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"Andrew Yang's pledge to protect voters from automation is hitting home | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2019/09/13/andrew-yangs-pledge-to-protect-voters-from-automation-is-hitting-home"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Andrew Yang’s pledge to protect voters from automation is hitting home Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Democratic presidential candidate, entrepreneur Andrew Yang. (Photo by Scott Eisen/Getty Images) Are you ready to bring more awareness to your brand? Consider becoming a sponsor for The AI Impact Tour. Learn more about the opportunities here. Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang took to the stage Thursday with a big surprise: His campaign wants to give $1,000 a month to 10 U.S. citizens for one year, a very public $120,000 trial balloon for his universal basic income proposal. As one of the most successful self-described entrepreneurs to throw his hat in the presidential ring in recent history, Yang has launched a phenom candidacy that must be understood. Before the start of his campaign, you’d probably never heard of him. The startup investor and founder of entrepreneur education nonprofit Venture for America has zero political experience, yet he made it into the running for the top 10 Democratic presidential candidates and commanded attention on a stage with frontrunners like former Vice President Joe Biden, and Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Bernie Sanders (I-VT). A Real Clear Politics average of popular polls puts him at 3%, making him the sixth-most popular Democratic presidential candidate. VB Event The AI Impact Tour Connect with the enterprise AI community at VentureBeat’s AI Impact Tour coming to a city near you! I can appreciate his appeal. He’s a charming guy who speaks in plain terms about the state of the nation. He also isn’t bad at throwing down on the piano and was seen crowdsurfing earlier this week. https://twitter.com/DaniellaMicaela/status/1170837438337564673 On Thursday, he did a pretty good job of addressing a range of topics, like health care, Chinese tariffs, campaign finance reform, and why he’s qualified to serve as commander-in-chief of the U.S. armed forces. But the center of Yang’s candidacy is his simple-to-understand plan to address automation and his assertion that Donald Trump is president today because 4 million jobs were automated out of Democratic strongholds in the Midwestern United States. In an interview with VentureBeat in May , Yang exhibited a strong understanding of AI, from his thoughts on Trump’s American AI initiative to his concerns about job loss and plans to prevent an AI arms race with China. That Yang’s message is resonating should come as no surprise: Pew Research Center and Gallup surveys in 2017 and 2018, respectively, found a majority of U.S. adults are worried about automation taking jobs. A 2017 Pew Research poll also found that Democratic-leaning voters are nearly twice as likely (65% to 34%) to expect the government to step in and help people when computers and robots put them out of work. Yang’s position isn’t that automation is a menace on the horizon, it’s that automation is here and people need help now. A plan to give every adult in the country $1,000 has probably helped boost name recognition and his position in the polls, but Yang talks about universal basic income not as a handout, but as an investment in family, community, and the average American, recognition that “you can solve your own problems better than any politician.” “We have to see ourselves as the owners and shareholders of this democracy rather than inputs into a giant machine,” Yang said onstage Thursday. He was responding to a question from moderators about campaign finance reform, but that same outlook could just as easily describe his approach to automation. And his strategy now appears to be two-pronged: Rage against the machines and emphasize humanity. “I’ve found that the more I lean into what makes me human, the more people respond,” he told NBC News in a story published earlier this week. “This campaign has been on some level an exploration of my own humanity.” That human-centered approach was evident in his responses to questions Thursday about immigration and education. When asked about his views on charter schools and education, Yang asserted that investments in neighborhoods and families are needed to improve children’s lives and lift school performance. When asked if he would raise legal immigration levels to 2 million people a year, Yang cited data like the fact that immigrants start more businesses than native born U.S. residents and that nearly half of all Fortune 500 companies today were created by immigrants or the children of immigrants. He also talked about being the son of a peanut farmer born in Taiwan and how the U.S. “has been a magnet for human capital for generations.” “If we lose that, we lose something integral to our continued success. And that is where I would lead as president,” he said. In his closing remarks Thursday, Yang talked in relatable terms about losing hundreds of thousands of dollars as a businessperson and his own slow road to recovery and success. “The goal of my campaign is to make this an economy that allows us to live our human values and aspirations,” Yang said in his final remarks. It doesn’t seem likely Yang will become the Democratic Party’s nominee, but his insistence that drastic measures are necessary to address automation is resonating. Earlier this year, The Verge called Yang “ a candidate for the end of the world. ” A better way to put it might be that he’s a candidate who takes the impact of automation extremely seriously and who talks about its role in society in relatable terms. When the Yang campaign comes to an end, the Democratic front runner probably won’t propose a $1,000 universal basic income plan, but like former Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown’s focus on the “dignity of work,” portions of Yang’s platform will likely be adopted. Because Yang is talking about the reality of the modern economy and continued proliferation of AI, any politician — Democratic or otherwise — who wants to win over voters will need to do the same. VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Amazon researchers use NLP data set to improve Alexa's answers | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2019/11/25/amazon-researchers-use-nlp-data-set-to-improve-alexas-answers"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Amazon researchers use NLP data set to improve Alexa’s answers Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Are you ready to bring more awareness to your brand? Consider becoming a sponsor for The AI Impact Tour. Learn more about the opportunities here. Improving the quality of voice assistants’ responses to questions is of interest to tech giants like Google, Apple, and Microsoft, who seek to address shortfalls in their respective natural language processing (NLP) technologies. They’ve plenty in the way of motivation — more than 50% of U.S. smart speaker owners say they ask questions of their devices, according to a survey conducted last year by Adobe. To this end, Amazon scientists sought to train an NLP model to select answers to questions from a set of answer candidates better than a baseline. They say their Transfer and Adapt (TANDA) approach, which builds on Google’s Transformer, can be effectively adapted to new domains with a small amount of training data while achieving higher accuracy than traditional techniques. By way of refresher, Transformers are a type of neural architecture introduced in a paper coauthored by researchers at Google Brain, Google’s AI research division. As do all deep neural networks, they contain functions (neurons) arranged in interconnected layers that transmit signals from input data and slowly adjust the synaptic strength (weights) of each connection. That’s how all AI models extract features and learn to make predictions, but Transformers uniquely have attention such that every output element is connected to every input element. The weightings between them are calculated dynamically, in effect. TANDA, then, is a two-part training methodology that (1) adapts the Transformer model to a question-answering task and (2) tailors it to specific types of questions and answers. A large-scale, general-purpose data set — Answer Sentence Natural Questions, or ASNQ — is used to prime the system, after which a fine-tuning step adapts it to a target domain. As the researchers explain, ASNQ — which is derived from the Google Natural Questions data set — is much larger in size than existing corpora of its kind, with 57,242 questions in a set used for training the AI models and 2,672 questions in a validation set. And it contains negative examples in addition to positive examples, which help the model learn to identify best answers to given questions out of similar but incorrect ones. VB Event The AI Impact Tour Connect with the enterprise AI community at VentureBeat’s AI Impact Tour coming to a city near you! To validate their approach, the Amazon researchers first tapped two popular NLP frameworks — Google’s BERT and Facebook’s RoBERTa — and measured accuracy with mean average precision and mean reciprocal recall, using the entire set of candidates for each question. They report that both the BERT and RoBERTa models with fine-tuning on TANDA provide a “large improvement” over state of the art, and that they’re “an order of magnitude” less affected by the insertion of noisy data. In a second experiment, the team built four different corpora with questions sampled from Alexa customers’ interactions. They say that using TANDA with the aforementioned RoBERTa produces an “even higher” improvement than with BERT, and that TANDA remains robust against noise. “Interesting future work can be devoted to address the question about the applicability and generalization of the TANDA approach to other NLP tasks,” wrote the study’s coauthors. “It would be interesting to test if ASNQ can produce the same benefits for related but clearly different tasks, e.g., paraphrasing or textual entailment, where the relation between the members of text pairs are often different from those occurring between questions and answers.” VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Facebook fights spread of coronavirus misinformation | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2020/01/31/facebook-fights-spread-of-coronavirus-misinformation"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Analysis Facebook fights spread of coronavirus misinformation Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Facebook: mobile app and website Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. As the Wuhan coronavirus death toll rises to more than 200 people and the number of confirmed cases reaches nearly 10,000 across more than 15 countries, the World Health Organization (WHO) yesterday declared a “public health emergency of international concern.” But as the coronavirus continues to spread, so does misinformation around ways to prevent and treat it. False claims of potential vaccines and preposterous prevention methods such as avoiding cold food or not eating spicy food have been shared widely across social media. “Miracle cures” such as rinsing your mouth with a saline solution or drinking bleach have also reared their heads. Now Facebook has confirmed that it’s looking to “limit the spread” of misinformation about the coronavirus while directing people toward helpful information. The company said it’s fact-checking content and debunking false claims across its main Facebook property and Instagram, as well as surfacing accurate information. Facebook also said it’s proactively sending notifications to people who have already shared — or are actively trying to share — falsehoods relating to the coronavirus. Additionally, Facebook said it will begin removing content that involves false claims or far-fetched conspiracy theories around how the virus has spread while blocking or “restricting” hashtags that increase exposure to misinformation. “We’re focusing on claims that are designed to discourage treatment or taking appropriate precautions,” noted Facebook’s head of health, Kang-Xing Jin. “This includes claims related to false cures or prevention methods — like [the claim that] drinking bleach cures the coronavirus or claims that create confusion about health resources that are available.” Tellingly, Facebook said its efforts involve finding and removing “as much of this content as we can,” a tacit acknowledgement that it can’t thwart every dubious piece of content on its platform. But that is the price of creating a gargantuan network of 2 billion people who are free to create and share whatever ludicrous theories and medical solutions they like. New reality On the flip side, social media can be used to share accurate information more quickly, including through partnerships with education and health organizations such as WHO. Moreover, Facebook’s sheer scale also means it’s well positioned to map and track diseases by combining satellite imagery, computer vision, census data, and proprietary data — all part of its Data for Good program. “We are empowering leading researchers at Harvard University’s School of Public Health and National Tsing Hua University in Taiwan by sharing aggregated and anonymized mobility data and high-resolution population density maps to help inform their forecasting models for the spread of the virus as part of our broader Data for Good program,” Kang-Xing Jin added. “We may expand these efforts to a broader set of partners in the coming weeks.” But when fake news is thrown into the mix alongside all the good stuff, what we end up with is a cacophonous crackle that leaves millions of people unsure what to believe. This is just a typical day on social media, of course, where fighting falsities and fake news has become the new reality. Back in 2018, reports emerged that Facebook was featuring homemade cancer “cures” more prominently than genuine information from renowned organizations. To combat this, the company revealed that it would “downgrade” posts that promoted miracle cures — leaving them up but making them less visible. A separate report found that YouTube videos were promoting bleach as a cure for autism. Countless other examples of user-generated nonsense (UGN) permeate these platforms, such as conspiracy theories about mass shooting events being staged and far-fetched proclamations that the moon landing never happened or that the Earth is flat. Last year, YouTube promised to cull such videos from its recommendations engine. The coronavirus outbreak is serious, and it could get a whole lot worse before it gets better. The spread of misinformation surrounding it only compounds matters, but it also serves to highlight the uphill battle Facebook and other social media platforms face across the entire “fake” spectrum — be that fake reviews, fake goods, or fake news. VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is a bleakly human play at the heart of a dark fantasy | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2015/05/12/the-witcher-3-wild-hunt-is-a-bleakly-human-play-at-the-heart-of-a-dark-fantasy-review-in-progress"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Review The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is a bleakly human play at the heart of a dark fantasy Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn The Northern Kingdoms of the Witcher 3. Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. Check out our Reviews Vault for past game reviews. This review-in-progress of Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is now our final review as of 12:13 p.m. Pacific. on May 14 — Ed. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is the apex of the dark fantasy role-playing game. This, for reasons I will go into shortly, is both a good and ultimately frustrating thing. CD Projekt RED has once again outdone itself with Wild Hunt (out May 19 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC), expanding the already impressively vast scope of the Witcher 2 into a dense behemoth of monsters and politics. Even more stunning is the eye-gouging slabs of beautiful scenery plastered throughout at a new constant clip. But size and eye-candy can only hold for so long in a game boasting over 200 hours of available content. I journeyed along with a prerelease PS4 copy to track just how complex an adventure of this size could manage to be. Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! What you’ll like A dark fantasy that is actually dark Above: Unlike most “dark” games, Wild Hunt earns its maturity through emotional complexity and fluid morality. Grime and grit have become code for immaturity in these past few years, especially in video games. A first-person shooter or RPG will drop one of the “g” words to hype up their intensity, with the final release only hinting at adult topics for no other reason but the headlines and controversy. Not only is the Witcher 3 genuine in its broaching of dark subject matter, it’s largely unrivaled in its depth of approach to wavering morality and unforeseen consequence. Witcher 3 hinges its tale on the search for the monster-slaying Geralt of Rivia’s adoptive daughter Ciri, a gifted young woman fighting off the pursuit of the ethereal — and titular – Wild Hunt. Geralt’s quest for Ciri (whom the player occasionally plays as for brief spurts) takes him across immense stretches of a continent in the war-ravaged Northern Kingdoms, diseased fiefdoms and lavish upper-class estates embroiled alike in a seismic political shift. It heaps reams of lore on the player at every major turn, which leaves newcomers to the franchise likely to drown in exposition until they dive into the in-game codex or play through the previous games. But while aggressively dense in its worst moments, the emotional and moral complexity that has come to define the Witcher series is at its most gleaming, polished best in The Wild Hunt. Don’t expect Witcher 3 speed-runs. The story of the Wild Hunt works best as an unraveling experience, played over weeks or months with plenty of air left between main campaign missions. Not only does this make the flow of the grand machinations of macro-narrative more tolerable, it lets the more compact, mission-based stories better intermingle against the larger world. These micro-narratives are where the Witcher series has been at its best, never more so than in the Wild Hunt. We see the class struggles and horrors of war that dot many a Mature-rated game, but here things actually feel mature. Because in the middle of the bloodied bluster and sweeping score are moments of parental abandonment, domestic abuse, and strained friendships, all written with the patience to show full emotional arcs and (frequently) not allow a purely good or purely evil method of conflict resolution. Save for its fleeting moments of juvenile approaches to sexuality, this is a role-playing game that treats the player as an adult. Even when that means not letting you win every time. Empowering, but patient, combat Above: The few times you die in the Witcher 3, it’s due to a lacked of preparedness. Wild Hunt finally found the happy medium of The Witcher’s combat ideas. For two games now, we have finagled with the complex timing needed to parry enemy blows or the drawn out brewing of potions for every encounter. You still need to practice your parrying to remain lethal, but most normal encounters no longer require five minutes of switching between menu indexes. Instead, more involved encounters are forecasted at the end of a series of missions or built up to in contracts. In fact, the research normally left up to the player is now incorporated into the run up to these bigger fights. Hunting for footprints and blood samples drives Geralt’s research in obvious directions, and a brief stopgap exists right before you trigger the encounter, so players can drink the necessary concoctions before entering the basilisk’s lair. Highlighting the interface and direct written prompts aren’t the most environmentally savvy way of leading the player on, but it is effective. Geralt’s magical abilities, known as signs — as opposed to the more powerful spells of sorceresses — are hands-down the most satisfying component of combat. Particularly after you have upgraded a few abilities up to their alternate forms, the variety of tactics lends itself greatly to experimentation. Core swordplay is more scolding than punishing, most enemies reminding you to keep your guard up with an almost polite stab at your health. Higher difficulties allow long-time fans to relive the more aggressive fights of earlier games, but most players will find satisfaction in mastering the standard setting. Beauty in ugliness Above: Ugliness is made beautiful in The Witcher 3. You may be getting the sense that The Witcher 3 is not the happiest game on the planet. The game’s presentation reflects the bleakness and discomfort that comprise much of the Northern Kingdoms is reflected, usually in quite an unflattering light. But that doesn’t stop it from being the most technically awe-inspiring game I have ever played. The visual assault on the senses begin with your first glimpse at a snow-capped mountain range in its first five minutes, and it continues to constantly find new ways to impress. Whether it is the distinctly orange glow of the evening sun cutting through a dense crop of trees or the hanging, rotten flesh of a drowned demon, everything sparkles (and/or reeks) of detail. This willingness to constantly couple filth with lush greenery is as commendable as it is morbid. The universally vibrant and clean worlds of fantasy games past look excessively sanitized by comparison, as if someone covered everything in a thin layer of bleach and window-washing fluid. Given the comparable time period that the Wild Hunt takes place in, the Northern Kingdoms offer a more holistic interpretation of what an unwashed world looks like a generation before the plague (and a few more before everyone agreed to stop using the upstream pond as a latrine). Monster designs reflect this more aggressive unattractiveness more than anything; long-time bestiary staples like gryphons and cockatrices look like molting monstrosities stapled together in a horror film laboratory. Ground and architectural textures do blur up close and some animation transitions tend to jerk, but the Wild Hunt maintains an impressive clarity outside of nature vistas and landscapes seen from horseback. Cloth and skin in particular look remarkable, with tiny facets like stitching and blotches consistently drawing the eye. Sending Geralt sprinting across a wheat field in the early morning is never an unsatisfying visual treat. But CD Projekt RED’s devotion to ugliness is what defines, and ultimately elevates, The Witcher’s visuals beyond anything we’ve seen before. 1 2 View All Join the GamesBeat community! Enjoy access to special events, private newsletters and more. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"The D20 Beat: Kingdoms of Amalur and its incredible world may have a future | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2018/09/13/the-d20-beat-kingdoms-of-amalur-thq-nordic"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages The D20 Beat: Kingdoms of Amalur and its incredible world may have a future Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning now belongs to THQ Nordic. Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. Do you miss Kingdom of Amalur: Reckoning? THQ Nordic scooped up the rights to the series last week, and in an email with business and product development director Reinhard Pollice, I dug into what this means for fans of the world that novelist R.A. Salvatore (you know, the guy who invented Drizzt Do’Urden and made Icewind Dale relevant in the Forgotten Realms setting in Dungeons & Dragons ). The most tantalizing answer: It could mean more Amalur games, Pollice confirmed. “Yes, THQ Nordic owns the full IP with related assets and development results,” Pollice said in an email interview. New acquisitions THQ Nordic has acquired several franchises put on hiatus when their owners went belly up, such as when the then-Nordic Games revived THQ itself (and games such as Darksiders) and more recently, when it announced it bagged the rights to the wacky shooter series TimeSplitters in mid-August. THQ Nordic has been in contact with the receivership for the defunct 38 Studios since it declared bankruptcy in 2013. Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! “This time it was a very tricky process,” Pollice said, noting the process of 38 Studios going through receivership and owing money to the state of Rhode Island. “At some point in 2017, the dust settled, and Amalur was still available, which got us excited.” Above: Kingdoms of Amalur had a number of big, colorful enemies. THQ Nordic has a wide portfolio of games: action-RPGs such as Darksiders and Titan Quest, platformers like De Blob, and racers such as MX vs. ATV: All Out. Amalur fits well with its strategy of smaller role-playing game series. “Our portfolio of IPs is focused on interesting core gaming IPs. We feel that Amalur is another great addition that follows this pattern. THQ Nordic in general has a lot of passion for these type of games,” Pollice said. “… we see Amalur as an IP that is known for relying strongly on deeply designed mechanics, in this case RPG mechanics. That’s what we consider core.” THQ Nordic, of course, had an even better reason to watch Amalur. Pollice reminded me that it had a tie to the old THQ. “Interestingly enough, Kingdom of Amalur: Reckoning started out life at old THQ, as the studio was part of THQ. Back then the project was called Crucible or Project Ascendant,” Pollice said. “When THQ sold the studio, the project was heavily reworked to fit Amalur.” THQ Nordic has also done several remasters, such as Darksiders: Warmastered Edition (a remaster of the original Darksiders) in 2016 and Red Faction: Guerrilla Re-Mars-tered earlier this year. It could also make sense for the publisher to do a remaster of Amalur. “As always, it would be too early to make any statements about any future plans with the IP,” Pollice said. “Our approach in these situations is to learn as much about the past and existing games as possible, and once we feel in a comfortable position, we will try to get something off the ground. But at this point nothing has been decided. Laying roots Pollice said he’d love to get Salvatore’s perspective on Amalur, so I asked the best-selling author. In an interview over email, I asked Salvatore (whose first book was the Forgotten Realms-based “The Crystal Shard” in 1988, which introduced Drizzt and his friends, and he’s gone on to sell more than 10 million copies of his books) about who came up with the underpinnings for Amalur between him, 38 Studios, and Big Huge Games. Above: Best-selling author R.A. Salvatore “I created the basis of Amalur with my D&D group for a presentation we gave at the very beginning of the company,” he said. “The basic idea of the world cycle, the creation of magic and its ebbs and flows came from me, mostly, although on many things, I was more referee than driving force. It really was a team effort to create the general overview, fleshing out the details into a coherent skeleton.” “One of the team, Mike Leger — now at Blizzard Entertainment — went to work for 38, and along with a couple of ex-SOE guys, helped form the narrative team who put the bones on the ten thousand-year history of Amalur. I oversaw that process, but it very quickly stopped being my world and became our world. Truly collaborative, with wonderful twists, ideas, and, well, evolution, going from there. So we had Amalur, this huge history, a logical cycle of events and inciting moments, and then laid our plans for the MMO itself on top of that.” Salvatore notes that “my role diminished as we went along. At first, I was the editor/coach/arguer-in-chief for all the narrative decisions, but within a year, the narrative designers were coming to me with finished ideas to surprise me instead of budding ideas seeking approval. They didn’t need my approval — they were as invested in the world as I was, and understood it at least as well as I.” Later, Big Huge Games came in to work on Amalur, too, when 38 Studios acquired the company. Salvatore credits Jen MacLean (the former chief exec at 38 and now the president at the Independent Game Developers Association) for bringing in a team with such heavy hitters as Brian Reynolds (Civilization II and Rise of Nations). “These folks down at BHG got hit with a daunting task for Reckoning. EA was funding it, and they had to come in on time and budget, and in a world they didn’t know. They had their game engine and a basic story they wanted to tell — one that included those tremendous ‘finishing moves’ in the gameplay, but they had to take a crash-course on Amalur and find a place in time and space to fit in what they wanted to do, including coming up with a story that made sense for the world,” Salvatore said. “I wish I could say I wrote Reckoning. I’d be very proud of that! The House of Valor, the House of Ballads … I mean, the BHG team was amazing. They found a tiny slice of the world, and I and a couple of the 38 narrative team found a time in our history where it made sense, and why it made sense — that was always crucial in Amalur design — and BHG under the watchful eye of Mark Nelson and the wild imagination of Ken Rolston, delivered.” Amalur’s future? I asked Pollice on the role RPGs play at THQ Nordic, a category in which the publisher keeps investing in. “We believe it’s a great genre to work in with a huge audience, and there is always room to offer more content in this area,” he said. “Amalur was just the very recent news for us in that field. but there is more to come as a lot of our projects have something to do with the RPG genre.” Above: A hero’s return? One thing is clear after seeing the reaction last week’s news had: RPG fans have a lot of love for Amalur, and they’re interested in seeing a resurrection. So do its creators. “I love the world and know that the history and main story was barely tickled by BHG. Obviously, I have some mixed feelings about what happened at 38 Studios, but I never stopped loving the world and the gals and guys with whom I labored. We were all damned proud of what we had built, 38’er and BHG’er alike.” Let’s hope they get a chance to return to Amalur. The D20 Beat is GamesBeat managing editor Jason Wilson’s column on role-playing games. It covers video games, the digital components of traditional tabletop RPGs, and the rise of RPG streaming. Drop me a line if you have any RPG news, insights, or memories to share … or just want to roll a digital d20 with me. GamesBeat's creed when covering the game industry is "where passion meets business." What does this mean? We want to tell you how the news matters to you -- not just as a decision-maker at a game studio, but also as a fan of games. Whether you read our articles, listen to our podcasts, or watch our videos, GamesBeat will help you learn about the industry and enjoy engaging with it. Discover our Briefings. Join the GamesBeat community! Enjoy access to special events, private newsletters and more. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"D&D's Christopher Perkins delves into dark, horrible secrets of the mind flayer | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2019/07/30/dds-christopher-perkins-delves-into-dark-horrible-secrets-of-the-mind-flayer"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Feature D&D’s Christopher Perkins delves into dark, horrible secrets of the mind flayer Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Captain N'ghathrod is my favorite mind flayer. He's a pirate captain of a spaceship! Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. The illithids are a tentacle-faced scourge in Dungeons & Dragons. They consume, seeking to rebuild a once-mighty planar empire upon the backs of those they deem their lessers (which is just about every other being in the multiverse). Their hunger for power (and brains) shatters worlds, and their actions have created terrifying threats in the cruel duergar, the insane derro, and the ruthless planar pillagers, the githyanki. And they use humanoids not just as food, not just as thralls … but also as breeding stock. Mind flayers epitomize body horror in the fantasy role-playing game. The illithids implant tiny tadpole into a being’s head, and in seven days, the unfortunate soul transforms into a mind flayer (this is known as ceremorphosis). And Larian Studios captured this transformation at its most gruesome in the trailer for Baldur’s Gate 3 , it’s upcoming role-playing game for PC and Google Stadia. While illithids have a long and terrifying history in the tabletop game, mind flayers have never had a staring role in a D&D video game. They play a role in Baldur’s Gate II: Shadows of Amn, but they’ve never been a featured foe. Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! But what’s still canon about the mind flayers? And what other dark secrets do these beings hold? I asked Wizards of the Coast a bevy of question about the flayers, and I got the answers from Christopher Perkins , who in addition to being the game’s lead story designer is also the sage behind the “Lore You Should Know” segments on the official D&D podcast Dragon Talk. This is an edited transcript of the answers Perkins emailed back. GamesBeat: Do the facts about mind flayer biology, culture, society, and such in the Second Edition and Third Edition products such as The Illithiad (2E ) and Lords of Madness: The Book of Abberations (3.5E) still apply to Fifth Edition illithids, as we’re going to likely see in Baldur’s Gate 3? Chris Perkins: Our current mindset, and one of the guiding principles of Fifth Edition, is that we don’t assume everything that was true in earlier editions is canonically true now. We assess each element of a monster on its own merits. That said, if something has been consistently true about a monster throughout the game’s history, it’s a good bet that it holds true in Fifth Edition. Everything that we know is true about mind flayers in Fifth Edition can be found in the 5E Monster Manual and the “Mind Flayers: Scourge of Worlds” section of Volo’s Guide to Monsters. The latter resource, in particular, picks up elements of mind flayer lore from earlier sourcebooks, including The Illithiad and Lords of Madness. GamesBeat: Mind flayers first appeared in Eldritch Wizardry way back in 1976 for the original D&D White Box, right? Perkins: Yes. Mind flayers in Eldritch Wizardry had 4+2 Hit Dice, an Armor Class of 5, and a “% in Laie” of 50%. (That’s a typo in Eldritch Wizardry , by the way. It meant to say “% in Lair.”) Eldritch Wizardry also established that mind flayers are lawful evil, have four face-tentacles, and are “psionically endowed,” all of which remain true to this day. GamesBeat: Mind flayers must consume the brains of sentient creatures … do they have fondness of a particular humanoid over another? Do they view the brains of beholders and dragons, or even celestials and fiends, as delicacies to seek out? Perkins: Although mind flayers don’t display a great deal of individuality, they do have food preferences the same way humans do. That is to say, one mind flayer might enjoy the taste of elf brains more than dwarf brains, while others might dislike elf brains entirely. Some find the brains of highly intelligent humanoids tastier than the brains of dimwits. They don’t eat the brains of non-humanoids, as a rule, and thus have no interest in non-humanoids as food sources. A starving mind flayer might resort to eating the brain of a rothé (Underdark cow) or similar creature, though it wouldn’t provide much nourishment. GamesBeat: Could mind flayers use their tentacles to wield magic items such as wands and rings? Perkins: As humans, we can wear rings on our toes or use our feet to grasp things; however, we don’t do this as a general rule because we have hands. The same is true for mind flayers and their tentacles. Can a mind flayer use their tentacles to hold things? Sure. Do they? Not often, no. GamesBeat: Do mind flayers still lay eggs? Or do the tadpoles just emerge from the elder brain? Perkins: Mind flayers procreate through ceremorphosis, a term first introduced in The Illithiad and reintroduced for Fifth Edition in Volo’s Guide to Monsters. They lay eggs from which hatch tadpole-like creatures. A newly hatched tadpole is then implanted in the cranium of an incapacitated humanoid host, usually through a nostril or ear canal. The tadpole grows as it consumes the humanoid’s brain, attaching to the victim’s brain stem and becoming its new brain. Over the course of a week, the humanoid body changes form, and a new mind flayer comes into being. GamesBeat: How long does ceremorphosis take? Older editions say 7 days. Did the tadpole in that poor Flaming Fist soldier instantly transform its host, or was that after being inside them for a week? Perkins: Seven days. The Flaming Fist soldier had the tadpole in its head for 7 days before adopting its final form. GamesBeat: May mind flayers still suffer from partialism — where the old psyche of their body manifests from time to time? Perkins: A mind flayer can retain shreds of its previous existence, as memories or behaviors imprinted on its psyche. The ceremorphosis process isn’t perfect in that regard. Mind flayers that suffer from partialism are more likely to become aberrant members of illithid society, sometimes splintering off to become Arcanists or exhibiting tastes that the rest of their kind consider alien or grotesque. For example, a mind flayer that used to be an elf might have a fondness for elven music that other illithids find baffling, unsettling, or abhorrent. We played this up in a recent Fifth Edition adventure, Waterdeep: Dungeon of the Mad Mage , which included a mind flayer with a very peculiar hobby: oil painting! GamesBeat: The mind flayers’ origin is the Far Realm, correct? Above: The illithiad, commonly known as the mind flayer, feeds on your brain — and turns us into monsters. Perkins: In Volo’s Guide to Monsters , we say that mind flayers originally came from the Astral Plane, where they encountered and enslaved the gith races. Their empire expanded quickly across many galaxies or crystal spheres, however, so it’s easy for mortals to conclude that illithids are galactic threats as opposed to extradimensional ones. 1 2 View All Join the GamesBeat community! Enjoy access to special events, private newsletters and more. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Baldur's Gate III -- Goblins are friends, not fodder | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2020/03/10/baldurs-gate-iii-goblins-are-friends-not-fodder"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Baldur’s Gate III — Goblins are friends, not fodder Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. When playing most Dungeons & Dragons games, be it with pencil and paper or on a PC, the solution to dealing with goblins is pretty straightforward: See goblin, kill goblin. So Larian Studios impressed me when it showed off Baldur’s Gate III a few weeks ago. You could interact with the goblins. Heck, you might even save one from an execution and befriend others. I found this approach striking, giving what many designers treat as cannon fodder a level of backstory and personality found in other characters — especially in light of how the villainous illithids seek to strip all of that as they transform you from a humanoid with agendas, drives, and passions into a mind flayer. It’s a goal that Larian senior writer Adam Smith has with all their games, including Baldur’s Gate III. In a long-ranging interview, I talked with Smith a great deal about the lore involved with working in D&D ‘s Forgotten Realms, but we also dug into how the narrative team seeks to give many of the characters you meet some level of depth, some backstory, and some interaction that goes beyond “See monster, kill monster.” Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! They want to show the plight of tiefling refugees of a Hells-torn city as they seek hope in a world that’s already predisposed to hate these devil-spawned beings. How a vampire spawn may overcome his thirst for blood … or revel in it. How a githyanki and a elf may need to work together to destroy the foul illithid tadpole time-bombs in their brains … and learn from one another, too. How a drow may still be evil and still more than you expect. And how goblins see a chance to become more than just cannon fodder for evil masters. This is an edited transcript of our interview. And for more on illithids, their history, and their motivations, please check out an interview I did with D&D lead story designer Christopher Perkins about the mind flayers. GamesBeat: There’s a mention that the nautiloid chase is going through the Hells. What part are you going through? Adam Smith: We’re not going to spoil that just yet. You didn’t see the full intro today. What you see is the Shadowfell [aka the Plane of Shadow]. That’s when they first fought. They start off in Faerûn, and then they fought to the Shadowfell. Then they go somewhere else, but we’re not going to show that just yet. We’ll reveal that later. GamesBeat: I saw the icy part, and I was wondering if that was Cania, the Eighth Layer of the Hells , and not Faerûn? Smith: No, no. But the Hells are very much part of our story. Do you know Descent into Avernus ? It’s very strongly linked to our story. You’ve met the tieflings very briefly. Those tieflings have fled from [the city of] Elturel , and we take the canonical ending for Descent into Avernus that Elturel was saved. It was taken to Avernus, and it’s now been returned to Faerûn. But the tieflings have been blamed by a lot of people. A lot of people turn around and say, “This terrible thing happened. These people look like devils. They have devil blood.” They drove them out of the cities. There’s a huge refugee train of tieflings traveling west from Elturel, and they’re mostly trying to get to Baldur’s Gate. That’s our link immediately there, but the events that happened in Descent into Avernus are going to come back and haunt people again and again. Some of the origins stories … you didn’t see every origin today. You saw five of them. Some of them in more depth than others. But there are more that are coming, and some of them have stronger links to Descent into Avernus as well, and some of them have stronger links to the Hells. We have a lot to say about the Hells, but not quite yet. GamesBeat: Descent is really the prologue here. Smith: Yeah, Descent is before us. We’re not too long afterwards. We do have an exact figure on it. But it’s very recent history. We’re in 1492, Dale Reckoning. The events there — if we spent more time in the druid’s grove [in the demo] where the tieflings are currently hiding out, as you speak to them, a lot of them have a lot to say about what happened. It’s something that happened very recently to them. It’s a very traumatic incident, obviously. They’re very seriously affected by it. You get into some of the more intense world-building there. We’re looking at the events in a very serious way. Today, we were playing very evil, and evil tends to be quite fun. It’s a lot harder to be good a lot of the time in our world, because there are so many conflicts going on. Trying to be good often leads you down darker paths, because you suddenly realize how much prejudice is in the world, how much danger people are in just by being who they are. That’s something we explore. We dig deep into that. Above: The tieflings of Elturel seek refuge … and maybe understanding. GamesBeat: It’s interesting you pick up here on the tieflings, because they’re already looked on with suspicion by a number of people. What spoke out to them in their plight, to you? Smith: For me personally, I write a lot of tieflings. We have this world where so many things are possible. In Baldur’s Gate itself … Baldur’s Gate is a place where pretty much anyone can be anything, and no one really blinks, because they’re so used to strange things. But they’re still probably gonna cut your throat and pick your pockets. We want to look at how it is to be strange in a very strange world, and how it is to be treated in — well, in just about every way. How it is to be treated as a hero, how it is to be treated as a villain, whether you deserve that or not. One thing we are trying to move away from is having these very strict laws of alignment, where it’s good and evil. Those are words I’m always slightly uncomfortable with, because everything’s grayer than that. When we look at tieflings, we don’t want to say, “Oh, every tiefling is a victim. Every tiefling is somebody who’s suffering.” But it’s absolutely part of their experience a lot of the time. It’s something that, for me, there’s obviously real-world parallels. There’s also personal parallels. All of us at points in our lives have felt judged for things that we don’t deserve to be judged for. Sometimes it can simply be who you are. There’s a natural draw there to me as a storyteller. I really enjoy writing tieflings. I think that — Descent into Avernus gave us a good hook for what’s happening to so many of them. But like I say, it doesn’t mean we want to say every tiefling is in the same position. That’s really important to us. When you do get to Baldur’s Gate, you find tieflings who’ve never experienced that kind of prejudice, because it’s not everyone’s story. We don’t want to take any race and say, this is who you are. But if you play as a tiefling, you have a very different experience, like in what you saw today. It’s great, because you can be drow or you can be tiefling, and you’ll have a very different experience than if you play human or elf. There’s going to be people who expect certain things from you, and you can absolutely tell them that they can — well. I won’t use the strongest word. GamesBeat: It’s funny you’re talking about that, because you look at the goblins, and they’re full-fledged characters. They’re not just little monsters shouting “Bree-yark!” you have to deal with. Smith: And some people will never realize that. You can meet the goblins and become immediately hostile and kill them all. And you think — the goblins are really close to my heart. I really like them. I’m genuinely fond of the goblins, and I get laughed at a lot for it. But we did so much research on goblin culture. The latest Volo’s Guide actually is great on goblins. It gives you a story, and it’s a story of people who are very close to the bottom of the food chain, who are bullied and enslaved. We take them and we say, what is it like to be a goblin? When we’re writing a goblin, a gnoll, any character, I think of them all as characters. We say, what fundamentally can we find in here that makes them individuals? You’ll meet goblins who are very aggressive and they’re bullies, but we want to know why. They have this new god, the Absolute that’s mentioned, and that’s kind of given them this sense of, we might be OK now. Some of them are using that to just crap on everybody else. They’re just like, finally — the bullied person who gets a bit of power and immediately becomes a bully. That’s how some of them behave. But some of them are just like, we might have a chance of actually making something of ourselves now. They really see this possibility to just not be what they often are, which is the thing that people get experience by killing. We’re not that meta, but when we’re talking about writing goblins, we absolutely talk about that stuff. These guys know that they’re at the bottom of the food chain. They know the drow are going to use them as slaves and as chattel and don’t care about them at all. Giving them this sense of hope, that maybe things are changing for them, that does make them slightly tragic in my eyes as well. Above: These goblins look ready to fight, but you’ll find that some of them may become allies. GamesBeat: When you’re going into your research on them, it reminds of one of the early RA Salvatore Drizzt story, where his experience with a goblin changes his worldview on who deserves justice. But he was working with this goblin for a while. This goblin had a background, a personality. It wasn’t an evil thing; it was a slave of humans. It was the first time in D&D that a goblin had been treated like that. And even now, he keeps thinking about his encounter with this goblin. Did this experience factor into your treatment of goblins and other monsters? Smith: Absolutely, yeah. It’s not a case in this example of saying, oh, we should do a similar thing. We tried to do that for everyone. But we read everything. We’ll never be 100% perfect with this, but I absolutely believe that there’s not a single line that gets through our very strict writing and editorial process that isn’t grounded in the Forgotten Realms. We think deeply about what we make, even the little bandit team. The bandits that Sven killed at the chapel, if you spend more time talking to them, you can learn a bit more about them. If you Speak With Dead , you can always learn a little bit more about who people are. For every NPC, even if they have three or four lines and they mostly get into combat with you — you can usually avoid it. But I know where they were born. I know what their background is. I know where they’re from. We’re not always going to communicate that to you, but it’s important that we do know it. We want everyone to be grounded in a world that feels very believable and feels very — that it has a history. All these people have their own history. With the goblins in particular, it was important that if you decide to engage with them on a different level, there’s entire stories there. We have goblin kids in the camp that you can speak to and learn about. In fact, we saw Sazza. I don’t think you will have learned her name, but she’s the captured goblin that gets shot. If you save her, then you have an entire series of events where you can spend hours of the game with her hanging around with you. You can learn a lot about her. You rescue her from this really awful situation, and it is genuinely awful. She’s a prisoner of war, and she gets executed at point blank range if you don’t do anything about it. But you can save her, and if you save her, then you learn a lot about her. She’ll help you out a little. She’ll also do some shitty things to you as well. But there’s various ways that she can survive or die, and she kind of relies on you to get her out of there. That was important too. At that moment, ideally, for me, when people first meet her — it won’t always be the first goblin people meet, because we don’t lock you down. You can go multiple different routes and come into different places by different angles. But for a lot of people, she’ll be the first goblin they meet, and it was important to me that she’s not just a monster. That goes for anyone. The drow are really interesting. You only met one drow today, Min​thara, and she is incredibly villainous. But again, if you spend more time talking to her, and you will, and you’ll meet her multiple times — unless you kill her, or she gets killed — you can learn a lot about how she fits in. She’s evil. She’s very wicked. But she’s also someone who’s lived in the culture of extreme paranoia and extreme violence, almost whimsical violence at times. People can just be killed on a whim [in drow society]. To survive in that world is not easy, even if you have the power that she has. We’re always thinking about that. We’re always trying to give people ways to learn more and explore without having characters come out and say, this is who I am, this is where I’m from. We want all that to be in there to discover. Speak With Dead is really important for that, because any corpse in the game you can talk to. You can learn just little bits, and sometimes they can be funny or weird or informative, but sometimes they’ll be tragic as well. You kill some guy in a dungeon and then you find out, oh, he was here for a reason that I now know, and I feel bad about that. Above: These tadpoles will turn you into illithids in seven days … but do they also have something to do with The Absolute? GamesBeat: Going to the Absolute, of course you’re not going to tell me what that is. But is the Absolute just playing a role in this part of the game, or does the Absolute play a role in the entire thing? Smith: It’s a big part of the story. The initial setup is that the illithid tadpole, obviously, is the infection. That’s what kind of binds our characters together. It’s their only common cause at the beginning of the game. They don’t know each other, even if you play a custom character. They’re all strangers to each other. But they all have this parasite in their head, and they mostly want to get it out. Astarion, who we played as today, the vampire spawn, he’s the closest to wanting to maybe keep this thing, because it’s immediately doing something good for him, because he can walk in daylight. You can play Astarion and just reject it completely, but he’s the one who has the biggest temptation to say, “This might not be entirely a bad thing.” If you play as Lae’zel, the githyanki, then she is absolutely, “This thing needs to come out, or I need to die,” because she’s becoming the thing that she most hates. The other characters have varying thoughts about it. They do all start to realize that it’s doing something that isn’t necessarily terrible to them, but it’s also an illithid tadpole. This is not going to end well. That’s the common cause at the beginning of the game. Very early in the game, or I say very early, but you’ll start to learn more about this new cult. This is a thing that Volo is concerned with when you first meet him. He’s not really thinking about illithids. You can tell him all about it, and Volo has a lot to say about it if you tell him you have a parasite in your head. He’s fascinated. He wants to learn more about that. We have some very fun scenes with Volo. You haven’t seen anything yet. GamesBeat: It feels like, based on what I saw here, that the Absolute — is it a demon lord like Grazz’t or an archdevil such as Glasya masquerading as something? Smith: Oh, oh — I can’t tell you. GamesBeat: But would I be wrong in thinking this? Smith: What I will tell you is that some of the origin characters have exactly the same guess that you have. As you go deeper, they’re all going to start having their own ideas about what this thing might be. Usually driven by their own agendas and their own understanding of the world. Each of them is going to start to suggest, “I think this might be this.” You won’t find out for a while. Obviously, you will find out. We won’t leave you on a cliffhanger. But we have a lot to say about a lot of different powers. We’re making a game in which there’s a lot of different powers, both good and bad, that are shifting and coming into opposition with one another. There are entire worlds coming into opposition with one another. We put the players in the middle of that, and we let them, to an extent, pick a side in that. It’s not always up to them, because sometimes a side picks you. Navigating through other people’s conflicts and other powers that are clashing is part of the story we want to tell. Above: The city of Baldur’s Gate. GamesBeat: One thing I’m intrigued by are the various factions we saw in the demo. You have illithids, githyanki, the Zhentarim , drow, a vampire from Baldur’s Gate. There’s a lot of factions, a lot of stuff going on. Is it too much, just flavor for flavor’s sake, or do all these powers and interests intersect? Smith: Everything intersects. One of the big changes from Divinity: Original Sin II, one of the things we wanted to improve on, is how stories intersect. For all of the origin characters, the ones you see and the ones you’ve not seen, they all have a very specific agenda. They all have a backstory that’s going to come to light. But they’re not side stories. They all cross over. They weave into the main story. Something like the Zhentarim, they’re present in the world. They’re not necessarily going to play a huge part in the story, because it’s not their story necessarily. But they exist in the world, so therefore they exist in our game. The Harpers exist in our game. The Flaming Fist exist in our game. Other people I won’t mention right now exist in our game. But all these different factions are at play in the world. Some will play larger parts and some play smaller parts. A lot of them, the part they play is kind of up to you. If you want to dig deeper into the Black Network, you absolutely can. You might be able to get a little Zhentarim badge of your own at one point. You might be able to get a Harper insignia of your own. We want to give people the opportunity to align themselves with different people and different factions. But the main storylines are all converging. The origin storylines all converge. All the different factions — essentially, something that is happening in the world is so big and magnetic that it’s drawing everyone in. Of course the centerpiece for it is Baldur’s Gate. Baldur’s Gate is the place where everything is going to change. Everyone’s being drawn toward Baldur’s Gate for their own reasons. Lae’zel, she’s the one who’s disinterested. She doesn’t even know what Baldur’s Gate is. You can have really cool conversations with her if you’re a Baldurian. It’s one of the tags we can give to people. Some of the origins are from Baldur’s Gate. They all know it. And if you make a custom character, all the custom characters have at least some association with Baldur’s Gate. If you’re from Baldur’s Gate, you can tell her what you think of it, and you can just tell her, oh, it’s a utopia, the most beautiful city in Faerûn, it’s gorgeous, it’s fantastic. And she’s just like, well, I’ve not seen anything impressive yet, but maybe when I get to Baldur’s Gate it’s going to be as good as you say it is! She’s not that impressed. [ Laughs ] 1 2 View All Join the GamesBeat community! Enjoy access to special events, private newsletters and more. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Maneater review: Become the shark, embrace the shark | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2020/05/22/maneater-review"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Review Maneater review: Become the shark, embrace the shark Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. Games like Maneater are my jam — absurd ideas no triple-A studio would touch. Who’s ever made a shark role-playing game? So when Tripwire Interactive announced it at the Electronic Entertainment Expo in 2018, the idea hooked me. Not only do I dig unique RPGs, but I also enjoy sealife. Sharks both fascinate and terrify me (as an 8-year-old at Universal Studios, my fear of Jaws resulted in me nearly climbing over the people in the row ahead of my family), and I’ve long read and watched everything I can about them. The prehistoric throwbacks have survived hundreds of millions of years of evolution and upheaval. Major extinction events haven’t killed them. But humanity may. Many shark species are endangered thanks to overfishing (sharks get caught up in nets and discarded), finning , environmental encroachment and destruction, and our fear of these creatures. How is this relevant to a review about a shark RPG? Well, all of this was in the back of my mind as I played Maneater, which debuts today for PC (Epic Games Store exclusive for now), PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. Maneater is absurd, silly fun. It has a great deal of humor, and Tripwire and Blindside Interactive (the studio who sold the idea to Tripwire) have pulled off a game that engages your curiosity as well as your funny bone. Environments and creatures show a distinct care when it comes to their designs and appearances. Tripwire casts the story through the lens of Maneater , a reality show following noted shark hunter Scaly Pete. As you gain infamy while you chow down on the Gulf of Mexico’s finest fish and folk, you encounter Pete. These interactions take a dark turn, sending poor Pete down the path of Captain Ahab and Quint from Jaws. It results in a most unexpected denouement that pits man vs. beast … and a relic of World War II. Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! I played on PC (Tripwire recommends a gamepad, but I found the controls to be more responsive with a mouse-and-keyboard setup), and over 20 hours, I found a game that made me smile from beginning to end. But you have to buy into the joke to get the most out of it. What you’ll like Above: McMansion pools offer shelter from shark hunters. It’s utterly absurd Maneater is funny and doesn’t take itself seriously. You have a mission to eat mafia members, and under the water, you swim along their victims wearing concrete shoes. Many quest names are puns (such as “Hungry, Hungry for Hobos”). You collect license plate-like signs that can be in some odd places, like the third-story deck of a yacht or on the performance stage inside an abandoned SeaWorld-like park. You also visit landmarks, signs that point you to some hilarious areas. In the Gulf, you find some great statues and Greek buildings. Someone, it appears, decided to build an outdoor museum … underwater. One of the shark hunters chasing you is a mob queen with a supercar of a speedboat. You find shrines to elder elemental evils as well. Yet nothing’s as absurd as playing a shark who mutates and eats everything in sight. As you grow and devour victims (be they apex predators like Rosie the Alligator or shark hunters such as Mama Maybelle), you obtain mutations. One gives you bio-electric fins, which stun and damage prey (or humans). Bony jaws and plates help you rip through boats, fishing vessels, and Coast Guard command skiffs. You can upgrade these as well with resources you obtain from eating fish, turtles, nutrient boxes (the “shark loot”), and people. As I write this, my shark has bony jaws, armor, and fins, with a bio-electric head. Mutations have heightened its swim speed, digestion (so it gets more resources from what it eats), sonar, and health. At this point, the shark looks more like a beast from The Abyss in a Dungeons & Dragons monster book than it does a terrestrial predator. The environments offer plenty of places to hide from hunters as you feast on humans, and a few made me chuckle. Sure, you can hang out in a sewer pipe or find a hard-to-reach cay while your foes blast shotguns at you, or you can dive into the pool at a McMansion or hang-10 in a … skate park. It’s all corny, and even the easy dumb laughs made me smile. I think this is what it feels like to be a shark? Exploring is cool. The shark can glide through the water, and clicking the mouse to chomp with your jaws feels natural (and cooler than just hitting a button on a controller). You can explore several different environments — a bayou, lake-as-toxic waste dump, a planned community around that most natural of shark environs (a golf course), bays, and the Gulf. Dotted all over these are grottoes for exploring and evolving and sewer systems with tasty fish and “shark loot” (containers of nutrients and mutagens). And as you grow, you find going back to the older areas is a good idea if you want to. Nice variety of animals Grouper, catfish, muskie, mahi-mahi, king mackerel, seals, turtles, sharks, alligators — everything you’d expect to find in these waters besides rays (which I miss). Fish do more than help you evolve — think of them as health potions whenever you’re fighting a gator or a hunter and need to heal up a bit. Eating is life, and it gives you life. And even when you’re an Elder shark, bulked up on turtle shells and human blood, the sea still throws you some challenges. Watch out for orca and sperm whales. They can turn you into lunch even when you’re evolved to the gills. 1 2 View All Join the GamesBeat community! Enjoy access to special events, private newsletters and more. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"The D20 Beat: Fae Tactics gives me that ol' Final Fantasy Tactics feelin' | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2020/07/25/the-d20-beat-fae-tactics-gives-me-that-ol-final-fantasy-tactics-feelin"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages The D20 Beat: Fae Tactics gives me that ol’ Final Fantasy Tactics feelin’ Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. As I was meeting my perspective colleagues for my first job in the enthusiast press, lo so many years ago (2006!), they of course asked me about my favorite games. I had three answers: X-Wing , Baldur’s Gate II: Shadows of Amn , and Final Fantasy Tactics. Tactics came out in 1998 in the United States, and Square Enix hasn’t touched it since 2007. Meanwhile, we’ve had lots of fantastic strategy role-playing franchises, like Disgaea, Fire Emblem , and Tactics Ogre, along with a number of indie riffs on the concept (such as Fell Seal: Arbiter of Fate). But none of them have given me that same feeling (though Fell Seal comes close). The most recent SRPG of this ilk is Fae Tactics , which is coming out July 31 on PC. It’s from developer Endlessfluff Games (love that name!), and Humble Bundle is publishing it. I’ve been playing it since Wednesday, and I’m digging its take on SRPGs — one that is giving me that good-ol’ Final Fantasy Tactics feeling. You play as Peony, a young human mage. She’s cute and colorful, much like the rest of Fae Tactics’ cast. Her first companions are a faithful pooch (his specialty is protecting your units from attacks) and an adorable birdie (she heals and uses water-based attacks). The soundtrack is catchy, like what you’d find in a number of fun indies that riff off JRPGs. Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! A few features stand out about Fae Tactics so far: You don’t have menus in combat! Yes, this is a departure from other SRPGs. When it’s a characters turn, you can see their available actions on a field in the top-right of the screen. You then decide to move, and when you get to that spot, you can perform an available action (or you can stay put and cast a spell, make an attack, etc., too, if you’re in position to do so). You choose your facing after an action, and even the grid glows in a manner akin to Final Fantasy Tactics when showing your range of movement (or for attacks, their area-of-effect, if any). You units can also perform combos when attacking the same unit. Peony is a mage, and she can summon animals and monsters at the beginning of combat. You have points (little orbs, really) that you spend on them, and as you defeat enemies, you can pick up cards that they drop in their wake to add them to you roster. It didn’t take long before I had added a mischievous gremlin to my stable (they like to steal things). The summons give your more units on the battlefield. Spell cards open up more magic for you. They have timers, not mana or other resources, so you need to plan when you use them and how long they’re be unavailable after you cast the spell. So far, they’re all elemental attacks, like a fireball spell. Element attacks are part of the battle system, so you should factor these into account as well as your characters’ abilities when putting together your formation before a combat begins. Above: This stable of monsters will help you in your quest. So far, combat has been stimulating, if not that challenging. I imagine battles will get harder as I delve deeper into the story and encounter stronger adversaries. The music is a breezy bop, and the visuals are retro-gorgeous. I found myself playing for about 2 hours one night, and the cute and positive tone revitalized me (I don’t know about y’all, but the pandemic has sure sapped my spirits). Even the early quests are cute — you’re looking for bike parts, but the shopkeeper tells you they’re having problems because of bandits. I can’t remember the last time I was looking for bike parts in an SRPG (though the game’s description, noting the tension between humankind and the fae, is an omen for more ominous happenings). This is a welcome time for a game like Fae Tactics, and I hope I keep digging its world as I keep playing it over the next few weeks. I miss my Suezo Monster Rancher made its debut 23 years ago yesterday (that’s Friday, July 23, for y’all reading this after its publication). Now, I have a maddening tendency to avoid the popular stuff while finding something similar-yet-different. So while y’all were going ga-ga over Magic: The Gathering and Pokémon in the late ’90s and early 2000s, I was into Monster Rancher (and Spellfire , but we won’t speak about Dungeons & Dragons ‘ ill-fated Magic competitor here). What made Monster Rancher special is how you found monsters. You didn’t just look for them in the tall grass and throw a ball to catch them. No, you put CDs into your PlayStation console, and it would turn them into monsters. I loved this sense of discovery — you weren’t sure what you’d get from an R.E.M. disc or a Beatles album. I was also partial to the Suezos, the one-eyed group of Monster Rancher critters that reminded me of Beholders from D&D. The combat isn’t all that deep, certainly nothing like Pokémon. But I enjoyed raising my monsters, searching dungeons for items, and training my monsters for tournaments before they died of old age. Tecmo published four main Monster Rancher games, with several spinoffs, a TV series, and a truly horrid mobile title. I maintain that Monster Rancher would still work these days — it could read screenshots and other files on your console and turn them into monsters. As someone pointed out to me on Twitter, an AI can make images into sounds , so why not digital monsters? Sadly, I doubt Tecmo will ever make another console Monster Rancher. So I guess I’ll stick to the Poké Balls for now. Hit points Above: I summon you … to an open beta! Blightbound has an open beta this weekend on Steam. This is a multiplayer action-RPG from Romino Games and publisher Devolver Digital, and it has the feel of Golden Axe or one of those fun Dungeons & Dragons arcade brawlers with more RPG elements. Sadly, I’ve only been able to play one run so far — I keep having problems finding players whenever I try. But it appears this weekend will be a good time to check it out. Blightbound launches July 29 on Steam as an Early Access project. We’re getting a Suikoden successor. You can read about Eiyuden Chronicle in this week’s RetroBeat. I’m excited about this, as Suikoden is one of the best JRPG franchises ever created, even if Konami has been too foolish to revisit it in any capacity (including just charging a license fee for someone else to make one and publish it). Every time I think about Konami, I reach for the antacid on my desk. The D20 Beat is GamesBeat managing editor Jason Wilson’s column on role-playing games. It usually runs every other week. It covers video games, the digital components of traditional tabletop RPGs, and the rise of RPG streaming. Drop me a line if you have any RPG news, insights, or memories to share … or just want to roll a digital D20 with me. GamesBeat's creed when covering the game industry is "where passion meets business." What does this mean? We want to tell you how the news matters to you -- not just as a decision-maker at a game studio, but also as a fan of games. Whether you read our articles, listen to our podcasts, or watch our videos, GamesBeat will help you learn about the industry and enjoy engaging with it. Discover our Briefings. Join the GamesBeat community! Enjoy access to special events, private newsletters and more. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"The RetroBeat: Why I switched from physical game collecting to digital | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2020/02/21/the-retrobeat-why-i-switched-from-physical-game-collecting-to-digital"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Opinion The RetroBeat: Why I switched from physical game collecting to digital Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Sonic the Hedgehog. Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. A few years ago, I started building up my collection of classic consoles and games. This was sparked in equal parts by nostalgia, finding some of my original cartridges in my parents’ basement, and the convenient opening of a local store that sold retro games. But after a few years of working on my collection, I find that I’m beginning to wander back to the digital world for my retro gaming kicks. The easiest explanation for this shift is a practical one. Playing classic games via compilations or other services, like the titles Nintendo offers through Nintendo Switch Online , is a lot cheaper than going to the store and spending big money on rare cartridges. For a good amount of time, I got a thrill from finding rare games and throwing cash at them. But the hobby quickly became more expensive than I could justify, especially once I already bought a lot of the games that were high on my priority list. There’s also the problem of actually playing these games. These old consoles are old. Finding the right cables, controllers, and parts to keep them going can be a headache. It’s also difficult to get a decent CRT TV that can actually play these machines. The one I was using was in rough shape, and it finally died. Now, I need to find another old TV for my retro consoles, and who knows how long that one will last for. Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! Cheaper, easier It also just feels like we’re getting easier ways to play retro games in the digital world. We have things like classic consoles that can give us the greatest hits of the libraries of some of the best systems ever. The Genesis Mini has most of the games I’d want to be playing on that system anyway, and it easily hooks up to a modern TV. We’re even going to get a TurboGrafx-16 retro console, which makes me feel silly for spending money on old games for the actual system when I ran across them. That was before I even bought the actual hardware, something I convinced myself I would do later. Well, now that I’m going to be able to play those games on a plug-and-play, I don’t feel very motivated to spend big money on the original. Above: Demon’s Crest is on Nintendo Switch’s Online catalog. I had a similar problem with Demon’s Crest. This SNES game was high on my most wanted list. Then it just came to the Switch as part of Nintendo Switch Online. Shortly after I played it on there, I finally saw the cartridge at my local store. But why spend the money on it now when I’ve already played the game on my Switch? I don’t want to be completely down on collecting classic games. There is something special about having a cartridge or disc. You get a special kind of thrill from plugging in an old system and having it boot up. But it’s an expensive hobby to maintain, and it’s one that forces you to battle against aging and dying tech at every turn. And even if you use something like an Analogue device to make it easier to play old cartridges on a modern TV, you still have to pay for some expensive hardware and software, all while missing out on the fun of using the original consoles. Maybe someday I’ll catch the bug again and want to spend $100 on some rare game behind a glass case. But for right now, I think I’m OK just playing getting my retro kicks from other (if less authentic) sources. The RetroBeat is a weekly column that looks at gaming’s past, diving into classics, new retro titles, or looking at how old favorites — and their design techniques — inspire today’s market and experiences. If you have any retro-themed projects or scoops you’d like to send my way, please contact me. GamesBeat's creed when covering the game industry is "where passion meets business." What does this mean? We want to tell you how the news matters to you -- not just as a decision-maker at a game studio, but also as a fan of games. Whether you read our articles, listen to our podcasts, or watch our videos, GamesBeat will help you learn about the industry and enjoy engaging with it. Discover our Briefings. Join the GamesBeat community! Enjoy access to special events, private newsletters and more. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Streets of Rage 4 review -- A brawl down memory lane | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2020/04/29/streets-of-rage-4-review-a-brawl-down-memory-lane"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Review Streets of Rage 4 review — A brawl down memory lane Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Streets of Rage 4. Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. Here’s a nice thought: What if your childhood never ended? What if they just kept making games like they always did? Well, companies have tried that, and it hasn’t always worked out well. Sonic the Hedgehog 4 and Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 5 are both miserable. So, is there any hope for Streets of Rage 4 ? Developers Dotemu and Lizardcube worked together to produce Streets of Rage 4, which is launching April 30 on PC, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One for $25. As the name suggests, it picks up where the original series left off. It’s a sidescrolling beat-’em-up, just like the series classic from the Sega Genesis. And as with any project like this, its creators are trying to walk a fine line between building something familiar and creating something that today’s gaming fans can enjoy. Streets of Rage 4 succeeds at this goal. What you’ll like Streets of Rage 4 recaptures the fun of the original games Streets of Rage 4 works because it feels as snappy and responsive as the original, and there aren’t actually a lot of games like that anymore. The Genesis Streets of Rage games were designed for CRT televisions with virtually zero latency. Dotemu and Lizardcube do their best to emulate that immediacy on your modern display. Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! Connecting a punch on an enemy is as satisfying as it ever was — and in some ways it’s better. The modern visuals are hypercrisp. But you also get really robust sound and even gimmicks like rumble that make the combat more intense. The PC version even has an experimental feature called “low latency over performance.” This basically has the GPU render everything before sending a vsync frame. This ensures that if you press a button, you’ll never have to wait more than a 16ms frame. But the feature requires a more powerful GPU or else you may lose frames. With an RTX 2070 Max-Q and RTX 2080, however, I had zero issues. And boy does that response time make the game feel even better. Lots of reasons to keep coming back Streets of Rage 2 is a game I go back and play regularly. My wife and I probably sit down with it at least once a year. More than that now that I’m remembering doing co-op of the excellent 3DS port from M2. And Streets of Rage 4 lends itself to that kind of replayable relationship. I’ve beaten it once on normal, and now I can play through on hard or Arcade mode. But I also have a ton of retro characters from the older games to unlock. And then I can remix the experience by changing the soundtrack to the original tracks or turning on the surprisingly excellent CRT filter. As we go back to this game every couple of weeks for the next year or so, each playthrough is going to look, sound, and play different. Feels simultaneously modern and like an homage That fine line between something familiar and something new? Dotemu and Lizardcube nailed it. Playing as the new Axel or Blaze provides a relatively deep combat system with plenty of risk and reward. It’s not Street Fighter, but you have plenty of options to combo enemies to do big damage. You can then top those off with special moves that risk your health. If you continue to do damage after the attack, you’ll earn that life back. But if you take a hit, you’ll lose a huge chunk of your HP. This system is a good example of how Streets of Rage 4 has a foot both in the franchise’s history and the present day. Special moves in previous Streets of Rage games would also use health, but the system feels more refined here. You have to be more deliberate — especially if you want to get through the higher difficulties. At the same time, you can then play as Axel or Blaze from the first Streets of Rage, and they have a much more limited move set. Yet playing as them still feels great even if it is significantly less complicated. What you won’t like It’s still just that game If you’re over beat-’em-ups or never liked them in the first place, this is probably not going to change your mind. It’s trying to re-create Streets of Rage — it’s not trying to remix the formula to do something new. You are still primarily trying to punch your way through urban environments overflowing with various ruffians. The combat is deeper than it was, but it’s nothing super innovative. You’re still basically trying to get on the same 2D plane as the enemy so you can hit them instead of swinging at nothing. If any of that sounds boring to you, then skip this. I don’t know if this music is a jam yet Streets of Rage 4’s soundtrack features tunes from composers Yuzo Koshiro and Motohiro Kawashima from the original games. And they brought in some of their friends who worked on games like Street Fighter. But French composer Olivier Deriviere had the unenviable task of taking on the bulk of the musical work. Streets of Rage’s music is its most defining characteristic thanks in large part to Koshiro, and following that up seems impossible. Overall, the new soundtrack is good. It’s probably even really good. Here’s a sample: But I have no idea if any of this is going to stick with me in the way that the sound does from the originals. Funky HQ in the playlist above, a Deriviere track, is a bop. I’m just gonna have to play this game for a lot longer to know if any of it is going to embed itself into my brain stem like the Genesis games did. [Update: My wife, who loves Streets of Rage, says that the new music is still in her head, and I agree. It’s definitely still rattling around for me as well.] Conclusion I have a lot of games on my plate right now, and I think it’s a good sign that I want to go back and keep playing Streets of Rage 4. It’s something that feels good to control and look at and listen to. If you are going to make a beat-’em-up in 2020, the act of punching better deliver a shot of dopamine. And this game absolutely crushes that. Having all the other options for unlockable characters and original soundtrack are just bonuses that will keep things fresh each time I return. Streets of Rage 4 should serve as the blueprint for any publisher wondering how they can bring back a beloved franchise. A future filled with Streets of Rage 4-style reboots is possible, and we deserve it and not Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 5. Score: 88/100 Streets of Rage 4 launches April 30 for consoles and PC. Dotemu provided GamesBeat with a Steam copy for the purpose of this review. GamesBeat's creed when covering the game industry is "where passion meets business." What does this mean? We want to tell you how the news matters to you -- not just as a decision-maker at a game studio, but also as a fan of games. Whether you read our articles, listen to our podcasts, or watch our videos, GamesBeat will help you learn about the industry and enjoy engaging with it. Discover our Briefings. Join the GamesBeat community! Enjoy access to special events, private newsletters and more. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"The RetroBeat: How Super Mario 3D All-Stars could have been better | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2020/09/18/the-retrobeat-how-super-mario-3d-all-stars-could-have-been-better"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Opinion The RetroBeat: How Super Mario 3D All-Stars could have been better Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Mario flies, but he doesn't soar. Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. I reviewed Super Mario 3D All-Stars , and while its three games are still a joy to play, it’s easy to be disappointed that Nintendo didn’t do more with this package. Super Mario 3D All-Stars debuts today on the Nintendo Switch. It includes remastered versions of Super Mario 64, Super Mario Sunshine, and Super Mario Galaxy. These are some of the best 3D platformers ever made. Super Mario 64 and Galaxy are two of my favorite games of all time. So, of course, I have a lot of fun playing this collection. But I wish that Nintendo had been more ambitious. Maybe Crash Bandicoot-style remakes were never in the cards. But there’s still plenty Nintendo could have done to make these remasters (or fancy ports) more modern and exciting. Frame rates and resolutions Super Mario Galaxy runs at 60fps and in widescreen in this collection. It looks great. It can also make the other two games feel sluggish by comparison. Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! Nintendo did put the effort in to put Super Mario Sunshine in widescreen, and it’s one of the biggest improvements you’ll see in any of the games in this collection. The extra space makes it easier to scope out Sunshine’s expansive levels. It also gives the HUD more space to occupy. In the original 4:3 version of Super Mario Sunshine, the HUD took up a huge part of the screen. That’s no longer a problem here. Above: The HUD is must less obtrusive than it was in the original version of Super Mario Sunshine. But this version of Super Mario Sunshine only runs at 30fps, and it’s a lost opportunity. After playing Galaxy, I was really missing that more fluid motion. Yes, the GameCube version of Super Mario Sunshine was also at 30fps, but it feels like Nintendo missed a chance to really improve this experience on Switch. Then there’s Super Mario 64, which doesn’t have widescreen nor 60fps. The 30fps in this one doesn’t bother me as much as it does in Sunshine (maybe I’m just more used to the original Super Mario 64, which I’ve played through several times). The lack of widescreen is a bummer, though. Again, it feels like something obvious that Nintendo could have done to make this new version special. Options If you’re looking for ways to augment or change the way you play these games, you won’t find much. If you want to do something as simple as invert the camera controls, you’re out of luck. This is especially a problem for Super Mario 64 and Sunshine, which changes the inversion of the original camera controls. Now, I’ll be honest: This isn’t something I noticed. I’m usually able to adapt to whatever camera scheme a game throws at me. But it can drive some people, like my colleague Jeff Grubb , wild. It’s also a shame to see a lack of accessibility options — even something as simple as a color-blind mode. Above: Ew, black bars! Historical context This collection is supposed to celebrate Super Mario Bros.’ 35th anniversary, but it doesn’t do anything to promote that history. I would have loved to see Nintendo include some behind-the-scenes extras, even just a gallery of concept art from the series. Why not create some videos with interviews of Shigeru Miyamoto and some of the other Nintendo employees responsible for these games? We’ve seen some remasters include in-game commentary in recent years. I probably shouldn’t expect Nintendo to go to that extra mile, but how fun would it have been to have a mode where you can run around Peach’s castle while hearing translated voice clips from Super Mario 64’s designers? We got what we got I still have a lot of fun with Super Mario 3D All-Stars. These are three amazing games. And as few as they are, the improvements are nice. The widescreen in Sunshine looks great. The updated HUD elements in all three games are a big improvement. The resolution boost makes all three games look sharper and more vibrant. But it’s a shame that Nintendo didn’t take this opportunity to do more for their chief character’s big anniversary. Or, you know, at least include Super Mario Galaxy 2. The RetroBeat is a weekly column that looks at gaming’s past, diving into classics, new retro titles, or looking at how old favorites — and their design techniques — inspire today’s market and experiences. If you have any retro-themed projects or scoops you’d like to send my way, please contact me. GamesBeat's creed when covering the game industry is "where passion meets business." What does this mean? We want to tell you how the news matters to you -- not just as a decision-maker at a game studio, but also as a fan of games. Whether you read our articles, listen to our podcasts, or watch our videos, GamesBeat will help you learn about the industry and enjoy engaging with it. Discover our Briefings. Join the GamesBeat community! Enjoy access to special events, private newsletters and more. