IPB University’s Mulyaverse, a Project by the Vocational School Won The First Place at the 2026 BIA, Envisioning the Future of Digital Tourism Villages
A team of innovators from the Software Engineering Technology Program at IPB University’s Vocational School won first place in the 2026 Bogor Innovation Award (BIA) in the Higher Education Institutions/Organizations/
Mulyaverse, or the Mulyaharja Metaverse Smart Tourism Ecosystem, is a digital tourism village platform based on a website, virtual reality (VR), and augmented reality (AR) designed to boost the local economy.
The award was presented at the 2026 Bogor Innovation Award Ceremony on Wednesday, (9/9), which was attended by Bogor Mayor, Dr Dedie A Rachim and officials from the Bogor City Government.
Smart Tourism Ecosystem
The chief of the innovation team, Dr Medhanita Dewi Renanti, explained that this innovation brings together a tourism information portal, 360° virtual tours, AR, a digital gallery, a community participation forum, and educational and digital literacy resources within a single ecosystem.
The virtual tour allows prospective tourists to explore Mulyaharja virtually before visiting in person, while AR technology provides interactive information about tourist attractions, culture, and local products via mobile devices.
She revealed that Mulyaverse was born out of a real need in the Mulyaharja Tourism Village, Bogor City, which has strong potential in agrotourism, organic farming, micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), local culture, and environmental education.
On the other hand, this potential has not yet been supported by an integrated digital ecosystem; promotion is still largely conducted through conventional means, destination information is scattered across various media, and market access for MSME products remains limited.
“In response to these challenges, we developed Mulyaverse as a smart tourism ecosystem, not just a promotional website. This platform integrates various digital services that connect tourists, the community, MSME operators, academics, the government, and the business sector,” she explained.
In addition to Dr Medhanita, the Mulyaverse team consists of Muhammad Nasir, ST, MKom; Aditya Wicaksono, SKom, MKom; Amata Fami, MDs; Nur Aziezah, SSi, MSi; Dra Irma RG Barus, DipTEFL, MA; and Dr Sofiyanti Indriasari.
Community-Driven Innovation
Mulyaverse is being developed in phases starting in 2024 through observation, identification of community needs, development of the Mulyaharja Tourism Village website, and training in website management. Development will continue in 2025 through the implementation of 360° virtual tour and AR technologies, system integration, pilot testing, training, monitoring, and evaluation.
Tourism managers, MSME operators, community groups, and the younger generation were all involved in the process of identifying needs, developing content, implementation, training, and evaluation. This community-driven innovation approach is intended to ensure that the technology meets community needs and can be managed sustainably.
Making a Real Impact
According to Dr Medhanita, digital platforms enable local products to gain a promotional showcase that is accessible at any time, expand their marketing reach, and open up new business opportunities in the fields of digital content, tourism photography and videography, digital tour guides, and the development of VR and AR based educational tour packages.
“With this approach, Mulyaverse connects tourism, SMEs, education, and the community within a single technology based economic ecosystem,” she said.
In light of this achievement, Dr Medhanita noted that winning first place at the 2026 Bogor Innovation Award serves as a catalyst for the team to continue developing Mulyaverse on a broader scale.
Through Mulyaverse, the Software Engineering Technology Program at IPB University’s Vocational School demonstrates that higher education innovation can be brought closer to the community. (*/Rz) (IAAS/KQA)
