# Lorne Fade

> Toronto tech entrepreneur taking agentic AI off the screen and into the workforce. Twenty years of companies, from digital marketing to VR training to display glasses.

## Introduction

Source: https://lornefade.com/

Now building Skill Reality
I’m Lorne Fade.
Taking agentic AI off the screen and into the workforce.
Twenty years of companies in Toronto, from digital marketing to VR training to glasses.

## Story: 20+ years, three companies, one restart

Source: https://lornefade.com/#about

20+ years. Three companies. One restart.
Lorne Fade · Toronto
Age 11
First computer.
My mom got me my first computer and I was hooked. Grew up in Toronto and spent a LOT of time on that machine.
University
Computer Science.
I studied it formally at York University. The tinkering became a trade.
2004
Founded Academic Ads.
Digital marketing in the early days of online advertising. I scaled it to millions in revenue.
2014
The partnership ended.
I sold the business and started again from zero.
“Failure is tuition. The trick is never paying twice.”
Lorne Fade
2016
Co-founded VR Vision.
Enterprise VR and XR training for energy, utilities, manufacturing and automotive. I run operations as COO.
2024
Founded Fade Digital.
An AI-native marketing agency that helps brands get found in traditional and AI-powered search.
Now
Launched Skill Reality.
AI-authored, hands-free guidance on display glasses like Meta Ray-Ban Display, for frontline industrial workers.

## Proof

Source: https://lornefade.com/#proof

What I can put a number on.
20+
Years building companies, from Academic Ads to Skill Reality.
100,000+
Technicians trained on VR Vision programs.Via VR Vision
100+
Enterprise VR training deployments.Via VR Vision
VR Vision clients
Toyota
Siemens
Coca-Cola
Hydro One
Enel

## What I believe

Source: https://lornefade.com/#belief

Technology is most valuable when it changes what people can actually do.
VR gives people a safe place to practice their job.
VR Vision
AI gives them guidance when they’re doing the real work.
Skill Reality
Discovery helps the right people find what you’ve built.
Fade Digital
That’s the thread running through my companies. The long version is an essay on where work goes after the headset.
Read Eyes up

## Company: Skill Reality

Source: https://lornefade.com/#skill-reality

The focus. Founder and CEO, since September 2026.
Skill Reality
AI-authored, hands-free guidance on display glasses like Meta Ray-Ban Display, for frontline industrial workers.
It turns a plant’s SOPs into hands-free, step-by-step guidance on the glasses, with every step on the record.
Now
Live on Meta Ray-Ban Display. Tested on Android XR, with a RealWear prototype.
Status
Raising a $2M seed. Ask for the deck
skillreality.com

## Company: VR Vision

Source: https://lornefade.com/#vr-vision

Co-Founder and COO, since 2016.
VR Vision
Enterprise VR and XR training for energy, utilities, manufacturing and automotive, co-founded with Roni Cerga.
Sectors
Energy, utilities, manufacturing, automotive
Demo reel
Watch on YouTube
vrvisiongroup.com

## Company: Fade Digital

Source: https://lornefade.com/#fade-digital

Founder, since 2024.
Fade Digital
An AI-native marketing agency helping brands become discoverable in traditional and AI-powered search.
Focus
GEO and SEO
Proof
The State of AI Search 2026
Live demo
This site. It is built to be read by AI, with structured data, an llms.txt, its own MCP server and the Ask box. Fade Digital builds the same for clients.
fadedigital.ca

## Writing and press

Source: https://lornefade.com/#press

Writing and press.
As featured in
Latest 2026 Essay
Eyes Up: The screen has been moving toward the work for forty years. The face is the last stop before it disappears.
A machine has stopped and a worker in glasses sees the next step without looking away. I watched that happen, after a decade of watching something that looked like it and was not.
Writing, by Lorne Fade
2026 The Rep Problem: Why Gamified Immersive Learning Is Quietly Becoming Enterprise Infrastructure VR Vision
2026 State of AI Search 2026: The Industry Report Fade Digital
2026 We Tested 36 Toronto Business Websites for AI Agents Fade Digital
2025 Unlocking the Hidden Potential of Enterprise VR Training: 10 Insights VR Vision
2024 Spatial Computing and What It Means for Enterprise Training VR Vision
2021 4 articles for Forbes Business Council Forbes
2021 How to Encourage Better Work-Life Balance Among Your Employees Inc.
Speaking, hosted by Lorne Fade
2026 How to Get Budget Approval for VR Training VR Vision webinar
Coverage, about VR Vision
2025 AI-Driven XR Platform Transforms Workforce Training Halldale
2025 AI Meets Immersive Learning: How Lenovo and VR Vision Are Transforming Workforce Training UC Today
2020 The next hot pandemic technology for businesses? Virtual and augmented reality The Globe and Mail