From Virtual Worlds to Robots, Electricity and Shopping, Tech Is Evolving
Emerging Tech Roundup — June 24
The Quantious team’s top picks for timely trending news in the tech world.
This week in tech: Krafton creates a virtual human influencer, Meta launches an avatar clothing store, the Nasdaq opening bell is rung for the first time in the metaverse, Amazon develops a fully autonomous robot, Meta releases plans of a creator marketplace, 100+ new features are introduced with Shopify Editions and Tesla launches another virtual power plant.
The Company Behind PUBG Shows Off Its ‘Hyper-Realistic’ Virtual Human
(The Verge, June 15)
PUBG developer Krafton has introduced Ana, its new virtual human that was built with the Unreal Engine. The company hopes to use the presence of Ana in the Web3 setting to attract Gen Z interest — she will even have a song release and a persona as an influencer.
Meta Is Launching an Avatar Store, and Designer Clothes Are the First Products
(The Verge, June 17)
Mark Zuckerberg has announced that Meta will soon be launching an online store where users can purchase clothes for their avatars on Facebook, Instagram and Messenger. Some of the featured brands will include Prada, Balenciaga and Thom Browne. Zuckerberg believes that personalization via avatars will be a big part of the metaverse and a “big driver of the creative economy.”
Journey Rings First Ever Nasdaq Opening Bell in the Metaverse
(PR Newswire, June 17)
On Friday, VR firm Journey rang the Nasdaq opening bell, both in the metaverse and in person, at the Nasdaq MarketSite in New York City. The company rang the bell to celebrate its new Metaverse Studio, which will house all VR-related operations. Journey has big plans for the metaverse, as it has already appointed a chief metaverse officer and plans to open virtual offices for its team.
Amazon Announces Its First Fully Autonomous Mobile Warehouse Robot
(The Verge, June 21)
Amazon has introduced Proteus, its first fully autonomous robot. Proteus can move carts throughout warehouses, safely navigate around a space with humans, exhibit perception acknowledgment, and more. Proteus is the first of multiple robotics announcements by Amazon. Its robotic arm Cardinal, currently in development, will allegedly be able to lift up to 50 pounds and further enhance warehouse capabilities.
Meta to Roll Out New Monetization Tools on Instagram and Facebook, Including a Creator Marketplace
(TechCrunch, June 21)
As TikTok grows in popularity, Meta is evolving its strategy. Mark Zuckerberg has announced that Meta is planning to develop a marketplace where creators can be discovered for hire. The company even plans to have a “partnership messaging folder within Instagram DMs” to enhance accessibility of offers that come through the app.
Shopify Breaks Out of the Website With 100+ New Features Including NFTS, Local Shopping and More
(TechCrunch, June 22)
Shopify has introduced over 100 new features to its users as part of a semi-annual sprint, dubbed Shopify Editions. Some of the new features include NFTs offerings through Shopify’s ‘Tokengated commerce,’ local product pickup when available, and various ‘Functions’ for headless commerce. The company seems to be keeping users top of mind while adapting to both new and old ways of shopping.
Tesla Launches New Virtual Power Plant That Pays Powerwall Owners to Help End Brownouts
(Electrek, June 23)
Tesla is working with PG&E to keep California’s energy supply “clean and reliable.” The company plans to launch another one of its virtual power plants (VPP) using Tesla Powerwalls to provide electricity via grid services. For this VPP launch, Powerwall electric donors can earn $2/kWh for contributions, whereas they previously were unpaid.
