On October 18 — just one week away — some of the most brilliant and innovative minds in reality creation will gather at UCLA’s Royce Hall in Los Angeles to attend TC Sessions AR/VR 2018. Whether you’re an early start-up founder, an investor, a developer or a student, if you’re focused on AR/VR, you don’t want to miss this day-long intensive that goes deep into the current and future state of augmented and virtual realities.
Need a bit more convincing? Here are four reasons why you should buy a ticket and attend TC Sessions AR/VR 2018.
1. Deep-dive discussions
We have an outstanding roster of speakers ready to take the stage and go deep on both the opportunities and the challenges facing the AR/VR industry now and in the future. Here are just some of the people and topics we have on tap.
Niko Bonatsos, managing director at General Catalyst, Jacob Mullins, a partner at Shasta Ventures and Catherine Ulrich, managing director at FirstMark Capital will offer a reality check on the state of AR/VR funding — and discuss where the opportunities lie.
Survios co-founders Nathan Burba and James Illiff will talk VR gaming. The big question is whether VR gaming will continue to be a big opportunity and whether the studio can keep the momentum rolling.
Stephanie Zhan, a partner at Sequoia Capital, discusses how to build an inclusive — if virtual — future. As we spend more time in online virtual worlds, can the game developers who build them address the social issues we encounter?
2. Presentations: The challenging future of AR/VR
From expensive hardware to breaking out beyond gaming, AR/VR technology faces hurdles to widespread adoption. Heavy-hitters at Oculus, Facebook, and Snap (to name a few) weigh in on this important subject. Here’s a taste.
Finding users isn’t the only hurdle when it comes to augmented reality. Creating developer platforms ranks right up there on the AR challenge-o-meter. Eitan Pilipski, a VP at Snap, will talk about leveraging the company’s extensive AR selfie-filter expertise to attract more developers.
Yelena Rachitzky is an executive producer of experiences at Oculus, a company that’s invested hundreds of millions of dollars into VR content. She’ll discuss how the company plans to help Facebook kickstart its VR future. Will Facebook’s customers buy in?
Speaking of Facebook’s future, Ficus Kirkpatrick leads the company’s camera team, and he’ll talk about the company’s entry into AR — by augmenting customers’ smartphone cameras. But where will Facebook’s AR journey lead?
3. Networking
You won’t find a better opportunity to connect with the leaders, innovators, investors and makers within the AR/VR community. Whether you’re looking for collaborators, an investment opportunity, your next job or your next round of funding, you’ll find the people who can make it happen at TC Sessions AR/VR 2018 — all in one day, all in one place.
4. Build community
Community building goes beyond simple networking. It’s like-minded people sharing their ideas, philosophies and dreams. It’s about learning from each other and then returning to the work with renewed inspiration. Come and enrich the community.
TC Sessions AR/VR 2018 takes place on October 18 at UCLA’s Royce Hall in Los Angeles. Tickets cost $149, but you can save 35 percent simply by tweeting your attendance. Go buy a ticket and join your people for one incredible, inspiring day. We can’t wait to see you next week!
( function() {
var func = function() {
var iframe = document.getElementById(‘wpcom-iframe-19c52b42f086f1a587c2e218ec3d8ccf’)
if ( iframe ) {
iframe.onload = function() {
iframe.contentWindow.postMessage( {
‘msg_type’: ‘poll_size’,
‘frame_id’: ‘wpcom-iframe-19c52b42f086f1a587c2e218ec3d8ccf’
}, “https://tcprotectedembed.com” );
}
}
// Autosize iframe
var funcSizeResponse = function( e ) {
var origin = document.createElement( ‘a’ );
origin.href = e.origin;
// Verify message origin
if ( ‘tcprotectedembed.com’ !== origin.host )
return;
// Verify message is in a format we expect
if ( ‘object’ !== typeof e.data || undefined === e.data.msg_type )
return;
switch ( e.data.msg_type ) {
case ‘poll_size:response’:
var iframe = document.getElementById( e.data._request.frame_id );
if ( iframe && ” === iframe.width )
iframe.width = ‘100%’;
if ( iframe && ” === iframe.height )
iframe.height = parseInt( e.data.height );
return;
default:
return;
}
}
if ( ‘function’ === typeof window.addEventListener ) {
window.addEventListener( ‘message’, funcSizeResponse, false );
} else if ( ‘function’ === typeof window.attachEvent ) {
window.attachEvent( ‘onmessage’, funcSizeResponse );
}
}
if (document.readyState === ‘complete’) { func.apply(); /* compat for infinite scroll */ }
else if ( document.addEventListener ) { document.addEventListener( ‘DOMContentLoaded’, func, false ); }
else if ( document.attachEvent ) { document.attachEvent( ‘onreadystatechange’, func ); }
} )();
( function() {
var func = function() {
var iframe = document.getElementById(‘wpcom-iframe-086161cffbd41e83b423a1cd9cb327e2’)
if ( iframe ) {
iframe.onload = function() {
iframe.contentWindow.postMessage( {
‘msg_type’: ‘poll_size’,
‘frame_id’: ‘wpcom-iframe-086161cffbd41e83b423a1cd9cb327e2’
}, “https://tcprotectedembed.com” );
}
}
// Autosize iframe
var funcSizeResponse = function( e ) {
var origin = document.createElement( ‘a’ );
origin.href = e.origin;
