Researchers at the Auckland Bioengineering institute (ABI) have received over $4 million in MBIE funding to investigate how ‘digital people’ could be used in healthcare, by monitoring people’s health and providing support in the management of their conditions.
ABI researchers are recipients of MBIE’s new Catalyst Strategic with Soul Machines fund, set up in in 2021 for internationally connected research projects to explore the potential of AI in healthcare. …
Professor Merryn Tawhai, deputy director of the ABI, will use the funding to lead an international consortium to explore how Soul Machines’ digital people could be used to support the management of Type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease (CVD). ...
Ford’s new augmented reality high-resolution headlight technology is demonstrating its ability to project information for drivers directly onto the road ahead. The lights can show symbols for highway signs and driving conditions without drawing the driver’s eyes from the road.
The system can show information about changes in weather, such as falling snow, slippery conditions, and ice on the road. Connecting the lights to the navigation system would let them project arrows for turns onto the road surface. And when squeezing through a narrow gap, as when parking, the lights could project an image of the car’s width, indicating whether or not it will fit through. ...
Ford isn’t discussing the specific technology employed, but Chinese researchers published their study of this technology [High-Resolution Pixel LED Headlamps: Functional Requirement Analysis and Research Progress] in the Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute journal and concluded that micro-LED technology is the best choice for high-resolution pixel headlamps. ...
The legality of having cars’ lights do this is something to be sorted out with government regulators while Ford continues to develop the technology, so for now it is only a prototype system in testing. ...
Fox Corp. operates the only one of the four major U.S. broadcast networks that isn’t tied to a major direct-to-consumer subscription streaming play. The company also is the only one among its peers that has launched a dedicated Web3 and NFT division.
“We have a competitive advantage in building a business on the blockchain,” he says. “We’re able to invest in that, instead of having a vertically integrated SVOD [subscription video-on-demand] service; we are not spending billions of dollars on content and focusing on churn.” ...
Last year, Fox established Blockchain Creative Labs, a venture housed in its Bento Box Entertainment animation division. BCL’s mandate: to create, launch, manage and sell non-fungible token content and experiences as well as other digital goods. ... The long-term vision for BCL is to enable new business models for content distribution and consumer engagement — cutting out the streaming-platform middlemen and, someday, allowing fans to literally own a piece of their favorite TV shows. ...
The next big test of Fox and BCL’s blockchain ambitions comes with “Krapopolis,” a new animated comedy set in the mythical world of ancient Greece from Dan Harmon, co-creator of “Rick and Morty” and “Community.” Ahead of the show’s premiere sometime in 2023 on Fox, BCL has launched krapopolis.com.
The inaugural collection of “Krap Chickens” went on sale Aug. 11, priced in Ethereum cryptocurrency equivalent to $184-$330 apiece at the current exchange rate. The NFT buyers get exclusive access to a range of perks, including token-gated access to content and private screening rooms, invitations to online meet-and-greets with cast and producers, exclusive first-look access to upcoming NFT drops, and the ability to vote on elements that will be included in the show (say, an episode’s end-credits song). ...
A coalition of top TikTok stars is pledging to cease all work with Amazon — including shutting down storefronts and halting new partnerships with the e-commerce platform — until the company meets the demands of the Amazon Labor Union.
Boasting a combined following of over 51 million, the group of 70 TikTok creators says that the campaign, called the “People Over Prime Pledge,” is designed to pressure Amazon to meet the requests of its workers, which include a $30 minimum wage, increased paid time off and halting activities the group considers “union busting.” ...
“I think their method of offering influencers life-changing payouts to make them feel as if they need to work with them while also refusing to pay their workers behind the scenes is extremely wrong,” said Emily Rayna Shaw, 24, a TikTok creator with 5.4 million followers who has partnered with Amazon in the past. “I want to feel comfortable recommending Amazon products to my community because it is so reliable, but I can’t do so until I know that they are treating their workers fairly.” ...
Still, the metaverse feels different. ... New remote work and virtual collaboration tools like Meta’s Horizon Workrooms, Microsoft’s Mesh, and Arthur are huge advances beyond Zoom and will enable workers to brainstorm, discuss, and interact with one another’s avatars. ...
But the reality is that this metaverse, like each major previous wave of innovation before it, is less a substitute for location and more a complement to it. ...
With today’s highly anticipated in-home release of Universal Pictures Home Entertainment’s’ Jurassic World DominionExtended Edition also comes the global roll-outof the exclusiveDinotracker AR app. Inspired by the film that captivated audiences around the world, fans of all ages can use the app to discover, track, and interact with life-size dinosaurs they find in their own real-life environments. This storyline serves as the introduction to the innovative app, which features immersive storytelling through incredibly realistic, true-to-size dinos from the film, all brought to life with high-fidelity augmented reality. Currently available for download, the appwas developed by Trigger XR — the most experienced XR developer and creative agency — and in partnership with Universal Pictures, Niantic, and LG Uplus, Qualcomm, and KOCCA in Korea. ...
