Verizon has teamed with New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art on a discovery app called Replica that lets consumers scan artwork to generate digital collectibles. The augmented reality Replica experience lets museum visitors scan items using a mobile app that stores them to Roblox as objects or avatar accessories. Roblox account holders can also virtually explore the Met’s facade and partake in other immersive experiences. The effort follows a previous Verizon collaboration with the museum and indicates the way institutions can leverage AR to engage consumers. Continue reading The Met Teams with Verizon to Create Roblox AR Experience

Google is adding images and video to its Search Generative Experience (SGE), an AI-powered context tool the company began testing in May that some are already calling “the future of Google Search.” Those who have signed up for Search Labs and enabled SGE will begin seeing more multimedia at the top of their search results. The idea is to help searchers “get up to speed on a new topic, uncover quick tips for your specific questions or discover products and things to consider — with article links to dig deeper,” Google explains of its latest AI improvements. Continue reading Google’s AI-Powered Search Delivers Relevant, Visual Results

Four in five U.S. homes now have a smart TV, accounting for three in five TV sets, according to the fifth annual Hub Entertainment Research “Evolution of the TV Set” survey, which found streaming is growing commensurate with penetration of the intelligent displays. About 64 percent of viewers use their smart TVs to stream video, while roughly half use the connected devices to stream music or other audio content, the study found. The 74 percent of households that own at least one smart TV is up from 61 percent in 2020. Additionally, Horowitz Research found that consumers are increasingly turning to curated collections and hubs for content discovery. Continue reading Study: Smart TVs Are Now in 74 Percent of American Homes

Meta Platforms had a successful Q2, reporting double-digit growth for the first time since Q4 2021. The performance was attributed to a rebound in the digital advertising sector. The good news comes with a warning, as the company says it plans to increase spending on virtual reality and artificial intelligence next year. The parent of Facebook and Instagram reported revenue of just under $32 billion for the period ending June 30, an 11 percent gain over 2022. Advertising contributed a whopping $31.5 billion, growing nearly 12 percent year-over-year. Continue reading Meta Sees Double-Digit Growth for the First Time Since 2021

Foldable phones took center stage at Samsung’s recent Galaxy Unpacked event in Seoul, South Korea, where the company unveiled the Galaxy Z Fold5 and Galaxy Z Flip5 foldables. Also making their debut: the Galaxy Tab S9 family of tablets and Galaxy Watch6, the latter offering a Classic smartwatch model that revives the rotating bezel. Samsung’s foldables utilize the company’s proprietary Flex hinge, which enables the smartphones to close with no gap at the hinge. The company is also promoting the FlexCam and its “ability to capture photos and videos hands-free” from creative angles. Continue reading Samsung Unveils Its Latest Galaxy Z Fold, Z Flip and Watch6

OpenAI has entered into a precedential agreement to license content from Associated Press for use training large language models. OpenAI is “licensing part of AP’s text archive,” presumably leaving the door open to negotiation for video and breaking news. For its part, AP intends to “leverage OpenAI’s technology and product expertise,” according to the outlet’s own article. Financial terms were not disclosed, nor details as to AP’s intended AI use cases. Although AP is in a class by itself as a member-owned cooperative, the agreement could bode well for print journalism, which has had challenges transitioning to the digital age. Continue reading AP and OpenAI Join Forces for News-Sharing and Tech Deal

Sony Electronics is launching its Mocopi mobile motion capture system in the United States. Using a dedicated smartphone app for iOS and Android, the wireless system enables full-body motion tracking, captured by six small, lightweight sensors. Sony has been marketing Mocopi in Japan where virtual streamers (also called “VTubers”) have been using the system to drive avatars and fictional animated characters. Mocopi allows users to go mobile with virtual reality, loosening time and location constraints. Sony is now taking preorders for the $499 Mocopi system, which ships July 14. Continue reading Sony Offers Affordable Phone-Based MoCap System in U.S.