// Verify message origin
if ( ‘tcprotectedembed.com’ !== origin.host )
return;
// Verify message is in a format we expect
if ( ‘object’ !== typeof e.data || undefined === e.data.msg_type )
return;
switch ( e.data.msg_type ) {
case ‘poll_size:response’:
var iframe = document.getElementById( e.data._request.frame_id );
if ( iframe && ” === iframe.width )
iframe.width = ‘100%’;
if ( iframe && ” === iframe.height )
iframe.height = parseInt( e.data.height );
return;
default:
return;
}
}
if ( ‘function’ === typeof window.addEventListener ) {
window.addEventListener( ‘message’, funcSizeResponse, false );
} else if ( ‘function’ === typeof window.attachEvent ) {
window.attachEvent( ‘onmessage’, funcSizeResponse );
}
}
if (document.readyState === ‘complete’) { func.apply(); /* compat for infinite scroll */ }
else if ( document.addEventListener ) { document.addEventListener( ‘DOMContentLoaded’, func, false ); }
else if ( document.attachEvent ) { document.attachEvent( ‘onreadystatechange’, func ); }
} )();
Source: TechCrunch
AT&T will launch a new direct-to-consumer streaming service next year, the company announced today. Yes, another one. AT&T currently already operates cord cutter-friendly streaming services DirecTV Now and the low-cost WatchTV, but its new service will be focused on WarnerMedia properties, including HBO.
The move follows AT&T’s acquisition of Time Warner, which completed this past June. That means AT&T also now operates Time Warner’s streaming services HBO GO, for pay TV viewers, and HBO NOW, for cord cutters.
The upcoming, subscription-based service will include all of WarnerMedia’s properties, like HBO plus WarnerMedia’s other TV and movie franchises, as well as third-party licensed content.
And unlike DirecTV Now and Watch TV, the focus is not on streaming live TV, but on-demand content.
In that way, it’s being positioned more as a Netflix competitor, or even a rival to Disney’s upcoming streaming service, also due in 2019.
WarnerMedia CEO John Stankey discussed the service on stage at Vanity Fair’s New Establishment Summit on Wednesday, but didn’t confirm its pricing or even what titles, specifically, would be included.
However, as CNBC noted, the company owns many major media brands like “Harry Potter,” “Batman,” and shows from cable TV networks like CNN, TNT, and TBS.
The service will cost more than HBO NOW, Variety also reports, and will be competitive in terms of content spend with Netflix. Currently, Warner Media spends $2.5 million to Netflix’s $8 billion on content, its report said.
In a statement, Stankey confirmed the new service would arrive in the fourth quarter of 2019.
“This is another benefit of the AT&T/Time Warner merger, and we are committed to launching a compelling and competitive product that will serve as a complement to our existing businesses and help us to expand our reach by offering a new choice for entertainment with the WarnerMedia collection of films, television series, libraries, documentaries and animation loved by consumers around the world,” Stankey said.
“We expect to create such a compelling product that it will help distributors increase consumer penetration of their current packages and help us successfully reach more customers,” he added.
Source: TechCrunch
With Apple’s not-yet-announced October event ostensibly around the corner, the rumors about the next iPad Pros are gaining steam.
Source: CNET
On stage at Vanity Fair’s New Establishment Summit in Los Angeles, Jeffrey Katzenberg and Meg Whitman unveiled the name of their highly-anticipated mobile video company known until now as NewTV.
The name is Quibi, short for “quick bites,” per a note on its new website: “Something cool is coming from Hollywood and Silicon Valley — quick bites of captivating entertainment, created for mobile by the best talent, designed to fit perfectly into any moment of your day.”
The short-form video service, launching next year, will operate on a two-tiered subscription model similar to Hulu, per Deadline. Quibi is cooking up original content with Oscar-winning filmmaker Guillermo del Toro, Southpaw director Antoine Fuqua and Spiderman director Sami Raimi, as well as Get Out producer Jason Blum and Van Toffler, the CEO of digital media production company Gunpowder & Sky.
The Hollywood Reporter says the del Toro project “is a modern zombie story,” the Fuqua project is “a modern version of Dog Day Afternoon” and the Blum project, titled Wolves and Villagers, could be compared to Fatal Attraction.
Katzenberg, the former chairman of Walt Disney Studios and founder of WndrCo, a consumer tech investment and holding company, has raised $1 billion for Quibi from Disney, 21st Century Fox, Entertainment One, NBCUniversal, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Alibaba Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase, Madrone Capital and several others. He hired Meg Whitman as Quibi’s CEO in January.
Quibi, given Katzenberg and Whitman’s entertainment and business acumen, is expected to compete with the biggest players in the space, including Instagram, Netflix and Snap, which today announced Snap Originals. The new effort will have the ephemeral messaging service rolling out 12 new scripted shows on its app from Keeping Up With The Kardashians creator Bunim/Murray, Friday Night Lights writer Carter Harris and more.
