A VR app where you’re supposed to do nothing but relax

Virtual reality entrepreneurs have tried a lot of things, from games to training applications, to lure people into VR. But Micah Jackson had another idea: making a VR app where you’re supposed to do nothing but relax.

Jackson is the founder of Esqapes, a Los Angeles startup that lets you experience relaxing VR environments while you’re relaxing in a high-end massage chair. I tried it out during a recent visit to the Esqapes spa in the Wilshire area of Los Angeles and found it to be very relaxing. In fact, I nodded off a few times during a half-hour massage.

In an interview, Jackson told me that he wanted to create an immersive relaxation experience through a combination of sensory components (like aromatherapy and heat lamps), an Oculus VR headset, and a massage HUC99 chair.

“The intention with this is that you aren’t active,” Jackson said. “It’s like taking a trip to the Bahamas.”