Dad watches son's birth from 4,000 km away using virtual reality

Grab the tissues 'cause this story's a tear-jerker!

Alison Larke didn't expect her husband to be at the birth of their third child. Jason works 4,000 km away from the family's home in Perth, Australia. He works three weeks on and one week off, so it was unlikely he would get to see his son be born.

But he did get to be there, thanks to a new Samsung virtual-reality headset. When Alison went into labour, Jason was called and sent to a special room to watch the delivery. The room was decorated with pictures of his family—cue the first batch of tears. He put on a virtual headset and, thanks to a 360-degree camera, he could see everything happening while Alison was in labour. A microphone and headset allowed the couple to talk to each other, so it was like Jason was actually there. In the video, you can hear Jason encouraging her while she pushes.

And then the baby is born. This is when you really need the tissues. Jason, with tears in his eyes, tells his wife "I think he looks like you."

Jason finally got to meet his son a week after his birth. It was obviously an emotional moment as he got to cuddle his little guy for the first time. Even though he didn't get to hold his son when he was first born, he's so grateful he got to see him be born. "There's nothing better than seeing your baby for the first time," he says.

Obviously a virtual-reality birth isn't the same as actually being there for the birth. Jason didn't get to hold his wife's hand through her contractions or cut the cord. But it's still pretty amazing that he got to experience the birth live, even if it was virtually.

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