Quibi is hiring aggressively, recently bringing on former Viacom executive Doug Herzog, former Instagram product manager Blake Barnes and former Hulu chief technology officer Rob Post, also per THR.
Quibi did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Source: TechCrunch
This time it’s Senator John A. Barrasso from Wyoming who’s leading the charge.
Source: CNET
From the co-creator of Android comes a phone that’ll respond for you, according to report.
Source: CNET
Early-stage venture capital firm Shasta Ventures has brought on three new faces to beef up its enterprise software and security portfolio amid a big push to “go deeper” into cybersecurity, per Shasta’s managing director Doug Pepper.
Balaji Yelamanchili (above left), the former general manager and executive vice president of Symantec’s enterprise security business unit, joins as a venture partner on the firm’s enterprise software team. He was previously a senior vice president at Oracle and Dell EMC. Pepper says Yelamanchili will be sourcing investments and may take board seats in “certain cases.”
The firm has also tapped Salesforce’s former chief information security officer Izak Mutlu (above center) as an executive-in-residence, a role in which he’ll advise Shasta portfolio companies. Mutlu spent 11 years at the cloud computing company managing IT security and compliance.
InterWest board partner Drew Harman, the final new hire, has joined as a board partner and will work closely with the chief executive officers of Shasta’s startups. Harman has worked in enterprise software for 25 years across a number of roles. He is currently on the boards of the cloud-based monetization platform Aria, enterprise content marketing startup NewsCred, customer retention software provider Totango and others.
“There’s no area today that’s more important than cybersecurity,” Pepper told TechCrunch. “The business of venture has gotten increasingly competitive and it demands more focus than ever before. We aren’t looking for generalists, we are looking for domain experts.”
Shasta’s security investments include email authentication service Valimail, which raised a $25 million Series B in May. Airspace Systems, a startup that built “kinetic capture” technologies that can identify offending unmanned aircrafts and take them down, raised a $20 million round with participation from Shasta in March. And four-year-old Stealth Security, a startup that defends companies from automated bot attacks, secured an $8 million investment from Shasta in February.
The Menlo Park-based firm filed to raise $300 million for its fifth flagship VC fund in 2016. A year later, it announced a specialty vehicle geared toward augmented and virtual reality app development. With more than $1 billion under management, the firm also backs consumer, IoT, robotics and space-tech companies across the U.S.
In the last year, Shasta has promoted Nikhil Basu Trivedi, Nitin Chopra and Jacob Mullins from associate to partner, as well as added two new associates, Natalie Sandman and Rachel Star.
Source: TechCrunch
Benchmarking company Principle Technologies will be retesting the AMD Ryzen 7 2700X and Intel’s latest ninth-generation chipset processors and will address earlier issues which skewed the benchmark results toward Intel.
The post Testing company says benchmarks that favored Intel over AMD were a mistake appeared first on Digital Trends.
Source: Digital trends
For a few, Luna Display feels like a game changer. I certainly got that feeling testing the tiny red dongle this week. The device’s promise is similar to Duet, but accomplishes the task wirelessly and with higher fidelity than its chief competitor.
Launched as a Kickstarter project last year, Luna is now available to everyone, priced at $80 (a $20 markup over the crowdfunded version). It’s not a pittance, and unless you’re someone who requires a secondary portable display for your Mac (and who happens to own an iPad), it’s not for you.
If, however, you can tick off all those boxes, the device has the potential to seriously alter your workflow on the road. As a frequent traveler who relies on a large secondary monitor at the office, I happen to be right at the center of that Venn diagram, so I’m pretty excited at the potential.
At home, the system worked like a charm. You plug the adapter into either a USB-C or Mini DisplayPort, make sure the two devices are connected to the same network and boom, you’ve got a second monitor.
Things were, admittedly, a bit trickier at TC’s New York headquarters, where the corporate Wi-Fi structure of our Verizon overlords is a veritable rat king of wireless signals. “Wi-Fi can be tricky,” as the Luna app puts it. Here I had to do everything manually, using the iPad’s camera to capture a QR code on my MacBook.
It took a couple of tries, but I was able to make it work. The real failsafe backup is doing it through a wired connection. Not ideal, but it does the trick.
Once up and running, I have to say, I was pretty impressed with the results. Once up and running, you can freely drag windows across the displays.
However, there were a few issues here and there. The pixelation when moving things that Darrell mentioned in his review hasn’t been fully solved. There were also some strange artifacts here and there — the DM popup window in Facebook was a bit of a mess, and the system had some issues with the overcrowded menu bar.
For the things I need (RSS feeds, browser, Slack), none of this was a deal breaker. And the ability to use touch on the second screen is about as close as we’re coming to a touchscreen Mac at any point soon.
Luna Display is available now in wide release. It also works with the company’s other product, AstroPad, which turns the iPad into a makeshift Wacom drawing tablet.
Source: TechCrunch
The feature will be available to everyone in early 2019.
Source: CNET