Museum of the Future launches first ‘Future Heroes’ Summer Camp
... From using artificial intelligence and machine learning to identify and classify species of birds to exploring different forms of art and getting to grips with Minecraft education by tapping into coding and understanding the fundamentals of sustainability, the camp has something for everyone. This is in addition to the interactive and immersive experiences at the Museum of the Future. The young pioneers will get to see the museum in a unique and exclusive way. Exploring the museum’s different themes in much more depth, they will get the chance to dive deep into all the technical aspects of the exhibits.
Acting Head of Programming at the Museum of the Future, Maryam AlAwadhi said, "With the new school year around the corner, now is the perfect time to sharpen your child’s skills, re-ignite their curiosity and grow their love for learning with our first-ever series of fun, engaging, entertaining and educational workshops. No environment is more stimulating or conducive to creativity and imagination than the Museum of the Future. ...
See the full story here: https://www.zawya.com/en/life/entertainment/museum-of-the-future-launches-first-future-heroes-summer-camp-jchui69n
Forever young, beautiful and scandal-free: The rise of South Korea’s virtual influencers
...She is "able to do everything that humans cannot ... in the most human-like form," Sidus Studio X says on its website.
That includes raking in profits for the company in the multibillion-dollar advertising and entertainment worlds. Since her launch in 2020, Rozy has landed brand deals and sponsorships, strutted the runway in virtual fashion shows and even released two singles.
And she's not alone. ...
Sometimes, Sidus Studio X creates an image of Rozy from head to toe using the technology, an approach that works well for her Instagram images. Other times it superimposes her head onto the body of a human model -- when she models clothing, for instance. ...
Older generations might consider interacting with an artificial person somewhat odd. But experts say virtual influencers have struck a chord with younger Koreans, digital natives who spend much of their lives online. ...
"We communicated like friends and I felt comfortable with her -- so I don't think of her as an AI but a real friend," Lee said. ...
He added that as Rozy grew more popular, the company landed more sponsorships from luxury brands such as Chanel and Hermes, as well as magazines and other media companies. Her ads have now appeared on television, and even in offline spaces like billboards and the sides of buses. ...
Among the world's most famous virtual influencers are Lil Miquela, created by the co-founders of an American tech startup, who has endorsed brands including Calvin Klein and Prada and has more than 3 million Instagram followers; Lu of Magalu, created by a Brazilian retail company, with nearly 6 million Instagram followers; and FNMeka, a rapper created by music company Factory New, with more than 10 million TikTok followers.
But there's one major difference, according to Lee Eun-hee, a professor at Inha University's Department of Consumer Science: virtual influencers in other countries tend to reflect a diversity of ethnic backgrounds and beauty ideals. Virtual humans elsewhere have a "uniqueness," while "those in Korea are always made beautiful and pretty ... (reflecting) the values of each country," she added. ...
See the full story here: https://www.cnn.com/style/article/south-korea-virtual-influencers-beauty-social-media-intl-hnk-dst/index.html
Facebook’s Metaverse “Will Misfire”: Ethereum Co-founder Vitalik Buterin
... blockchain auditor, Dean Eigenmann. ...
“All the ideas on concepts make sense…but I still do not believe it will happen in the ways VCs are currently funding.”
“I’d rather hang out in world of warcraft than half of this “metaverse” crap,” Eigenmann added.
In response, Ethereum co-founder, Vitalik Buterin wrote, “The “metaverse” is going to happen but I don’t think any of the existing corporate attempts to intentionally create the metaverse are going anywhere.”
“My critique is deeper than “Metaverse Wikipedia will beat Metaverse Encyclopedia Britannica””, he further tweeted. “It’s that we don’t really know the definition of “the metaverse” yet, it’s far too early to know what people actually want. So anything Facebook creates now will misfire.” ...
See the full story here: https://nftevening.com/facebooks-metaverse-will-misfire-ethereum-co-founder-vitalik-buterin/
Free AI tool restores old photos by creating slightly new loved ones
Louis Bouchard and PetaPixel have drawn attention to a free tool recently developed by Tencent researchers, GFP-GAN (Generative Facial Prior-Generative Adversarial Network), that can restore damaged and low-resolution portraits. The technology merges info from two AI models to fill in a photo's missing details with realistic detail in a few seconds, all the while maintaining high accuracy and quality.
See the full story here: https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/free-ai-old-photo-restoration-tool-190502361.html
New AR glasses allow deaf people to ‘see’ conversations by turning audio into subtitles
... Scarfe witnessed his 97-year-old hearing impaired grandfather struggling to engage with the rest of his family, and was inspired to find a solution so that he could participate in conversations in real-time.
“It’s got to the point now where he literally just sits in silence. And I thought, well, hang on a second. He watches TV all the time with subtitles. Why can't we subtitle the world?”
Now, just six months later, his company, in partnership with Augmented Reality glasses manufacturer Nreal, has unveiled XRAI Glasses. ...
The AR glasses are connected to a mobile phone which handles the processing and graphics generation.
“What our software effectively does is it takes an audio feed from the microphone on these glasses [and] sends it down to the phone,” said Scarfe. ...
See the full story here: https://www.euronews.com/next/2022/07/29/new-ar-glasses-allow-deaf-people-to-see-conversations-by-turning-audio-into-subtitles
Students can now sign up for free course in AI, choose pace of study and level of difficulty
Students can now take free artificial intelligence (AI) courses from basic to advanced level as part of efforts to equip young people with skills in an emerging field.
Open to students in secondary schools, junior colleges, the Institute of Technical Education (ITE), local universities and other institutes of higher learning, the programme aims to reach more than 15,000 students over the next three years, said AI Singapore on Wednesday (July 27).
Students will need to form groups of at least 10 before they can apply for the programme run by AI Singapore - which was launched by the National Research Foundation in 2017 to nurture AI talent in Singapore. ...
See the full story here: https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/parenting-education/students-can-now-sign-up-for-free-course-in-artificial-intelligence-choose-pace-of-study-and-level-of-difficulty
Charisma powers accessible VR experience
We're thrilled to announce that the Charisma-powered, accessible VR experience, "Accessible Lives", will be touring the UK this summer with StoryTrails.
“Accessible Lives” explores 100 years of tech for people with disabilities, and tells the real stories of some of its users. Users meet interactive avatars, examine 3D models of devices, and explore archive footage of assistive innovations through the decades.
See the full story here: https://www.thevrara.com/blog2/2022/7/15/charisma-powers-accessible-vr-experience
At 65 Inches and 8K, This May Be the World’s Largest 3D Immersive Display
... The Looking Glass 65” is the largest, highest-resolution display of its type ever commercially introduced, at 65 inches with 8K resolution. ...
Springbok Entertainment recently premiered its new film, “Zanzibar: Trouble in Paradise,” on the 65-inch display at Tribeca 2022. This groundbreaking production is not only the first holographic film or documentary on a Looking Glass display but also the first-ever holographic film or documentary in competition at the Tribeca Festival.
“The massive increase in the size promises 3D storytellers the ideal canvas to push the boundaries of immersive experiences,” says Brandon Zamel, CEO at Springbok Entertainment. ...
See the full story here: https://www.immersivealliance.org/2022/07/21/at-65-inches-and-8k-this-may-be-the-worlds-largest-3d-immersive-display/
