One of the main uses of VR that has emerged since the technology experienced a resurgence is the ability to make you empathise with what you are experiencing. This happened to me the first time I ever did VR, when I watched Clouds Over Sidra, a short VR documentary that put you in the shoes of a Syrian refugee girl, living in a camp in Jordan. I don’t mind admitting that it actually made… Read More
If the prospect of joining a virtual music festival and dancing around in a VR headset and controllers sounds pretty geeky… you’re not wrong. But it’s also, like, incredible. TheWaveVR will remind you of drugs even if you’ve never done drugs and will probably also make you want to do drugs. The virtual reality music app is launching a beta version today on Steam… Read More
When London fintech startup Chip launched late last year, the company’s vision was something a lot more ambitious than a simple ‘micro savings’ app delivered through a millennial-friendly chatbot. Read More
Late last year, Facebook brought its mobile photo-sharing application Moments to the web in a limited capacity by adding a link to the service in the desktop version of Facebook. We’ve spotted that Facebook also has a standalone web version for the service that offers access to the online albums you’ve previously shared with friends. However, like the stripped-down version of… Read More
This morning, the research firm CB Insights, in partnership with the services firm PwC, released a report on the state of VC in the first quarter of this year. It does a great job of breaking down what’s what, so we’re basically just cutting and pasting a handful of its biggest takeaways here and adding a little bit of context in case it’s helpful. 1.) U.S.-based venture… Read More
Since the dawn of Azure, Microsoft has talked about how enterprises can benefit from a hybrid cloud approach — that is, using the public cloud while still running some of their applications in their own data centers. Even today, Microsoft says that 80 percent of the companies it talks to still want to use a hybrid cloud approach and to help them move to its cloud services, the company… Read More
A well-known fast food chain – let’s call them Kurger Bing – is debuting a new 15 second ad today set to start running nationally. It starts off simply enough, some dude standing behind the counter of an otherwise empty “restaurant,” addressing the camera. He explains that he doesn’t have the time to fully explain an iconic hamburger to you. Ad time… Read More
Invites have just dropped for Microsoft’s latest press conference. Details are scant for the “Learn What’s Next” event happening May 2 in New York City, but between the title and the big #MicrosoftEDU hashtag that graces the crudely colored artwork, this looks to be focused on the company’s next big play at the education sector. Back in January, the company… Read More
Social VR has the potential to shift the bounds of human communication, it’s part of the reason why Facebook has invested billions in the technology. One of the keys to having positive VR interactions will be having the ability to interpret the emotions of the people you’re chatting with. Today, MindMaze is showing off the MASK, a device that reads the emotions on your face… Read More
Normally adding 200 million users in 8 months to a product that already has a billion would reduce the average engagement, but most apps don’t have Facebook Messenger’s network effect. Now with 1.2 billion monthly active users, “we increased engagement massively in terms of number of messages sent per active user. We had double-digit growth percentage-wise”… Read More
The enterprise voice space grows hotter today as VoiceOps announces its seed round with participation from Accel, Founders Fund and Lowercase Capital. The YC-backed startup aims to support sales teams by offering managers clear insights into what tactics are being used on the front lines. Founders, Daria Evdokimova, Ethan Barhydt and Nate Becker designed a machine learning-powered system… Read More
Disrupt NY is but a month away, and we’re more excited than ever about our brand new Startup Spotlight. The Startup Spotlight gives young but proven startups the chance to tell their origin story, from that original “Aha!” moment to the pivot, if there was one, to today. It will also give budding entrepreneurs the opportunity to hear actual founders talk about their journey… Read More
Food delivery startups have proven to be a hard business – focus is often on growth more than profits, with high burn rates, low returns and they can be logistics nightmares. But nevermind all that, a new, more niche prepared meal delivery service seems to be popping up — for babies.
Yumi (formerly Caer) announced its launch just last week; Gather, Ayesha Curry’s meal kit… Read More
Netherlands-based accelerator program Rockstar, which focuses on helping startups through their first 1,000 days, has launched a new vertical program for artificial intelligence startups — touting it as Europe’s first AI-focused accelerator. Read More
If you’re a fan of the Star Wars (many people are) then you may also be a fan of this trailer for Star Wars: Battlefront II, which just popped up a bit early on Vimeo. The trailer is amazing, showing action-packed sequences rendered using the in-game engine, which seems to be able to delivery top-notch visuals of the variety normally reserved for cutscenes. Perhaps you played Star… Read More
Teamable wants to know your social network. Well, its software does. The reason: it might find someone suited to fill an opening at your company who — no offense to your intelligence — might not necessarily spring to mind. How does it work? By churning through your contact lists (think Gmail, Facebook, GitHub, any other sources of contacts that employees are willing to… Read More
Time Warner’s Turner and Warner Bros. have joined the now-crowded market of subscription-based streaming services with the launch of Boomerang, a $5 per month service that streams both classic cartoons and current series. Boomerang’s catalog will offer shows from Warner Bros.’ Hanna-Barbera, Looney Tunes and MGM animation library of over 5,000 titles, which includes new… Read More
Home robotics is an area of intense interest, with many large companies exploring how they might best address the potential market. Bosch subsidiary Mayfield Robotics has Kuri, and automakers including Toyota and Honda have their own approach, which a focus on independence for people continuing into our senior years. Startup OhmniLabs thinks that human connection is what will convince people… Read More
Yes, Toyota used both “millennial” and “casualcore” to dreadful effect in the press release for the new FT-4X crossover SUV concept it revealed during the New York International Auto Show. But I still want this adorable car box to become a real thing, because it reminds me of both the Honda Element and the Toyota FJ Cruiser, vehicles I love so well. The FT-4X… Read More
Toyota is introducing a new robotic leg brace called the Welwalk WW-1000 that can help patients with partial paralysis affecting one side of their body walk again. The robotic exoframe is worn on the affected leg, with a large motor component at the knee joint that provides just enough assistance to the patient, letting them recover their own walking ability therapeutically over time. The… Read More