In addition to the immersive storytelling, key technology within the Dinotracker AR app includes:
Semantic understanding to create environmental awareness: Through Niantic’s Lightship ARDK, the app dynamically recognizes what kind of surfaces the user’s camera is looking at — in real-time. Based on where the user is, the experience will generate different dinosaur unlocks such as a Pteranodon flying in the sky or a Dilophosaurus near a body of grass.
Spatial awareness and occlusion: The real-time generated depth information understands a user’s specific context and enables dinosaurs to appear behind objects like walls or other obtrusions to create a more realistic setting.
Hand-tracking: Users can physically toss a piece of food to feed a Compsognathus in AR, generating a memorable moment. This hand-tracking interaction uses Apple’s Core ML for iOS devices and Google’s MediaPipe for Android devices.
Walkable planes: After the user scans their environment, a 3D mesh representation of the user’s surroundings gives the dinosaurs space to move along open, flat ground areas or atop available surface heights. Users can point a laser and watch as the dinosaurs are attracted to it.
High-fidelity 3D modeling and animations: The app delivers high-fidelity 3D modeling and a dynamic set of reactive animations to generate lifelike dinosaur behaviors and audio. For example if a user gets too close to the dinosaur, it will react accordingly!
User generated content and amplification: The ultimate end result of the experience will be to populate the web-based Dinotracker map. The app creates a simple user journey – encouraging fans to go outdoors, explore, and upload and share photos and video captures of the dinosaurs using the #dinotracker hashtag and #JurassicWorldDominion. ...
Engineers at Nvidia have teamed with Stanford University researchers to develop a virtual reality headset that looks and feels more like a regular pair of eyeglasses, according to a research paper presented at SIGGRAPH 2022. The “Holographic Glasses” can depict scenes in full-color 3D holographic images using optical lenses that are just 2.5mm thick. The so-called “pancake lenses” not only have a slimmer profile, but also offer a 200-degree field of view and the potential for resolution that is virtually unlimited and can be “cranked up” at will. ...
The Holographic Glasses from Stanford and Nvidia break new ground by “delivering both 3D images and minimizing the gap between lens and screen,” PC Gamer says, explaining that “the research paper lists the glasses as such: ‘a coherent light source that is coupled into a pupil-replicating waveguide, which provides the illumination for a phase-only SLM that is mounted on the waveguide in front of the user’s eye. This SLM creates a small image behind the device, which is magnified by a thin geometric phase (GP) lens.’”
The end result, a small and lightweight VR eyepiece “could be game-changing if made a reality outside of the lab,” per PC Gamer, which adds the Holographic Glasses weigh only about 60 grams, “notably far lighter than even the Meta Quest 2, which rolls in at 503 grams.” ...
Wander in the bowels of the pyramid of Cheops, along the Nile on a dugout or attend the embalming of a pharaoh: thanks to virtual reality, the Arab World Institute (IMA) in Paris offers, from Tuesday, an immersive expedition in one of the seven wonders of the world.
Entitled "The Horizon of Cheops", this original journey is held until October 2. During 45 minutes, the visitor is transported in the Egypt of more than 4.500 years ago through one of its most important jewels....
Comcast today announced the startups selected for the fifth Comcast NBCUniversal LIFT Labs Accelerator, powered by Techstars. These 12 companies, chosen from hundreds of applicants from over 30 countries, were identified for their potential to revolutionize industries across the core focus areas of the accelerator, including Connected Living, Immersive and Inclusive Experiences, and Smart, Sustainable Enterprise.
The 2022 class is creating breakthrough technologies and artificial intelligence (AI) applications poised to innovate entertainment, gaming, in-video purchasing, metaverse, visual content licensing, Web3 industries, connectivity, and the employee experience. ...
Since the first class in 2018, 43 companies have completed the Comcast NBCUniversal LIFT Labs Accelerator and raised over $115 million combined. In addition, more than 70% have secured proofs of concepts, pilots, or commercial deals with Comcast, NBCUniversal, and Sky. ...
Imaginario Imaginario is an AI-powered platform and API that identifies specific moments in video and audio in seconds, allowing content marketers and creators to discover, find, and clip content faster. Founders: Jose M. Puga (CEO) & Abdelhak Loukkal | London, United Kingdom ...
Neon Wild Neon Wild transforms any child into a custom avatar as the star of immersive stories and games. Founders: Matt Weckel (CEO), Stephanie Reaves, Matthew Kellough, and Carlos Ramos | Miami, FL ...
The pinnacle of the accelerator, Demo Day, will be held on November 2, 2022, at the Comcast Technology Center and virtually. ...
For more information on the companies in this year’s accelerator, visit www.ComcastNBCULIFT.com and follow @LIFT_Labs on Twitter. ...
... Jonathan Kelly, PhD, an Iowa State University professor of psychology, conducted tests to determine whether exposure to virtual reality solves cybersickness. Dr. Kelly took 150 students with no VR experience and had them play a VR video game to record their cybersickness symptoms.
The initial results showed that three weekly 20-minute virtual reality sessions reduced cybersickness. However, Dr. Kelly plans to conduct more research to explore the gender disparities in rates of cybersickness and to see how cybersickness affects people with motion sickness. ...
