Unity Game Engine Makes ‘Digital Twins’ for Industrial Tests

Game giant Unity is using its game engine technology to help businesses make “digital twins” of real-world objects, environments and even people. These virtual entities take the brunt of testing products, machines and environments. Currently there are dozens of companies reportedly using Unity’s game engine to model digital doubles that can sub-in for robots, manufacturing lines and buildings, among other things, virtually operating and monitoring them even as they are optimized and trained. These twins rust when exposed to water and respond to things like temperature. They learn to avoid a ditch or call attention to a broken part. Continue reading Unity Game Engine Makes ‘Digital Twins’ for Industrial Tests

CES: Updated Drone Tech Offers Possibilities for Production

While drone announcements failed to generate the same buzz during CES 2022 as in previous years, several new products should be of interest to consumers and professionals, especially those in photography, video and movie production. In addition to demonstrations of hydrogen fuel cell tech promising increased flying time and new underwater micro-ROVs touting a range of enterprise applications, CES included affordable feature-rich drones such as Autel Robotics’ Dragonfish with built-in 4K video and 50X optical zoom; Skydio’s self-flying drone, geared toward cinematographers; and Sony’s Airpeak S1, the smallest drone to support a full-size mirrorless Alpha camera. Continue reading CES: Updated Drone Tech Offers Possibilities for Production

CES: Immersive Virtual Monitor Does Not Require a Headset

MIT Media Lab spin-off Brelyon, founded in 2018, is demonstrating its Ultra Reality screen technology this week at CES 2022. The display tech uses computational optics to essentially offer a curved 120-inch 3D “theater-like experience” via a 32-inch desktop monitor, which the company suggests is ideal for entertainment, gaming and enterprise applications “beyond screens, into the metaverse.” The concept relies on realistic depth effects and image composition techniques to provide users with a plug-and-play, high-fidelity, virtual experience that does not rely on VR headsets. Continue reading CES: Immersive Virtual Monitor Does Not Require a Headset

Companies Join Forces to Minimize Algorithmic Bias in Hiring

Top corporations have agreed to improve their AI-driven hiring programs. As artificial intelligence has been applied to assist in the often arduous process of screening candidates, it is reported that the software may be adversely affecting the potential of diversity in the workforce. A group of companies is designing algorithmic safeguards to improve AI screening software as part of an initiative to solve this issue. The companies hope that system upgrades will ultimately help improve decisions involving areas such as hiring, promotion, compensation and a more diverse workforce. Continue reading Companies Join Forces to Minimize Algorithmic Bias in Hiring

TikTok Owner ByteDance Aspires to Become a Global Leader

TikTok parent ByteDance has announced the establishment of six new divisions to monitor the worldwide dissemination of its short-form video apps. The units include online learning; collaboration tool Lark, (the ByteDance version of Slack); game development arm Nuverse; and B2B division BytePlus, selling white-label versions of  proprietary algorithms to enterprise customers. ByteDance also operates Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok. The change from a flat hierarchy and haphazard business approach is prompting speculation that ByteDance aspires to be known for much more than video sharing. Continue reading TikTok Owner ByteDance Aspires to Become a Global Leader

Nvidia Introduces a Full-Stack Solution for Zero Trust Security

Nvidia is fast-tracking its cybersecurity efforts, emphasizing zero trust through new product integrations designed to protect enterprise customers from attack while supporting artificial intelligence, machine learning and server workloads that scale. Earlier this month Nvidia promoted its full-stack data center security solution: DOCA 1.2 accelerated software, running on BlueField-3 DPUs using the Morpheus AI framework — a configuration that can “secure a data center at every touchpoint,” including users, devices and the data itself, Nvidia founder and CEO Jensen Huang explained at Nvidia’s GTC 2021 event earlier this month. Continue reading Nvidia Introduces a Full-Stack Solution for Zero Trust Security

Nvidia Goes Full-Stack, Touts Artificial Intelligence and Cloud

Nvidia is mapping out a customer service future populated with real-time avatars who use natural-language AI with real-world customers. The company, which has seemingly transformed from graphics powerhouse to AI authority (in just under 28 years since being founded by Jensen Huang, company CEO) used this week’s GTC conference to emphasize full-stack computing. The speed and flexibility of the company’s three GPU chips offer general purpose enterprise potential, thanks to Nvidia’s parallel-processing platform, CUDA. Huang backed this assertion with a slide indicating Nvidia has deployed more than 150 SDKs to industries generating $1 trillion. Continue reading Nvidia Goes Full-Stack, Touts Artificial Intelligence and Cloud

