 2049.” Her proudest work is applying 3D capture and AI to preserve 16 interactive Holocaust testimonies for museums in Dimensions in Testimony. At StoryFile, Dr. Jones continues to believe that AI can make us better communicators and creators while still being true to our authentic selves. She is the author of 22 academic publications and 5 patents in 3D rendering, displays, and artificial intelligence.

Dr. Valorie Jones will be speaking at the Digital Exhibitions Summit 2026 :

When History Talks Back

What happens when AI meets real human stories? This session explores how museums can use artificial intelligence to create deeply personal, interactive exhibitions—without sacrificing authenticity. Featuring award-winning installations from the National Medal of Honor Museum and The National WWII Museum, you’ll see how visitors can hold conversations with real veterans and historical figures. Learn why retrieval-based AI creates more meaningful engagement than generative chatbots alone, and how hybrid AI systems can guide visitors, support group experiences, and dramatically increase engagement—while preserving the integrity of lived experience.