CAREER: Situated Visual Augmentation for Human-AI Complementarity in Physical Spaces

NSF Award Search · 01003031DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT · $682,882 · view on nsf.gov ↗

Abstract

Artificial intelligence (AI) is becoming a powerful tool for helping people make decisions, but most AI systems still deliver advice on desktop screens. This is a poor fit for people working in physical environments, such as surgeons, facility teams, first responders, and coaches. Augmented reality (AR) can place AI guidance directly into these settings, but simply moving information off a screen is not enough. In these settings, people must divide attention among the environment, movement, and the task itself, which can lead them to accept or reject AI advice too readily. This award develops adaptive AR interfaces that help people engage with AI more deliberately in real time while avoiding unnecessary disruption to the physical task. By improving how people and AI work together in real-world context, the project can support safer, more accurate, and more accountable decision-making in settings where errors are costly. The project will also train students in spatial computing, create open tools and learning materials, and broaden participation through courses, tutorials, and workshops. This award studies how adaptive situated visualizations in AR shape appropriate reliance on AI during decision-making tasks. The research will first conduct controlled experiments to identify which visual design choices, such as placement, visual prominence, lighting consistency, proximity, and scale, encourage overly fast judgments or more deliberate reasoning. It will then use these findi

Key facts

NSF award ID
2543054
Awardee
University of Minnesota-Twin Cities (MN)
SAM.gov UEI
KABJZBBJ4B54
PI
Zhutian Chen
Primary program
01003031DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT
All programs
Artificial Intelligence (AI), CAREER-Faculty Erly Career Dev, Cyber-Human Systems, GRADUATE INVOLVEMENT
Estimated total
$682,882
Funds obligated
$400,118
Transaction type
Continuing Grant
Period
06/15/2026 → 05/31/2031