Meta and Apple enter hardware war, £3 million therapy fund from UKRI, and AI 'Godfather' Bengio denounces work.
Meta and Apple enter hardware war, £3 million therapy fund from UKRI, and AI 'Godfather' Bengio denounces work.
Also this week...Lenovo's ThinkReality VRX launches to enterprise market, Apple's headset specs are leaked, and Ubisoft confirms first Assassin's Creed VR title!
Good morning Metaverse Business Brief readers. Let’s jump into the most relevant news from the immersive world in our weekly roundup.
Top Stories
Meta Quest 3 headset unveiled. With Apple set to enter the XR hardware market, Meta have looked to solidify their position by speculatively announcing the Meta Quest 3 headset. Coming in at a reported cost of around $499.99, with 128gb of storage, the device has been given a release window of fall 2023. More information is expected regarding the headset during the Meta Connect event on September 27th. While specs are currently unclear, it is known that the headset will likely feature the inaugural appearance of the much lauded ‘Meta Reality’ technology.
Leaked Apple headset specs revealed. With Apple due to share the first official news of their rumoured VR headset, leaks have begun to offer an insights into the specs of the device. Reliable supply chain expert Ross Young has suggested the device will have two 1.41 inch Micro OLED screens, with 4,000 ppi and peak brightness beyond 5,000 nits and 4k resolution in each eye. This will far surpass the nearest competitors on the current market.
The Lenovo ThinkReality VRX headset is now available. In a press release from the organisation, Lenovo have announced that the all-in-one VR headset has been made available in select markets worldwide. The device, which is targeted at enterprise end-users, will be sold as a ‘Device as a Service’ model via partner firm TruScale. This partner will provide enterprise users with financing and service models allowing for the scaling of workplace XR solutions.
AI 'godfather' Yoshua Bengio regrets “life’s work”. Professor Yoshua Bengio, considered one of the three ‘godfathers’ of AI, has voiced concerns regarding the direction and speed of AI development in an interview with the BBC. The concerns led Bengio to state that he felt “lost” over his life’s work, declaring that he would rather have prioritised safety over usefulness when conducting his pioneering work in the field.
In Funding
UKRI reveal £3 million digital therapy fund. UK Research and Innovation have announced that 29 projects will benefit from the fund under the ‘mindset programme’, which aims to provide digital therapeutic solutions for mental health issues using XR technologies. A spokesman claimed “new tools” would be able to provide “a more engaging experience.”
VARK raise $7.2 million. The Japanese virtual live music event platform has raised the sum in a series C funding round. The investment will allow Vark to grow it’s virtual live music event platform, and video creation support tools for 3D avatars. VARK count organisations like Meta amongst their clients, with events like Tokyo Virtual Music Festival showcasing the tech.
Squint expand platform with $6 million. The Squint AR platform looks to optimise factory procedures by providing an intuitive mobile experience (without the need for a large IT team) that utilises dynamic and contextual assistance in line with immediate surroundings. The organisation describe the process as using “mobile AR, computer vision, and machine learning to replace paper binders, sticky notes, and human trainings.”
Keep an eye on
Emirates airline announces deal with AWS. The deal will involve the development of an immersive extended reality platform which will be used for internal employee training. With a launch date predicted for late 2023, the solution will feature 3D virtual hubs, virtual training, gamified environments, and simulated experiences across wearables and hand-held devices. Emirates will utilise AI and AWS spatial computing to power a cloud streamed user experience.
Royal Navy announce first ‘Project Selbourne’ solutions. In a press release from professional services company Capita, the organisation announced the award of a contract to ‘Metaverse VR’ for the development of an interactive 3D walkthrough training system that will be used by potential submariners. Project Selbourne is a 12 year programme which is devised to modernise training within the Royal Navy through the use of immersive technology.
The 7th Guest to be ‘remade’ in VR. The classic 90s CD-ROM adventure game will be brought to life in a new VR version, developed by Vertigo Games - the studio behind titles like After the Fall. The title will be built with volumetric video capture to throw you into the spooky mansion that featured in the original game, which was a 2D point-and-click experience. No official release date has been declared, however Vertigo Games claim the title will launch on Quest 2 and Quest Pro later this year.
Assassins Creed franchise will step into VR. Ubisoft announced the upcoming release of Assassin’s Creed Nexus during the recent Meta Quest Gaming Showcase. Due to be released by studio Red Storm, an official release date hasn’t been shared, however it has been confirmed that the game will be released in 2023 on Meta Quest 2 and 3. Originally teased at the 2020 Oculus Quest 2 event, more details of the title will be released June 12th at the Ubisoft Forward event.
Events to be at
June 12 Stuttgart | XR Expo
June 13 Online | Insights Live: Metaverse vs Web3: A Convergence?
June 28 Tokyo | XR Fair Tokyo Summer
July 11 Online | Insights Live: The Importance of Inclusivity and Diversity within the Metaverse
August 08 Online | Insights Live: How the Metaverse would Transform Education
October 24-26 Houston | The 10th Augmented Enterprise Summit
November 30 Rotterdam | The 7th International VR Awards
Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news and comments to team@aixr.org.
June 05 2023 Edition - Issue 22