Hello, I'm Michael!
I'm a 3rd-year PhD candidate at UBC in Human-Computer Interaction
My primary research interest is in understanding and supporting technology-mediated interpersonal and intrapersonal social relationships.
On the interpersonal side, I am interested in how people interact with each other, as well as with virtual agents, in digital environments such as social media, livestreaming, video games, and social VR. On the intrapersonal side, I focus on how people construct self-reflection and "conversations with themselves," mediated through technology use in their daily lives.
I am currently supervised by Professor Robert Xiao at the UBC X-Lab, with whom I also did my Master's. Previously, I completed my undergraduate studies in engineering science at UofT. In my free time, I enjoy playing badminton and running. If you are interested in chatting about my research or my academic journey or just anything in particular, feel free to send me a message on any of my socials!
Contact: [email protected]
[IMX 2025] VIBES: Exploring Viewer Spatial Interactions as Direct Input for Livestreamed Content
Michael Yin, Robert Xiao
[preprint]
[IMX 2025] Investigating Viewer Interaction, Engagement, and Relationships with Avatarized Virtual Livestreamers
Michael Yin, Chenxinran Shen, Robert Xiao
[preprint]
[UIST 2024] VirtualNexus: Enhancing 360-Degree Video AR/VR Collaboration with Environment Cutouts and Virtual Replicas
Xincheng Huang*, Michael Yin*, Ziyi Xia, Robert Xiao
[pdf] [preprint] [video figure] [video]
Points Gained in Curling
Undergraduate Thesis by Michael Yin, Supervised by Timothy Chan (2020)
Accepted and presented at CORS 2021
Modelling the game of curling as a finite-horizon Markov reward process to evaluate play and develop optimal strategies.
3D Depth Using Structured Light Imaging
Summer Research Project in the lab of Kyros Kutulakos (2017)
Using projected sequences of structured light (binary patterns of light) to determine depth information in a given scene.
Biomedical Wearable for Performance Tracking
Summer Research Project in the lab of Roman Genov (2016)
Unsupervised learning on cleaned EMG signals to predict the type and intensity of arm motion to create a proof-of-concept wearable.
WWTPViz
Data visualization project on global wastewater plants (for CPSC547)
BobaDex
A site for users to find, share, and review bubble tea stores (Deprecated until I find a new hosting site).
Anime Higher or Lower
A take on the Higher or Lower game, adjusted for anime (Deprecated until I find a new hosting site).
Restaurant Recommender
"Hey Alexa. Recommend me a good sushi restaurant in Vancouver."
NBA/NCAA Data Analysis
Do good shooters in the NCAA continue to be good shooters in the NBA? A quick analysis.
Keep - Smart Grocery App
Mockup of smart shopping application to quickly scan receipts and track groceries.
Boble
Mockup of an online event-finding application for university students.