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"SAP's cloud moves show businesses won't tolerate 18-month deployments any more | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2013/05/08/sap-hana-cloud-deployments"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages SAP’s cloud moves show businesses won’t tolerate 18-month deployments any more Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn SAP has been throwing its hands in the air for years, exclaiming that it is indeed a cloud company. But yesterday, SAP took a big step that shows where it and its customers are at by offering its "HANA" in-memory database technology from its own cloud. Are you ready to bring more awareness to your brand? Consider becoming a sponsor for The AI Impact Tour. Learn more about the opportunities here. Enterprise software giant SAP has been throwing its hands in the air for years, exclaiming that it is indeed a cloud company. But yesterday, SAP took a big step that shows where it and its customers are at by offering its “HANA” in-memory database technology from its own cloud. HANA (High-Performance Analytic Appliance) is an appliance that stores terabytes worth of data and can move through that data at high speeds. As of this week, SAP and its clients are storing more than 750TBs of data in the system. HANA is an expensive solution not many companies can offer, and it’s clearly important to SAP’s future. “We expect [HANA] to have a billion-dollar future on its own,” SAP mobility head Sanjay Poonen told us in November. SAP previously only offered HANA via the cloud through Amazon Web Services. There are many potential reasons why SAP would want to offer HANA from its own cloud rather than AWS. For example, it gives SAP more control over its product, lets SAP allocate the right high-performance hardware for HANA’s monumental tasks, and lets SAP offer HANA in the cloud at a lower overall cost. VB Event The AI Impact Tour Connect with the enterprise AI community at VentureBeat’s AI Impact Tour coming to a city near you! Another reason SAP has moved HANA to its own cloud is that HANA has reportedly underperformed with current customers. SAP has even given away HANA for free to some tech startups in order to seed interest and maybe gain more big customers if those startups grow big. But after talking with several “big data” experts, one final reason particularity sticks out: SAP needed to move HANA to its own cloud to make it easier to deploy the damn thing to businesses. “In the last 10 years, the speed of business has significantly increased,” Stefan Groschupf, the CEO of Hadoop-based big data analytics startup Datameer , told VentureBeat. “No one has time to wait 18 months anymore.” Essentially, many businesses have given up on overly long deployment cycles — it bogs down other processes, and the software is outdated once it’s ready to be deployed. Cloud software pioneers like Workday have shown enterprises how handy the cloud can be and they like what they’ve seen. SAP and chief competitor Oracle have been watching this trend carefully during the past few years. Both companies have acquired smaller companies and launched new cloud-focused products to help speed up deployments and stay relevant. SAP’s biggest move in recent history was acquiring SuccessFactors for $3.4 billion back in December 2011. Similarly, Oracle has purchased a boatload of companies. In the case of HANA, this is SAP tapping two huge trends (big data and cloud) and trying to tie the biggest companies in the world to its solution. Offering it via the cloud means companies might bring in those companies that see how the cloud can speed up their workflow. That said, lean startups focused on big data solutions could gobble up some of the market SAP wants to attack with HANA. One such startup is SiSense , a big data company that has seen a 520 percent growth in subscription revenues in the past year. SiSense’s offering is different than HANA but it still thinks it can solve many businesses’ big data qualms. “We can run on any hardware out there; many companies don’t want to buy new hardware,” SiSense marketing VP Bruno Aziza told VentureBeat. “There’s been a shift in the market for how people procure their big data solutions.” For example, SiSense’s CTO recently crunched 10TBs of data in 10 seconds using an off-the-shelf $10,000 server as a conference stunt. Another thing on SiSense’s side: it only takes “hours” to deploy. Clouds image via PhotoAtelier/Flickr VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"SAP is acquiring big data startup Altiscale for over $125 million | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2016/08/25/sap-altiscale"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Exclusive SAP is acquiring big data startup Altiscale for over $125 million Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn The Altiscale team in 2015. Are you ready to bring more awareness to your brand? Consider becoming a sponsor for The AI Impact Tour. Learn more about the opportunities here. Enterprise software company SAP is acquiring Altiscale , a startup that offers a cloud-based version of the Hadoop open source software for storing, processing, and analyzing lots of different kinds of data, VentureBeat has learned. News of the deal should be announced in the next few weeks. The deal could be valued above $125 million. The investors are slated to receive three to four times as much money as they have put in, a source familiar with the matter told VentureBeat. The startup has raised at least $42 million in venture capital, including a $30 million round announced in December 2014. Investors include Accel Partners, AME Cloud Ventures, Northgate, General Catalyst Partners, Sequoia Capital, and Wildcat Venture Partners. SAP has taken steps to enhance its cloud software portfolio. This deal gives SAP one of the best known providers in the category called Hadoop as a service. Altiscale’s founder and chief executive, Raymie Stata, sold his company Stata Labs to Yahoo in 2004 and worked on the deployment of the Hadoop software within Yahoo. Stata and his team could be useful for SAP as competitors like IBM and Microsoft put a higher priority on cloud. Altiscale’s competitors include Qubole and Xplenty. Amazon Web Services (AWS), the top public cloud infrastructure provider, also offers a distribution of Hadoop. In addition to a cloud implementation of Hadoop, Altiscale also provides a cloud version of Apache Spark, a faster, more modern alternative to Hadoop, which relies on the MapReduce framework — and that means it goes up against Databricks , the startup that has popularized Spark and offers Spark in the cloud. VB Event The AI Impact Tour Connect with the enterprise AI community at VentureBeat’s AI Impact Tour coming to a city near you! The promise of running this software in the cloud is that companies don’t need to add lots of new servers, storage, and networking infrastructure in data centers to take advantage of it and employ people who are well versed in dealing with the software. In March Altiscale introduced the Insight Cloud service, which enables business-intelligence tools like Tableau to hook into and query data from Hadoop and Spark clusters. Altiscale started in 2012 and is based in Palo Alto, California. It was initially called VertiCloud. The company grew to more than 90 employees, although several employees have left this year. Customers include Devicescape, Glu Mobile, MarketShare, and ShareThis. SAP declined to comment. Altiscale did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Update on September 9: SAP announced its Altiscale acquisition during a town hall meeting for employees in the Bay Area on September 6; tweets from the SAP Silicon Valley account show Altiscale employees onstage at the event alongside SAP executive board member Bernd Leukert. A full house welcomes newly acquired @Altiscale to the SAP family during today's Town Hall w/ @LeukertB & @UXSamYen pic.twitter.com/SRfw2aR67U — SAP Silicon Valley (@SAPsv) September 7, 2016 Thank you @Altiscale , @LeukertB & @UXSamYen for today's discussion with SAPsv employees pic.twitter.com/x2XtmmM7E2 — SAP Silicon Valley (@SAPsv) September 7, 2016 SAP would not provide further comment. Update on September 21: The German business newspaper Handelsblatt reported that Leukert talked about the acquisition on September 20 at the annual conference of the German SAP user group Deutschsprachige SAP-Anwendergruppe (DSAG). VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"SAP buys Qualtrics for $8 billion in cash, days before planned IPO | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2018/11/11/sap-buys-qualtrics-for-8-billion-in-cash-days-before-planned-ipo"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages SAP buys Qualtrics for $8 billion in cash, days before planned IPO Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn SAP logo Are you ready to bring more awareness to your brand? Consider becoming a sponsor for The AI Impact Tour. Learn more about the opportunities here. (Reuters) – Germany’s SAP said on Sunday it was buying Qualtrics International Inc for $8 billion in cash, pre-empting a planned stock market listing by the U.S.-based company that specializes in surveying consumers online. The agreed deal, SAP’s biggest since it bought travel and expense management firm Concur in 2014 for $8.3 billion, backs Chief Executive Bill McDermott’s expansion into Customer Relationship Management (CRM) from its core of helping firms run their finance, logistics and human resources. Qualtrics collects feedback and data on customers, employees, products and brands for 9,000 businesses worldwide, providing real-time insights that are vital in an increasingly digital world. McDermott said that would give SAP an edge over competitors that he said still relied on crunching backward-looking figures such as those for customer churn. VB Event The AI Impact Tour Connect with the enterprise AI community at VentureBeat’s AI Impact Tour coming to a city near you! “The legacy players who carried their ‘90s technology into the 21st century just got clobbered,” he told reporters on a conference call. Qualtrics completes its software portfolio and increases its share in cloud-based subscription software, McDermott added in an interview. SAP’s competitors include Salesforce and Oracle Corp. For Qualtrics, the deal marks a dramatic outcome just days before the 16-year-old company was due to launch a smaller initial public offering of stock. Qualtrics CEO Ryan Smith, who owns about 40 percent of the company with his brother and father, said in an interview he thought an IPO would have valued the company at least at $6 billion. “We were going to be one day worth $20 billion or $30 billion, like a ServiceNow Inc ( NOW.N ) or a Workday Inc ( WDAY.O ),” Smith said. “We were under no financial pressure to do anything. Smith will stay on in the job and the company will retain its dual headquarters in Provo, Utah, and in Seattle. The deal, which has been approved by the boards of both companies, is expected to close in the first half of 2019. SAP sees an opportunity in combining its ‘operational’ data – the company says 77 percent of the world’s transaction revenue touches one of its systems – with the ‘experience’ data the Qualtrics XM Platform gathers. The two executives met a few months back and quickly struck up a friendship – McDermott said he showed up for lunch at Smith’s home in a suit and dress shoes, and the two ended up playing basketball in the yard. “We hit it off right off the bat,” said McDermott, a 57-year-old New Yorker who has headed SAP since 2010. The SAP boss said previously he was only looking at “tuck-in” acquisitions. He described the Qualtrics deal as transformational in terms of growth potential, comparing it with Facebook Inc’s ( FB.O ) takeover of photo-sharing site Instagram. Qualtrics expects revenues to exceed $400 million this year, and projects a forward growth rate of greater than 40 percent, not including potential synergies that might arise from being part of SAP. Smith said the business had been consistently cash-flow positive. By contrast, SAP expects total revenues to grow this year by 7.5 to 8.5 percent to more than $28 billion — although its new cloud-based products are achieving comparable growth rates with those of Qualtrics. SAP recently launched a new cloud-based sales and marketing suite, called C/4HANA, to supplement its mainstay S/4HANA range that has been sold to 9,500 businesses. SAP will acquire all of the outstanding shares in Qualtrics and has secured $7.9 billion in financing to cover the purchase price and acquisition-related costs. Qualtrics was advised on the transaction by Qatalyst Partners and Goodwin Proctor, LLP. JPMorgan acted as financial adviser and Jones Day as legal adviser to SAP. VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"SolarWinds' dominance became a liability in sprawling spy campaign | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2020/12/16/solarwinds-dominance-became-a-liability-in-sprawling-spy-campaign"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages SolarWinds’ dominance became a liability in sprawling spy campaign Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Optical fibre cables are seen in a telephone exchange in Rome, Italy December 20, 2013. Are you ready to bring more awareness to your brand? Consider becoming a sponsor for The AI Impact Tour. Learn more about the opportunities here. ( Reuters ) — On an earnings call two months ago, SolarWinds CEO Kevin Thompson touted how far the company had gone during his 11 years at the helm. There was not a database or an IT deployment model out there to which his Austin, Texas-based company did not provide some level of monitoring or management, he told analysts on the October 27 call. “We don’t think anyone else in the market is really even close in terms of the breadth of coverage we have,” he said. “We manage everyone’s network gear.” Now that dominance has become a liability — an example of how the workhorse software that helps glue organizations together can turn toxic when it is subverted by sophisticated hackers. VB Event The AI Impact Tour Connect with the enterprise AI community at VentureBeat’s AI Impact Tour coming to a city near you! On Monday, SolarWinds confirmed that Orion — its flagship network management software — had served as the unwitting conduit for a sprawling international cyberespionage operation. The hackers inserted malicious code into Orion software updates pushed out to nearly 18,000 customers. And while the number of affected organizations is thought to be much more modest, the hackers have already parlayed their access into consequential breaches at the U.S. Treasury and Department of Commerce. Three people familiar with the investigation have told Reuters that Russia is a top suspect , although others familiar with the inquiry have said it is still too early to tell. SolarWinds representative Ryan Toohey said he would not be making executives available for comment. He did not provide on-the-record answers to questions sent via email. In a statement issued Sunday, the company said “we strive to implement and maintain appropriate administrative, physical, and technical safeguards, security processes, procedures, and standards designed to protect our customers.” Cybersecurity experts are still struggling to understand the scope of the damage. The malicious updates — sent between March and June, when the U.S. was hunkering down to weather the first wave of coronavirus infections — was “perfect timing for a perfect storm,” said Kim Peretti, who cochairs Atlanta-based law firm Alston & Bird’s cybersecurity preparedness and response team. Assessing the damage would be difficult, she said. “We may not know the true impact for many months, if not more — if not ever,” she said. The impact on SolarWinds was more immediate. U.S. officials ordered anyone running Orion to immediately disconnect it. The company’s stock has tumbled more than 23% from $23.50 on Friday — before Reuters broke the news of the breach — to $18.06 on Tuesday. SolarWinds’ security, meanwhile, has come under new scrutiny. In one previously unreported issue, multiple criminals have offered to sell access to SolarWinds’ computers through underground forums, according to two researchers who separately had access to those forums. One of them who claimed access over the Exploit forum in 2017 was known as “fxmsp” and is wanted by the FBI “for involvement in several high-profile incidents,” cybercrime intelligence firm Intel471 CEO Mark Arena said. Arena informed his company’s clients, which include U.S. law enforcement agencies. Security researcher Vinoth Kumar told Reuters that last year he alerted the company that anyone could access SolarWinds’ update server by using the password “solarwinds123.” “This could have been done by any attacker, easily,” Kumar said. Neither the password nor the stolen access is considered the most likely source of the current intrusion, researchers said. Others — including Kyle Hanslovan, the cofounder of Maryland-based cybersecurity company Huntress — noticed that days after SolarWinds realized their software had been compromised, the malicious updates were still available for download. The firm has long mooted the idea of a spinoff of its managed service provider business and on December 9 announced that Thompson would be replaced by Sudhakar Ramakrishna, the former CEO of Pulse Secure. Three weeks ago, SolarWinds posted a job ad seeking a new vice president for security; the position is still listed as open. Thompson and Ramakrishna could not be reached for comment. ( Reporting by Raphael Satter and Christopher Bing. Jack Stubbs contributed reporting from London. Editing by Lisa Shumaker. ) VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Microsoft found malicious SolarWinds software in its systems | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2020/12/18/microsoft-found-malicious-solarwinds-software-in-its-systems"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Microsoft found malicious SolarWinds software in its systems Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Microsoft Are you ready to bring more awareness to your brand? Consider becoming a sponsor for The AI Impact Tour. Learn more about the opportunities here. ( Reuters ) — Microsoft said on Thursday it found malicious software in its systems related to a massive hacking campaign disclosed by U.S. officials this week, adding a top technology target to a growing list of attacked government agencies. The Redmond, Washington company is a user of Orion, the widely deployed networking management software from SolarWinds that was used in the suspected Russian attacks on vital U.S. agencies and others. Microsoft also had its own products leveraged to attack victims, people familiar with the matter said. The U.S. National Security Agency issued a rare “cybersecurity advisory” Thursday detailing how certain Microsoft Azure cloud services may have been compromised by hackers and directing users to lock down their systems. “Like other SolarWinds customers, we have been actively looking for indicators of this actor and can confirm that we detected malicious SolarWinds binaries in our environment, which we isolated and removed,” a Microsoft spokesperson said, adding that the company had found “no indications that our systems were used to attack others.” VB Event The AI Impact Tour Connect with the enterprise AI community at VentureBeat’s AI Impact Tour coming to a city near you! One of the people familiar with the hacking spree said the hackers made use of Microsoft cloud offerings while avoiding the company’s corporate infrastructure. Microsoft did not immediately respond to questions about the technique. Still, another person familiar with the matter said the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) does not believe Microsoft was a key avenue of fresh infection. Both Microsoft and the DHS, which earlier on Thursday said the hackers used multiple methods of entry, are continuing to investigate. The FBI and other agencies have scheduled a classified briefing for members of Congress Friday. The U.S. Energy Department also said it has evidence hackers gained access to its networks as part of the campaign. Politico had earlier reported the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), which manages the country’s nuclear weapons stockpile, was targeted. An Energy Department spokesperson said malware “has been isolated to business networks only” and has not impacted U.S. national security, including the NNSA. The DHS said in a bulletin on Thursday the hackers had used other techniques alongside corrupting updates of SolarWind’s network management software, which is used by hundreds of thousands of companies and government agencies. CISA urged investigators not to assume their organizations were safe just because they did not use recent versions of the SolarWinds software and also pointed out that the hackers did not exploit every network they gained access to. CISA said it was continuing to analyze the other avenues used by the attackers. So far, the hackers are known to have at least monitored email or other data within the U.S. departments of Defense, State, Treasury, Homeland Security, and Commerce. As many as 18,000 Orion customers downloaded the updates that contained a back door, SolarWinds has said. Since the campaign was discovered, software companies have cut off communication from those back doors to the computers maintained by the hackers. But the attackers might have installed additional ways of maintaining access, CISA said, in what some have called the biggest hack in a decade. The Department of Justice, FBI, and Defense Department, among others, have moved routine communication onto classified networks that are believed not to have been breached, according to two people briefed on the measures. They are assuming that the nonclassified networks have been accessed, the people said. CISA and private companies — including FireEye, which was the first to discover and reveal it had been hacked — have released a series of clues for organizations to look for to see if they have been hit. But the attackers are very careful and have deleted logs, or electronic footprints of which files they have accessed, security experts said. That makes it hard to know what has been taken. Some major companies have said they have “no evidence” that they were penetrated, but in some cases that may only be because the evidence was removed. In most networks, the attackers would also have been able to create false data, but so far it appears they were interested only in obtaining real data, people tracking the probes said. Meanwhile, members of Congress are demanding more information about what may have been taken and how, along with who was behind it. The House Homeland Security Committee and Oversight Committee announced an investigation Thursday, while senators pressed to learn whether individual tax information was obtained. In a statement, President-elect Joe Biden said he would “elevate cybersecurity as an imperative across the government” and “disrupt and deter our adversaries” from undertaking such major hacks. ( Reporting by Joseph Menn and Chris Bing. Editing by Chris Sanders and Christopher Cushing. ) VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Paper Mario: The Origami King review -- Lovable despite the flaws | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2020/07/15/paper-mario-the-origami-king-review"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Review Paper Mario: The Origami King review — Lovable despite the flaws Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. Paper Mario: The Origami King is a great game that makes some silly mistakes that echo the missteps from previous Paper Mario installments. The issue isn’t that developer Intelligent Systems ruined the fun with some of its choices (it’s still fun). Instead, it’s frustrating because the studio could have made an even better Paper Mario by paying more attention to the series’ earlier games. Nintendo is launching Paper Mario: The Origami King for $60 on Nintendo Switch on July 17. Like others in this series, The Origami King is a role-playing adventure that has a flat, paper version of Mario exploring a whimsical world. But like more recent releases, Nintendo doesn’t fully commit to the RPG elements. This is where the game falters the most. But before I get into the issues with the battle system, let me assuage some fears you may have. I love this game. While it has faults, I’m glad I pushed past them to get to what is a really fun adventure story. The Origami King does not live or die by its standard battles, and you shouldn’t decide to play it or not based on them, either. Paper Mario: The Origami King’s combat system is worth avoiding Paper Mario: The Origami King doesn’t have XP. Mario doesn’t level up. And yes, this makes most battles feel pointless. But this has a bigger problem: The whole combat system is fundamentally broken. Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! A basic fight in Origami King is essentially a tile-sliding puzzle. Mario stands in the middle of the battlefield, and enemies huddle around him on a series of dials. You need to figure out how to line up those enemies into either a straight line for a jump attack or a 2-by-2 grid for a hammer smash. Once you line them up, you can then choose your weapon and time the attack to get some bonus strength. But this system minimizes the attack stage to the point that it feels vestigial. Above: Standard battles are not fun. You’re not really choosing the weapon. The puzzle phase determines whether a hammer or jump is more effective in the attack stage. And the game doesn’t even try to hide that its priority is sliding koopas and goombas around. You’re almost always supposed to defeat enemies on your first turn. What I mean by this is if you have three 4-enemy groups on the playfield, you’ll get three attacks in one round. None of this is determined by stats or equipment. It all works backward from the number of enemies you’re facing. For me, this removed all of the stakes from the battles. Origami King’s fights have zero give and take. There’s an optimal way to play, and it’s up to you as the player to mindlessly run through those motions. Battles are a mess And it’s not even like the combat system is clever for what it is. It’s sloppy. During the line-up phase, you cannot easily see what weapons you have equipped. And this is a pain because as the timer is running down, you might find that the only option you have is to line four spiky enemies up in a column. This means you can only take them all out at once with a jump, but only if you happened to have iron boots. Otherwise, you’ll take damage without dishing any out. And for some reason, only your weak, basic boots and hammer don’t degrade. All other equipment falls apart after a few attacks. OK. Whatever — I guess this encourages you to try other weapons. But it’s not like Intelligent Systems created a lot of variation between the shiny hammer and the gold hammer. They work exactly the same way. But this is what I mean by the game forcing you to go through the motions. The puzzles only have one solution, so it is predetermining your pathway through each of these fights. And then if you end up with a line of the spiny enemies, you don’t really have a choice in what weapon to use. You need to choose iron boots. The combat is ill-conceived and undercooked. Paper Mario: The Origami King is a worse game for not having straightforward, turn-based RPG fights like in Super Mario RPG or Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door. Paper Mario is about variety — not combat About 10 hours into the story, I started avoiding enemies wherever I could because you’ll incur no penalty (like under-leveling, obviously). This is a major improvement, and I think even Intelligent Systems understands this. As you upgrade Mario by finding heart containers, you’ll get a boost to your HP as well as to your attack strength. This makes your attacks more powerful in fights and outside of them as well. For most of the game, you can jump on a low-level goomba or koopa troopa and take them out without actually entering the battle screen. I wish that was the extent of the combat. Above: Paper Mario always has something up its sleeve. But even if you don’t try to run past enemies, you’ll encounter hours-long sections without any of the standard battles. Instead, the design team mixes things up with in-world puzzles, quiz shows, melee combat, and exciting boss battles. In one point in the first half, you get into a series of encounters where you fight enemies by running around a theater stage, getting into imaginary gun duels, and dancing. All of that caps off with another unique boss fight without you ever getting into a standard battle. This variety has multiple effects on the game, and all of them are positive. It relegates the unsatisfying standard battles into the background. It also gives The Origami King a steady pace that keeps you on your toes. You’re always doing something different, and no one section lasts too long. Lovable characters and writing The best indication I had about the quality of Paper Mario: The Origami King is that I didn’t want to put it down. My life is so busy that I have to fit games into compressed chunks whenever these become available. But because of its pace and variety, I always felt like I was making a ton of progress. In 30 minutes, you can easily get through two major story or gameplay beats. But the biggest reasons I found the experience so sticky is its excellent characters and world. Unsurprisingly, the writing in The Origami King is delightful. Your permanent companion, Olivia, stands out for her charm and humor. She is an origami and the sister of the story’s villain, and because of this, she’s always a bit out of her depth in this flat-paper world. But Olivia is too perky to let the unknown frighten her, and her faux-confident attitude is infectious. Every companion is equally fun to spend time with, though. I have an especially soft spot for Bobby (Bob-omb). He’s going to live in my heart forever. The writing’s quality goes beyond the main cast. Background chatter is also consistent at coercing chuckles out of me. A fun, connected world Origami King’s world is what holds everything together. Unlike Paper Mario: Sticker Star on the 3DS, which has an overworld-style map, this game is one, contiguous space. That might not sound like a major difference, but it is. Moving Mario through these environments and unlocking the next area makes the entire journey feel more grand. Above: You’ll love exploring these environments Each section also has so much going on. One of the best tricks is that each area has a colored streamer interwoven throughout. Your quest is to destroy these streamers, as they are holding Princess Peach’s castle on top of a volcano. But they also serve as this great visual indicator for where you should head next. I also love the way these spaces keep you occupied as a player. Olly, the evil Origami King, has folded up hundreds of toads and stuffed them in spots all around the world. And you can find them by hitting a tree with a hammer or jumping on an origami bug’s head. Olly has also ripped paper chunks out of the environment, and you need to throw confetti down to fill them up. These are simple distractions, but they also contribute to the game’s variety and strong pace. Easy and breezy Intelligent Systems added a lot of features to make Paper Mario: The Origami King more friendly. In battles, you can buy more time by spending coins. This gives you extra slack to solve any particularly confusing puzzles. You can also spend money to buy help from the toads in the audience. Spend a bit extra, and they will even spin the puzzle field for you and give you health. Some of these features might make the game too easy. I never used a healing item in battle because I always had enough coins to call for toad help. But since I don’t care about the combat, I view these aids as nothing but a good thing. The assist features extend into the exploration as well. I remember getting hopelessly stuck in Sticker Star. I wanted to throw it into the ocean. This game has a few moments where I was feeling lost, but at any time you can ask Olivia for a hint. This is crucial if you think you’re in the right area but you’re not sure if you missed something. If you try to leave and then talk to Olivia, she’ll usually tell you to go back. Again, this feature is maybe too aggressive in acting as a protective bumper. Olivia will stop you from straying off the path if you’re supposed to go directly to the next objective. She’ll also comment if you try to walk past a save point without using it. But as with the combat, I was happy to have the help. These guardrails don’t spoil the adventure. Instead, they just keep you from stumbling into frustration. Paper Mario: The Origami King is close enough I know what most people are going to take away from this review: The battles are pointless; this isn’t what fans want from Paper Mario. The puzzle-style battles are pointless. And even worse, they just aren’t any fun. I think I find them especially maddening because of my ADHD. It’s difficult to keep the cause and effect of the moving dials in my head beyond two turns — and it doesn’t help that I have no stakes in getting through the fight. But the puzzle phase doesn’t have a good enough state where you almost figure it out. You either solve it or you don’t, and that makes the entire exercise needlessly stressful. If Intelligent Systems wanted to combine puzzle mechanics with combat, it should’ve looked to successful examples like Henry Hatsworth in the Puzzling Adventures. That 2009 DS classic from Electronic Arts combines a platformer with a match-3 game that you play simultaneously. It has a ton of back and forth where every decision counts. It has stakes. And The Origami King’s failure in this area hurts more because the game is still so good. If this had the same combat as The Thousand Year Door, it would stand among the best games available on the Nintendo Switch. But what I actually want you to take away is that this game works despite itself. You shouldn’t miss out on the characters, writing, and world because a small fraction of the experience doesn’t work. By the end, I had largely forgotten about standard combat. I think this is the rare game that improves as you continue playing. And that culminates in a thrilling finale that comes as a huge payoff for the story. So don’t sit this one out. Pick it up, play through it, complain about it with me, but then stick around for all of its joys. Score: 85/100 Paper Mario: The Origami King launches July 17 for Nintendo Switch. Nintendo provided a download code to GamesBeat for the purpose of this review. Updated at 11:05 a.m. Pacific time on July 17 to remove reference to switching items during battles. The game now has a gear option that enables this option. GamesBeat's creed when covering the game industry is "where passion meets business." What does this mean? We want to tell you how the news matters to you -- not just as a decision-maker at a game studio, but also as a fan of games. Whether you read our articles, listen to our podcasts, or watch our videos, GamesBeat will help you learn about the industry and enjoy engaging with it. Discover our Briefings. Join the GamesBeat community! Enjoy access to special events, private newsletters and more. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Microsoft Flight Simulator review -- Born to fly | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2020/08/20/microsoft-flight-simulator-review-baby-we-were-born-to-fly"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Review Microsoft Flight Simulator review — Born to fly Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn A quick jaunt across Brazil. Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. I haven’t flown on a plane in more than a year. This is the longest stretch I’ve gone without air travel since 2012, but I don’t miss it. After a few years spending a lot of time on jets, I’m much happier at home. At the same time, I do still yearn for certain things about flying, like the paradoxical calm of traveling at high speeds and looking down on the microscopic cars driving along a freeway. The magic of Microsoft Flight Simulator is that it captures the most mesmerizing aspects of aviation in a format that you can play at home on PC. The new Microsoft Flight Simulator is available now for $60 on Steam or the Microsoft Store. You can also get as part of the Xbox Game Pass for PC subscription service, which is only $5 per month. Like the classic Microsoft Flight Sim games, this modern from-the-ground-up reboot does exactly what it says on the box. It’s about simulating the behavior of real planes in the real world. But unlike those early games, Microsoft and developer Asobo Studio have access to cutting-edge technology to add an unprecedented level of detail and visual quality. This includes bringing in satellite imagery and machine learning to effectively re-create the entirety of the Earth. Asobo touts the game’s 37,000 airports, 1.5 billion buildings, and 2 trillion trees. On top of this, the development team crafted more than 20 planes and 30 airports by hand. And you can add to those totals by springing for the $90 Deluxe version or the $120 Premium Deluxe bundle. But even with mostly procedural generation, the base game looks and feels like a next-gen leap. Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! Above: Unparalleled visuals. Unmatched visual detail Microsoft Flight Simulator is one of the most gorgeous-looking games ever made. It’s impressive when all of the visual elements come together. The translation of Bing Maps data into 3D environments works especially well when you are at a cruising altitude. But then paired with the accurate weather system, the game has a lifelike quality. Clouds look photorealistic, and it’s not like they’re static objects in the sky. You can fly through them and see how the sun or lightning bounces off their surfaces. Light reflections bring the whole game to another level. The sun rippling in the ocean or beaming through some clouds behind a mountain all look exactly how you would expect. The difference is that you can point your A320 Airbus at any atmospheric anomaly to fly right into it. As you might expect, the visual model does have some seams. When flying over cities, you’ll find some buildings that don’t look exactly right. Houses and trees are indistinguishable from the real thing in part because you can only get so close to them. But it’s easier to spot the problems with a skyscraper. Also, these intense visuals come at a cost. The game is merciless on a lot of PC hardware. But it’s not just about your GPU — the game also wants a lot from the CPU. That’s likely because it’s often streaming a lot of data from the cloud. And the CPU likely has a big part to play in acquiring and assembling that data quickly. You can still play it fine on lower settings, but you might also lose some of the graphical wow factor. A scalable sim experience If you’re worried that you’ll need to learn how to fly a Boeing 747 before you can enjoy Flight Simulator — well, it wouldn’t hurt. But it’s also unnecessary. The game has a number of options to scale up and down the difficulty of the experience. If you want a real-world scenario where all of the buttons and gauges in the cockpit are crucial, you can do that. If you just want to fly, you can simplify everything. But the cool thing is that even on its easiest mode, this game is still a simulator. Asobo never turns down the simulation of how the plane moves through the air. Instead, it simply automates more and more of the procedures so that you can focus on controlling the thrust and rudder. At the same time, this isn’t a flight instructor. You’ll need to bring in your own supplemental materials if you want to challenge yourself and actually learn new piloting skills. Flight Simulator has a really good tutorial, but it’s not going to teach you what all of the lights and knobs on an Airbus do. You’ll have to boot up YouTube or get a book from the library to help with that. Above: You might find that you spend more time looking at your instruments than the beautiful world around you. Data-hungry install size The biggest issue with Flight Simulator is its size. It’s a quick install from Steam or the Microsoft Store, but you’ll then need to run an in-game installer for another 100GB of data. For people on Steam, this is especially troublesome. That download can easily take more than the two hours that Steam gives people to refund a game without question. Now, I don’t think this is a real problem. If the game is broken for you or won’t run on your hardware, attempt a refund. Valve will likely give it to you regardless of your playtime clock. Even when you have everything installed, however, the game isn’t done using your data. If you select the option to stream in extra content from the cloud, it can use between 700MB and 1,000MB of data per hour of gameplay. If you’re on a cap, keep that in mind. But the upside of all this is that Microsoft can feed in a ton of live-feed info into your game. It can replicate real-world weather conditions or the positions of commercial flights. And again, this lends to the realism. Microsoft Flight Simulator as a platform If you’re curious about Flight Simulator, it’s absolutely worth checking out if you already subscribe to Game Pass. It’s also probably worth the $5 per month on PC if you’re not yet into Microsoft’s Netflix-for-games. On the other end of the spectrum, if you are a simulator-diehard, this game is for you. And (unfortunately), you are likely more than accustomed to the quirks of the genre. So when I say the game is light on tutorials or can be touchy about peripherals, you likely already know what I mean. But no matter what your approach is when it comes to Flight Simulator, it’s clear that all of the pieces are here for long-term success. The game has light multiplayer elements, and I expect those to improve over time. Asobo is also already planning to add support for virtual reality and head-tracking solutions (TrackIR). And then the potential for growth is limitless with the in-game marketplace. This game has every reason to grow into something even more special over time. And it’s starting from a position of strength. The game’s appeal is undeniable to a certain kind of person. I’m somewhere between neophyte and sim veteran, and Microsoft Flight Simulator has won me over. It happened when I picked a flight path from a small, grass airfield in Brazil to an airport in São Paulo. It feels so good to learn the characteristics of your plane while watching the sunset give away to a purple sheet of stars. And I’m confident that most people will end up feeling the same way if they’re willing to give the game a chance. Score: 95/100 Microsoft Flight Simulator is available now for $60. Microsoft provided a download code for the purpose of this review. GamesBeat's creed when covering the game industry is "where passion meets business." What does this mean? We want to tell you how the news matters to you -- not just as a decision-maker at a game studio, but also as a fan of games. Whether you read our articles, listen to our podcasts, or watch our videos, GamesBeat will help you learn about the industry and enjoy engaging with it. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Pikmin 3 Deluxe review - An underrated and overlooked gem | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2020/10/29/pikmin-3-deluxe-review-an-underrated-and-overlooked-gem"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Review Pikmin 3 Deluxe review – An underrated and overlooked gem Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Pikmin 3 Deluxe is great. Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. Pikmin 3 Deluxe is better than ever on the Nintendo Switch. This is a game that I already reviewed and enjoyed on Wii U way back in 2013 , and I love it even more now. When I picked up Pikmin 3 Deluxe on Switch, I didn’t expect to play it for very long. I figured I’d do a quick check-in and then write something based on that. But once I started playing, I couldn’t stop. I finished the story in a single weekend, which is something I almost never do. And now I’m going back and getting the rest of the fruit. A lot of my attraction to Pikmin 3 Deluxe is due to the aesthetic and vibe. It’s a pleasant world to spend time in. The pikmin characters are cute, and the environment is vivacious. But this game’s most appealing attribute is its gameplay loop. That’s what really drew me in. Pikmin 3 Deluxe: A game about getting stuff to get more stuff Pikmin 3’s loop is a familiar one. You start out with nothing. All you can do is move around in a space. As you explore, you’ll find something that expands your capabilities. In this case, you find the yellow pikmin that conduct electricity and are lightweight. Using these new abilities, you can now push further into the world and find new pikmin or other abilities. This leads to your problems becoming more complicated, but you’re also better equipped to solve them, because you have more capabilities and because you’re better at the game. Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! You’ll find this loop in a lot of games. My favorite example is Steamworld Dig 2. Both this and Pikmin have a system where you have to regularly return to your base. In Dig, you need to return to the surface because your pockets get too full. In Pikmin 3 Deluxe, it’s because the day ends. While I prefer Dig’s way of doing things, because it limits the stress, the results are effectively the same. Both give you a chance to restart from zero but now you have more resources and a better chance of pushing even further on your next run. Pikmin 3 really shines in this structure because it’s small. Or the characters are tiny in a large world. This is a conceit from the original Pikmin. You play as characters who land on a world brimming with giant batteries and other household goods. It feels like a world where humans used to exist. But this Honey, I Shrunk the Kids art style has ramifications on the gameplay. The play areas are often just tiny little ditches. And while they feel like mountains to the characters, you can easily look over the dirt hills and see what’s waiting for you out in the world. This has an effect where every collectible and powerup feels just out of your grasp. And if you really pushed, you could probably get anything on your next run. That’s where Pikmin 3’s “just one more day” hooks get into you. And it’s why I couldn’t put the game down. What makes this ‘Deluxe’? I love Pikmin 3 Deluxe, but you don’t need to play it again if you already did on Wii U. Now, I know that only applies to like six of us. And I did enjoy playing it again. But this is the same game as on the Wii U. There’s some new stuff and some smart edits. You get more powerup spray in levels now. The lock-on system is also really great. You can also now get to the map by pausing the game instead of having it on the second screen, like on the Wii U. As for the new stuff, some of it is great. You can now play the story in local cooperative mode. Nintendo also added “side stories” starring Olimar and Louie. These are an OK distraction, but they’re not as substantial as the campaign. Don’t buy this package to get access just to this content. This version also comes with the Wii U version’s downloadable content, which I’m sure only a fraction of Pikmin 3 Wii U owners ever bought. The main attraction here is still the core campaign. This experience is strong enough to hold up the entire game. Go play Pikmin 3: Deluxe right now I’m thrilled that I had another great excuse to play through it. And I’m really hoping this is paving the way for a Pikmin 4. Even if you bounced off of Pikmin, I think Nintendo has ironed out a lot of the wrinkles that acted as a barrier for this franchise. The controls are solid and friendly. Even the camera never really causes frustrations. Give this game a shot. It’s worth it. I’m giving Pikmin 3 Deluxe 4 stars. Pikmin 3 Deluxe is available for Nintendo Switch on October 30 for $60. Nintendo sent a review code to GamesBeat for the purposes of this review. GamesBeat's creed when covering the game industry is "where passion meets business." What does this mean? We want to tell you how the news matters to you -- not just as a decision-maker at a game studio, but also as a fan of games. Whether you read our articles, listen to our podcasts, or watch our videos, GamesBeat will help you learn about the industry and enjoy engaging with it. Discover our Briefings. Join the GamesBeat community! Enjoy access to special events, private newsletters and more. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"IMVU launches Live Rooms for hosting fashion shows, lectures, weddings and more | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2020/03/04/imvu-launches-live-rooms-for-hosting-fashion-shows-lectures-weddings-and-more"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages IMVU launches Live Rooms for hosting fashion shows, lectures, weddings and more Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn IMVU is a virtual world where users create their own rooms and digital items. Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. IMVU is launching Live Rooms , a new part of its social network where you can assume a digital identity with your own avatar and socialize with other characters. The new feature lets users create rooms where they can host live events for thousands of concurrent users including fashion shows, talk shows, lectures, virtual weddings, and more. Redwood City, California-based IMVU is like a blast from the past; it was founded in 2004 as a place for teens to entertain each other with avatars and decorated rooms. It was not so different from Second Life in that way, but it wasn’t an interconnected world. The social network survived, and it has now had more than 200 million registered users to date. It still has 6 million monthly active users and 225 employees. Live Rooms is a new product feature on IMVU Mobile (iOS and Android) and the new IMVU Desktop 3.0 app. For the first time on the popular global platform, Live Rooms enables users to broadcast, entertain, show, demonstrate, or present to a larger group of people. In an email, the company said with Live Rooms, users can entertain and engage an audience of thousands, invite others to present with them, and customize their presentation space. The audience can chat, interact, and tip the room host. It’s unlike anything the company has done on the platform before, as the company previously focused on one-to-one or small group conversations. The launch of Live Rooms provides users with a new way to create interactive content for others to engage with and enjoy. Live Rooms are public spaces that can hold thousands of viewers and can host up to 10 presenters in real time. Daren Tsui, CEO of IMVU, said in a statement that the company launched Live Rooms to bring people together around entertaining and engaging events that drive a connection with the audience. The goal is to foster a strong sense of community and belonging so that you feel like you are at a major event like a comedy show. Hosts have a wide variety of options to personalize the 3D room and presentation space using items designed by IMVU creators, purchased in the IMVU marketplace. Multiple levels of communication can happen in Live Rooms — users can have side conversations with friends during the show, just like at real-life events. Audience members can explore the 3D room freely, and also leave tips for hosts in the form of IMVU Credits, incentivizing hosts to create engaging presentations. Live Rooms finished release on mobile in December and has been accessed by over 8 million users attending and hosting events. The Live Rooms inaugural event was launched by IMVU and YouTube creator Carmen King immediately reached the maximum room limit of 1,000 concurrent users who joined her talk show about friendship on IMVU. King launched a talk show, “The VU Live,” that helped create a better connection with fans. IMVU has a catalog of 40 million virtual goods created by 50,000 creators. VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"The DeanBeat: Our next game event focuses on growth and the metaverse | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2020/10/23/the-deanbeat-our-next-game-event-focuses-on-growth-and-the-metaverse"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages VB Event The DeanBeat: Our next game event focuses on growth and the metaverse Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Tim Sweeney, CEO of Epic Games, wants the Metaverse to happen. Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. The game industry is so full of surprises, like Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez drawing more than 4.5 million views for her hilarious get-out-the-vote Twitch livestream of social game Among Us this week. As a political event, it drowned out Rudy Giuliani’s ploy to revive the Hunter Biden controversy via the New York Post. Video games are prospering during the pandemic , in contrast to so many other less fortunate parts of the economy. But figuring out the surprises and navigating the opportunities is perilous with so many things happening at once. We have new consoles coming, disruptions in the mobile ad ecosystem, and lots of land mines when it comes to finding the right way to monetize gamers. That’s why we’re going to hold a new event on January 26 and January 27. The first day will be about Driving Game Growth , in a partnership between GamesBeat and Facebook. It will be grounded in the realities of business strategy for today’s game developers and publishers. We’ll be talking about privacy and major ad ecosystem changes — like whatever comes along to replace the Identifier for Advertisers (IDFA) — and the cross-platform appeal and accessibility of instant games. We’re busy identifying speakers for a dozen major topics that combine the vision of bigtime CEOs, the sizzle of famous game developers, and the meat of tactical experts on things like in-app purchases and rewarded videos. Yes, we’ll have vision, sizzle, and meat at this all-digital event. Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! If you’re a developer and you want to be able to navigate the modern landscape of monetization, then this will be your kind of event, brought to you with the help of Facebook Gaming and Facebook Audience Network. One of the awesome things about this event is that our partners will enable us to offer major parts of the event, such as day one, for free. That will help us attract not only the traditional audience of CEOs and executives who will come for the content and the networking, but the aspiring developers and international audiences who otherwise could never afford to come to an in-person event in a very expensive hotel. This event will be all virtual and available online. Into the metaverse Above: The Omniverse is where robots learn to be robots. On the second day, we’ll go someplace entirely different: the metaverse. The Zoomverse isn’t the place where I want to spend the pandemic. I’m still sheltering in place and playing games like Call of Duty: Warzone. But I don’t have a way to be as social as I once was. I can’t travel. So I can’t wait to be in the metaverse , the universe of virtual worlds that are all interconnected, like in novels such as Snow Crash and Ready Player One. I think a lot of people feel the same way. We could dismiss the metaverse, or the Xverse, the Magicverse, the Omniverse, the Holodeck, the Oasis — whatever sci-fi name we want to give it — as pure fiction. But we have come a long way since Will Wright, the famous game developer, said that “a dog-eared copy of Snow Crash ” is the business plan for every startup in Silicon Valley. Many Silicon Valley technologists and game developers have thought about the metaverse and how to make it, but more as a hobby, a pipe dream, or a night job. But we need it now more than ever, and an increasing number of tech and game leaders are thinking about this as their day jobs. Above: Roblox CEO Dave Baszucki talks about the metaverse. That’s why we’re going to have an event called Into the metaverse. It will take place on January 27, on day two of our event, with speakers from across games, film, venture investment, and big platform companies. Our speakers include uber-geeks such as Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney and other visionaries who are investing heavily in the metaverse, like Roblox CEO Dave Baszucki; Gumi CEO Hironao Kunimitsu; Schell Games CEO Jesse Schell; Fable Studio CEO Edward Saatchi; Nvidia media and entertainment general manager Richard Kerris; Manticore Games CEO Frederic Descamps; and High Fidelity CEO Philip Rosedale. These are some of the pioneers who are making the metaverse real, like Nvidia’s Omniverse , which is like a metaverse for engineers and is opening this fall. And we hope to show you demos of what these companies are working on, as well as broadcast part of the event on Oculus Venues in virtual reality. We’re going to discuss whether we’re going to have a multiverse with lots of little metaverses, or a single big one like the Oasis from Ready Player One. We’ll discuss whether the best path to the metaverse is by building a giant virtual world or if we’ll get there through games like Fortnite, which has been adding features such as concerts. Or maybe the metaverse will emerge from something simpler, like Animal Crossing, where we’ll use 3D avatars on a Nintendo Switch. Above: Animal Crossing: New Horizons is about family. We will look at the plumbing of the metaverse, such as blockchain technology that will let us verify our virtual property and help us take our avatars from one world to another. How critical will virtual beings and AI be in fleshing out the virtual worlds? We can talk about how AR/VR could help us get there. We can discuss the enterprise side of the metaverse, such as I’m thinking of adding a session on sex and the metaverse, but maybe that one is still the stuff of science fiction. We will talk about the investments we still have to make and the startups that look promising. And we’ll try to predict what we’ll do in the metaverse, with topics such as transmedia and storytelling. Our speakers will address topics like ethics, diversity, and, of course, transformative technology. I’m very excited about this event, and I hope you can attend it. Registration is free and open to all levels of the gaming community. Register today or reach out to events@venturebeat.com for speaking or sponsorship opportunities. And since this is about events, I’d like to point out some other events that we have coming. On November 11, we’ll have an event with Oculus Venues and Zoom on Next Generation Games. On November 19, we’ll talk with Akamai and game studio heads on what it takes to build a new studio and new infrastructure to go with it. On December 2, I’ll moderate a webinar with Yellowhead on optimizing creative elements for advertising, and on December 9 we have an event with talks about diversity in games. It’s going to be a busy event season, for sure. But we hope to do our part to help the game ecosystem, and we invite you to join us on the front row of gaming. GamesBeat's creed when covering the game industry is "where passion meets business." What does this mean? We want to tell you how the news matters to you -- not just as a decision-maker at a game studio, but also as a fan of games. Whether you read our articles, listen to our podcasts, or watch our videos, GamesBeat will help you learn about the industry and enjoy engaging with it. Discover our Briefings. Join the GamesBeat community! Enjoy access to special events, private newsletters and more. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Roblox files for IPO, a first for user-generated game platforms | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2020/11/19/user-generated-game-platform-roblox-files-for-ipo"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Roblox files for IPO, a first for user-generated game platforms Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Work at a Pizza Place has been played 1.9 billion times on Roblox. Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. User-generated game platform Roblox publicly disclosed its filing to go public on the U.S. stock market today. The company did not say how much it is raising nor its valuation. CNBC previously reported that the company could go public early next year at an $8 billion valuation. Roblox said earlier that it filed a confidential draft registration statement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for a public offering of common stock. The company most recently raised $150 million in venture funding from Andreessen Horowitz in a deal announced in February. Its valuation at that time was $4 billion. Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! The game industry is one of the few economic sectors that is doing well during the pandemic. Game engine maker Unity raised $1.3 billion at a $13.6 billion valuation in an IPO on September 18, even though it is losing money. Unity’s shares are up more than 60% since trading began. Above: Dave Baszucki, the CEO of Roblox. Skillz , which turns games into skill-based cash reward competitions, is planning to go public at a $3.5 billion valuation through a special public acquisition company (SPAC). CEO Dave Baszucki and Erik Cassel founded Roblox in 2004, enabling just about anyone to make Lego-like characters and build rudimentary games. Before that, in 1989, Baszucki and Cassel programmed a 2D simulated physics lab called Interactive Physics, which would later on influence the approach for Roblox. Financial results The company has grown to more than 31.1 million daily active users. The platform now has nearly seven million active developers. As of September 30, developers had created more than 18 million different experiences (or games) on Roblox, and the community visited more than 12 million of those experiences. For the period ended September 30, Roblox had 31.1 million daily active users, compared to just 17.6 million in 2019 and 12 million in 2018. The hours engaged was 22.2 billion for the nine months ended September 30, compared to 10 billion in the same period in 2019 and 9.4 billion in 2018. Measurement firm Sensor Tower said that since 2014, Roblox has seen 447.8 million installs and $2 billion in consumer spending on mobile. Above: Dean Takahashi wanders through the JDRF area inside Roblox. For the nine months ended September 30, revenue was $588.7 million, compared with $349.9 million a year earlier and $488.2 million in 2018. Bookings (which include revenue that will be recognized later) were $1.2 billion for the nine months ended September 30, up 171% compared to $458 million a year earlier. The company attributed that growth in part to demand from users stuck at home during the pandemic. The company reported a loss of $203.2 million in the nine months ended September 30, compared to a loss of $46.3 million a year earlier. Cash from operations was $345.3 million for the nine months ended September 30, compared with $62.6 million a year earlier. Roblox shares revenues with its game creators, enabling high school students and young adults to make money. For the 12 months ended September 30, more than 960,000 developers earned Robux, or virtual cash that can be converted into real money, on Roblox. There were 1,050 who earned more than $10,000, and nearly 250 who earned more than $100,000. When users exchange Robux for money, Roblox takes a 30% share of the transaction. About 34% of sales comes from the Apple App Store and 18% comes from Google Play. The average lifetime of a paying Roblox user is about 23 months. Among the risk factors Roblox faces is ensuring a civil environment for children online, which isn’t easy given all the different ways online systems are attacked. Baszucki is a big fan of the metaverse , the universe of virtual worlds that are all interconnected, like in novels such as Snow Crash and Ready Player One. At our GamesBeat Summit event in April, Roblox’s Matt Curtis talked about the tools the company is building in order to make its version of the metaverse happen. Baszucki is speaking at our metaverse event on January 27. In a letter, Baszucki said, “As I sit here writing this letter, I can’t help but reflect on the last 15 years and how they have gone by so quickly. It seems like only yesterday when Erik Cassel and I launched the first version of Roblox from a small office in Menlo Park. From the start, we imagined the possibilities of bringing people together through play. Our goal was to create an online community where people could do things together in virtual worlds. We hoped that by sharing experiences, our users would connect, learn, and have fun with one another.” By 2011, Roblox players were asking Baszucki for his autograph at company events. “When we talk about ‘creators’ we do so in a general sense, because creating experiences on Roblox taps a broad range of skills,” Baszucki wrote. “Our creator community includes people specialized in coding, 3D experience design, avatar and clothing design, sound design, community management, moderation, live ops, production, and business. We believe that experience creation will become a growing field of employment.” The metaverse is the same goal that Epic Games , maker of Fortnite, is reportedly chasing after as well, as are numerous other companies. But Roblox is doing just fine as a platform for user-generated content. Many of its top-10 games are getting billions of plays. As of September 30, Roblox had 830 employees, up 275 from a year earlier. It also has 1,700 trust and safety agents across the world. For 2019, Baszucki received $4.5 million in compensation. He holds about 1.7% of the Class A shares and 100% of Class B shares, for a total of about 12% of the outstanding stock and 70.7% voting control. Anthony Lee, the lead independent director and a vice president at Altos Ventures, holds 21.3% of the stock and 7% of voting control. The underwriters include Goldman Sachs, Allen & Co., Morgan Stanley, BofA Securities, J.P. Morgan, and RBC Capital Markets. Small details Among the small details, Roblox uses the Lua scripting language and Amazon Web Services for its cloud infrastructure. About 67% of daily active users and 32% of bookings are from outside the U.S. In China, Roblox said it success will be dependent on Tencent’s ability to obtain a license for Luobulesi, the name of the Roblox platform in China. As of September 30, Roblox had 18,000 servers around the world. Developers can share their creations via the Studio Marketplace. As of September 30, that market had more than 30 million models and other creations available. Roblox said it has more than 45 U.S. patents. GamesBeat's creed when covering the game industry is "where passion meets business." What does this mean? We want to tell you how the news matters to you -- not just as a decision-maker at a game studio, but also as a fan of games. Whether you read our articles, listen to our podcasts, or watch our videos, GamesBeat will help you learn about the industry and enjoy engaging with it. Discover our Briefings. Join the GamesBeat community! Enjoy access to special events, private newsletters and more. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"CES 2020 preview: What to expect from the Las Vegas techpalooza | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2020/01/03/ces-2020-preview-what-to-expect-from-the-las-vegas-techpalooza"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages CES 2020 preview: What to expect from the Las Vegas techpalooza Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Sign at CES 2019. Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. Next week at the Consumer Electronics Show , we’ll see and hear about the latest tech trends, from 5G networking to video streaming services and self-driving cars. Those aren’t new trends, but they will be stronger and more practical than ever before, thanks to the continuous forward march of technology. Starting Sunday, around 6,000 press will converge on Las Vegas for a couple of press days ahead of CES 2020 , the biggest tech trade show and the flagship event of the Consumer Technology Association , the lobbying group that represents the tech industry. If it’s your first time to the show, check out my tips and tricks for CES. By Tuesday, the main show floors will open with 4,500 exhibitors across more than 2.9 million square feet of space, according to Karen Chupka, executive vice president of the CTA. About 170,000 people are expected to attend, down somewhat from 175,212 last year. But it’s still going to be one of the most important events of the year, signaling the trends ahead for tech. And while CES is still a place for the giants like Samsung and Sony, the show will have 1,200 startups — up from 1,160 startups last year — in its Eureka Park section. VB Event The AI Impact Tour Connect with the enterprise AI community at VentureBeat’s AI Impact Tour coming to a city near you! The big trends Above: Qualcomm 5G chip We’ll also see the internet of things filter its way into smart homes, smart buildings, and smart whatevers. Artificial intelligence — buoyed by successes in computer vision, neural networks, and machine learning — will be pervasive. Blockchain startups will still be scrambling for their share of attention, as will anything that saves us battery life for our gadgets. With health tech, I’m expecting to see more solutions than ever that target elderly people and their caregivers, as tech has finally woken up to the demographic trend of the baby boomers get older. Tech isn’t going to be just for the young anymore. Such devices include fall alerts, wearables to detect health problems, and ways to organize a caregiver’s life. Overall, health and wellness exhibitors will be up 25% in exhibitors and 15% in square footage. I’m still hoping that sleep care solutions will get a lot smarter and more practical. We’ll also see controversy, as some people are protesting that the CTA announced Ivanka Trump , advisor to the White House and the daughter of U.S. President Donald Trump, will hold a fireside chat with CTA CEO Gary Shapiro (Tuesday at 2 p.m. Pacific). CES will also put esports — the phenomenon where gamers watch their favorite players play video games — into a bigger spotlight. (I’ll be moderating a session on Wednesday at 1 p.m. on how brands are engaging with esports and gaming at 1 p.m. at Aria, Level 3, Ironwood Ballroom). A year ago, I expected 5G mass deployments to be well underway in 2020. 5G is here, but mostly in places such as South Korea, which always leads the way in mobile. Apple has yet to launch a 5G smartphone, so it looks like the real revolution will hit us in 2021. I do expect that 5G will be transformational, providing instant access to our data and the network, and it will disrupt the cable companies’ hold on broadband services in the home. 5G laptops will be a godsend for mobile workers, and gamers are going to love it, particularly when it’s combined with cloud gaming services. But it’s all moving more slowly than we want. What’s missing from CES Above: Jensen Huang goes off script in Las Vegas in January 2019. We’ll miss him at CES 2020. Some common CES events won’t happen. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang is skipping his annual Sunday evening keynote this year. And Samsung yanked its Sunday afternoon press event because it has the opening keynote on Monday evening at 6:30 p.m. That means we’ll have a little less vision or fewer products than usual from some of tech’s stalwarts. (Apple doesn’t exhibit at the show, Google doesn’t have a big press event, and Amazon mostly lets its its partners show off its products.) But Advanced Micro Devices CEO Lisa Su may have some news; she will take the Samsung press slot to talk about how her company will continue its comeback with its Ryzen and Radeon chips. The square footage for drones will be either flat or below past years, and 3D printing will also be smaller. But do not fear: For the first time, sex tech vendors will be allowed on the show floor, with companies such as Lora DiCarlo and Lioness exhibiting. One of my Facebook friends suggested that we rename the show CEX. Lots of TVs and cars Above: Self-driving cars need a standards body to get to the finish line. Minneapolis-based VSI Labs’ research vehicle at ARM TechCon. Once again, the North Hall of the Las Vegas Convention Center will seem more like a car show, with lots of models from scores of car companies that are creating driver-assisted or self-driving cars. 8K TVs will be plentiful. With 7,680 x 4,320 resolution, 8K TVs will have 16 times the number of pixels as HDTVs, and four times more than 4K TVs. These TVs have been shown off mostly as prototypes or toys for the rich for the past three years, but the TV industry is pushing hard, particularly since the 2020 Tokyo Olympics will be broadcast in 8K. Companies like Samsung will also be trying to do all sorts of things to keep us lusting after displays. That means the displays will become foldable, thinner, and have smaller edges known as bezels. They will also become sharper and more vivid when it comes to colors. But this is not necessarily what everyone would call disruptive innovation, which is what we’re looking for. It’s more like incremental innovation. Companies like Samsung and LG will also try to make everyday devices smarter and more connected. Expect refrigerators with displays, washing machines that you can control with a smartphone, and security cameras and robots that guard your home. And companies are vying to simplify our lives by centralizing a lot of control for the internet of things in the TV or voice control devices. Virtual reality vendors continue to struggle to find a market. It’s hard to tell if they are going to be plentiful at the show, as they are mixed into exhibits with augmented reality and gaming vendors. Overall, that category will be up 30% in exhibitors and 15% in square footage. Smart cities will be up 25% in exhibitors and 70% in square footage. But VR innovators will continue to push technologies that let you experience more sensations in VR, such as body haptics (touch) and “ cybershoes. ” Tech for the rest of us Above: Carnival’s PlayOcean games are accessible via portal screens on its cruise ships. I have some hope that there will be some interesting technologies from non-tech companies. My favorite CES talk was a few years ago, when Arnold Donald — the CEO of the world’s largest cruise company, Carnival Cruises — unveiled the Ocean Medallion wearable. That was interesting because it was an example of how technology was infiltrating a non-tech business, where the technology faded into the woodwork and the woodwork itself got smart. Carnival is now outfitting its 100-plus cruise ships with the technology. Last year, Procter & Gamble showed up with cool uses of tech in ordinary products, such as putting sensors and AI into products such as skin advisers, heated razors, and more. It will be back this year with more products that promise the same kind of creativity as last year’s products, which included a blemish remover that worked well on my face. This year, Delta Airlines CEO Ed Bastian will give a keynote speech at 9 a.m. Pacific time on Tuesday. I hope that talk will show how non-tech enterprises can use technologies to improve the way they do business. Let’s hope, however, that the product makers keep in mind that we can’t pay a ton of money for every new tech toy. Smarter air filters? Above: Molekule Air Mini I’ll close with an example of what I want to see the tech companies and non-tech companies do. For the past year or so, I’ve been looking at air filters — generally low-tech devices that you turn on in the hopes that they will take something out of the air that you don’t want to breathe. In California, with all of the fires that we’ve had recently, making these air filters smarter has become pretty important. If you could make a really good air filter, like Molekule has done with its Molekule Air Mini, that’s great. But it’s a bit pricey at $400, not including costs for filters. So let’s get this product into a more affordable realm, perhaps with more competitors who can do a decent job of cleaning the air. Good technology doesn’t do us much good if it’s too expensive, like the $1,000 showerhead or the $250 pet feeder or the $1,000 smart suitcase. Molekule itself has a shortcoming in that it doesn’t yet measure the quality of the air and show that to you with some kind of indicator. If you can see, perhaps on a smartphone screen, exactly how dirty your home air is, then you’ll be more concerned about it at the right time. I want to see on my smartphone just how clean my bedroom air is. And if the filter makers promise me that I will get a better night’s sleep, then I want to see how they can measure that. The Alen BreatheSmart 45i HEPA air filter had Sleepscore Labs do a study on this front, showing that 93% of users said they had a better night’s sleep when using the filter. But I want to see a seamless connection between the sleep measurement, air quality measurement, and filter product — all in a way that I can check on in real time. Now that would be a life-changing product. Maybe I’ll see that this year. But the air filter folks are among the companies I would like to see come back over and over, with good ideas from past years, only in a more refined, cheaper, and more practical format. At some point, this tech will become part of the fabric of our lives, and we won’t even think of it as tech anymore. VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Cory Barlog: The struggle of making God of War | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2019/06/30/cory-barlog-the-struggle-of-making-god-of-war"

"Game Development View All Programming OS and Hosting Platforms Metaverse View All Virtual Environments and Technologies VR Headsets and Gadgets Virtual Reality Games Gaming Hardware View All Chipsets & Processing Units Headsets & Controllers Gaming PCs and Displays Consoles Gaming Business View All Game Publishing Game Monetization Mergers and Acquisitions Games Releases and Special Events Gaming Workplace Latest Games & Reviews View All PC/Console Games Mobile Games Gaming Events Game Culture Cory Barlog: The struggle of making God of War Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn God of War. Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. Cory Barlog has been on a year-long victory tour since the release of God of War, the acclaimed title that has had tremendous success on the Sony PlayStation 4. And his latest stop was at Gamelab, the game event in Barcelona this week. Stuart Whyte, head of Sony’s London studio and creator of the virtual reality game Blood & Truth, moderated a discussion with Barlog that produced both familiar and novel stories. Barlog told tales about the hard work, self-doubt, and false starts that the project had, as he did in an earlier interview with GamesBeat. Barlog said that early on, some members of the team wanted to get rid of Kratos. But Barlog fought to keep him. And others didn’t think that Kratos’ companion, his son Atreus, was a good addition. But Barlog wanted the game to be a father-son story. And the game went on to greatness. The game received a rating of 94 out of 100 on review aggregator Metacritic, and it sold more than 10 million copies. It won Game of the Year at The Game Awards and many other awards. Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! That was a big achievement since God of War was made at Sony’s Santa Monica studio with a team of 300 people over five years. By comparison, as many as 2,000 people worked on Rockstar’s rival Red Dead Redemption 2 for as much as seven years, but God of War handily beat [the higher rated] Red Dead in awards. During his conversation with Whyte, Barlog confessed, “I don’t know if I’ve fully processed all of it yet. It’s been a wild year afterward. It’s one of those things where–we had our heads down, working so hard for so long, and there was a point in time where, while we were happy with what we had done, a lot of us still had that possibility in our heads that this wasn’t going to be received well.” Here’s an edited transcript of their fireside chat. Above: Cory Barlog, creative director at Sony Santa Monica, and director of God of War. Stuart Whyte: The first question is, you were game director of God of War. Can you talk about what that role involved and your approach to that? Cory Barlog: A game director, in my mind, is somebody who makes everybody on the team miserable for the duration of the project. Honestly, the majority of the job is about putting yourself in uncomfortable positions every single day. It’s about not knowing at all what you want to do, but also knowing exactly what you want. You have to have this straddling balance of realizing that games are incredibly complex. You can have an idea of where you want to go with something, the structure of something, but the actual moment to moment figuring all this out–it unravels over the course of, in God of War’s case, about five years. You talk to people, get them excited. You’re sort of selling everyone a car for two years, because there’s really not much there. You’re just convincing them, “You should try this. This is going to be great. Trust me.” Even when it’s a crazy idea or something way too big initially. The first year of the game I kept telling everyone the game was only going to be 10 hours. Don’t worry! It’s gonna be small! It’ll be fine. Then I grew into, 10 hours in the critical path and 10 hours in the exploration. Yeah, it’s 20 hours, but don’t worry, it won’t get any bigger than that. And then it was — okay, it’s going to be about 40 hours. Above: The audience watches Cory Barlog and Stuart Whyte at Gamelab. To be honest, everybody was always surprised when the game was finished. “We’re really surprised by how long it was!” I don’t think I’ve ever worked on anything that wasn’t way bigger than we expected. That’s all the way back to working on fighting games at Paradox. Everything seems to balloon when more and more people get involved. From my perspective, the director is just somebody there constantly keeping an eye on everything, overlooking the entire project. At Santa Monica we do it slightly differently than other studios. I’m working with the marketing groups to make sure the game’s message is consistent throughout, and working with licensing groups to make sure there’s consistency. There’s one view over the entire thing. But I really don’t produce anything during the day, except hot air. It’s crazy. All I do is talk. I used to animate. I started in animation, and you’d end every day with at least one substantive contribution. I created an animation and it’s awesome. Sometimes I’d create three or four in a day and feel really productive. Now all I do is go to meetings all day and beg, mostly. Please, just do this! Trust me on this! You’re constantly trying to convince people that it’s just a little bit further. Like when you’re low on gas. “Let’s pull over and ask for directions.” “No, no, it’s just up ahead!” I feel like that’s all I’m doing. It’s just up ahead, don’t worry. Whyte: You mentioned that 30 to 40 hours of gameplay length — Blood and Truth was five to six hours, and even that was challenging to review. How the hell do you approach a 30-40 hour game, constantly reviewing it during development? Above: God of War. Barlog: It’s very challenging, especially when the game isn’t actually put together until that last six to eight months. A lot of the time you can’t even see the entire experience. You know what the whole experience needs to be, but it’s all in broken pieces all over the place. I think it was the Christmas before release in April where we had everything fully assembled, all together, and people could take the game home and come back and say what they thought. That is weird, because it felt like every God of War I’ve ever made, Christmas was the time everyone would take the build home and come back right before release, and either say really good things or just have a lot of very bad things to say. This was a nice mixture of — there were a lot of bad things, because we had terrible balance. We’d just gotten the economy online for all the upgrading. It was a disaster. But that was the first pass. That’s how it’s supposed to be. It’s supposed to be terrible. A lot of other stuff, like the camera, the no-camera-cut thing we were trying out — that was something a lot of people didn’t believe throughout the duration of the project. It was a lot of work. To be totally respectful to the team, I put a lot of work on the animation and cinematics group, even though in the beginning I said, “Aw, don’t worry, it’s gonna be fine. It’s not that big of a deal.” It was a really big deal. The AI group, the animation group, everyone had to do all this extra work. We had to invent new rules, new ways to set up cinematics, new ways for characters to navigate the world and hit their marks. Above: Stuart Whyte (left) and Cory Barlog discuss God of War. But it paid off. At the end these people came back after Christmas and said, “Now I get it. I get why it was important that we did this.” It just felt different. Actually attacking something like that and testing it — I struggled. At the end I was trying to get people to — I’d say, “I can’t go to meetings right now. I need to play the game.” But you’d get maybe three hours before there was a fire. There’s a fire every five minutes on one of these projects. It’s ridiculous. Whyte: It’s even more challenging in VR. At least when you’re playing the game, you can see in the peripheral vision someone coming over to ask a question. In VR you’re trapped. Barlog: When you do character interactions within VR, part of the magic of that is to feel like the person is looking directly at you. That’s not on the performance, is it? You’re doing some extra stuff. What do you do to get that to work? Whyte: I think we found — VR is such a new medium. I think one of the biggest learnings we’ve found is, there’s a design language that we as an industry have created over the last few decades. Thinking about health systems, locomotion systems, cutscenes, cutaways. Even PC control systems like WASD iterated over a very long time. Some of those things work brilliantly in VR and some of them just do not work at all. For us it was an exciting time to try and play around with that. One thing was within our drama and our story elements, where the player is the camera. You have no control over where the player looks. You have a scene with seven or eight characters, and the player could just spend the entire time fixating on one character. Barlog: I kept trying to look under the table when people were talking to me. Above: God of War has a father-son story. Whyte: Bizarrely enough, there was some chewing gum hidden under a table that I found one day. That’s why the game took longer. A lot of attention to detail there. But we had to create some eye- and head-tracking tech, so that when you’re moving back and forth like this, the characters’ eyes keep following you. Their heads subtly move. As soon as we didn’t have that enabled, as soon as you start moving around, you just feel the character is talking through you, rather than at you. That kind of personal interaction, you’ve gotta have someone looking at you and paying attention to you. It was tech like that which I think you only need to do in VR, but it was super complex to get right. Barlog: Did that come on early or late? Whyte: It came together quite hot at the end. I think the whole — games can come together hot. There’s definitely elements where you think this is going to work really well, and then you start trying to implement it. It doesn’t work well. You think, “I’ve gotta keep the faith, gotta keep with it.” Then you try over weeks and months more, doing user testing, and it’s still coming back — but you’ve got to crack this. It’s so important. For example, our inventory system. You wear a headset. The PlayStation can track the headset and track your left and right moves. But it has no concept of where the rest of your body is. We started to have ammo kits here and holsters down here. It worked most of the time, but if you started leaning forward and reaching down, what is the player going for? It gets very confusing. Barlog: I found that if I was moving around, I’d think, “Wait a minute, something’s happening!” It’s interesting. All games — maybe there are people out there who do not adhere to this, but every game I’ve ever worked on, and every game I’ve ever talked about, is ugly as hell until it’s not ugly, which is usually in the last six to eight months. It’s usually a disaster. It’s all in pieces everywhere. It’s constantly about keeping the faith. That’s very hard. When you start getting teams that range anywhere from 20 to 300 people — you have 300 individual human beings with different levels of stress and anxiety who are saying, “I’m not confident in this.” That permeates the people near them. You’re constantly spinning plates. Whyte: And even different — people like different types of games on teams. It’s impossible to make a game that can appeal to everybody on the team. Some people like certain elements more than others. I went to a conference last year, a Sony internal conference, where you talked about the challenge of keeping the faith. You talked about Atreus. Can you talk about the challenges with having the boy? Barlog: I talk about this a lot, but that was not a popular decision in the beginning. It was, “Hey, that’s cool. Kratos is a dad.” But a lot of people on the team were the old guard. These are people who worked on God of War back in 2003 when I first started there. We were making the