The research team at Microsoft has taken the wraps off a new type of analog optical computer that uses photons and electrons to process continuous value data instead of traditional transistors that crunch through binary ones and zeroes. Called the Analog Iterative Machine, or AIM, it “has the potential to surpass state-of-the-art digital technology and transform computing in years to come,” Microsoft suggests. AIM is made to solve difficult optimization problems bedeviling industries such as finance, logistics, transportation, energy, healthcare and manufacturing. Continue reading Microsoft’s Light-Based Computer Could Usher in a New Era

Google has told the Canadian government it will remove links to that country’s news sources from its products when a new law goes into effect requiring it to bargain with indigenous publishers for the right to display links. Canada’s Online News Act (Bill C-18), passed June 22, is expected to take effect in six months. Google called the measure a “link tax” and said it requires the company to pay for “something that everyone else does for free.” Meta Platforms, which is also affected by the new law, said last week it plans to remove Canadian news links from its apps and services. Continue reading Canada Law Prompts Google and Meta to Block News Links

Bozeman, Montana-based DaaS firm Snowflake has partnered with Nvidia to let clients customize LLMs (large language models) using proprietary data in the Snowflake Data Cloud. Nvidia’s NeMo platform and GPU-accelerated computing will power the effort to tailor models to specific business use cases, such as chatbots with category expertise as opposed to generalists, search engines attuned to context or generative text deep knowledge. Since most companies are eager to harness brand-specific AI without having to build a model from scratch, this category of service is generating a lot of interest. Continue reading Nvidia’s NeMo Delivers AI Customization to Snowflake Cloud

The Entertainment Technology Center@USC has released the third installment of its case study, “Fathead: Virtual Production & Beyond.” Section 3 of the four-part white paper is “State of the Industry: Beyond Trends,” which discusses “where we’re at, and where we’re going” and features compelling interviews with thought leaders from companies including The Third Floor, Stargate Studios, Orbital Virtual Studios, Vū Technologies, Lux Machina, nDisplay, Epic Games and Unity Technologies. Click here to access Section 3 and we’ll post announcements when the final section — “Fathead: A Proof-of-Concept Short Film” — becomes available. Continue reading ETC Releases Section 3 of Its Virtual Production White Paper

The new Catalyst Stage at ESPN headquarters in Bristol, Connecticut blends physical space with virtual production and an LED wall. The facility “opens new possibilities in the future of content customization and scalability” for live, multi-camera shooting that includes augmented reality and extended reality in 1080p or UHD, with 4K available for specialty work, including advertising. ESPN calls Catalyst “the first studio of its kind to support both live multi-camera productions and cinematic-quality projects. GhostFrame, Unreal Engine, Disguise XR, Pixotope and Mark Roberts Motion Control cameras are among Catalyst’s tools. Continue reading New Catalyst Stage Brings Virtual Production to ESPN Studio

AI-startup Inflection has unveiled a new foundation LLM (large language model) to power its Pi chatbot. Inflection-1 approximates OpenAI’s GPT-3.5 in terms of size and functionality, which puts it on a par with ChatGPT insofar as model training. Inflection claims its LLM exceeds some benchmarks when tested against that competing system, as well as Meta Platforms’ LLaMA, DeepMind’s Chinchilla and Google’s PaLM-540B. Pi is short for Personal Intelligence, and Inflection compiled its LLM with a goal of creating an emotive AI whose conversation provides a reasonable facsimile of empathy and human-like sensibilities. Continue reading Inflection Shares Test Results for Its First AI Language Model

The Parliament of Canada passed a law requiring technology companies to pay news outlets when linking to their articles, a move that has Meta Platforms threatening to pull news content from Facebook and Instagram in that country. Canada’s Online News Act, which applies to domestic outlets, is the latest move in a global battle between publishers and Big Tech, and follows a similar law in Australia. “A strong, independent and free press is fundamental to our democracy,” a member of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s administration tweeted when the law cleared the vote last week. Continue reading Canadian Law Requires That Tech Firms Pay for News Links

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer unveiled his approach toward regulating artificial intelligence, beginning with nine listening sessions to explore topics including AI’s impact on the job market, copyright, national security and “doomsday scenarios.” Schumer’s plan — the SAFE (Security, Accountability, Foundations, Explainability) Innovation framework — isn’t proposed legislation, but a discovery roadmap. Set to begin in September, the panels will draw on members of industry, academia and civil society. “Experts aren’t even sure which questions policymakers should be asking,” said Schumer of the learning curve. “In many ways, we’re starting from scratch.” Continue reading Schumer Shares Plan for SAFE AI Senate Listening Sessions