CGI “Virtual influencers” on Instagram battle it out in public, snag real ad cash
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Today we are used to the majority of our influencers, and contacts, being human, but as we progress into the future more of the encounters we have will be with virtual entities, in the form of avatars, bots and virtual vloggers like these. It...
Scientists have created the world’s best and biggest 3D living hologram
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Scientists, and society at large, have been waiting for holograms technology to appear on the market for decades, and while you’ll still have to wait before you can buy one in the shops we’re starting to edge closer to realising the dream. Science fiction...
Amazon continues to branch out with Augmented Reality
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF There are pros and cons to online and offline shopping, and increasingly retailers, particularly Amazon, are trying to find the happy ground between the two using new technologies like drones and new, immersive reality technologies. According to sources Amazon’s retail plans could extend well...
Researchers have created a 3D plasma hologram you can touch
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Everyone loves holograms, or they think they do, because until now most holograms have relied more on parlour tricks than actual science and technology to work, but that might be about to change. Every science fiction film ever created, and probably even the ones...
World’s first holographic smartphone makes its debut
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Advances in nanotechnology and nanophotonics are helping companies make great strides in creating, and bringing to market, new holographic display systems and they’re only just getting started. A few months ago cinema camera maker RED came out with the surprise announcement that they were...
Virtual reality lets cyber security experts patrol their networks Matrix style
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Virtual reality will give cybersecurity analysts the ability to patrol their networks like cops On the beat in the real world, and it could lead to significant gains in productivity and protection. The future of the workplace is, understandably, a hot topic for many...
Euclideon unveils the world’s first multi-user hologram table
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Holograms are a science fiction staple, and using a trick of the light, Euclideon and their new holographic table have gotten closer to bringing them to reality than anyone else. This week Australian company Euclideon announced they’ve managed to build what is being dubbed...
Brain controlled Virtual Reality comes to the HTC Vive
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF It’s almost fated that one day we’ll be able to interface and engage with new virtual reality worlds without the need for cumbersome tech but until that time arrives we’ve got the next best thing – Brain controlled VR It was inevitable that one...
Nike unveils its futuristic running track
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Anything that makes exercise more entertaining and engaging has to be applauded, and nike’s latest innovation is a great example of fun and function. Nike has constructed a pop-up arena track in the middle of Manila that it’s calling the “world’s first LED running track,” that has...
SkinTrack lets you control your smart watch with your skin
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF One day computers will be in us, not on us, but until that day comes most of us find ourselves stuck with fat fingers and tiny screens, but a new future interface might solve your “Fingers and Thumbs” dilema As a Futurist I scoff...
Beware false dreams, Strange Beasts reveals technology’s dark side
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Sometimes we can forget how powerful, and how immersive, technology can be and this short film provides a timely reminder Strange Beasts is a dystopian British short film of Netflix’s drama Black Mirror – and it packs an equally strong punch in about a fifth of...
Researchers have created the highest quality hologram yet
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Holograms are a sci-fi staple but manipulating light to create 3D effects is one of the most complicated challenges scientists face, now a breakthrough might take us one step closer As we move from the era of silicon based computing to photonics Holograms, which are...
Google and HTC are developing invisible VR headsets
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF The best technology is invisible, and Google and HTC hope that this counts Google used to, I don’t know if they still do, have a saying that the best technology was the technology that was invisible to the consumer. In other words, if you...
New virtual reality project lets doctors fly through cancers to save lives
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF The ability to visualise and fly through cancers will help researchers create better treatments and better outcomes for cancer patients In May this year, in a project that’s reminiscent of the US Army’s announcement to create digital avatars of its soldiers, Cancer Research UK...
Point. Click. Create your own 3D avatar and put yourself in the game
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Avatars will play an increasingly important role in the future – whether they’re being used to depict, or replace actors in movies, VR simulations or to compliment bots, Loom.ai’s new product makes the process of creating one simple. We’re entering a new world of,...
Researchers create human VR avatars with three arms to improve productivity
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Many people forget that virtual reality is just that – virtual, as a result it’s often easy to forget that the rules of the real world don’t have to apply in the virtual one. Researchers at Stanford University think that having a third arm...
Virtual reality plays its role in convicting Nazi SS guards who killed millions
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Criminal convictions, particularly involving historic crimes, are often made or broken on just how well jurors can visualise the scenes of the crimes using second hand evidence, now VR can give them a first person view. Earlier this month I reported that UK and...
Get ready to experience millions of new, immersive worlds
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF The way we interact with technology is changing. We are slowly moving away from using keyboards and mice to using a mix of new technologies that will immerse us in new worlds and imbue us with new, vibrant experiences There is no doubt that...
MIT breakthrough lets virtual reality gamers cut the chord
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Consumers love convenience and by helping to cut the chords on VR headsets MIT’s new breakthrough could help speed up the technology’s adoption Researchers from MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL) have developed a new technology that lets data be transmitted at...
Jurors will soon be able to walk through crime scenes in virtual reality
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Jurors often have to rely on reconstructed scenes to help them visualise how a crime unfurled, now, using virtual reality they can see and move around the actual scene days, months or even years after the crime(s) took place A physical crime scene may...
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