Meta Quest 3 leaked, $1 million Indie VR Fund, & Snap's AI goes Rogue.
Meta Quest 3 leaked, $1 million Indie VR Fund, & Snap's AI goes Rogue.
Also, AI startup gets $235m in funding and has Meta switched gears, as it begins testing Horizon Worlds on mobile?
It’s been week of events for the community! Sip on your coffee and get caught up as you recover from Gamescom and start Venice Film Festival.
Top Stories
Leaked Meta Quest 3 Unboxing Video Reveals New Look. It's 40% slimmer than the Quest 2 and the controllers have been updated for comfort but don’t have cameras. Meta's big reveal about Quest 3's price and launch date will be at the Meta Connect event on September 27 and 28.
SideQuest & Creature Launch $1M Indie VR Fund. Starting August 18th, creators can submit game pitches directly to Creature online, detailing both the game and their team. The collaboration aims to uncover and support the next big VR titles.
Snapchat's My AI Glitches, Posts Its Own Story. Snapchat's AI, known as "My AI", unexpectedly posted a Story and then stopped communicating. This AI feature, since its launch, has been both a subject of controversy and fascination among the app's users.
In Funding
AI Powerhouse Hugging Face Secures $235M. Valued at a significant $4.5 billion, the company provides a platform for open-source AI models for developers. Since 2016, their total funding has crossed $360 million.
Genesis Therapeutics, $200M, biotech & AI: Specializing in utilizing AI for drug discovery, their focus lies in making drug discovery more efficient, and the funding will help the company evolve and expand its AI platform.
Modular's $100M Breakthrough in AI. Modular, an AI software developer, closed a Series A round, with General Catalyst at the helm. Founded just a year ago, their total funding is now at $130 million.
Keep an eye on
The 2023 Gartner Hype Cycle has positioned generative AI at the 'Peak of Inflated Expectations, signaling both its rapid adoption and the challenges faced by enterprises in understanding its true potential.
Sandbox VR's Deadwood Valley experience has amassed $23 million in ticket sales over the past year, with projections reaching $100 million in lifetime sales.
Meta has initiated a closed beta for its Horizon Worlds on Android devices, marking a move away from Quest-only availability and positioning it to compete with leading metaverse apps.
OpenAI unveils ChatGPT Enterprise, an enhanced version of their chatbot app equipped with enterprise-focused features, aiming to tap into the market's growing demand and bolster the company's revenue.
Events to be at
August 30 Singapore | AWE Asia 2023
August 31 Venice | Venice Film Festival + AIXR Meetup!
September 23 Online | Insights Live: How can CEOs stop feeling alone?
September 19 - 21 San Francisco | TechCrunch Disrupt
October 16-20 Dubai | GITEX Global
November 30 Rotterdam | The 7th International VR Awards
Did that coffee do its job yet? Please send any news and comments to team@aixr.org.
August 28 2023 Edition - Issue 34