Microsoft’s 22 Percent Q1 Growth Outperforms Expectations

Propelled by Azure cloud services, Microsoft reported $45.3 billion in revenue for its first quarter 2022, ending up 22 percent year-over-year for the period ending September 30. “We delivered a strong start to the fiscal year with our Microsoft Cloud generating $20.7 billion in revenue for the quarter, up 36 percent [YOY]”, Microsoft executive vice president and chief financial officer Amy Hood said regarding the announcement. Describing digital technology as “a deflationary force in an inflationary economy,” Microsoft chairman and CEO Satya Nadella opined that businesses, small and large, can improve productivity and affordability “by building tech intensity.” Continue reading Microsoft’s 22 Percent Q1 Growth Outperforms Expectations

Emerging Wireless Networks Turn to the Cloud, Virtualization

The expense of building and maintaining customized client servers is driving enterprise clients to the cloud, a particularly attractive destination for those building new wireless networks for mobile smart devices. Dish and Japan’s Rakuten Group online retailer are two enterprise businesses buying into these “virtualized networks,” generally believed to offer cost efficiencies, with little to no diminishment of service (and potentially improvement). Processing resources can be allocated to locations where traffic surges and traffic can be easily shifted from one server to another in the case of technical failure. Continue reading Emerging Wireless Networks Turn to the Cloud, Virtualization

Dreamscape to Debut Its ‘Men In Black’ VR Experience in LA

Nearly 25 years after the first “Men in Black” film became a smash hit, grossing $588 million worldwide, location-based immersive virtual reality company Dreamscape — in conjunction with Sony Pictures Virtual Reality (SPVR) — is rebooting the alien-fighting adventure at its flagship location in Westfield Century City. On Friday, October 1, “Men In Black: First Assignment” will invite thrill-seekers to outfit as agents, swap Will Smith’s Ray-Bans for a VR headset and battle intergalactic invaders. It’s seen as something of a bellwether as to the public’s appetite for location attractions amidst COVID-19’s lingering Delta variant. Continue reading Dreamscape to Debut Its ‘Men In Black’ VR Experience in LA

Dish Adds IBM to Tech Arsenal in 5G Wireless Cloud Buildout

Dish Network has contracted IBM to help automate its new 5G smart network, which will largely target enterprise clients. The deal supports Dish’s goal of becoming the first cloud-native, OpenRAN-based 5G network in the U.S. IBM will provide “AI-powered automation and network orchestration software and services to bring broad 5G network orchestration to Dish’s business and operations platforms,” the companies jointly announced. Dish has spent the past few years acquiring 5G spectrum as part a transition from satellite TV provider to major player in the broadband wireless services space. Continue reading Dish Adds IBM to Tech Arsenal in 5G Wireless Cloud Buildout

Government Pursues ‘Zero Trust’ Approach to Cybersecurity

The “zero trust” policy envisioned by President Biden in May when he signed an executive order to improve cybersecurity has begun taking shape with the release last week of a draft blueprint by the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB). While Biden’s order covers the public and private sectors “and ultimately the American people’s security and privacy,” zero trust focuses on identifying and implementing best practices for the federal government’s digital platforms and processes. Deployment will take years of investment and effort. To help jump-start the initiative, some primers have hit the news feeds. Continue reading Government Pursues ‘Zero Trust’ Approach to Cybersecurity

Microsoft Acquires Clipchamp as New Tool for Video Creators

Microsoft announced it is acquiring Clipchamp, an in-browser video creation and editing app that can be used on everything from social clips destined for YouTube to promos and business presentations. Combining “the simplicity of a web app with the full computing power of a PC with graphics processing unit acceleration,” Microsoft says Clipchamp is a “natural fit” with the existing cloud-based productivity suite of Microsoft 365 for families, students and business. With a template-driven approach and wide variety of filters, Clipchamp is a prosumer tool that has garnered more than 17 million registered users since launching in 2013. Continue reading Microsoft Acquires Clipchamp as New Tool for Video Creators

Pixalate Raises $18.1M to Combat Click Tricks and Ad Fraud

Analytics firm Pixalate has announced $18.1 million in growth capital for connected TV and mobile advertising initiatives. The new round brings total capital raised to $22.7 million for the 9-year-old firm, which specializes in fraud prevention, privacy protection and legal compliance via offices in Santa Monica, Palo Alto and London. The move comes as Pixalate rises to meet the challenges of enterprise clients fending off bot attacks, ad fraud and other malicious threats. Malware incursions by intruders like Puppeteer siphon tens of millions of dollars in annual ad revenue, according to Pixalate. Continue reading Pixalate Raises $18.1M to Combat Click Tricks and Ad Fraud

ByteDance Buys Startup Pico, Virtual Reality Headset Maker

TikTok parent company ByteDance has acquired startup Pico, which, according to IDC, was the third largest virtual reality headset manufacturer worldwide in Q1 2021, with shipments growing 44.7. percent year-over-year. The purchase marks ByteDance’s first step into virtual reality and the company said that Pico’s “comprehensive suite of software and hardware technologies, as well as the talent and deep expertise of the team, will support both our entry to the VR space and long-term investment in this emerging field.” Continue reading ByteDance Buys Startup Pico, Virtual Reality Headset Maker