Project - XRculture -- Reimagining Europe’s Cultural Legacy Through AI, 3D Digitization and Extended Reality

Overview

XRculture is a project supporting the deployment of the Common European Data Space for Cultural Heritage bringing together a dynamic network of cultural institutions, research centres, and technology providers from across Europe. Our collaborative approach bridges the gap between heritage and innovation, ensuring that cultural content is not only preserved, but transformed into accessible, interactive, and reusable digital experiences.

Through real-world use cases—ranging from heritage at risk to museum holograms and virtual learning—we demonstrate how digital tools can expand public access, deepen engagement, and empower institutions.

• Creating high-quality 3D models using cutting-edge AI tools like NeRF and Gaussian Splatting, particularly for challenging artefacts such as transparent, reflective, or textureless objects.
• Developing an open, standardised framework for managing and visualising 3D models across web and XR platforms.
• Designing immersive XR applications that support education, tourism, preservation, and outreach in the cultural heritage sector.

IN2 leads the use case on dispersed heritage and the communication and dissemination activities of the project. We explore how the latest MR hardware, such as Meta Quest 3, can be used to virtually reunite movable, immovable, and intangible cultural heritage. By seamlessly blending digital representations with physical environments, MR offers a powerful way to bridge historical and geographical divides. This exploration will show how MR can improve visitor engagement, support a deeper understanding of cultural heritage, and encourage a sense of global interconnectedness.

Alongside IN2, the project consortium includes the following organisations:

• Inception S.r.l, Italy (Coordinator)
• Fondazione Bruno Kessler, Italy
• Europeana Foundation, The Netherlands
• Arctur Racunalniski Inzeniring d.o.o., Slovenia
• RDF, Bulgaria
• Pixelated Realities, Ukraine
• Università Politecnica delle Marche, Italy
• Italian Ministry of Culture, Italy
• Talent S.A, Greece