Photo credit: Alelo http://alelo.com
Alelo, a Los Angeles-based technology firm born out of a research project at the University of Southern California, has expanded to the East Coast with an office in Suffolk. It hopes to grow its client base and immerse itself in the modeling and simulation community in Hampton Roads.
The company was founded in 2004 with the help of research funding from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) at USC to develop game-based simulations that help users learn foreign languages and immerse themselves in a simulated version of the foreign culture to learn how to use the language in social interactions.
The technology lends itself well to some of the current foreign conflicts, Iraq and Afghanistan, for example, places where language and customs are not easily taught.
“You want to teach language and culture together,” said Andre Valente, co-founder and CEO. “You can know the words but if you don’t know when to say them you can create enemies as opposed to friends. We want to immerse you in a situation that’s as close as possible to what you are going to do.”
The military has continued to take notice of Alelo’s products, a big reason why the company chose to open its first East Coast office in Hampton Roads at the Virginia Modeling, Analysis and Simulation Center (VMASC) in Suffolk. Its local clients include the U.S. Joint Forces Command and the Navy Expeditionary Combat Command.
The company also does work with the Australian Defense Force, the United Kingdom Ministry of Defense and Norway and is pursuing others.
Its simulation capabilities are consistent with the emerging M&S industry, which aims to cut costs associated with personnel and infrastructure by using virtual training.
includes excerpts by Michael Schwartz, Inside Business