Designers in the themed entertainment industry have long envisioned standalone theaters that would bring the kind of high impact video experiences seen at world’s fair or in theme parks to a local city block.
It’s not a surprise that such a breakthrough would come from a company with a pedigree in planetariums, deep relationships in the sports world, and venture capital backing. These players came together in an unlikely time, starting in 2020 to investment in immersive extended reality buildings that would bring marquee sports and other out of home events to a larger-than-life canvas.
But the roots of Cosm go much farther back in large format and immersive video through the threads of its seed companies, especially Spitz and Evans & Sutherland.
In 1947, Armand Spitz built his first opto-mechanical star projector. The unique dodecahedron-shaped star projector became a mainstay in planetariums for many decades, with hundreds of installations in US schools during the space race of the ‘60s and ‘70s.
In 1963, graphics pioneer Ivan Sutherland invented his groundbreaking “Sketchpad” an artistic computer graphics tool. Five years later, he built the first VR headset, “Sword of Damocles”, paving the way for virtual technologies. Dave Evans & Ivan Sutherland founded the Computer Science School at the University of Utah and formed Evans & Sutherland in Salt Lake City. This became the nexus for computer graphics innovation for decades and many great innovators got their start here.
In 1981, E&S brought its history of flight simulation to an idea they called Digistar that would revolutionize planetarium shows to this day. They used calligraphic projectors, designed to recreate runway lights, pointed them up at a projection surface, and created the world’s first digital 3D planetarium. Digistar 7 is the latest version of this software and was released in 2020.
In 2006, Spitz and E&S came together as a single company to further the art and science of dome engineering, software, and real-time rendering.
Meanwhile, on a separate track, another team of industry leaders with deep experience in sports and live immersive broadcast out of Fox Sports and LiveLikeVR became Cosm Immersive. This team produced Super Bowl LI and Fifa World Cup 2018 among others.
In 2020 all these threads came together, as Evans & Sutherland/Spitz and Cosm Immersive becamse Cosm Inc, as an affiliate of Mirasol Capital.
Armed with decades of broad expertise, industry relationships, and investment resources, the team took their big out of home plans and headed into Covid. In 2022, NBC tapped Cosm to provide ultra-high resolution immersive 8K streaming feeds for its virtual reality coverage of the XXIV Olympic Winter Games, from Beijing, China, that February. In November 2022 for the FIFA World Cup, Cosm Immersive produced and distributed a Semifinal and the Final for Pico/ ByteDance in live, immersive 8K.
In 2023, Cosm acquired immersive sports and broadcasting company C360, and in 2024, Cosm debuted their first large format purpose-built shared reality venues in Hollywood, between SoFi Stadium and Intuit Dome and at Grandscape, in The Colony, outside of Dallas, TX. Plans are underway for venues in Atlanta and Detroit.
Today, the company still makes its mark on planetariums, and partners with the biggest leagues in sports including the NBA, NFL, NHL, UFC, WWE, PGA, PBR bull riding, pro surfing, and more, presenting out-of-home interactive fan experiences in “shared reality.” In March, a partnership with Warner Bros. brought The Matrix to life in an immersive experience that the press described as a mini-Sphere, after it’s resemblance to the Las Vegas Sphere. Cirque du Soleil’s “O” gets the immersive treatment.
In what Cosm called a ‘shared reality,’ the matches, games, and films are shown on an 87- foot LED screen. It looks and feels as if you are at the stadium watching the event. And these are no cheap seats, you are field side, behind the net or in the end zone. The technology is known as “the dome” and is powered by Pro AV tech like the Unreal Engine on a 9,600-square-foot fine-pitch display that wraps completely around the audience from the ceiling to the floor. Cosm has its own cameras at the events as well.
The Technology
Cosm’s CX System is an end-to-end LED dome display, software, and content solution, available in a vertical, partial dome, overhead, or tilted dome. The company describes these as the “world’s first true black domes”. Its matte-black surface minimizes cross-reflections, enhancing realism and making audiences feel fully present. This advanced LED dome ensures exceptional resolution, brightness, and contrast, offering long-lasting reliability for your content. Cosm’s Shared Reality software enables you to design and manage a range of immersive experiences, from live, interactive events to complex scientific simulations. CX Engine is a versatile tool for creating interactive experiences. It integrates multichannel video, Unreal Engine, and realtime content, to smoothly manage multichannel immersive video. For applications that use Digistar, its Unreal Engine integration can transport audiences to historical landmarks, engage them with interactive content, and deliver dynamic educational experiences. This integration leverages Digistar’s top-tier synchronization and distributed computing power for smooth playback of complex Unreal projects. A rich library of media is available from astronomical models and datasets sourced from throughout the Digistar community, to a catalog of immersive films, shows, and customizable templated content. Cosm also does original content.
The company’s Digistar technology supports 72-bit processing. NanoSeam screens have no overlaps or crimps and have color-matched rivets.
The Media
Cosm Media comprises Cosm Studios, Cosm Immersive, and C360. Cosm Studios provides full dome films and custom content. Cosm Immersive partners with broadcasters on major events to deliver live and on-demand videos that transport viewers as if they were physically present. Cosm’s immersive content production and distribution division blends the virtual and physical worlds into ‘Shared Reality’ experiences. Cosm Immersive does fixed installations designed for leagues and teams. These installations empower our partners to provide customized live and replay controls. C360 brings sports moments to life with 10.5K ultra-high resolution video capture technology. Powered by Emmy-nominated technology, C360 transforms how content is captured and delivered. Built for the pace of live production, it delivers immersive live coverage, cinematic replays, and game-defining moments.
The Venues
In addition to their work for planetariums and other venues across the world, Cosm has two purpose-built immersive venues and two more on the way. All venues show regularly scheduled sports, arts, and entertainment, have bar facilities, and are available to rent.
Los Angeles
Cosm Los Angeles is a 1500-seat venue located in Inglewood, which has become an experiential hub with iconic destinations such as SoFi Stadium, Kia Forum and Intuit Dome. Programming has included interactive NBA Finals and NHL Stanley Cup Finals, and immersive rendition of The Matrix and Cirque du Soleil’s “O”, UFC, WWE, and Bo Bridges’ big wave surfer movie spectacular.
Dallas
Cosm Dallas is located at Grandscape in The Colony. Like the Los Angeles Cosm it was designed by HKS Architects, to encompass a dome theater, a sports bar, and an observation deck. It shows similar programming to Los Angeles. Recent programming includes an opportunity to get close to the action of professional bull riding.
Atlanta
Cosm’s third venue at Centennial Yards will encompass 70,000 square feet and feature the company’s proprietary technology throughout, including an 87-foot diameter 12K+ LED dome. Working with awardwinning architecture firm Gensler, the venue will expand on the foundational design of Cosm’s first and second venues in Los Angeles and Dallas, respectively, and ensure its values and iconic features are embodied while still incorporating unique characteristics that reflect Centennial Yards and the Atlanta community at large.
Detroit
For the development of its fourth venue, Cosm has hired ROSSETTI, local multi-disciplinary architecture firm with roots in Detroit. Like its other venues, Cosm Detroit will feature its world-class design and proprietary technology, including a 26.6m 12K LED dome and an adjacent hi-resolution LED wall similar to the 150 ft long display at the Cosm in Hollywood Park.