original God of War. To them, they were like, “There’s a kid running around? That’s really annoying.” They were remembering games that had escort missions and companions that were not so good. Above: God of War for PlayStation 4. For me, even though I was aware of those games, I thought there was a really great example in The Last of Us, where they actually pulled off something really amazing, and they did it in a way where — they threw out most of their work six months before ship. That’s who they are. That’s what they do. They realized it wasn’t working, and it doesn’t matter if the schedule isn’t there. Throw it out and start over. It was actually simpler. They were making something really complicated, which is what we do. When you start at the beginning you’re going to make something that’s the most amazing PhD dissertation in companion AI. In the end it really needed to boil down to a few simple rules, to prevent the player experience from sucking. For us, we looked at that, added a few rules to the ones they had, and really made it around this idea of, let’s make it really simple. We didn’t have it figured out in the beginning, but we at least understood right at the beginning that it should be simple. We should have a single button. Only one button dedicated. Now that we had the new camera where we could look around, we could use the camera for intent, and then the button for action. If I’m looking at a door, the action changes based on wherever I’m at. It’s contextual without putting icons or anything in there. It allows you to get more immersed in the world. But even then, Atreus did not intelligently come online until probably September the year before we released. So much went into this. We kept kicking the ball down the field every time. “Oh, this isn’t working. Well, it’s fine, we’ll figure it out later.” That’s a huge thing in development. When something is scary or very hard, well, figure that out later. I realized that somebody has to figure that out at some point. When the people who had to figure it out started telling me they were going to figure it out later, I thought, “Oh, man, I’m screwed.” I’m the one usually saying this. If they’re saying it, it’s not gonna get done. There was a point where we were going to cut Atreus completely. It was mostly just due to budget, where we were realizing — in the beginning, you look at the problem and you say, “Oh, this is very complicated,” and you pad it. You pad it tremendously when it’s a problem you haven’t solved before. Nobody at the studio had done companions at all. They ended up padding it so much that it was — 2030 was when the game would eventually release, with how much it was going to take to do this. Or we’d have to cut a ton of stuff from the game. I said, “Guys, we can’t do that.” Finally, we realized we were struggling to hire engineers who could do this. I ended up writing a pitch for a game without Atreus, just as a backup. Thankfully I never had to use it, because we ended up hiring a few programmers. I ended up convincing some people. “Hey, don’t worry. We can figure it out. This will be fine.” But it’s a lot of begging, being a director, and a lot of dealing with the fact that 50 percent of the time, 50 percent of the team is not supporting the idea you’re talking about. And then another 50 percent isn’t supporting a different idea. You multiply that by a different thing every day. It’s not because they’re malicious or anything. They just don’t see it, and they’re focused on another thing. They’re thinking, “I don’t know if I agree with that.” Or it’s conflicting with something that they want to do. It’s a lot about relationships. Above: Kratos character model is filled with detail. Whyte: God of War was incredibly well-received. You won so many awards. How have you processed that? Coming up to release, it was a hard finish, but following that, how did it feel? Barlog: Exhausting? I don’t know. It’s interesting. I don’t know if I’ve fully processed all of it yet. It’s been a wild year afterward. It’s one of those things where — we had our heads down, working so hard for so long, and there was a point in time where, while we were happy with what we had done, a lot of us still had that possibility in our heads that this wasn’t going to be received well. Whyte: You start to lose perspective. Barlog: Yeah. You get too close to it. You don’t have any sense — because everything is so insular, and we had to keep everything pretty secret, we only had ourselves to talk to. There’s always these champions on the team, people who are just incredibly positive all the time no matter what. They’re good people to feed in. But if you’ve heard them for five years, you start to not believe them either. You get into this negative cycle. When the reviews came out, when people started talking about it, it was very exciting. But as it progresses on, maybe six months after release, then it’s just a lot of pressure. Then it’s just, “Oh my gosh, what am I doing here?” It’s like that story people tell about Dave Chappelle, where he had done the second season of Chappelle’s Show and it was absolutely hilarious. I think he felt such a tremendous amount of pressure — how do you top that? I guess I’m just going to play World of Warcraft a year. That’s what I feel like doing. Whyte: God of War was a reimagining of the franchise, kind of a reinvention of the franchise. What were the core elements you wanted to keep and what was the stuff that was more on the periphery, that was less important? Barlog: We had a lot of discussions in the beginning where we went into a conference room and just wrote every sort of load-bearing concept for the game on the wall. Every possible thing we could think of that represented the game, from Greek mythology to the Blades of Chaos to the double jump to platforming. All this stuff. We listed it out and we went through point by point and started talking about each one. If you remove this, does that make it not God of War? Even the early discussions, people said we had to get rid of Kratos. A bunch of people were in the camp of, no more Kratos, he’s annoying, he’s done. I had decided from the beginning that I wanted to use him, because I wanted to see if we could make a turnaround with the character. I wanted to see if we could take somebody that people hate, or they like to hate…. Above: Cory Barlog accepts best story award at DICE Awards for God of War. Whyte: Less angry. Barlog: Yeah. Figure out if we could take that backstory and change it a bit. But there were several people who said, “You gotta get rid of this. He’s not God of War. Greek mythology is God of War.” And I thought, “Really?” We had a long discussion back and forth about this. “People associate Greek mythology more with God of War than they do Kratos.” I thought that was a bummer, because it meant we could never leave Greek mythology, if we were tied to that, as opposed to the character. I think it was just that they really did not like the character. They wanted to see a new character. I think what they really wanted, though, was to see him change. That’s a lot of convincing, to say, “No, I really think this is a good idea. We need to stick with this.” But the jump, surprisingly, was not a hard thing to get rid of. I was nervous at first, but when I weighed it against the new camera system, the systems guys — Eric Williams is a guy I’ve worked with for more than a decade and a half, probably. He was the one that basically said, “Look, do you want to tackle the camera or tackle the jump? The jump is something you’ll figure out after you figure out the camera, and the camera is going to be really difficult. If you don’t want to cut the camera, you should cut the jump.” As we started progressing through I would hear people publicly talking about the new God of War and saying, “I can’t believe they got rid of the jump. I’m really disappointed. #NotMyGodOfWar!” For getting rid of the jump? Really? That’s the thing that broke the deal? Whyte: Probably best to avoid Twitter during development. [laughs] And then you added Atreus. That was quite a departure. You’ve talked in the past about God of War being your most personal experience, with being a father. What did you bring to the story with regards to that? Barlog: That was a thing I’d learned — I’d been working with a bunch of film directors. After I left Sony in 2007, I was doing a creative walkabout, just meeting a bunch of people and trying to learn. I felt like I’d learned a lot at Sony, but I was very much an infant in my abilities. I needed to understand a lot more. Some of the people I was talking to were echoing something that Sam Mendes once said. He talked about finding your own way into a story. If somebody else writes your story — if you’re a director who’s taking a script off the shelf, or you’re adapting a book, or you’re brought on a project a bit late — regardless of what that is, find your personal way into the story. There is a connection to every story that is personal to you. If it isn’t, it’s going to read on the screen. If it doesn’t mean something to you, if there isn’t a connection, you’re going to feel it. Above: Cory Barlog is … Kratos. You can make a lot of really cool things, but the thing that we aspire to as creative people is to connect to the audience. Make them feel something. That lesson took a while for me to get. It took a few years for me to really sink in. When I came back to Sony I realized that the biggest thing that happened in my life — I was shipping Tomb Raider, and my son was born. I was either going to make a ripoff of Tomb Raider or incorporate my son into this story. As I started thinking about it, I realized that there’s a lot that changes. Everybody says a kid is life-changing, but your perspective on things changes. It made me think about this idea that — okay, here’s a character that everybody dislikes. We built him as an anti-hero. The whole goal — at the time there were not a lot of anti-heroes in games, so that’s what we leaned into. But it was this idea of giving him a reason to want to change. He already has a reason, of course. Spoilers, but at the end of God of War III he doesn’t get to die. He’s kind of tormented. He’s cursed. He’s a guy who’s going to walk the earth forever. He started the first game, way back in 2005, jumping off a cliff and not being able to succeed. Spoilers again, sorry. And he ends God of War III not being able to kill himself with the most powerful weapon that’s supposed to be a god-killer. Clearly he’s cursed to walk the earth forever. Giving him this external motivation to change was very interesting, because I was aspiring to the same thing. At the time I thought, “I’m gonna work a bit less. I’ll have a bit more focus on my home life over my work life.” He was this reminder, as I was working, that we were both struggling with our own lives. We were both motivated by similar things. That idea, bringing that personal aspect into the game, meant that we could start pulling in from everyone in the studio. A lot of people that I worked with had worked on the earlier God of War games, and were all old now. We all had families. We were all in a similar place. When we made the first God of War we were in our college years, right? We were like, “Screw you, we’ll top everything. We’re better than everyone else.” Now we’re more like, “We want to make something we’re proud of. We want to make something we can tell our families about.” That gave us the opportunity — so many moments throughout the game are from interactions with various people on the team and their kids, or people on the team and their parents, or people on the team and their significant others. Everyone has these personal stories. As I walk into the studio and have a random conversation, I’m realizing, “I’ll steal this. I’ll steal that. We can incorporate that in the game.” Being open to that is a huge aspect of this job, just being able to say, “This is very interesting. We should use this in some way.” Above: God of War Whyte: Am I right in thinking that the novelization was written by your father as well? It’s like a full-on…. Barlog: Yeah, it’s a family affair. It’s like the Trump administration. But basically, for me, there was this idea that God of War II — my father and I broke that story first. We were originally writing the script together. The direction I was steering him in was a really bad direction. We kept pushing toward this thing until the story just was not working. It was collapsing under its own weight. We realized that it just wasn’t there. We were fighting, because it’s family. When you write a script with your dad, you’re gonna argue a lot. Whyte: Did he call you “boy”? Barlog: [laughs] “Boy” came about because I didn’t have a name for him. That was all because, in the beginning of the thing — I’m very obsessive about names. I can’t put in fake names. A lot of writers will just put in Mr. White and Mr. Pink and Mr. Brown. They’ll write in random names and move on. I can’t do that. I have to have the actual name. Otherwise I don’t want to put it in there, because then I’ll become distracted by the fact that it’s not the right name, and I’ll obsess over that one detail. I thought, “Okay, we’ll just call him ‘boy.'” Then Chris really got into it. He started throwing “boy” everywhere. Literally every scene we shot was ended with “Come, boy.” To a point where we had to tell him, “Hey, don’t say that anymore. I think we’ve got a lot of takes of that, and it feels like every time we leave, every scene ends with that.” Whyte: He much get that all the time, walking down the street. People shouting that at him. Barlog: I’m pretty sure he gets to say it like 10 times a day. Whyte: You directed the motion capture shoots on God of War. How many days did you guys do that? Barlog: Oh, wow. It was a big shoot, but we do shoots differently in games. I’m hoping we can figure out a way to make shoots different, because I think shooting a nice chunk, doing a 15- or 30-day shoot to get all of your mocap work done, is a really good way to do it. We shot one day at a time, spread out over like four years. We’d do one day, two days, or three days. It was hard, because by the time you get to a three-day shoot, by the third day you’re really into it. You’re ready to go. Then you stop and you don’t see the actors for six months. It’s also very hard to book everyone. If you have seven people, trying to get all of them aligned on the same three days is a nightmare. That was a logistical nightmare. I was hoping to figure out better ways to do that, but for me that’s as close as I can stay connected to everything. We did the audio and mocap separately in the early God of War games. I would go into the V/O booth and direct the actors there, and then we’d go and shoot with somebody else, a stunt actor. Then we’d assemble all of it, because most of it was done with hand animation in the game. Now, in order to get what we wanted from the scenes, to get the characters to actually connect, we wanted to do everything on the set, plus with no cuts, which was way harder than I imagined on the set. I had to deal with it. It wasn’t just this big idea where I said, “Somebody go figure this out!” We had to go on the set and do these seven-minute single-take shots with a nine-year-old. We’re giving him three pieces of his direction and he’s saying, “Uh, okay?” And then I’m here saying, “Do something different at 1:03 of this scene.” It’s very interesting. My favorite times are on the set, but it’s also the more stressful time. You have to get everything. On the floor, when you’re working with everyone, you try something and it doesn’t work? All right, that’s cool. Come back tomorrow and we’ll mess with it again. You can tinker and finesse things for days. Whereas on the set, just to get everybody in there and turn the lights on for that one day is a cost. If you screw up and you don’t get everything that you need, you have to do all that over again and bring everybody back in. That’s not good. I tried to not screw up as much as possible. Above: Oh no. Up ahead. It’s a bunch of gamers. Whyte: From a casting perspective, how did you approach casting? Barlog: Poorly, I think, mostly. I struggled with that. I had specific people in mind that I wanted to work with, but in the beginning we wanted to see if we could figure out how to do the mocap the old way. We hadn’t decided whether we were going to have a new actor for Kratos. We were going to have performance capture, but we needed a bigger actor in the suit to perform. We were looking into tests as far as how we could modify the animation and mocap data, as well as bring in the audio. Those tests didn’t work out. Then we said, “All right, now we have to find a very large actor that has the voice of Kratos.” That took two years. I had almost lost faith. When we found Chris Judge, I was getting meeting requests from Shannon and Yumi on a daily basis to say, “All right, let’s talk about this. If it doesn’t work out we’ll have to go back to this. We’ll have to scale this thing down. We’ll have to cut back.” I was very anxious about that. We found the kid so easily. Atreus was found on the second set of auditions. I think he was the first kid that came in on the second set of auditions. I thought, “Oh, this is great, this will be so easy.” And then it was not easy after that. Whyte: He thought he was auditioning for a movie, right? Barlog: I think they all did. Danielle, who played Freya, she thought she was auditioning for Game of Thrones. She tried not to be disappointed when she realized it wasn’t Game of Thrones. Chris was the same. He said, “This isn’t a game. This is a movie, right?” I thought, “Should I tell him, or is he not going to want to do it?” How long can I hold the lie until I have to tell him, “By the way, Chris, this is a game and we just shipped it”? But he was very happy. I think his son was a God of War fan, so he was able to get into it. Baldur was a very hard character to cast. I did a lot of director letters initially. Jeremy Davies, the guy who ended up playing Baldur, was someone I thought about in the beginning, because I’d just finished watching Justified, and I thought he was absolutely brilliant. I thought, “Aw, we should get this guy. But he’s not gonna talk to us.” We had bad experiences with actors on the earlier games. We had contacted several actors that are fairly well-known who came back to us and said they wanted $10 million. Our budget’s not even $10 million, what are you talking about? It was just that they’d had a bad experience on a game, so they didn’t want to do it. That was their way of saying no, just asking for a lot of money. Other people flat-out said they’d never work on a video game. Other people who I fought really hard for ended up not working out. You get really excited about bringing in somebody where you’re familiar with their work, only to find out that they have some baggage that comes with that. It makes it hard to get what you want. Your experience — you’re bringing in actors that are fairly well-known as well, right? Whyte: We’ve historically — I guess like a lot of people in the industry, you just hire V/O artists. You get the right voice, put them in a booth, and it’s all fine. With Blood and Truth we wanted to try and scan in the artists and try photogrammetry. We suddenly created a much higher bar from a casting perspective, because we had to find something that obviously had the right voice, but also looked the part and could physically act. Particularly within VR and the motion capture there — because the player is the camera, it’s much more of an ensemble feeling. It’s almost like theater direction. Trying to get that combination where — again, we’d had some show reels coming in where they had great acting chops, and they definitely sounded the part, but they didn’t look like the kind of character we wanted to put in the game. Trying to those three combinations made it more challenging, definitely. Above: Cory Barlog, creative director at Sony Santa Monica and creator of God of War. Barlog: It’s great, because I think VR is helping to usher in more comfort on the game side. I look at actors to be in the game. For a long time people said, “Oh, we don’t need to have the likeness of the actor in the game. We don’t need celebrities. Just bring in voice actors.” I like to have a good balance. There are certain performers where this person is just perfect. I get that they’re a name, but they’ll be perfect for this. You end up battling a lot of game understanding. “That’s not necessary!” But clearly it’s becoming more accepted when you see something like Keanu Reeves playing Johnny Silverhand in Cyberpunk. The entire cast of Death Stranding is amazing. I think that’s a really exciting aspect. We’re starting to see more of a connection between these industries. There was pretty much a wall for a while. I felt like in the beginning there was not this connection between these two industries, but we’re seeing a lot of younger directors on the film side that play games. They’re more aware of this. A lot more actors are fully aware of what this is. We’re able to give them meaty performances, as opposed to just doing voice. Great voice actors are a treasure. When you find an incredible voice actor, it’s absolutely amazing. But also being able to have someone who can perform completely, who can take over that character, even in those ridiculous helmets and unitards — it’s very difficult. I don’t think I could do that. Whyte: Similarly, we went into the Hollywood route with our performance director, Rick Porras. Really early on, we knew we wanted to have a solid story for our game. Typically I would say, as an industry, we’re not great at stories. We partnered with someone who had been a producer and director, worked on Lord of the Rings movies, Contact, Forrest Gump, to come and help with character development story development, which was super useful. Then, when we came to do our performance shoot, we were like, “We need someone to direct this stuff.” We didn’t feel super comfortable directing ourselves. We had to try and findthe director for our mocap shoot. Then we thought, “Rick knows the characters really well. He directed the second unit scenes in Lord of the Rings. He knows his stuff.” We brought him on board for that. But I think for him as well — within VR, because you have no closeups, no cutaways, it’s definitely challenging. It was great to have him on board and helping bring out the performances from our cast that I think we might not have gotten otherwise. We were trying to ape an action movie. The whole thing is being an action hero, John Wick, James Bond, John McClane. You don’t need to have amazing complex stories with an action, but they have to be solid. The characters need to be solid and believable to bring you into their world and immerse you. That was super important. Barlog: Some of the best stories are simple. For me it’s this adage of simple stories with complex characters. Your characters having layers and depth and dimension. They feel like they’re having an interesting arc that they’re going through in this. It doesn’t necessarily need to be a complicated story. The story I kept pitching people in the beginning was, Kratos and Atreus go to the mountain. Spoilers, to scatter mom’s ashes. Whyte: That’s pretty much the opening cutscene. Above: Hey boy, what’s your name? Barlog: That actually wasn’t even the first story we did. The first story we did, we spent a year on it. I was trying out something different, where I was going to say, “You know what, I’ll let the writers run with this.” I had a high level idea of what I wanted, but I was going to give them a lot more control. I realized that I’m terrible at giving up control. What it did was it made me farther and farther away from connecting with the story. They were doing a great job. No judgment against whether the story they were coming up with was a good story. It was just that it happened to be better suited for a later story. We were assuming the relationship between the two characters was already what it was, and we were focusing more on the interesting elements of Norse mythology. It was one of those situations where it’s very easy, I think, as creators to go, “Wow, there’s all this cool backstory and this cool world-building we can do.” You lose sight of the core of what you wanted to do. I had to shelve that story and figure it out, get deep into it myself, so at least I could be connected to it, and then start working with them again. It was definitely, for me, a huge learning experience. At first I felt like, “Oh, I can let other people take care of this stuff.” But the reality is that I needed to be involved. They were still the ones doing it, but I needed to be, on a day to day basis, getting involved. The connection between the play experience and the story experience is so intertwined. It’s like a soup. You can’t separate the elements out of it. They’re all one thing together. This idea of someone writing a story over here and somebody making the game over here is such an old way of thinking. It all really needs to fit together in the sense that — it’s not just questioning every decision and saying, “Should this be interactive?” It’s really trying to find the things that drive the character forward in a way that feels like it’s cohesive with the interactive experience. One thing I was amazed about while playing your game was trying to understand — how do you test for timing? For us, we can understand the pacing between walking and combat and talking and being in a menu. We understand these limits. You don’t want to go over this too much. You want to integrate these things to ensure that you’re getting a good variety and a good pacing. But from a VR perspective, how do you find people’s attention span for story and interaction and combat? Whyte: One of the things that we’ve — VR is super intense. VR is a really young medium. Compared to the 90 million PlayStation 4s, there are 4 million PlayStation VRs out there. It’s still really new. One thing that we found early on was that a gunfight in a standard console game, which can be intense — if you put that in a headset, it can be crazy intense. And it works really well, but we also found that an intense fatigue can creep in. My example is, if you’re in a VR experience and you’re escaping a building that’s collapsing around you, and it’s a 30-second sequence, that’s awesome. It’s super intense. It’s a really good payoff at the end when you escape. But if you do that same thing for five minutes, about three minutes into it your brain is just screaming to get out of here. It’s too much sensory overload. We had to break our combat up. Combat is a key component of being an action hero, but we had to put drama scenes in there. We had to put in object interaction stuff and more peripheral things, which were much lower-intensity, but also really worked well in VR. Just picking up objects and interacting…. Barlog: The ladder stuff. Above: Here’s my sage advice for you. Whyte: Yeah, yeah. We knew from PlayStation VR Worlds: The London Heist, which was kind of the spiritual predecessor to Blood and Trust, that that stuff was really powerful. But even in the development in Blood and Truth we found problems there. We loved how, in VR Worlds — there was a scene in a pub where you had Mickey giving you a lighter and a phone and a cigar. You could light the cigar. It was really cool. We kind of think of those objects as being toys. When we were in development with Blood and Truth, we put toys everywhere. You could reach into the environment and pick stuff up and play around. It was great. Barlog: Were people in playtests doing unexpected things? Whyte: Well, this is what started to happen. Our third level in the game is a casino. There’s a really light tutorial for a CCTV mini-game. We found that players had found some scrunched-up balls of paper, and there was a basket in the corner. They were getting the paper and trying to throw in the basket over and over again. By the time the tutorial had finished, they’d paid zero attention. Similarly, we had these really intense drama sequences where people would just spend the entire time trying to juggle or throw things all over the place. Barlog: Yeah, I was throwing the papers back and forth the first time in that interrogation. Whyte: We had to pare that back, but we knew we couldn’t delete it, because there was an expectation and it was cool. But we definitely — if we’re ever teaching the player something, we’d make sure there was nothing to distract them. You pay attention. Similarly, when we’re in some of the drama scenes or whatever, we try to keep the props relevant to the scene. The opening of the game has a clipboard with the character’s photo on it. You can look at it or whatever and get that vibe. It’s much more in keeping with the scene. There’s definitely something that became emergent during development. What did emerge for you during development? Was there any kind of feature that you didn’t have planned early on that came out as you were developing the game over five years? Barlog: Throughout the development of any game, there are always these sparks, things you’re not expecting. The size of the exploration spaces definitely became…. Whyte: It opens up when you get the boat, yeah. Barlog: There was always a temptation, especially for the Lake of the Nine, for you to really not understand what type of game you were playing for a while. So much so that we didn’t even show it to the press. There was an initial plan to show the press the Lake of the Nine for the demo right before the game was going to release, but then I pulled back and said, “I don’t think we should show them. It needs to be a surprise when they play it for the first time. If we let them play it and show it to everyone, everyone will expect it, and they’ll be playing the game wondering when it’s going to happen.” Above: The Norse world is scarier than the Greek world. That always annoyed me about games, when you feel like you know exactly what’s coming up. Well, when is that coming up? That’s why the Blades were such a big deal, to try to keep that secret. If everybody thought they weren’t in there, they’d let it go from the beginning. They’d embrace what was happening. Then, when it pops up, it’s a great surprise. Throwing the axe was the thing that was probably the most surprising. We didn’t plan on that from the beginning. I wanted to have the axe in the hand. We’d do a bit of throwing, but it wouldn’t be the full-on hunky Australian throwing things. But as we were getting the core down and I was not letting anybody on the combat team do any of the crazy — I said, “Look, I want to feel like, when you impact somebody, it feels like it sticks.” As opposed to when you’re playing fighting games — this is a technique we used throughout all the other God of War games and all the fighting games I worked on. You do an attack, like if you’re gonna punch somebody, you’re basically following through. When the hitbox is detected you continue doing the follow-through. There’s a bit of a pause, and then they react. But there’s not a real sense of connection, pushing through, and a change in the animation. With an axe we had a good opportunity to do something nobody had done before. We invested eight or nine months into really prototyping that. Everybody on the combat team was getting so angry. They were like, “We want to do all the cool stuff! You’re not letting us do the cool stuff! You’re shackling us!” This was just the core of it, keeping the axe in his hands. I knew we could do all the crazy throwing and the magic stuff, but let’s nail this and move on to the next thing. I think that frustration boiled over until a few of the guys basically said, “Screw it, I’m gonna do this.” They ended up prototyping — George Mawle and Vincent Napoli prototyped the initial axe system, where you could throw it anywhere. It would stick. You could recall it from anywhere. It was a 100 percent programmatic solution. That was probably the coolest surprise of anything. I would spend every review — we review the levels and walk through the levels. I’d just be throwing the axe. Can I clear this tree? Is there collision on those rocks up ahead? I really annoyed people, big time, by throwing the axe constantly. At one point they said, “We need to take this out, because it’s really getting on my nerves.” When I was testing the earlier games, God of War and God of War II, I’d just jump everywhere. I’d go somewhere and jump, jump, jump. The combat guys were like, “Stop jumping! You’re annoying me!” And the new jump was the axe throw. Whyte: You found a new way to annoy your team. Barlog: I looked for ways to annoy different groups on the team in different ways. I don’t want everyone to be annoyed by the same thing. I want to switch it up. Whyte: The emergent stuff is interesting there. During development of Blood of Truth — we showed the game at Paris Games Week, which was our announcement. We had this cinematic slow-mo happening a couple of times. It was all completely scripted by us. It was when you jumped out of a window, to give you a chance to see what was going on. Also, if you shot red things, red barrels or red fire extinguishers, they blew up and we slowed stuff down. We saw people playing it at Paris Games Week, and we saw they were really loving that cinematic slow motion. We went back to the office and started trying to iterate as to whether we could make it player-controlled, which is on the two Move buttons in the final game. Once we had that in, it was thinking about, well, what else can we do with this system? We started with some of the bigger enemies or some of the vehicles in the game. You press down the precision mode, as we call it, to slow down the game world, and you get targets to aim at, weak points. You can even chain to extend the thing. It’s fun how you can explore that idea space and pull stuff out. Above: Sony’s God of War (2018) uses raw emotions to differentiate itself from other big-budget games – and all of its predecessors. Barlog: The awesome thing about games is very similar to television in the way that they’re doing several episodes and then testing what the audience thinks. Getting the real audience, not just a focus group. Everybody’s watching it and they say, “I’m not liking this. I’m liking that.” They’re able to react more. We’re able to do the same thing, getting people to play and then react. The hardest thing to do in making video games is to know what to listen to and what not to listen to when you’re playtesting. That’s probably the most difficult thing that I’ve had to figure out over the years. You can go very wrong by listening to the wrong advice. Being able to discern between subjective and objective. Understanding that somebody’s not having a good experience and I need to improve the experience, versus somebody just playing this game and they want to shove this thing they really like in another game into our game. Figuring out how not to get caught in that loop is very hard. I still get caught in it when we do playtests. You’ll hear something that just gets under your skin, because they’re pretty brutal. When people playtest they’re very honest. Whyte: And also, you’re crafting a story, a story where you get to know characters. Then suddenly you drop people in midway through the game, and they haven’t got that emotional connection. Barlog: Or if it’s the writers and the animators doing the voices temporarily and the animations are really bad, then everyone says, “This story is terrible!” Well, are they reacting to the fact that it’s presented terribly, because they’re seeing it in a very rudimentary form, or the sound is dropping in and out? One person could not get over the fact that Kratos was played by a different person. Throughout the experience we were testing in probably four- or five-hour segments. We just had temp voices. Sometimes it was one of the animators. Sometimes it was the writer. It’s difficult to test something that’s not done and fight that urge that says, “Just relax, it’s not done!” Instead of listening and saying, “I get it. They don’t like that. I’m not going to listen to that. But they don’t like this here, and that’s really important. Fundamentally they’re not going to have fun if we don’t fix this.” Or they don’t understand something. That’s the other thing. We found playtesting helps us a ton in finding areas that we took for granted. We had the idea of Freya giving herself up to Baldur, to say, “Look, if you want to kill me, kill me.” We took that for granted, because it’s a small group of people who thought, “Yeah, for my kid I would do that.” But a lot of the people who were playtesting were 18 or 19. They didn’t get it. Above: God of War wins GOTY We thought that maybe we’d failed. Maybe this element of the story sucks? But then we playtested it again and it got even worse. People were really angry, capital letters in the feedback angry, about how we’d ruined it. She was a good character. We’d screwed it all up. I thought, “What is happening?” I ended up talking to one of them and explained what Kratos ended up saying in the game, in a conversation. We realized that we’d never explained it. We took it for granted. We assumed everyone would understand that she would rather lose her life and let her son live. For people who’ve not been in that place in their life, they didn’t understand that. They needed it explained. When we explained it they said, “Okay, I totally get it. That makes sense.” We ended up having a great opportunity for Kratos to open up to Atreus, which we didn’t have at that time, all because we needed to plug a hole that we had left open. Whyte: I watched the documentary last week. That was no holds barred. You guys were pretty much showing how it was. That’s a brave move. What was it like being followed by a camera crew for five years? Barlog: It’s weird. It’s weird. Initially we had talked about — I wanted to shoot a bunch of footage when we first started, back in 2013. Let’s just shoot something. We didn’t know if we’d use any of it, but I think it’s cool. I love watching behind the scenes documentaries. I love to see what it’s like in the inception of creating things. The making of The Dark Crystal, if anybody’s seen that movie — there’s an amazing 60-minute documentary that shows Frank Oz and Jim Henson and all of them on these sets using these puppets. It’s just brilliant. To me it’s almost better than the movie. It’s such an incredible slice of that creative life. Initially, when we were talking about it, I said, “If we do this, we should show the reality of it. Which is something nobody’s gonna let us do. They’ll never let us do this. It’s going to be crazy.” I thought that if we just did a bunch of vignettes behind the scenes, it wouldn’t be worth it. We had worked with Brendan Aiken from creative services at Sony, and he said, “I want to do this. I want to make a full feature.” And I said, “Yes, let’s do this!” Because our job isn’t hard enough trying to make a game. Let’s make a feature-length documentary at the same time, with a bunch of people who don’t want cameras following them around. There was a lot of resistance from people on the team. They didn’t want cameras all over the place. It took years to get people comfortable. Some people were just never that comfortable with it. But for me I thought it was important, because I think — it’s an interesting thing to look back on. It’s an interesting way for audience members to understand what it takes to make a game. As much as it seems like it’s about playing games and having fun, it’s not. It’s exhausting. It’s stressful. There’s a lot of doubt and a lot of worry. That’s every project. Everything I’ve ever worked on is always this soup of doubt. You’re just wondering — this isn’t going to be good enough. I was surprised that we were able to put it out. I was surprised that we finished it. But I’m surprised every day when we finish something. I’m easily surprised. Whyte: I totally get the doubt thing. I said earlier that creating in VR is such a new medium that doubt is even more accelerated. You make decisions about how you approach your locomotion or your AI or other design issues, and you know that you feel that you’re making the right decision, making it right for the experience you’re making, but you have no idea whether people, when you release it, are going to feel the same way. Above: God of War team celebrates victory after the Game Awards. Barlog: The pool of expertise is a lot smaller, too. For making a game on a console, you bring people on and they have experience. Even when you’re trying something new, people have experience. But from a VR perspective, everyone’s still figuring it out. Whyte: One of the things that we knew really early on was that — we definitely didn’t want to make the game realistic. But we came up with this phrase of “reality through an action movie lens.” The whole thing was about — running out of ammo isn’t fun. Having a gun that runs out of bullets really quickly isn’t fun. We increased that, because when you’re watching a movie — you see Die Hard, he’s just shooting the gun forever, but it doesn’t matter. It just works. We actually partnered with — we found an ex-SAS soldier that came in and really helped us with some of our dialogue. Certainly between the soldiers in the game. Our cast, particularly Amy Bailey, who plays Kayla, who’s a psychotic kind of highly-trained individual — how she would carry herself in a situation so Kevin, our SAS guy, would know not to try and mess with her. He also showed our mocap lead seven different ways that he could disarm a gangster with a gun pointed at him. It was pretty intense. That was really cool, to bring that onboard. But it was more about authenticity than realism. We didn’t want to have realistic levels of gunplay or whatever. We wanted it to be a game fundamentally. It’s a fun experience. Barlog: Realism is great. It’s not that realism is bad. But you can have realism and authenticity. To have realism without authenticity — the authenticity is such a huge part of it, getting that feeling of legitimacy. We took a lot of the actors out on some survival stuff. We taught people how to carry swords and studied medieval warfare and stuff like that, just to get a bit of extra information. Even if it wasn’t exactly what they were using, it was this idea that they’re getting little slice of what it’s like. It isn’t so crazy that we’re all learning how to fight with swords and stab each other. But being able to at least understand — even when it’s not the same fighting style, it gives you a better sense of grounding in the world. Disclosure: The organizers of Gamelab paid my way to Barcelona. Our coverage remains objective. GamesBeat's creed when covering the game industry is "where passion meets business." What does this mean? We want to tell you how the news matters to you -- not just as a decision-maker at a game studio, but also as a fan of games. Whether you read our articles, listen to our podcasts, or watch our videos, GamesBeat will help you learn about the industry and enjoy engaging with it. Discover our Briefings. Join the GamesBeat community! Enjoy access to special events, private newsletters and more. Games Beat Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Ghost of Tsushima review -- Samurai's creed | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2020/07/14/ghost-of-tsushima-review-samurais-creed"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Review Ghost of Tsushima review — Samurai’s creed Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn It's a samurai's world. Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. For years, Assassin’s Creed fans have been hoping that Ubisoft would use the samurai era of Japan as a setting. Ghost of Tsushima is, in a lot of ways, that dream realized, even if it isn’t an actual Assassin’s Creed. And honestly, it’s probably better this way. Ghost of Tsushima comes out on July 17 for PlayStation 4. It’s the console’s last major exclusive before the holiday launch of PlayStation 5 , and it’s a good one to go out on. Tsushima encapsulates a lot of the qualities that have made PS4 exclusives so prestigious: large, beautiful worlds to explore paired with strong, emotional stories. But it’s also too familiar. Tsushima has few new ideas. As I said, it borrows a lot from the Assassin’s Creed formula. It’s what I like to call a “map game.” It’s the kind of title where you’re often opening the map and traveling from icon to icon, completing quests and side activities until the map says that you’re done or you decide to move on. Stories and stabbings While the structure is unexciting, the rest of Tsushima is strong enough to keep it from crumbling. The story and characters are doing a lot of the work. The tale has a nice collection of twists and surprises that don’t feel cheap or unearned. Jin Sakai, the samurai star, is a likable and intriguing hero. Sure, the story covers a lot of the generic samurai tropes, including lots of talk about honor. And while I know that developer Sucker Punch found inspiration in the films of Akira Kurosawa, I can’t pretend to be an expert on those or Japanese culture and history. Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! I do know that I enjoyed Ghost of Tsushima’s story, even though I’m finding myself less interested in narrative-focused games as I get older. But Tsushima kept my attention even during longer cutscenes and dialogue exchanges, thanks in large part to superb voice acting and a cast of characters that get a chance to emotionally grow throughout the adventure. Above: Tsushima is a big and beautiful world to explore. If story is one pillar holding Tsushima together, combat is the other. As you’d expect, fighting focuses on your katana. And while some of the typical techniques are important to combat, like countering opponent’s blows or dodging them, you also need to switch between four different sword stances to be your most effective. Each stance excels against a specific weapon, like swords, shields, or spears. And since you can switch between these stances at any moment during a fight, combat has this beautiful flow to it. While you’re attacking one enemy, you’re scouting the rest of the forces around you, deciding who you need to deal with next and which sword stance you’ll have to change to. You also have an assortment of “ghost” weapons that you can use in combat. These include smoke bombs, sticky explosives, and other tools that can distract your enemies. They aren’t the most exciting abilities, but they are effective against larger crowds. You also have a bow. It’s a bow. It works just like they always do in these kinds of games. It’s effective at killing enemies from a range, but it’s a bit boring. Shadowy samurai Ghost of Tsushima excels at story and combat. Stealth, meanwhile, is fine. If you’ve played just about any modern triple-A game from the last decade, you probably know how it works. You crouch to avoid detection from enemies, hiding in cover such as tall grass while you wait for an opportunity to sneak by or assassinate the bad guys. Thankfully, you don’t have to do too much stealth if you don’t want to. I usually found it more effective (and fun) to just run into enemy camps head-on. The game even encourages you to do this, since you can initiate a standoff at the beginning of a battle, which has you calling out the enemy and engaging in a duel with one of their soldiers, giving you the chance to instantly kill them. But some missions do require stealth, and they can feel a bit more tedious. Above: Yeah, there’s probably something there. And even the combat, as great as it is, can get repetitive. That has more to do with the structure of the game itself. Tsushima is a big and beautiful world, but most of the actual content is the same. You go to a place and kill all the enemies there. Then some people talk to each other, you ride to a place to talk to someone else, then you travel to a new location and kill everyone there too. You won’t find too much variety in the gameplay. Things can get a bit more interesting when you go exploring. Tsushima hosts lots of hidden goodies, such as fox dens, bamboo stands, and hot springs. Discovering these can give you bonuses such as increased health, so they are worth searching for. But looking for them isn’t so tedious as wandering around aimlessly. As you play, golden birds can appear, flying in front of you and leading you to some unexplored area. Tsushima has a lot of organic tools like this to aid in your exploration. The need for creed Ghost of Tsushima isn’t going to do anything that you haven’t seen before, but it uses that modern Assassin’s Creed formula to host a big and emotional samurai saga. I’ll even say that I like it better than, say, Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey, largely due to the stronger story and combat. It’s not bold enough to be excellent, but Ghost of Tsushima is enjoyable enough to keep fans of these kinds of map games busy and happy for a good while. Score: 85/100 Ghost of Tsushima comes out on July 17 for PlayStation 4. Sony gave GamesBeat a code for this review. GamesBeat's creed when covering the game industry is "where passion meets business." What does this mean? We want to tell you how the news matters to you -- not just as a decision-maker at a game studio, but also as a fan of games. Whether you read our articles, listen to our podcasts, or watch our videos, GamesBeat will help you learn about the industry and enjoy engaging with it. Discover our Briefings. Join the GamesBeat community! Enjoy access to special events, private newsletters and more. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Crusader Kings III review -- King me | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2020/08/31/crusader-kings-iii-review"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Review Crusader Kings III review — King me Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn My wife, my strength. Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. As took my final breaths, I wondered why my son hated me so. I provided the best education, sending him to the imperial court for tutelage. I found him a spouse that opened doors for both of us. I doubled the size of the realm he would inherit. And yet, he killed me in his thirst for power. Crusader Kings III isn’t a grand strategy game. It’s really a role-playing game in which you play the sovereign of a realm. But where its genius lies isn’t in just playing one ruler — when one dies, you take the mantle of your heir. This doesn’t just keep the game going; it allows you to continue role-playing your realm, but from a different perspective. So when the son deposed my first ruler, I started playing as him … until my uncle then led a revolt of the realm’s most powerful vassals against my new character. And this continues until you either play yourself into a corner and quit, hit the end date (you start in 1060 AD and play until 1453), or start a new game. It comes to PC on September 1 from Paradox Interactive and Paradox Development Studio. And like most Paradox games , I expect Crusader Kings III to get even better with age. But it’s damn good already. I started by telling you about how I felt after 43.3 hours over a few weeks, and after another 10 hours, I’ve decided that this is the best game Paradox has ever made. Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! It’s an RPG, not a strategy game For a long time, I struggled with Crusader Kings II. I would sit there and start plotting out my strategy, approaching it as I would a Civilization or Europa Universalis (another Paradox staple). But a few years ago, I stumbled upon a realization many already knew: You’re playing as the rulers, not the realm. It’s as much about them as it is about growing duchy or kingdom. Once I realized this, I found Crusader Kings not only easier to play but also more enjoyable as well. For my current ruler, the King of Brittany, I started out with two goals: to become a learned, well-liked man; and to set up my own kingdom. I focused on the skills in the diplomatic and learning tress. I got lucky — he assumed rulership in his late teens, and he’s still on the throne at 75. He’s found numerous tomes, some mystical in nature, and he’s won renown for his knowledge of religion and many other topics. Whenever I ask another ruler if I can teach one of their children as a ward, they almost always accept. Above: My book-learning leads to some deep thoughts. But somehow, he also became an infamous reveler. He got invited to many feasts, and hosted numerous fetes as well. And he became fat. Very fat, gaining the obese trait in his late-60s. I found it funny when I decided to lose weight after gaining the obese trait. Shortly after making this decision, I got ill, then was on death’s door. At 71, I ordered my court physician to do no more than the minimum to keep me alive, and then … I survived. After my recovery, I put an end to the losing weight nonsense and hosted a feast — the next day, I woke up better rested and healthier than ever before. Obviously, the lesson here is to continue to be a partier and a glutton in my waning years. My favorite part is playing matchmaker, marrying off my children, grandchildren, courtiers, and vassals to other important folk in nearby realms. I do so with an eye on alliances — will this marriage result in an ally for an upcoming war? I look not just at how it benefits my line but also my military. It’s a hoot to have a half-dozen allies, all with armies stronger than yours, and then to start a war with a neighbor with a stronger military but weaker allies (or no friends!), overwhelming them and winning your claim despite putting fewer of your levies and knights at-risk. So instead of thinking about how you want your realm to grow, think more about how you want to rule. Think about your ruler as your character; once you do so, the complex web of relationships among family, vassals, courtiers, your liege, and other rulers makes more sense. Better tips, but it needs more Crusader Kings II came out in 2012, and Paradox has supported it with patches, updates, and 15 pieces of downloadable content (expansions, packs, etc.). It remains quite playable today. I expect Crusader Kings III to get the same level of support, if not more. And at launch, it does a passable job of explaining its complex mechanics: ruling vassals, choosing marriages, making claims on titles and lands, and so on. I wish it did more to show you how diplomacy works — how to build alliances and make friends without going through multiple menus and lumps to figure it out yourself. Above: The King and I. And I crave a small tutorial scenario on how to set yourself up as a king, winning your independence from your liege. But Paradox could end up adding more tutorials down the line, or it could add mechanics that make Crusader Kings III’s more obscure workings more transparent. And it certainly will post dev dairies and work with streamers to show folks the ropes. As always with this publisher’s works, I’m excited to see how this game grows in the coming years. The long view It takes some time to gronk that while some of your decisions have immediate or short-term consequences, a number of choices result in things that either happen years later or last for a decade or two. Let’s take executions. I learned a vassal (an uncle) was plotting my murder, so I gave him the axe. This hurt my standing with my court and my family for over a decade. They were afraid of me, but they also worried I could become a tyrant. Up to that time, I hadn’t done anything tyrannical, other than keeping a prisoner locked up for three decades (another plotting vassal, and they deserved it! I wanted them to rot until they died under house arrest). And this is important: Every decision you make should have some long-term goal to it. Offering a ward to a powerful ruler, prince, or duke? Make sure that improvement in opinion you get from that person can help you with an alliance, a marriage, or another transaction down the road. Expanding your kingdom? Make sure that new county or duchy pays off with levies for your army, taxes for your coffers, and titles that make you matter more to your friends and rivals. Early on, I made friends with the prince of England. He was in line to inherit the realm. And he did. We married our firstborn to each other. And it proved to be a fruitful alliance. He helped me take over several counties, and his support was key to my early expansion. Meanwhile, I helped him take over his western turf and bite off a piece of Scotland. But setting this up took almost 20 years. And it was worth it. Where do I go from here? Above: Crusader Kings III’s first name suggestion for my daughter was Rum. I couldn’t resist. I’ve played two ruling dynasties so far. I ran the first into the ground, as coups and murders tore the realm apart. In my current run, I’m on my second ruler, a wise man who’s taken Brittany from a tiny realm in the corner of France, expanded it threefold, and waged a successful war for independence, all while becoming a learned, trusted person among his peers. I do have one minor complaint about running your realm: I wish the powerful vassals demanding council positions had better stats. Every time one nagged me about it, they always had lower scores in diplomacy, stewardship, and so on, than those on my council. I had to decide if it was worth hurting the realm to make them happy. Maybe that run just had some bad luck. But really, if all your stats are 10 or less, vassal, just shut up, collect your taxes, and enjoy your title. Leave the ruling of the realm to the adults! At this point, I could score this game … but Crusader Kings III, like all of Paradox’s releases, is like my Brittany. It takes time to figure out its web of mechanics and systems, just as it takes time to make and tune them. The development team learns, and Crusader Kings grows, becoming a different (and oftentimes better) game in the process. In my review-in-progress, I said if I were to score it now, I’d give it a 5/5. More than a month later, I’m ready to do so. This is the best Crusader Kings release yet — and it’s Paradox’s best game release ever. Score: 5/5 Crusader Kings III launches September 1 for PC. Paradox Interactive provided GamesBeat with a Steam code for the purposes of this review. GamesBeat's creed when covering the game industry is "where passion meets business." What does this mean? We want to tell you how the news matters to you -- not just as a decision-maker at a game studio, but also as a fan of games. Whether you read our articles, listen to our podcasts, or watch our videos, GamesBeat will help you learn about the industry and enjoy engaging with it. Discover our Briefings. Join the GamesBeat community! Enjoy access to special events, private newsletters and more. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Astro's Playroom review -- The best way to start your life with PS5 | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2020/11/06/astros-playroom-review-the-best-way-to-start-your-life-with-ps5"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Review Astro’s Playroom review — The best way to start your life with PS5 Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn My new best friend. Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. When you first boot up your PlayStation 5 , you should immediately start playing Astro’s Playroom. This 3D platformer comes installed on every PlayStation 5, which comes out on November 12. After playing it, I understand why Sony did this. Astro’s Playroom is a showcase for the PlayStation 5’s major new features, including its DualSense controller and solid state drive. But even without that jazz, Astro’s Playroom stands out as an adorable experience packed with a ton of charm and love, especially if you’re a fan of the PlayStation brand. Showing off that new controller More than anything else, Sony studio Asobi Team designed Astro’s Playroom to show you why the PlayStation 5’s DualSense controller is so cool. When you start the game, it begins with a short tutorial explaining this new gamepad’s features. Then Astro’s Playroom goes wild, showing how these ideas transform into neat game mechanics. Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! For example, adaptive triggers are a big part of the DualSense. These allow the two back trigger buttons to offer different degrees of resistance. In Astro’s Playroom, you can find a bow and arrow. Like in most games, you push down on the trigger to aim the bow, and then release to let an arrow loose. But that action feels so much more satisfying when you have to push down on that trigger just a bit harder to fight that resistance, replicating the sensation of a tightening bow string. Above: Duckie! The DualSense also has haptic feedback, which is a fancier kind of controller rumble. It’s capable or more complex and variable kinds of shaking. When Astro is just walking around, you’ll even feel the slight vibrations of his footsteps via the controller. This can even get more intense based on what surface he’s walking on. The shaking can also get pretty strong, like at one part when you’re walking against a giant fan. It’s the most impressive display of controller rumble I’ve ever felt in a game. Aside from the controller, you’ll also get to see that SSD in action. You can quick-travel to checkpoints from every level at any time. This process takes a few seconds. It’s stunning to see console load times this fast. A salute to all things PlayStation Astro’s Playroom is a technological showpiece, but it’s also a love letter to all things PlayStation. The game is set inside a PlayStation 5, with each of the four levels representing a different part of the console’s innards (like the cooling system or SSD). Each of these stages also corresponds with one of the past four PlayStation home consoles. In Mario games, you hunt for stars. Here, PlayStation “artifacts” are the main collectibles. These are things like old PlayStation controllers and accessories. If you explore off the beaten path of these otherwise linear stages, you’ll find these artifacts hidden in interesting places. You’ll also discover puzzle pieces, which fill out a fun PlayStation mural. All of these collectibles show up in a special room where you can run around and interact with them. As someone who grew up as the PlayStation brand began and evolved, I loved seeing this game celebrate that history. Above: Why collect stars when you can collect old video game controllers? You’ll also find a ton of other PlayStation references. Other Astro Bots litter every stage, and some of them are dressed up as classic PlayStation characters, both from exclusive first-party games and third-party franchises that you’d probably associate with PlayStation. The PlayStation love doesn’t end there. Those classic PlayStation button icons litter every level. If you look closely, you’ll realize that the rope you’re balancing on is actually a PlayStation controller cord. There are a ton of fun details like this. Is it a full game? I had a blast playing Astro’s Playroom. I just wish it was longer. Like I said, the game only has four main levels. These are meaty stages, and you can have fun hunting down every collectible. You can also unlock speedrun variants of these stages, which lets you compete with online leaderboards. But this is still a short game. It’s hard to be too critical about the game’s length when it’s free. But, darn it, if Astro’s Playroom was twice as long, it could have been my favorite game of the year. It’s just so clever. I would have loved to have seen just how wild the adventure could have gotten. Above: Wait, what are those guys playing? Play in this playroom Aside from wishing it was longer, Astro’s Playroom is an easy recommendation. I mean, if you have a PS5, you have this game anyway. Just play it! I love 3D platformers. You don’t usually see this kind of charm and polish in the genre unless it has Mario’s name attached to it. Granted, Astro isn’t as acrobatic as our favorite Italian plumber. He has a simple move set consisting of a jump, a hover, and some punches. But Astro’s Playroom never feels dull for a second thanks to its unbounded creativity. It’s just a shame that it didn’t have a few thousand more of those seconds of fun to offer. Astro’s Playroom comes installed on the PlayStation 5, which comes out November 12. Sony provided us with the disc drive version of the console for the purposes of this review. GamesBeat's creed when covering the game industry is "where passion meets business." What does this mean? We want to tell you how the news matters to you -- not just as a decision-maker at a game studio, but also as a fan of games. Whether you read our articles, listen to our podcasts, or watch our videos, GamesBeat will help you learn about the industry and enjoy engaging with it. Discover our Briefings. Join the GamesBeat community! Enjoy access to special events, private newsletters and more. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Spider-Man: Miles Morales review -- A hero with heart gets the next gen swinging | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2020/11/06/spider-man-miles-morales-review-a-hero-with-heart-gets-the-next-gen-swinging"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Review Spider-Man: Miles Morales review — A hero with heart gets the next gen swinging Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. Insomniac Games itself seems confused as to what to call Spider-Man: Miles Morales. Is it a sequel to its 2018 Spider-Man game ? Is it more of a mini-sized side adventure, something like Uncharted: The Lost Legacy ? Well, whatever you want to call it, Spider-Man: Miles Morales is good. It’s even, and please curse my name after reading this, amazing. Miles Morales is a launch game for PlayStation 5 , which debuts on November 12. You can also grab a PlayStation 4 version if you’re not ready for the next-gen jump yet. But, man, the PS5 may have spoiled me. Miles Morales looks so good and runs so well on PS5 that I can’t imagine ever going back. But it’s not just a showpiece for a new console. Miles Morales is a heartfelt adventure that all Spider-Man fans should enjoy. What makes a good Spider-Man? So, is Miles Morales a sequel or what? To me, it sure feels like a sequel. Yes, it reuses the same map from the last game with a few changes. But, I mean, that map is Manhattan. That’s kind of where Spider-Man operates. Setting another game there makes sense. Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! And even though you’re still swinging past the same New York City landmarks, Miles Morales feels different. For one thing, it’s set during the holidays. It’s not a full-blown Christmas game or anything. You’re not helping Santa deliver presents (although that would be awesome). But as anyone who has ever been to NYC during the holidays knows, the city is beautiful during that time of year. The same holds true in this game. I had a great time just swinging around and looking at decorations and Christmas trees while the pedestrians down below wished me Happy Hanukkah. Above: It’s all Christmasy! You also have a different hero. Miles Morales is also a Spider-Man, just like Peter Parker, but he has some distinct abilities. He has the power to turn invisible, which can give you a big advantage during stealth. It can also help you escape difficult fights if you need a moment to reassess the situation. Miles also has electric-based abilities that he calls venom. These are powerful attacks that can knock enemies down or blast them into the air. Together, these new abilities add a little spice to the Spider-Man combat flow from the last game. You use webs to close the distance between you and your enemies, dancing around the battlefield while using venom and finisher attacks to help take the bad guys down. While Peter Parker relies on gadgets (he had eight, while Miles only has access to four), Morales’s approach feels more hard-hitting thanks to those strong venom attacks. Harlem hero This game plays great. Traversal and combat are just as fun as they are in the Insomniac’s first Spider-Man. And we also get another wonderful Spidey story. While Peter Parker is a relatively experienced superhero in the last game, Miles is a newbie. He’s still figuring out his powers and their impact his relationships with family. In fact, family is the central theme of the game. What makes people family, what does family owe each other, and when does someone stop being a part of your family? Like the best superhero stories, the narrative balances weightier moments with the excitement and fun of having powers. It all works because Miles himself is so likable. He’s really just a kid trying his best to make his city safe. And he’s far from perfect. He makes a lot of mistakes. He struggles. But he’s always someone that you want to cheer for. The animation work alone instills so much personality into Miles. While Peter Parker would swing with grace, Miles still flails about a bit when he’s soaring through the city. It helps remind you he is still a kid with a lot to learn. Above: Something is tingling! Next-gen powers Miles Morales looks great on PlayStation 5. You have two graphical options. One is a performance mode that prioritizes frame rate. The other is a fidelity mode that focuses more intense graphical features like ray-tracing. Fidelity mode runs at 30 fps, but that ray-tracing means that you can examine some of the realistic reflections you’ve ever seen. I was entertained just by hanging on a glass building and marveling at that technology. But I preferred the performance mode, which gave me a consistent 60 fps experience. And, really, that kind performance is one of the biggest things I want from this console generation. And even though you don’t have those amazing reflections in performance mode, the game still looks great. Honestly, aside from those reflections, I couldn’t really tell you what was that different between the two. I’m sure if I counted pixels, I’d see that one has a higher resolution, but I couldn’t tell. Spider-Man is also showing off those fast loading times, courtesy of the PS5’s solid state drive. Unless you’re using fast travel, you won’t notice load times at all. Even then, it takes about two seconds. Above: What’s up, danger? Here comes a Spider-Man Miles Morales is a thrilling adventure with a good heart. It’s also a great showcase for the PS5, especially if you want to learn just how fast load times are on the new system or if you want to see what ray-tracing can do. I’m sure if I timed each game, I’d see that Miles Morales is shorter than its predecessor. But it feels like a complete experience. Anyone who loves Insomniac’s first Spider-Man game is going to have an amazing time with Miles. As I think about it, I’m not sure if a Sony home console has ever had a better PlayStation launch game than Spider-Man: Miles Morales. This certainly beats Knack and Killzone: Whatever the Subtitle Was on PlayStation 4. Spider-Man: Miles Morales comes out November 12 for PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 4. Sony sent us a PS5 code for the purposes of this review. GamesBeat's creed when covering the game industry is "where passion meets business." What does this mean? We want to tell you how the news matters to you -- not just as a decision-maker at a game studio, but also as a fan of games. Whether you read our articles, listen to our podcasts, or watch our videos, GamesBeat will help you learn about the industry and enjoy engaging with it. Discover our Briefings. Join the GamesBeat community! Enjoy access to special events, private newsletters and more. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Amazon's new Prime Air drone promises to deliver packages in under 30 minutes | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2019/06/05/amazons-new-prime-air-drone-promises-to-deliver-packages-in-under-30-minutes"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Amazon’s new Prime Air drone promises to deliver packages in under 30 minutes Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Are you ready to bring more awareness to your brand? Consider becoming a sponsor for The AI Impact Tour. Learn more about the opportunities here. During a Wednesday keynote address at Amazon’s re:MARS conference in Las Vegas, the company announced a slew of features for its existing products and previewed new services to come. One of those it touched on was Prime Air: Amazon said that in the coming months, a newly designed, fully electric, and completely autonomous Prime Air drone will begin delivering packages to customers as part of pilot tests. “Over time, we’ll work with regulators and governments and try to reach as many customers as possible,” said Amazon’s consumer worldwide CEO Jeff Wilke onstage. He added that Amazon has “permission” from federal agencies to perform tests with drone fleets in the U.S., and that the goal is a commercial service. “We’re focused right now on the areas where we can land in a backyard.” Specifically, Amazon aims to fulfill orders within 30 minutes for shoppers within 7.5 miles of some of its hundreds of warehouses around the world. Packages will be carried in a square-shaped pod in the center; the drone is designed to come within a foot or two of the ground and drop the package in a marked spot. VB Event The AI Impact Tour Connect with the enterprise AI community at VentureBeat’s AI Impact Tour coming to a city near you! Amazon’s drone — the latest of over a 50,000 iterations, or tens of thousands of hardware-in-the-loop simulations and tens of thousands of real-world data sets — is capable of vertical takeoffs and landings, and it’s able to carry parcels weighing as much as five pounds, which covers 75% to 90% of packages Amazon ships to customers today. That’s thanks to a novel shape and shroud, and six degrees of freedom instead of a standard four, plus six propellers that have been optimized to dampen high-frequency sounds. It wasn’t just the volume of these sounds that the team tried to minimize. They took into account the character of the sound — specifically its sharpness, roughness, fluctuation strength, and tonal prominence. There’s even more to the design than meets the eye — and ear, for that matter. The drone’s propellers have an S-curve designed to make them more stable in high winds, and they can be easily stopped to limit the potential for injury. Moreover, according to Amazon, all of the components are already certified for use on other aircraft or were designed and built from scratch to meet FAA regulations. Safety is of the utmost priority, according to Amazon. Toward that end, it continuously evaluates two key metrics: whether the airspace is safe and whether the ground is safe to approach. Deliveries are planned to be clear, and the drone’s onboard sensors (more on those later) verify everything. The drone’s machine learning algorithms take as input sensory data, and decide what to do when the descent and climb paths aren’t clear, the delivery location isn’t detected, people and animals are in the delivery area, and the objects in the delivery are too large or too close to the ground. It might abort the delivery and fly to a nearby warehouse and wait, for instance, or land and stop its motors. “We know customers will only feel comfortable receiving drone deliveries if the system is incredibly safe,” said Wilke. Furthermore, the as-yet-unnamed drone is outfitted with sensors (including stereo RGB cameras and thermal cameras) that feed data to sophisticated machine learning algorithms, enabling it to automatically detect when a customer gets too close and avoid hazards like pets, paragliders, and power lines. It has four control surfaces that allow it to maneuver in flight, and it’s capable of flying up to a maximum 15 miles. (Amazon says it’s using “smarter algorithms” to extend the drone’s battery life.) In the years since Amazon launched a trial of its Prime Air drone delivery service for select customers in Cambridge, England, in December 2016 and demoed an earlier version of the Prime Air drone at MARS back in 2017, its distribution network has grown considerably. It now includes more than 50 cargo planes and 19,000 trailers, which helped to deliver over 1 billion items to Prime members last year. Companies like Microsoft and startup Flytrex have trialed airborne delivery services in cities like Holly Springs, North Carolina and Wichita, Kansas. In May, Uber announced plans to deliver food by drone in San Diego, and FedEx plans to develop a drone-powered aircraft inspection program in Tennessee. More recently, Matternet teamed up with UPS to launch an aerial delivery service from WakeMed’s flagship hospital and campus in Raleigh, North Carolina. Reports show the commercial drone industry continues to grow quickly, albeit from a small base. A 2017 forecast from Gartner projected the number of commercial drones sold that year would exceed 174,000. Moreover, about $454 million was thrown at UAV startups in 2016 alone , and the market is forecasted to be worth $127 billion by 2020. VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Stanford lab envisions delivery drones that save energy by taking the bus | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2020/06/03/stanford-lab-envisions-delivery-drones-that-save-energy-by-taking-the-bus"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Stanford lab envisions delivery drones that save energy by taking the bus Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Are you ready to bring more awareness to your brand? Consider becoming a sponsor for The AI Impact Tour. Learn more about the opportunities here. Researchers from Stanford University have devised a way for hundreds of drones to use the bus or trams in an effort to redesign how packages are distributed in cities. Should such a solution ever scale, it could reduce delivery van congestion and energy usage while extending the distance a drone can travel to deliver a package. There’s a reason most delivery drones we’ve seen thus far are dropping packages off in the suburbs. Urban centers can be dynamic environments, full of unexpected obstacles, and drones are still not permitted to fly freely through cities. But researchers say using public transportation can increase a drone’s range up to 360% beyond travel with flight alone. “Our approach strives to minimize the maximum time to complete any delivery,” the team writes in a paper published this week at the online 2020 IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA). “By combining the strengths of both, we can achieve significant commercial benefits and social impact.” This approach, which involves the drones hitching a ride on the outside of buses and trams, could help overcome the limited travel capacity of drones today. The popular DJI Mavic 2, for example, is able to fly a maximum distance of 18 kilometers, or about 11 miles round trip. VB Event The AI Impact Tour Connect with the enterprise AI community at VentureBeat’s AI Impact Tour coming to a city near you! The Stanford system could handle up to 200 drones delivering up to 5,000 packages. The AI network is made for cities with up to 8,000 stops, and experiments were conducted specifically in San Francisco and Washington, D.C. For context, the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) covers an area of 150km 2 and the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) covers an area of roughly 400km 2. The multi-drone network does not include use of SFMTA or WMATA tunnels. Paper coauthor Shushman Choudhury told VentureBeat in an email that simulations do not take into account any physical infrastructure, and instead relied on open source data on bus stops and drone package depot locations. Researchers did not consult SFMTA or WMATA officials, but that could make sense after further research to discover additional externalities or potential impact on urban communities. The authors describe the solution as resembling algorithms on-demand mobility services developed to coordinate multiple modes of transportation. Like Uber, Lyft, or other companies that combine ride-sharing options with public transportation, electric scooters, and walking, the model takes a two-layered approach. “First, the upper layer assigns drones to package delivery sequences with a near-optimal polynomial-time task allocation algorithm. Then the lower layer executes the allocation by periodically routing the fleet over the transit network while employing efficient bounded-suboptimal multi-agent pathfinding techniques tailored to our setting,” the paper reads. The research comes out of the Stanford Intelligent Systems Laboratory ( SISL ) and Autonomous Systems Lab. Titled “Efficient Large-Scale Multi-Drone Delivery using Transit Networks,” the work was nominated by ICRA conference organizers for best multi-robot systems paper. Authors of the paper, including Choudhury and Mykel Kochenderfer, published research last year about an AI technique called DREAMR that’s capable of guiding a single drone, using buses and trams to reduce flight time and conserve energy. The multi-drone approach detailed at ICRA this week assumes packages can be acquired from any dispatch depot. It also assumes a drone will carry one package at a time and that drones will recharge or replace batteries at depots when time allows. Next steps could include factoring in issues like delays and ideal travel time windows. Anybody who’s ridden a Muni bus in San Francisco knows traffic and congestion can considerably chew into travel times. “A key future direction is to perform case studies that estimate the operational cost of our framework, evaluate its impact on road congestion, and consider potential externalities, like noise pollution and disparate impact on urban communities,” the paper reads. VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Following Amazon's FAA approval, Flytrex launches second Walmart drone delivery pilot | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2020/09/09/following-amazons-faa-approval-flytrex-launches-second-walmart-drone-delivery-pilot"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Following Amazon’s FAA approval, Flytrex launches second Walmart drone delivery pilot Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. Air delivery startup Flytrex today unveiled a pilot with Walmart to deliver items from the retailer’s stores using drones — the second such pilot Walmart has launched in recent weeks. Beginning in Fayetteville, North Carolina, Flytrex quadcopters controlled through a cloud-based dashboard will pick up, transport, and drop off packages. The pilot comes as the pandemic motivates shelter-in-place orders around the world, restricting a number of businesses — particularly restaurants — to delivery or pickup options. Drones and autonomous vehicles can limit unnecessary contact between workers, couriers, and customers, potentially helping prevent the spread of infection. For these and other reasons, the number of drones dedicated to ecommerce deliveries is expected to increase to 2.2 million units by 2025, according to a Frost and Sullivan report. As in Grand Forks, North Dakota, where Flytex is delivering from a Walmart Supercenter, the Fayetteville-based drones will take off across the street from a Walmart location. (The North Dakota program isn’t an official partnership with Walmart, a Flytrex spokesperson clarified to VentureBeat via email.) Customers will use a mobile app to browse an inventory of about 200 items, including diapers, prepackaged deli meat, hand sanitizer, toothpaste, and hamburger buns. VB Event The AI Impact Tour Connect with the enterprise AI community at VentureBeat’s AI Impact Tour coming to a city near you! During the initial stages of the pilot, the free deliveries will be limited to goods weighing 6.6 pounds or less, and they will only be offered to households that have opted into the service. Flytrex’s drones will make drop-offs directly in backyards via tethers that unreel from 80 feet in the air. The expanded Flytrex collaboration appears to signal an acceleration of Walmart’s drone delivery efforts as Amazon’s Prime Air gained U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Part 135 certification last week. (Flytrex’s operations fall under the FAA’s visual line-of-sight rules, meaning they don’t require the same type of approval.) Last year, Walmart filed two patents for systems that would help ensure safe drone delivery and package drop-off, including a landing platform with an automated trap door. Flytrex’s latest deployment comes after the company’s on-demand drone delivery service debuted in Reykjavik, Iceland. In 2018, Flytrex established its first partnership with Ease Drones, launching drone delivery at King’s Walk Golf Course in Grand Forks. Flytrex was selected by the FAA the following year to participate in its UAS Integration Pilot Program (IPP) with the North Carolina Department of Transportation. IPP, which launched in 2017, aims to bring state, local, and tribal governments together with private sector entities, such as drone operators and manufacturers, to test and evaluate the integration of civil and public drone operations with the national airspace system. Other participants include Zipline , which will deliver personal protective equipment (such as masks) around the campuses of the Novant Health medical network in Charlotte, North Carolina, and Matternet , which will make medical deliveries between WakeMed hospital in Raleigh and its Healthplex in Garner in partnership with UPS. VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Apple has removed almost 42,000 games so far in App Store licensing purge in China | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2020/08/06/apple-has-removed-almost-42000-games-so-far-in-app-store-licensing-purge-in-china"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Apple has removed almost 42,000 games so far in App Store licensing purge in China Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Niko Partners foresees a lot of growth for China's mobile games. Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. To comply with Chinese law, Apple has removed nearly 42,000 games from the App Store in China since July 1 because these apps didn’t have proper licenses. Market researcher Niko Partners found that Apple removed 14,914 games in July ahead of a July 31 deadline to comply with a 2016 regulation that requires games to have a publishing license (International Standard Book Number, or ISBN) to operate in China. It removed another 26,815 games August 1. Android stores (which Chinese companies own) have been fully compliant with this law, while Apple has enabled some games to operate on the store without a verified ISBN. Compliance means that Apple had to remove the games this summer. The Chinese National Press and Publication Administration is responsible for the approvals, and it reviews games for reasons such as censorship or compliance with Chinese cultural tastes regarding taboo subjects, such as including skulls in games. Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! Niko expects any remaining unlicensed titles to be removed by the end of December, analyst Daniel Ahmad said in a message. China is the largest mobile game market in the world with 637 million players and iOS mobile games having generated $12.6 billion in 2019, Niko said. China has been very slow to approve new games and grant licenses. If Chinese regulators stay on the current pace, they will approve a relatively small number of publication licenses this year. Niko Partners analysts reviewed the top iOS games in China when Apple first made the announcement and found that 97 of the top 100 grossing games on the China App Store have legal ISBNs. Foreign companies must have a Chinese game publisher apply to get an ISBN from the Chinese National Press and Publication Administration. That process takes about 80 business days, according to publisher Cocos. GamesBeat's creed when covering the game industry is "where passion meets business." What does this mean? We want to tell you how the news matters to you -- not just as a decision-maker at a game studio, but also as a fan of games. Whether you read our articles, listen to our podcasts, or watch our videos, GamesBeat will help you learn about the industry and enjoy engaging with it. Discover our Briefings. Join the GamesBeat community! Enjoy access to special events, private newsletters and more. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Apple’s Corellium lawsuit is a direct attack on iOS emulation | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2019/08/16/apples-corellium-lawsuit-is-a-direct-attack-on-ios-emulation"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Analysis Apple’s Corellium lawsuit is a direct attack on iOS emulation Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. If you’ve been following Apple for a while, you probably already know that the company doesn’t like emulators — at least, most of them. Years ago, it shut down efforts to replicate the iPod’s interface on computers, and apart from AirPlay screen mirroring , there hasn’t been a way to bring the iPhone’s or iPad’s full interface onto a computer screen for even indirect user manipulation. With the exception of Hackintoshes , PCs that are imperfectly and tenuously hacked to run macOS, Apple doesn’t abide the use of its operating systems on machines that weren’t specifically built to run them. A small Florida company called Corellium either didn’t get the memo or doesn’t care. Its website brazenly focuses on a Mac emulating an iPhone 6 with iOS 11, and its Twitter account shows virtual iPhone XR and iPhone XS devices running jailbroken versions of iOS 13, alongside retweets of praise from hackers. Beyond claiming to have “the first and only platform to offer iOS, Android, and Linux virtualization on ARM,” locally and in the cloud, Corellium says that it’s emulating iOS GPUs and enabling developers to access Apple’s kernel for “debugging” purposes. In a newly filed lawsuit , Apple is characterizing Corellium’s actions as a “straightforward case of infringement of highly valuable copyrighted works.” If you’re not a lawyer, this means that Apple is accusing Corellium of directly copying iOS and its apps so that they can be accessed by “anyone with a web browser.” And if you are a lawyer, there’s little question that Apple is at least superficially* correct: Copyright law technically lets the company control every iOS release it distributes, precluding copying and various impermissible uses. All it has to do is file a lawsuit to shut down unwanted activities, then win it — either by making the small company give up, or advancing through trial and rebutting a likely claim of fair use. (* = It should be noted that the story might be somewhat different if Corellium’s product was solely an emulator without any redistribution of iOS code. If the company’s emulator worked like Corel’s Parallels Desktop , arriving on a user’s machine with nothing save its own code while having the ability to run a permissibly downloaded copy of iOS — which iTunes and macOS routinely do for USB updates of devices using PCs and Macs — Apple probably still wouldn’t be happy, but might have greater trouble shutting Corellium down.) Given the above, you might be wondering why Apple lets PC users run Hackintosh versions of macOS, but wants to deny web browser users the chance to access hacked versions of iOS. The short version is that the company appears to have determined some time ago that it wasn’t going to chase the small (and generally hobbyist rather than for-profit) audience of Hackintosh users, but it also wouldn’t make things easy for them. PCs running macOS historically suffer from multiple glitches based on everything from audio and graphic driver issues to obscure RAM spec differences. To the best of my knowledge, there’s no company currently out there selling Hackintoshed PCs, and if there was, Apple would almost certainly shut them down in a heartbeat. Corellium’s cardinal sin, Apple’s filing suggests, is that it’s selling emulated iOS access for profit. It’s offering private installations of its product for a million dollars a year, and also encouraging users to sell any security flaws they discover on the open market, effectively undermining Apple’s own efforts to cultivate “good-faith security research on its platforms.” Just last week, the company confirmed that it will offer its own pre-jailbroken iPhones to selected security researchers for bug hunting purposes , and offer up to $1 million for dangerous OS exploits. Underlying the lawsuit, however, is the ever-present issue of Apple wanting control over how and where its operating systems can be run. It doesn’t want PCs, Macs, or anything with a web browser to be able to serve as a complete replacement for iOS, and even though it’s bridging the gap between platforms with its own Catalyst initiative for macOS Catalina , it’s certainly not interested in third-party intermediaries enabling iOS emulation. Moreover, if an emulator or virtualization could allow iOS to run on non-Apple ARM devices, already troubled sales of iPhones in developing countries could be crippled by low-cost clones. I won’t be at all surprised if Corellium quickly settles with Apple or otherwise modifies its offering to be non-infringing — it would be more unusual for the small company to fight back, and all but impossible for it to succeed. But the broader question is whether we’ll see others attempt to emulate or “virtualize” iOS, and if so, what sort of impact that will have on Apple’s most popular operating system going forward. VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Researchers find actively exploited iOS flaws that were open for years | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2020/04/22/researchers-find-actively-exploited-ios-flaws-that-were-open-for-years"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Researchers find actively exploited iOS flaws that were open for years Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. ( Reuters ) — Apple is planning to fix a flaw that a security firm said may have left more than half a billion iPhones vulnerable to hackers. The bug, which also exists on iPads, was discovered by ZecOps , a San Francisco-based mobile security forensics company, while it was investigating a sophisticated cyberattack against a client that took place in late 2019. Zuk Avraham, ZecOps’ CEO, said he found evidence the vulnerability was exploited in at least six cybersecurity break-ins. An Apple spokesperson acknowledged that a vulnerability exists in Apple’s software for email on iPhones and iPads, known as the Mail app, and that the company had developed a fix, which will be rolled out in a forthcoming update on millions of devices it has sold globally. Apple declined to comment on Avraham’s research, which was published on Wednesday and suggests the flaw could be triggered from afar and that it had already been exploited by hackers against high-profile users. Avraham said he found evidence that a malicious program was taking advantage of the vulnerability in Apple’s iOS mobile operating system as far back as January 2018. He could not determine who the hackers were, and Reuters was unable to independently verify his claim. To execute the hack, Avraham said victims would be sent an apparently blank email message through the Mail app forcing a crash and reset. The crash opened the door for hackers to steal other data on the device, such as photos and contact details. ZecOps claims the vulnerability allowed hackers to remotely steal data off iPhones even if they were running recent versions of iOS. By itself, the flaw could have given access to whatever the Mail app had access to, including confidential messages. Avraham, a former Israeli Defense Force security researcher, said he suspected that the hacking technique was part of a chain of malicious programs, the rest undiscovered, that could have given an attacker full remote access. Apple declined to comment on that prospect. ZecOps found the Mail app hacking technique was used against a client last year. Avraham described the targeted client as a “Fortune 500 North American technology company,” but declined to name it. ZecOps also found evidence of related attacks against employees of five other companies in Japan, Germany, Saudi Arabia, and Israel. Avraham based most of his conclusions on data from “crash reports,” which are generated when programs fail in mid-task on a device. He was then able to recreate a technique that caused the controlled crashes. VB Event The AI Impact Tour Connect with the enterprise AI community at VentureBeat’s AI Impact Tour coming to a city near you! Two independent security researchers who reviewed ZecOps’ discovery found the evidence credible but said they had not yet fully recreated its findings. Patrick Wardle, an Apple security expert and former researcher for the U.S. National Security Agency, said the discovery “confirms what has always been somewhat of a rather badly kept secret: that well-resourced adversaries can remotely and silently infect fully patched iOS devices.” Because Apple was not aware of the software bug until recently, it could have been very valuable to governments and contractors offering hacking services. Exploit programs that work without warning against an up-to-date phone can be worth more than $1 million. While Apple is largely viewed within the cybersecurity industry as having a high standard for digital security, any successful hacking technique against the iPhone could affect millions, due to the device’s global popularity. In 2019, Apple said there were about 900 million iPhones in active use. Bill Marczak, a security researcher with Citizen Lab, a Canada-based academic security research group, called the vulnerability discovery “scary.” “A lot of times, you can take comfort from the fact that hacking is preventable,” said Marczak. “With this bug, it doesn’t matter if you’ve got a Ph.D. in cybersecurity, this will eat your lunch.” VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Clearview AI stops facial recognition sales in Canada amid privacy investigation | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2020/07/06/clearview-ai-stops-facial-recognition-sales-in-canada-amid-privacy-investigation"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Clearview AI stops facial recognition sales in Canada amid privacy investigation Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Facial Recognition System concept Are you ready to bring more awareness to your brand? Consider becoming a sponsor for The AI Impact Tour. Learn more about the opportunities here. Clearview AI will no longer sell its facial recognition software in Canada, according to government privacy officials investigating the company. The end of Clearview AI operations in Canada will also mean the end of the company’s contract with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, according to an announcement released today by the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada. Canadian privacy officials started investigating Clearview AI in February following media reports about the company’s practice of scraping billions of images from social media and the web without consent from the people in photos in order to create its facial recognition system. Critics say Clearview’s approach could mean the end of privacy. Government officials from Quebec, British Columbia, and Alberta provinces continue to investigate Clearview AI and Royal Canadian Mounted Police use of its facial recognition software despite Clearview’s exit. Police in major cities like Toronto have also used Clearview AI software. “An ongoing issue under investigation by the authorities is the deletion of the personal information of Canadians that Clearview has already collected as well as the cessation of Clearview’s collection of Canadians’ personal information,” the announcement reads. VB Event The AI Impact Tour Connect with the enterprise AI community at VentureBeat’s AI Impact Tour coming to a city near you! Clearview’s willingness to work with law enforcement, retailers, financial institutions, and various government institutions also attracted the attention of privacy regulators. In April, Clearview AI pledged in an Illinois court filing to no longer sell its facial recognition to private companies. In May, the ACLU filed a lawsuit against Clearview AI in llinois alleging privacy and safety violations under state law. Clearview AI has been criticized for ties to far-right and white supremacist groups. In other recent facial recognition news, last week the Association for Computing Machinery, one of the largest computer science organizations in the world, urged businesses and governments in the United States to stop the use of facial recognition. VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"New York bans use of facial recognition in schools statewide | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2020/07/22/new-york-bans-use-of-facial-recognition-in-schools-statewide"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages New York bans use of facial recognition in schools statewide Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn People walk past a poster simulating facial recognition software at the Security China 2018 exhibition on public safety and security in Beijing, China October 24, 2018. Are you ready to bring more awareness to your brand? Consider becoming a sponsor for The AI Impact Tour. Learn more about the opportunities here. The New York legislature today passed a moratorium on the use of facial recognition and other forms of biometric identification in schools until 2022. The bill, which has yet to be signed by Governor Andrew Cuomo, comes in response to the launch of facial recognition by the Lockport City School District and appears to be the first in the nation to explicitly regulate or ban use of the technology in schools. In January, Lockport became one of the only U.S. school districts to adopt facial recognition in all of its K-12 buildings, which serve about 5,000 students. Proponents argued the $1.4 million system made by Canada-based SN Technologies’ Aegis kept students safe by enforcing watchlists and sending alerts when it detected someone dangerous (or otherwise unwanted). It could also detect 10 types of guns and alert select district personnel and law enforcement. But critics said it could be used to surveil students and build a database of sensitive information the school district might struggle to keep secure. While the Lockport schools’ privacy policy stated that the watchlist wouldn’t include students and the database would only cover non-students deemed a threat, including sex offenders or those banned by court order, district superintendent Michelle Bradley ultimately oversaw which individuals were added to the system. It was reported earlier this month that school board president John Linderman couldn’t guarantee student photos would never be included for disciplinary reasons. “Once we allow [facial recognition tech in schools], it’s going to open a floodgate for millions and millions of dollars of state dollars being spent on technology that is really questionable in terms of its reliability, in terms of its accuracy, and in terms of its value, versus the risks that come with using this technology, in terms of privacy, in terms of false positives, and so many other things,” New York Assemblymember Monica Wallace, who proposed the bill passed today, said earlier this year. Senator Brian Kavanagh (D-NY) was a cosponsor. VB Event The AI Impact Tour Connect with the enterprise AI community at VentureBeat’s AI Impact Tour coming to a city near you! The bill will also require the New York State Education Department to study the issue of biometric identification in schools and craft regulations. The New York Civil Liberties Union, which filed a lawsuit against Lockport Schools a month ago on behalf of parents opposing the system, issued a statement on Wednesday praising the moratorium. “This is especially important as schools across the state begin to acknowledge the experiences of Black and Brown students being policed in schools and funneled into the school-to-prison pipeline,” said education policy center deputy director Stefanie Coyle. “Facial recognition is notoriously inaccurate, especially when it comes to identifying women and people of color. For children, whose appearances change rapidly as they grow, biometric technologies’ accuracy is even more questionable. False positives, where the wrong student is identified, can result in traumatic interactions with law enforcement, loss of class time, disciplinary action, and potentially a criminal record.” Bradley said the district didn’t believe there was “any valid basis” on which it should be prevented from deploying and using the Aegis system. “Contrary to the constant misrepresentations by opponents of the Aegis, Aegis does not in any way record or retain biometric information relating to students or any other individuals on district grounds,” he said. “The legislative effort would result in over $1 million of taxpayer money being committed to an approved system that cannot be used to protect the district community from sex offenders and others who present a threat.” Beyond Lockport Schools, a number of efforts to use facial recognition systems within schools have been met with resistance from parents, students, alumni, community members, and lawmakers alike. At the college level, a media firestorm erupted after a University of Colorado professor was revealed to have secretly photographed thousands of students, employees, and visitors on public sidewalks for a military anti-terrorism project. University of California San Diego researchers admitted to studying footage of students’ facial expressions to predict engagement levels. And last year, the University of California Los Angeles proposed using facial recognition software for security surveillance as part of a larger campus security policy. Fight for the Future, the Boston-based nonprofit promoting causes related to copyright legislation, online privacy, and internet censorship, in January announced it would team up with advocacy group Students for Sensible Drug Policy in an effort to ban facial recognition on university campuses in the U.S. To kickstart the grassroots movement, the organizations launched a website and an organizing toolkit for student groups. Many experts consider facial recognition to be problematic. The Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) and American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) continue to call for moratoriums on all forms of the technology. San Francisco and Oakland, along with Boston and five other Massachusetts communities, have banned police use of facial recognition technology. After the first wave of recent Black Lives Matter protests in the U.S., companies including Amazon , IBM , and Microsoft halted or ended the sale of facial recognition products. Benchmarks of major vendors’ systems by the Gender Shades project and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have found that facial recognition technology exhibits racial and gender bias and performs poorly on people who don’t conform to a single gender identity. And facial recognition programs can be wildly inaccurate, misclassifying people upwards of 96% of the time. VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"COVID-19 vaccine distribution algorithms may cement health care inequalities | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2020/12/19/covid-19-vaccine-distribution-algorithms-may-cement-health-care-inequalities"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages COVID-19 vaccine distribution algorithms may cement health care inequalities Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Are you ready to bring more awareness to your brand? Consider becoming a sponsor for The AI Impact Tour. Learn more about the opportunities here. Earlier this month, following the U.S. Federal Food and Drug Administration’s emergency approval, the federal government began distributing doses of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine to health systems throughout the country. With Moderna’s vaccine to follow, the Trump administration aims to deliver the first shots to 20 million people by year’s end. But shipments must be prioritized in a country of over 300 million people. This logistical challenge has fallen on algorithms designed to account for a range of factors in identifying which populations are most vulnerable. Problematically, however, a lack of transparency plagues their decision-making processes. And given the body of research showing algorithms can encode biases against certain demographic groups, particularly minorities and low-income earners, experts believe this is cause for concern. Tiberius In an effort to achieve its goal of inoculating 100 million Americans by Q1 2021, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services partnered with data-mining firm Palantir to develop a software platform called Tiberius. Tiberius, which covers 50 states, eight territories, the Veterans Health Administration, the Bureau of Prisons, the Indian Health Service, and the departments of Defense and State, allows states and federal agencies to see health care providers enrolled in VTrckS, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) vaccine tracking system. They can also use Tiberius to make decisions about where they send the vaccine within their jurisdictions. Each Thursday, vaccine producers inform Operation Warp Speed, the U.S. public-private COVID-19 treatment development partnership, how much vaccine is available for the upcoming week. On Friday, Tiberius runs an algorithm that draws on variables including adult population and vaccine uptake and allocates the number of doses available to every state. On Saturday, every state finalizes their orders, and deliveries arrive on Monday. VB Event The AI Impact Tour Connect with the enterprise AI community at VentureBeat’s AI Impact Tour coming to a city near you! Operation Warp Speed’s chief of plans Col. Deacon Maddox has described Tiberius’ algorithm as “simple,” “equitable,” and “fair.” According to Maddox, it takes as input “risk-adjusted” manufacturing estimates, a small portion from which is subtracted to provide a “safety stock” and the remainder of which is divided by population estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2018 American Community Survey and the CIA’s World Factbook. While it’s impossible to know exactly which variables the Tiberius algorithm considers in its decisions — that information isn’t public — its reliance on U.S. census data is cause for worry. Because of time constraints, a shortage of manpower, and other confounders, the Census Bureau regularly undercounts populations in certain regions of the country. For example, studies have shown the undercount for Black men, particularly those aged 30 to 49, is much higher than the net undercount rate for the total Black population or total male population. The impact could be devastating. Black Americans are infected with COVID-19 at nearly three times the rate of white Americans and are more than twice as likely to die from the virus, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. That’s partly because Black people are more likely to have preexisting conditions that predispose them to infection, less likely to have health insurance, and more likely to work in jobs that don’t accommodate remote work. “There’s this question of underreporting and overreporting. [It] doesn’t just impact assessments of how many doses are needed in a particular area, but also the priority of those doses,” Os Keyes, an AI researcher at the University of Washington’s Department of Human Centered Design and Engineering, told VentureBeat via email. “If you are not including vulnerable populations as often, you are undercounting population — which means you have a false sense of geographic density. Moreover, your sense of geographic density is missing people who, as a result of their treatment and lives, are more likely to live in dense housing, low-quality housing, places where social distancing is particularly difficult and preexisting health inequalities that exacerbate vulnerability to COVID are particularly high.” State algorithms Beyond Tiberius, some states including Ohio, Wisconsin, South Carolina, New Hampshire, Delaware, Tennessee, and Arizona are using algorithms developed in-house to determine how vaccines should be distributed locally. According to a draft document outlining Ohio’s distribution plan, the state’s algorithm, which was created by the Ohio Department of Health (ODH), takes into account the number of target population groups in a county, the current case count, the level of natural immunity that might exist, labels like “social vulnerability” and “health equity,” and the amount and type of storage providers have on hand. The population estimates come from census information in addition to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, nursing home, and medical claims data, while factors like social vulnerability and health equity are determined using the CDC’s Social Vulnerability Index, which uses 15 U.S. census metrics to identify disadvantaged communities that might need additional support during disasters. The document also reveals that ODH considered geographies and populations with vulnerabilities or structural disadvantages, including low access to health care or those disproportionately affected by COVID-19, as well as locations where social distancing may be most challenging due to population density. The department also looked at where historical flu vaccination rates were lower compared with other regions. And to identify high-risk health care workers, the ODH mailed a survey to local health department grant recipients in 113 jurisdictions requiring that they identify their critical workforce. Above: New Hampshire’s proposed vaccine distribution algorithm. The machinations of South Carolina’s algorithm are less immediately clear. According to a state-issued document , it accounts for the number of recipients a site can vaccinate, a site’s vaccine storage and handling capacity, a site’s geographic location, and allocations of vaccine received and timing. But it’s unclear whether the algorithm factors in population data and from where this population data might be sourced. Moreover, South Carolina’s document makes only passing mention of efforts to ensure disadvantaged groups are fairly represented. In its draft distribution plan , Tennessee says it’s distributing the Pfizer vaccine across “qualifying facilities” by hand but plans to use an algorithm to allocate the Moderna vaccine. The document doesn’t describe this algorithm in detail, though, or identify which department will be responsible for implementing it and the sources of data that might influence its predictions. Arizona and Wisconsin have been similarly vague about where, when, and how their algorithms might be used; Arizona Department of Health Services officials have revealed only that their algorithm, which was provided by the CDC, prioritizes health care workers with the most exposure to people with COVID-19 as well as those with underlying conditions. Perpetuating inequality It’s not just states that are using — or pledging to use — algorithms to determine who receives the vaccine first (and who doesn’t). At George Washington University Hospital (GWUH), groups are selected by a system that takes into account age, underlying medical conditions, prevention of transmission, and the hospital’s ability to continue its own operations. At press time, the GWUH hadn’t responded to VentureBeat’s request for more information. Keyes raises the concern that it’s nebulous, in many cases, how organizations and agencies using algorithms plan to supplement missing data. He notes that the CDC’s Social Vulnerability Index only began canvassing Puerto Rico in 2014 — the only U.S. territory it covers — and that the American Community Survey includes only a handful of territories and tribal nations. Problems have already begun to emerge. Yesterday, ProPublica reported that Stanford Medicine residents who work in close contact with COVID-19 patients were left out of the initial wave for the Pfizer vaccine. An algorithm chose who would be the first 5,000 in line; the residents were told they were at a disadvantage because they lacked an assigned “location” to plug into the calculation and because they’re young. “We are writing to acknowledge the significant concerns expressed by our community regarding the development and execution of our vaccine distribution plan,” leaders of Stanford Health Care and Stanford School of Medicine wrote in an email to staff apologizing for the debacle, NPR reported on Friday evening. “We take complete responsibility and profusely apologize to all of you. We fully recognize we should have acted more swiftly to address the errors that resulted in an outcome we did not anticipate,” they wrote. “When I hear you’re covering 50 states and eight territories with data determined, in part, from these sources, I want to know what on earth you’re doing when some of those sources just aren’t available,” Keyes said. “Working it out on the back of an envelope? Giving up entirely? The answer might be a good one, and the approach might be the best one they can take at the time, but it’s worrisome that the answer isn’t, as far as I can tell, known.” As vaccine distribution ramps up into next year, it’s likely that federal and state agencies and health care systems will respond to distribution kinks by refining their algorithms. Still, there’s cause for worry in these early stages. Officials in more than a dozen states have complained they’re receiving fewer doses than promised, and Pfizer claims the federal government hasn’t issued shipping instructions for millions of doses currently sitting in warehouses. If left unaddressed for too long, the lack of transparency, combined with unbalanced sources of data and methodologies, threaten to cement health care inequalities in communities throughout the U.S. VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"13 acquisitions highlight Big Tech's AI talent grab in 2020 | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2020/12/25/13-acquisitions-highlight-big-techs-ai-talent-grab-in-2020"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages 13 acquisitions highlight Big Tech’s AI talent grab in 2020 Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Amazon acquired robotaxi startup Zoox in 2020 Are you ready to bring more awareness to your brand? Consider becoming a sponsor for The AI Impact Tour. Learn more about the opportunities here. It’s no secret that Big Tech has for years nabbed top technology talent through product acquisitions and acqui-hires. In fact, this is something the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is currently looking into through ongoing antitrust investigations. So it should come as little surprise that Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, and Alphabet (FAAMG) have also engaged in an AI talent arms race that involves dangling millions of dollars in front of some of best technical minds. In 2019, the Big 5 snapped up no fewer than 14 AI-related startups between them, spanning everything from ecommerce and driverless cars to education and customer service. This year was no different, with FAAMG acquiring a similar number of AI-powered businesses from around the world. Here’s a quick recap. Facebook Scape Technologies ( Computer vision & AR. Founded in London, 2016 ) In early 2020, news emerged that Facebook had acquired London-based computer vision startup Scape Technologies in a deal reported to be worth $40 million. Founded in 2016, Scape was using AI to build a real-time 3D map of the world from standard images and videos. While augmented reality was Scape’s initial focus, its ultimate goal was to create a 3D map infrastructure for drones, robotics, logistics, and more. VB Event The AI Impact Tour Connect with the enterprise AI community at VentureBeat’s AI Impact Tour coming to a city near you! Neither Facebook nor Scape has offered details on the acquisition or plans for the future, but Scape confirmed that it was deprecating its API and winding down, with cofounder and CEO Edward Miller assuming the role of research product manager at Facebook. The social networking giant has already confirmed plans to release AR glasses in 2021, and it has made no secret of its ambitions in the mapping realm since acquiring Mapillary this year , so Scape nestles nicely into those plans. Atlas ML ( Machine learning. Founded in London, 2018 ) Though this acquisition was actually finalized in December 2019, it wasn’t until February that Facebook confirmed it had quietly bought London-based deep learning research startup Atlas ML. This seemed like a classic acqui-hire, with both founders — Robert Stojnic and Ross Taylor — now software engineers at Facebook AI. They are continuing to work on Papers With Code , a free and open resource containing newly published machine learning papers, code, and evaluation tables. Kustomer ( Automated CRM. Founded in New York, 2015 ) In November, Facebook confirmed it was buying New York-based customer relationship management (CRM) platform Kustomer in a deal thought to be worth $1 billion. Founded in 2015, Kustomer enables businesses to automate repetitive customer service processes, including identifying inbound messages and routing the query to the correct team. It can also automatically respond to questions. This deal fits squarely into Facebook’s social commerce push as it positions Messenger and WhatsApp to become key communication conduits for businesses. Kustomer also continues to operate as a standalone entity. Above: Kustomer: Automated messaging for CRMs Amazon Zoox ( Autonomous vehicles. Founded in San Francisco, 2014 ) Amazon had a fairly quiet year on the acquisition front. The company’s only known M&A deal came in June, when it announced it was buying autonomous vehicle company Zoox for a reported $1.2 billion. Autonomous vehicles could play a big part in Amazon’s gargantuan delivery infrastructure, but for now Zoox is continuing to work on self-driving vehicles aimed at consumers. In fact, Zook recently unveiled a four-seater robo-taxi. Self-driving vehicles are a major area of focus for many of the big tech companies, with Google’s sister company Waymo leading the field and Apple reportedly ramping up its driverless car plans. Amazon has previously invested in self-driving car startup Aurora, as well as electric truck company Rivian — so bringing Zoox under its wing fits nicely. Apple Xnor.ai ( Edge AI. Founded in Seattle, 2016 ) Apple snapped up a host of AI startups in 2020, beginning with news in January that Apple had bought Xnor.ai , a Seattle-based startup focused on the efficient deployment of AI in edge devices like smartphones and drones. The deal was worth a reported $200 million. It’s easy to see how Xnor.ai could benefit Apple, in terms of improving the way it deploys AI locally across its hardware or powering edge computing in its Core ML 3 toolkit for developers. Voysis ( Voice assistants. Founded in Dublin, 2012 ) Apple also boosted its Siri voice assistant with the acquisition of Voysis , a Dublin-based startup that built natural language, conversational interfaces that could run directly on mobile devices — with a particular focus on supporting “rich natural language interactions between brands and users.” This deal could help make Apple’s voice assistant more useful inside ecommerce apps. Above: Voysis Scout FM ( AI-powered podcasts. Founded in San Francisco, 2017 ) Podcasting has gone from strength to strength in recent years, with the likes of Spotify , Google, and Apple investing heavily in the medium. Apple’s decision to buy San Francisco-based Scout FM made a great deal of sense, as the company specialized in curating podcasts based on the user’s listening history. It’s easy to see how Apple could use this kind of AI to improve podcast suggestions. Camerai ( Computer vision and AR. Founded in Tel Aviv, 2014 ) Camerai, formerly known as Tipit , developed deep learning and computer vision technologies for photography, allowing developers to integrate smart image processing into their apps. For example, it can detect human features and forms, enabling end users to change their hair color or style and adjust their skin tone. Above: Camerai Although news that Apple had acquired Camerai only emerged in August , the deal concluded sometime between 2018 and 2019 and reportedly cost Apple “tens of millions of dollars.” The team has apparently already been merged into Apple’s computer vision arm, and the technology is active in the iPhone camera, making it easier for developers to bring AR features to their apps. Vilynx ( AI video search. Founded in Barcelona, 2011 ) Apple also bought Barcelona-based Vilynx, which had developed AI technology that analyzes videos (including visuals and audio) to “understand” the content. Although Vilynx itself has now been wound down, many members of its team (including its founders) have joined Apple, according to Bloomberg, and Apple has kept its Barcelona office with the intention of making it one of its main AI R&D hubs in Europe. It’s not clear exactly how Apple intends to utilize the talent and technology from this acquisition, but the way Vilynx extracts content metadata could help with voice search for video content through Siri or content categorization on Apple TV. Microsoft Softomotive ( Robotic process automation. Founded in London, 2005 ) Strictly speaking, Softomotive isn’t an AI company , but robotic process automation (RPA) is closely aligned with AI insofar as it helps businesses automate repetitive processes, albeit with structured input and logic. RPA is a $2 billion industry , and Microsoft already offered some RPA tools and technologies as part of its Power Automate platform , which is why it swooped in and bought London-based Softomotive earlier this year for an undisclosed amount. Above: Softomotive screen Microsoft said it would add Softomotive’s desktop automation tools to Power Automate and offer it to enterprise customers with “uniquely affordable pricing.” For now, Softomotive remains available as a standalone product. ADRM Software ( Data modeling. Founded in Nevada, 1999 ) This wasn’t a pure AI acquisition, but ADRM Software had emerged as a leading provider of large-scale, industry-specific data models — and data is what underpins AI. Microsoft said it would combine ADRM’s data models with storage and compute from Azure to support the creation of data lakes. According to ADRM, this integration will “supercharge modern data warehouses, next-level analytics, and AI and ML.” Orions Systems ( Computer vision. Founded in Snoqualmie, Washington, 2012 ) In July, Microsoft announced it was buying Snoqualmie, Washington-based Orions Systems for an undisclosed sum. Founded in 2012, Orions Systems creates AI-infused smart vision systems that analyze video and images to extract data, underpinned by human-in-the-loop assistance to help train the models. Microsoft revealed that it would integrate Orions Systems’ technology into its Dynamics 365 connected store and the Microsoft Power Platform to enable retailers and other organizations to build and customize their own AI models and glean insights from “observational data” in the physical space. Alphabet/Google AppSheet ( No-code app development. Founded in Seattle, 2012 ) Back in January, Google announced it was buying no-code app development platform AppSheet, a platform that helps businesses create apps connected to their core business data. AppSheet also ships with a bunch of AI smarts, including optical character recognition (OCR), predictive modeling, and natural language processing (NLP), to expedite data entry and figure out what kind of app the user wants to build. Google said AppSheet, which is still available as a standalone product, will “complement its strategy to reimagine the application development space” and be integrated into Google Cloud. Above: AppSheet: No-code app building for enterprises AI everywhere There were plenty of other AI acquisitions across the technology landscape this year, with cloud computing platform ServiceNow snapping up several AI startups , cloud communication company RingCentral buying conversational AI startup DeepAffects, and the mighty Intel taking on AI software optimization platform SigOpt. The list goes on. But looking at the Big 5’s activities not only serves as a snapshot of the kinds of AI technologies currently in demand, it also shines a spotlight on the sectors and niches where AI is needed. And it highlights how many of the best emerging tech minds have jumped at the chance to accelerate their product development by becoming part of a larger company — or ditch their products to work on something completely different, with touchpoints spanning billions of people across the consumer and enterprise realms. Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, and Google often make acquisitions with a vision for where a startup’s technology slots into an existing product or service. Other times, it’s clear they wanted the talent to work on what could be a wide gamut of new projects. But it all amounts to the same thing: Big Tech wants big AI talent more than ever. VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Snowflake raises $45M and makes its cloud data warehouse generally available | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2015/06/23/snowflake-raises-45m-and-makes-its-cloud-data-warehouse-generally-available"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Snowflake raises $45M and makes its cloud data warehouse generally available Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Snowflake Computing chief executive Bob Muglia, left. Are you ready to bring more awareness to your brand? Consider becoming a sponsor for The AI Impact Tour. Learn more about the opportunities here. Snowflake Computing , a startup that has built data warehouse software based in the Amazon Web Services cloud, announced a new $45 million funding round and made its software generally available. Snowflake made a big splash when it came out of stealth mode in October with $26 million in funding and a superstar chief executive, Microsoft veteran Bob Muglia. Since then, Microsoft itself introduced the Azure SQL Data Warehouse service , which is roughly comparable to the service Snowflake has developed. Meanwhile Amazon Web Services, where Snowflake’s software currently resides, offers the Redshift cloud data warehouse service. And there are other cloud data warehousing startups, such as BitYota. Snowflake Computing started in 2012 and is based in San Mateo, Calif. To date the startup has raised at least $71 million. Altimeter Capital, Redpoint Ventures, Sutter Hill Ventures, and Wing Ventures participated in the new funding round. VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Kingsoft Cloud's blockchain 'Project-X' attracts attention at E3 | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2018/06/14/kingsoft-clouds-blockchain-project-x-attracts-attention-at-e3"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Sponsored Kingsoft Cloud’s blockchain ‘Project-X’ attracts attention at E3 Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Presented by The Abyss The E3 game show in Los Angeles is one of the largest and best-known game event in the world, attracting companies and gamers across the globe. As China became the largest gaming market in the world , many companies worldwide are interested in learning about solutions offered by Chinese game service providers. At the beginning of June, Kingsoft Cloud, one of the top service providers in China, announced their blockchain game ecosystem, ‘Project-X’, and it quickly became a hot topic in the industry, and the trend continues at E3. Kingsoft Cloud is also a top-level Cloud Computing company in China. It owns data centers in Mainland China, Hong Kong, China, Russia, Southeast Asia, North America, and more. The parent company, Kingsoft, is one of the earliest and the most respected internet and software companies in China. Kingsoft Cloud’s core products are Kingsoft Elastic Compute, Elastic Physical Compute, CDN, Cloud Security, Cloud Analysis, and more. On the service side, they offer cloud-based vertical integration solutions for games, video streaming, financial, and other industries. They are one of the first companies to start implementing Game+Blockchain applications and solutions, and they are the go-to partner for many top-level game companies seeking service solutions. The extensive game service and support experience of Kingsoft Cloud’s game division allows the company to work with various kinds of clients and offer tailored solutions for different types of games such as MMORPG, MOBA, and more. The solutions are easy to use, highly integrated, and cover different aspects, such as development, maintenance, operation, and more. With high-quality total solutions from Kingsoft Cloud, developers can focus more on developing the best games for their players. Over 90 percent of China’s top game companies already partner with Kingsoft Cloud. The company’s game services have about 1,800 clients, with 600 of them being deeply integrated with the Kingsoft Cloud platform, and is servicing about 1,300 online game titles. One of the top Chinese MMORPG, JX3, serviced by Kingsoft Cloud’s solution, was able to support the operation and client update of five million players. With Kingsoft Cloud’s real-world experience, their game security solution was able to offer comprehensive, efficient, customized experience for online game operation, covering everything from servers, network, application, monitoring, and more. Kingsoft Cloud also witnessed the explosive growth experienced by the China video streaming industry and is a major partner of many large Chinese live streaming, VOD platforms, and also supports streaming related services for many major game titles. As a new expansion of Kingsoft Cloud, they started the Kingsoft Blockchain as a Service, or KBaaS , in May. The head of KBaaS, Mr. Zhu Jiang, is an early evangelist of blockchain technology and Hyperledger Fabric project in China, and is currently focusing on how to efficiently integrate blockchain technology and the gaming industry. Zhu believe players can benefit greatly from an ecosystem reinvented by blockchain, ownership of virtual items, and more. To help with their effort intergrating blockchain technology into games, Kingsoft Cloud officially announced ‘Project-X’, a blockchain ecosystem designed for games. It will expand based on current KBaaS infrastructure and services, and focus on blockchain-based application platforms and connect different participants of the game industry, including infrastructure, framework, game development, operation, and publishing to form a complete ecosystem. Utilizing advantages of cloud technology and the groundbreaking Project-X, Kingsoft Cloud continues to advance research and expand their ecosystem — some of the first partners of the program are The Abyss, Cocos, ZigGuart, and others. The goal of Kingsoft Cloud and Project-X is to interconnect the game industry, to greatly improve the cooperation efficiency between companies, and realize the unrestricted flow of value. The KBaaS platform is open for application at this time. Sponsored posts are content produced by a company that is either paying for the post or has a business relationship with VentureBeat, and they’re always clearly marked. Content produced by our editorial team is never influenced by advertisers or sponsors in any way. For more information, contact sales@venturebeat.com. Join the GamesBeat community! Enjoy access to special events, private newsletters and more. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Palantir IPO filing reveals 2019 loss of $580 million | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2020/08/26/palantir-ipo-filing-reveals-2019-loss-of-580-million"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Palantir IPO filing reveals 2019 loss of $580 million Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Palantir Technologies CEO Alex Karp Are you ready to bring more awareness to your brand? Consider becoming a sponsor for The AI Impact Tour. Learn more about the opportunities here. (Reuters) – Palantir Technologies on Tuesday filed to go public through a direct listing, as the data analytics company known for working with the Central Intelligence Agency and other government groups prepares for one of the biggest market debuts of the year. The company, which was founded in 2003 by a group including Donald Trump backer Peter Thiel, unveiled losses that are set to test the appetite of capital market investors who have in recent years shown an increasing wariness of backing loss-making startups, most notably WeWork, which botched its IPO last year. The move to lift the lid on its business for the first time marked a major moment for Palantir, which is widely seen as one of the most reclusive companies in Silicon Valley. The company reported a net loss of about $580 million in 2019, about the same as its loss in 2018. Revenue came in at $742 million last year, compared to $595 million in 2018. VB Event The AI Impact Tour Connect with the enterprise AI community at VentureBeat’s AI Impact Tour coming to a city near you! For the first six months of 2020, the company posted revenue of $481 million, up 49% from the year-earlier period. In June, Reuters reported, citing sources, that the company expects revenue in 2020 to grow to $1 billion. “Notwithstanding losses, its business model continues to leverage off existing clients by offering more value through better data on longer duration contracts,” said Matt Novak, managing partner at All Blue Capital, a Palantir investor. The Thiel-backed firm had confidentially filed to go public in July. As opposed to a traditional initial public offering, a direct listing does not raise fresh funds. In a direct-listing model, existing investors get to sell their shares. Palantir, which derives its name from a magical artifact in The Lord of the Rings , specializes in analyzing large quantities of data. The company is widely seen as a tech firm with a rebellious streak by Silicon Valley and recently decided to move its headquarters to Denver. “Our company was founded in Silicon Valley. But we seem to share fewer and fewer of the technology sector’s values and commitments,” Palantir said in its filing. Thiel, known for his tech investing credentials as a cofounder of PayPal and Facebook’s first major investor, is the chair of Palantir, with fellow cofounder Alexander Karp the current CEO. Thiel was also an early investor in LinkedIn and part of the “ Paypal Mafia” in Silicon Valley, referring to a group of highly successful entrepreneurs who went on to start and invest in prominent tech startups. Morgan Stanley, Credit Suisse, and Goldman Sachs are among the financial advisers for Palantir’s listing. (Reporting by Anirban Sen in Bengaluru and Joshua Franklin in New York, additional reporting by Shariq Khan and Niket Nishant. Editing by Shounak Dasgupta.) VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"GitHub: Python and TypeScript gain popularity among programming languages | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2020/12/02/github-python-and-typescript-gain-popularity-among-programming-languages"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages GitHub: Python and TypeScript gain popularity among programming languages Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Are you ready to bring more awareness to your brand? Consider becoming a sponsor for The AI Impact Tour. Learn more about the opportunities here. GitHub released its annual Octoverse report today, revealing trends in one of the largest developer communities on the planet, including a spike in open source project activity following the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. GitHub is now used by 56 million developers worldwide, up from 44 million in 2019 and 31 million in 2018. Above: GitHub programming languages by popularity JavaScript continues to be the most popular programming language on GitHub, while Python is now the second most popular, followed by Java and the fast-growing TypeScript community. Maintained by GitHub owner Microsoft, TypeScript has climbed from seventh place in 2018 and 2019 to fourth overall this year. PHP and Ruby, languages that ranked among the most popular five years ago, continued to decline in popularity. Among other highlights: Nigeria continues to rank highest among contributions to open source projects, followed by Hong Kong, Saudi Arabia, and Bangladesh. The United States’ contribution to projects and number of active users remains higher than for any other region of the world, but U.S. contributions to projects dropped to 22.7% this year. The 2019 Octoverse report found that 80% of repository contributions come from outside the United States. Above: Active users by region Open source project creation jumped 40% year over year. Analysis showed that open source project contributions peak on holidays and weekends, while enterprise developers are most likely to push code and project changes on weekdays. COVID-19 led to a noticeable spike in contributions to open source projects. Above: Year-over-year change in rate of open source project creation, seven-day rolling average The report also attempted to characterize distinctions in the way large communities operate on GitHub, including contributors to the open source TensorFlow machine learning framework. VB Event The AI Impact Tour Connect with the enterprise AI community at VentureBeat’s AI Impact Tour coming to a city near you! “There is a clear pattern of typical behavior in the TensorFlow community: Most new members comment on issues (50% to 75%), some create issues (25% to 30%), and a few review pull requests (~5%),” the report reads. “In other communities, new members push code more often than tenured ones, but in TensorFlow, it’s almost nonexistent, and even veterans don’t push often. Here, the primary mode of interaction is issues.” The number of people who identify as developers is down from 60% in 2016 to 54% in 2020. In addition to developers, analysis found that people who identify as data analysts, scientists, or managers participated in projects like TensorFlow. Education is also a growing part of the GitHub community, following the launch of GitHub Classroom, and accounts for the second-largest group of users on GitHub behind developers. GitHub was founded in 2008. The Octoverse report was established in 2014, and the latest edition was released this week ahead of the GitHub Universe annual conference. VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Who gets the credit when AI makes art? | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2018/01/30/who-gets-the-credit-when-ai-makes-art"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Guest Who gets the credit when AI makes art? Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Are you ready to bring more awareness to your brand? Consider becoming a sponsor for The AI Impact Tour. Learn more about the opportunities here. AI is without a doubt efficient. It is fast, precise, and unencumbered by the emotions that cloud human intelligence. Repetitive tasks? An algorithm’s got it covered. Processing data? A computer’s right as Rain Man. But what if the goal is to create art ? Because it is a product of science and technology, we tend to associate AI with fields outside the creative world where logic instead of feelings reign supreme. It’s an easy assumption to make because machines do lack emotional intelligence and intuition (for now). That said, they are also more than capable of producing provocative creative work when coded to do so. The results of such efforts have been extraordinary. Machines can write poetry, paint, tell jokes, create recipes, write pop songs, and report news — among other tasks typically dominated by creatives. And while it is unlikely that the role of “artist” will be automated soon, AI’s ability to create art brings up philosophical questions about art itself — namely, the role of the artist and/or coder when evaluating its significance. AI art: How it compares AI artworks have been, at times, indistinguishable from human artworks by even the most seasoned of critics. When a team at the Art and Artificial Intelligence Lab at Rutgers University created algorithms that could generate art based on a knowledge of art history, the results were astonishing. One of their neural networks painted in a new AI-generated style that 53 percent of viewers at Art Basel believed to be human-made. Of work by another neural network, which mimicked existing painting styles, a smaller 35 percent attributed the work to people. VB Event The AI Impact Tour Connect with the enterprise AI community at VentureBeat’s AI Impact Tour coming to a city near you! Most curiously, when asked whether the artwork was inspiring or mood-elevating, AI-produced work scored slightly higher than the human artwork in all styles. When it comes to writing, there are some things machines do well and other things they don’t. Neural networks and predictive algorithms are far from perfect. When fed all 7 Harry Potter novels, an AI-generated chapter was funnier than it was profound, complete with phrases like “Ron was going to be spiders. He just was.” Researchers used the same technology to create a short film after feeding the machine numerous sci-fi scripts. That the resulting film, Sunspring , is worth watching thanks mostly to the actors. With music and poetry, however, tech gets a bit closer. The first AI pop song , written in the style of the Beatles, might not rank when compared to the iconic band’s hits, but captures their sound in an impressive (albeit eerie) way nonetheless. And an algorithm can — and has — produced convincing sonnets and verses given the interpretive, brief, and abstract nature of poetry. Robot reporters may be the most successful take AI has had on an artistic medium yet. The internet is already full of them and it’s difficult to tell what the source may be, as this New York Times quiz makes clear. Reporting facts and events or spewing rhymes and rhythms, it seems, is right up the robotic alley; analysis, dialogue, and plot, less so. What AI can and can’t do Why is AI successful when painting, but not movie-making? Why are its poems convincing, but not its scripts? A Slate analysis of AI-sonnet generation sums up what AI’s successes and pitfalls in the art world have shown: “the sonnets….picked out as machine-made didn’t seem to be about anything;” AI can write poetry but it can’t yet tell coherent stories. Does art need to tell a story, though? While essential for most novels, other artistic mediums rely on snapshots or implications to elicit an emotional response or help viewers see the world a different way. So while storytelling may be optional, I’d argue that there are three necessities: The first is technical ability, the second is creativity, and the third is intention. AI can mimic the first two remarkably well. It can reproduce a painting style, for example, or learn the rhyme structure for a poem. All it needs is information and direction. Creativity is a bit more elusive. Defined by the use of imagination and originality, it would be easy to rule out this trait in AI. But originality can be coded; in fact, machines are unburdened by the limits of logic that keep people from creative breakthroughs. IBM’s Chef Watson , for example, is known for pairing unusual ingredients for curious but delicious culinary delights. An AI stylist matches items you would never think to pair in your own wardrobe. The same goes for color choice, word choice, and other artistic decisions that transcend the ordinary to make us, humans, respond to them. That leaves us with intent — what inspired the artistic work to begin with and what it’s meant to convey, if anything. An artificial intelligence is separate from the intelligence of its creator, who coded the machine to make its own decisions based on information, and even learn new things and evolve. If an AI paints an abstraction, the specific work’s intent can’t be really credited to the coder, but it can’t much be credited to the machine either. The art may have appeal, but without discernible meaning, it’s harder to appreciate. The role of the artist People have argued in favor of the death of the author or artist since the 1960s at least. But where the literary critic Roland Barthes simply opposed incorporating intentions and biographical context when evaluating work, AI art implies a more literal death because there is no intent or biographical context. Many great works of art hold meaning and value, after all, because of the story and feeling behind the work. This includes Van Gogh’s painting “Starry Night,” the view from the window of an asylum, as well as Picasso’s abstract depiction of war-torn Guernica City. It would be easy to call something that mimicked that depth cheating, or a farce. When confronted with AI-generated art, then, we have several choices. We can judge the AI work alongside a human’s based on how it makes us feel, disregarding completely the circumstances of its creation. (It’s uncomfortable to imagine that a computer could make us feel something more than a real person can, but it’s the 21st century — we’re going to have to get used to it.) We can consider the artist — in the case of AI, the machine vis-à-vis that machine’s creator. Coders, as artists, have their own points of view and intentions, even if they are once or twice removed from the work produced. Finally, and this is something we should address with all forms of AI, we can consider the why. It’s interesting for experimentation purposes to program artmaking, but what’s the end goal? To automate creative jobs along with the rest? To honor coders with Oscars, Pulitzers, and Grammys while the rest of us sit back and consume (if we can still afford to)? It’s a knotty subject that all of us must keep in mind as we move cautiously but boldly forward with our lives, careers, entertainment, and consumption. For now, a machine that’s been taught art history in order to create its own work may not seem so different than a student of art history that has done the same. That both are aided by people and machines is proof of our collaborative tendencies. What AI can do, then, is a rational (if not natural) extension of human creativity and ability — and it tells us as much about today’s world as it asks about tomorrow’s. Bennat Berger is the cofounder and principal of Novel Property Ventures in New York City. VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Automation Anywhere raises $290 million at a $6.8 billion valuation | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2019/11/21/rpa-startup-automation-anywhere-raises-290-million-at-a-6-8-billion-valuation"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Automation Anywhere raises $290 million at a $6.8 billion valuation Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Are you ready to bring more awareness to your brand? Consider becoming a sponsor for The AI Impact Tour. Learn more about the opportunities here. Robotic process automation (RPA), or bots that can be programmed to perform tedious and mundane tasks, is undergoing a period of explosive growth. Deloitte reports that 53% of companies have begun deploying it and that 78% of adopters will invest more in RPA in the next three years. In fact, assuming the current trend continues, it’s anticipated that RPA will achieve “near universal adoption” within five years. One of the incumbents in the space is Automation Anywhere, which in the roughly 16 years since its founding has attracted over 3,500 customers in more than 90 countries, among them LinkedIn, MasterCard, Comcast, Hitachi, Stanley Black & Decker, IBM, Cisco, Symantic, Juniper Networks, Tesco, Unilever, Volkswagen, Whirlpool, Quest Diagnostics, Deloitte, Boston Scientific, Dell EMC, Accenture, Cognizent, Siemens, PricewaterhouseCoopers, and the World Bank. To support the influx of business, it has expanded its workforce to more than 1,750 employees in 20 global locations, including Boston, Dallas, New York, Baroda, Mumbai, London, Melbourne, and Japan. And now it’s laying the runway for future growth. Automation Anywhere today announced that it has raised $290 million in series B funding at a post-money valuation of $6.8 billion. Salesforce Ventures led the round, with additional contributions from existing investors, including SoftBank Investment Advisers and Goldman Sachs. This brings Automation Anywhere’s total raised to date to $840 million a year after the firm secured $550 million from SoftBank Investment Advisers, General Atlantic, Goldman Sachs, NEA, World Innovation Lab, and Workday Ventures. CEO and cofounder Mihir Shukla said the fresh funds will help Automation Anywhere realize its vision of empowering customers to automate end-to-end workflows and advance its focus on improving human-to-bot collaboration. “Never before has there been such a transformative shift in the way we work, with artificially intelligent software bots changing how people, processes, and technology interact for productivity gains,” he added. “This new funding reinforces the promise of the RPA category and empowers our customers to achieve greater business agility and increased efficiencies by automating end-to-end business processes — bridging the gap between the front and back office.” VB Event The AI Impact Tour Connect with the enterprise AI community at VentureBeat’s AI Impact Tour coming to a city near you! Automation Anywhere’s platform employs software robots that make processes self-running in a range of industries, including (but not limited to) financial services, healthcare, insurance, life sciences, manufacturing, and telecommunications. Using a combination of traditional RPA and cognitive elements like unstructured data processing and natural language understanding, its machine learning-powered systems can crunch through tasks that normally take hundreds of thousands of employees. The company’s spotlight solutions are IQ Bot, which learns by observing human behavior, and the Automation Anywhere Bot Store, a marketplace of prebuilt bots for common tasks. The latter offers more than 500 ready-to-download bots configured for difference tasks and software environments, while the former taps AI and machine learning to self-improve over time. IQ Bot further integrates with other automation solutions, like IBM Watson, conducting phonetic algorithm and fuzzy string matching against enterprise apps to validate and enrich data. As for Automation Anywhere’s mobile app for Android and iOS, it affords control over bot activity for both attended and unattended RPA and customizable alerts that can be used to track activity. Operations managers and practitioners can monitor bot performance from a comprehensive dashboard and connect with RPA enthusiasts in a members-only forum or pause and start activity with the push of a button. Both custom-tailored and preconfigured bots can automate specific tasks and workflows or segments of defined job roles, leading to a claimed 70% speedup in business processes and 50% lower deployment costs. Automation Anywhere says that most of its customers automate 70% of repetitive tasks within four weeks. Automation Anywhere competes with heavyweights in a market that’s anticipated to be worth $3.97 billion by 2025, according to Grand View Research. In April, UiPath nabbed $568 million at a $7 billion valuation for its suite of AI-imbued process automation tools, while rival Kryon in February secured $40 million. Elsewhere, Softmotive raised a $25 million tranche from a host of investors, shortly ahead of Automation Hero’s $14.5 million raise in March. But investors like Salesforce Service Cloud executive vice president and general manager Bill Patterson believe Automation Anywhere has the momentum (its clients have deployed 1.6 million bots to date) to stand out from the crowd. “Automation Anywhere makes it easier for Salesforce customers to automate repetitive, manual tasks and focus on what matters most — the customer,” said Patterson. “We’re excited to extend our partnership with Automation Anywhere to help more customers automate their end-to-end business processes and accelerate their digital transformation journeys.” VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"InReach Ventures, which uses AI to find the next big European startups, closes $60 million fund | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2019/02/11/inreach-ventures-which-uses-ai-to-find-the-next-big-european-startups-closes-60-million-fund"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Feature InReach Ventures, which uses AI to find the next big European startups, closes $60 million fund Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn InReach Ventures Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. A quick scan of the venture capital (VC) landscape reveals that many funds differentiate by their area of focus. Some are focused on one specific region , for example, while others are geared toward a particular kind of technology or a stage-specific company. London-based InReach Ventures , however, pitches itself as the “AI-powered VC firm,” and today it announced the close of its first official fund at €53 million ($60 million). Needle in a haystack Once most VC firms identify an investment prospect, they rely on meticulous research to evaluate the risks involved. These vary depending on what stage a company is at, with seed or series A-stage ventures generally more risky than profit-making companies that are already mulling an exit. But one challenge is orders of magnitude greater than performing due diligence, and this is finding companies worth getting excited about in the first place. Startups seeking funding often gravitate toward a key technology hub, be that Silicon Valley, New York, or London. And these pockets are where VCs often look when seeking out their next investment. Finding entrepreneurial upstarts elsewhere isn’t as easy, particularly in regions such as Europe, where VCs have to spend considerable time traveling to outposts and meeting thousands of startups each year. And what about startups that aren’t actively seeking investment but would consider funding if it fell into their laps? VB Event The AI Impact Tour Connect with the enterprise AI community at VentureBeat’s AI Impact Tour coming to a city near you! These are challenges InReach Ventures is hoping to solve with big data, analytics, and artificial intelligence (AI) as it sets out to find the next big thing in Europe. The story so far InReach Ventures was founded in 2015 by former Balderton Capital partner Roberto Bonanzinga, alongside ex-Yammer and Microsoft engineer Ben Smith and former Balderton general counsel John Mesrie. The VC firm has spent around €3 million ($3.5 million) developing a proprietary search platform, referred to internally as DIG, that tracks all manner of data points to discover and evaluate early-stage startups. This may include trawling LinkedIn or Facebook profiles for changes and monitoring company recruitment pages, website traffic, and much more. In many regards, InReach looks a lot like its potential portfolio companies — data is its currency, more than half of its employees are software engineers, and it has its very own chief technology officer in Smith, who was the primary developer behind the DIG platform. “From day zero, the firm was set up with a unique mind-set and a strong product and technology DNA,” Bonanzinga told VentureBeat. “This is the only venture firm in which there are more software engineers than investors.” Above: Roberto Bonanzinga (middle) flanked by cofounders John Mesrie (left) and Ben Smith (right) According to Bonanzinga, DIG constitutes three layers, spanning data, intelligence, and workflow. “The data layer is a mix of massive data aggregation, with deep data enhancement, including the generation of a large set of original data,” he said. “The intelligence layer makes sense of these millions of data points through an ensemble of machine learning algorithms, ranging in complexity from simple rules to advanced networks. Given this data-driven approach and the significant deal-flow this generates, we invest heavily in building a workflow product that allows us to efficiently process thousands of companies each month.” To be more precise, Bonanzinga said the company analyzes around 2,500 startups each month, more than many other traditional VC firms would get through in a year. But he stresses that the platform isn’t automating decision-making for its investments; instead, it’s interested in making the VC process more efficient, scalable, and informed. InReach Ventures already has 11 startups in its portfolio, spanning Sweden, Hungary, Italy, Spain, Finland, Germany, the U.K., and Lithuania. In fact, Lithuania is home to InReach Ventures’ very first exit — ecommerce juggernaut Shopify snapped up Oberlo back in 2017 for a reported $15 million. The myriad locations of InReach Ventures’ portfolio companies also hints at one of the platform’s biggest selling points: It helps find startups off the beaten track. But that only conveys part of the picture. The DIG platform also unearths promising startups that aren’t actively seeking money. Moreover, adopting a data-driven approach saves investors from having to constantly travel around Europe just to meet a handful of startups at a time. “Our technology platform allows us to take a geographically agnostic approach so that we can uncover the most promising startups from anywhere in Europe,” Bonanzinga continued. “More importantly, however, we are turning the traditional VC model on its head by taking a proactive, data-driven software approach to early-stage investment across Europe. Proactivity is the key. The traditional VCs in the main hubs are still passively waiting for entrepreneurs to go to them. We hunt for the most promising startups, often targeting them even before they have started any fundraising process.” It’s worth noting here that InReach Ventures’ investments up until now have not come from a traditional “fund” in the legal sense of the word — instead, the firm created what it called a “non-institutional investment structure” to back its startups. That all changes with the closure of this new fund, however. Moneyball InReach Ventures is one of a growing number of VC firms that crunch data as part of their investment strategy. Sweden’s EQT Ventures has developed a machine learning system called Motherbrain to find fledgling startups that might otherwise fly under the radar. But both EQT and InReach were preceded by San Francisco’s SignalFire , which was founded in 2013 by Chris Farmer, a former VC at Bessemer Venture Partners and General Catalyst Partners. SignalFire has been tracking billions of data points across millions of startups globally for six years. “We like SignalFire and its founder Chris a lot, and we have a common passion for data and the use of technology,” Bonanzinga said. “SignalFire’s approach is perfectly designed for the transparent Silicon Valley ecosystem, which is based on a highly concentrated social graph of entrepreneurs, investors, and talent. Europe’s geographic fragmentation and lack of transparency requires a different approach that is focused on discovery, albeit still powered by data and technology.” This is the strongest clue we have that InReach Ventures has no intentions of expanding its scope beyond Europe. “We believe in focus,” added Bonanzinga. The Moneyball investment strategy is gaining steam elsewhere in the technology sphere. A few months back, news emerged that European technology conference Web Summit is planning a $50 million VC fund to leverage startup data from its annual mega event. The conference has grown from a modest 400 attendees in 2011 when it was still based in Dublin to more than 60,000 in 2018, with Lisbon now serving as its home. Data science has actually played a big part in Web Summit’s evolution , so it’s notable that it is now creating a sizable investment fund off the back of its gargantuan arsenal of data. While there is a marked trend here, something we will likely see even more of across the investment spectrum, Bonanzinga isn’t convinced data solutions will always be the real deal. “I predict a new hype — the rush of needing to check the box of ‘We have a data strategy’,” he said. “We will have many firms with 30-plus investment professionals and a data engineer in a corner. The real question is how many firms are willing to transform their professional service DNA into a product DNA? As always, this is more of a people/organisational question, rather than a question simply of the use of technology.” VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Apple cuts autonomous car team by 200, shifting some to machine learning projects | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2019/01/24/apple-cuts-autonomous-car-team-by-200-shifting-some-to-machine-learning-projects"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Apple cuts autonomous car team by 200, shifting some to machine learning projects Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn An imagined Apple Car. This design by Aristomenis Tsirbas won Freelancer's Apple Car Concept contest in 2015. Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. Apple’s autonomous car skunkworks endeavor, Project Titan , has spent years as one of the company’s most volatile divisions, going through almost as many leadership and employee changes as the company’s Siri team. Now Titan is dealing with another staffing shakeup: Apple confirmed today that 200 employees were dismissed from the project, with some moving to “other initiatives” within the company, including machine learning. The company’s confirmation came after CNBC sources disclosed the dismissals, which were explained as internally expected, following Apple’s August 2018 hiring of former Tesla engineering VP Doug Field to lead Project Titan, along with long-time Apple “special projects” SVP Bob Mansfield. Apple has previously staffed Titan up and down, including a major round of layoffs in 2016, but reportedly maintains both a surprisingly large team and secretive database of automotive technologies. While Apple has offered precious little explanation for the multi-year endeavor, leaks have suggested that the company originally planned to release a revolutionary self-driving car but subsequently refocused the project on narrower systems and components for autonomous vehicles. Apple has only publicly acknowledged the latter aspect of its plans and maintained the same level of disclosure in a statement confirming the dismissals today: We have an incredibly talented team working on autonomous systems and associated technologies at Apple. As the team focuses their work on several key areas for 2019, some groups are being moved to projects in other parts of the company, where they will support machine learning and other initiatives, across all of Apple. We continue to believe there is a huge opportunity with autonomous systems, that Apple has unique capabilities to contribute, and that this is the most ambitious machine learning project ever. Machine learning has become a more prominent topic at Apple over the past several years, as the company developed and debuted the Core ML machine learning framework for iOS and launched a public machine learning journal to share some of its findings. Though most of its public-facing work in the space involves Siri, text, photo, or facial recognition technologies, Project Titan could make a much bigger splash — assuming its innovations ever make it into an actual Apple product. VB Event The AI Impact Tour Connect with the enterprise AI community at VentureBeat’s AI Impact Tour coming to a city near you! Thus far, the company has been testing a growing fleet of autonomous vehicles using its technologies, as well as building employee shuttles with self-driving capabilities. Extensive real-world testing is an obvious prerequisite for releasing any vehicular technology, but a particular challenge for Apple, which has a legendary obsession with secrecy ahead of new product launches. VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"ProBeat: Apple's Drive.ai acquisition proves nothing new | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2019/06/28/probeat-apples-drive-ai-acquisition-proves-nothing-new"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Opinion ProBeat: Apple’s Drive.ai acquisition proves nothing new Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Drive.ai is a ride-hailing service that uses self-driving vehicles. Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. This week was another whirlwind in AI news. But one story particularly stood out to me: the collapse of self-driving car startup Drive.ai. In the span of just a few hours, we learned Drive.ai will be ceasing all operations, laying off 90 employees … and was acquired by Apple. This is big news, no doubt. But the calls that this is “proof” Apple has a self-driving car project are misguided. Let’s go over what we know. In February, The Information shared that Drive.ai had been looking for a buyer. Earlier this month, The Information and Bloomberg both reported that Apple was preparing to buy Drive.ai. This week, Apple confirmed to Axios that it had bought Drive.ai, its autonomous cars, and other assets, and hired dozens of its engineers. Some have argued that this is a reversal from Apple’s last confirmed move regarding its autonomous car skunkworks endeavor, Project Titan. In January, Apple cut its Titan team by 200 employees. Taken in isolation with the Drive.ai acquisition, it might seem like Apple is reversing course. Business as usual Not at all. Apple has staffed Titan up and down for years. The cut earlier this year was a cut, not a shuttering of the project. Keep in mind Project Titan was reportedly first approved by Apple CEO Tim Cook more than five years ago. In June 2017, Cook described self-driving cars as “the mother of all AI projects.” Furthermore, Apple reportedly maintains thousands of employees ( around 5,000 in 2018 ) working on its secretive database of automotive technologies. VB Event The AI Impact Tour Connect with the enterprise AI community at VentureBeat’s AI Impact Tour coming to a city near you! But you don’t have to accept reports and rumors to believe that Apple is taking autonomous cars seriously. Just read Apple’s statement from earlier this year: We have an incredibly talented team working on autonomous systems and associated technologies at Apple. As the team focuses their work on several key areas for 2019, some groups are being moved to projects in other parts of the company, where they will support machine learning and other initiatives, across all of Apple. We continue to believe there is a huge opportunity with autonomous systems, that Apple has unique capabilities to contribute, and that this is the most ambitious machine learning project ever. Building an autonomous vehicle is “the most ambitious machine learning project ever.” This is why Project Titan still exists. Even if Apple never produces a self-driving car, the company still believes, in 2019, that the project is worth the effort because of the machine learning challenge. Apple’s acquisition doesn’t signal anything new. Drive.ai was just available at a bargain price, and Apple took advantage. ProBeat is a column in which Emil rants about whatever crosses him that week. VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Apple researchers train AI drivers to merge lanes in a simulated environment | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2020/01/29/apple-researchers-train-ai-drivers-to-merge-lanes-in-a-simulated-environment"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Apple researchers train AI drivers to merge lanes in a simulated environment Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Are you ready to bring more awareness to your brand? Consider becoming a sponsor for The AI Impact Tour. Learn more about the opportunities here. Apple has yet to openly discuss its self-driving vehicle research, but it’s a poorly kept industry secret. Around 5,000 employees — including a portion of those previously employed by Drive.ai , an autonomous car startup Apple acquired last year — are said to be involved with code-name Project Titan , a joint effort with Volkswagen to develop autonomous cars and shuttle vans. And a preprint paper published on Arxiv.org this week appears to pull back the curtains further: In it, Apple research scientist Yichuan Charlie Tang and team detail an AI approach that creates progressively more diverse environments for driving scenarios involving merging vehicles. “We demonstrate [our technique] in a challenging multi-agent simulation of merging traffic, where agents must interact and negotiate with others in order to successfully merge on or off the road,” wrote Tang and coauthors. “While the environment starts off simple, we increase its complexity by iteratively adding an increasingly diverse set of agents to the agent ‘zoo’ as training progresses. Qualitatively, we find that through self-play, our policies automatically learn interesting behaviors such as defensive driving, overtaking, yielding, and the use of signal lights to communicate intentions to other agents.” As the researchers explain, in the domain of autonomous driving, merging behaviors are considered complex because they require accurately predicting intentions and reacting accordingly. Traditional solutions make assumptions and rely on hand-coded behaviors, but these lead to constrained and brittle policies that poorly handle edge cases like vehicles simultaneously trying to merge to the same lane. In contrast to rules-based systems, reinforcement learning — an AI training technique that employs rewards to drive software policies toward goals — directly learns policies through repeated interactions with an environment. VB Event The AI Impact Tour Connect with the enterprise AI community at VentureBeat’s AI Impact Tour coming to a city near you! In the study in question, Tang and team implemented a self-play training scheme within a two-dimensional simulation of traffic on real road geometry annotated by alignment with satellite imagery. They populated this virtual world with agents capable of lane-following and lane changes that learned over time when to slow down, when to accelerate, when to pick the gap to merge into, the latent goals and beliefs of the other agents, and how to communicate their intentions via turn signals or observable behaviors. Each simulation began with one AI-controlled agent surrounded by rules-based agents that performed lanekeeping from a lane using adaptive cruise control (i.e., slowing down and speeding up accordingly with respect to the vehicle in front). Gradually, AI agents replaced the rules-based agents, the former of which were penalized by going out of bounds, drifting out of the lane center, or colliding with other agents. (They were rewarded for successfully completing a merge and traveling any speed up to 15 meters per second, or roughly 33.6 miles per hour.) For each simulation episode, 32 of which were run in parallel on an Nvidia Titan X graphics card, roughly 10 agents were launched with their own random destinations; episodes ended after 1,000 timesteps, after collisions occured, or after the destinations were reached. It was a three-stage process: In the 1st stage, the AI policy was trained in the sole presence of rule-based agents. In stage 2, self-play was trained in the presence of 30% IDM agents, 30% were RL agents from stage 1, and the other 40% are controlled by the current learning policy. Stage 3 added in agents from stage 2. The researchers focused specifically on zipper merges (also known as double merges), which are considered difficult because left lane drivers typically intend to merge right while right lane drivers need to merge left. Signals and subtle cues are used to negotiate who goes first and which gap is filled, and the planning must be done in a short amount of time and within a short distance. The researchers observed that over the course of 10 million environment steps corresponding to 278 hours of real-time experience, AI agents tended to exploit the behavior of rules-based agents for their own personal gain. For example, rules-based agents with a tendency to brake suddenly found themselves at the mercy of “ultra-aggressive” AI agents that never yielded. That said, rules-based agents were often to blame in collisions involving them and AI agents. To evaluate their approach, the researchers conducted over 250 random trials without adding exploration noise. Compared with the rules-based agents, which had a 63% success rate, they report that highly trained AI agents achieved 98% success against rules-based and other AI agents. The algorithm as it stands isn’t perfect — AI agents sometimes cause collisions when trying to brake and steer toward the right side when emergency braking — but Tang and colleagues say it opens the door to future work that might drive the collision rate down to zero. VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Luminar will supply lidar for Volvo's driverless vehicle platform | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2020/05/06/luminar-will-supply-lidar-for-volvos-driverless-vehicle-platform"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Luminar will supply lidar for Volvo’s driverless vehicle platform Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. Luminar Technologies today announced a partnership with Volvo that will see the former’s lidar sensors integrated into the roof of the automaker’s Scalable Product Architecture 2 (SPA2) vehicle platform, which is expected to launch in 2022. The two companies also plan to explore the sensors’ role in improving future advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS), with the potential for equipping select future Volvo cars with lidar sensors as standard. Volvo — which says it’s also reserving the right to increase its minority stake in Luminar — confirmed the company as a public partner and a “significant” investor two years ago, but the carmaker’s commitment promises to kick off the largest commercial launch of Luminar’s tech to date. That’s good news not only for Luminar but for future Volvo customers, potentially, who stand to reap the benefits of the sophisticated Iris lidar system. Luminar’s Iris is a full-stack platform and ADAS add-on developed by a team of engineers in Palo Alto, California and Orlando, Florida, led by VP of software Christoph Schroeder, the former head of R&D from Mercedes-Benz’s North America division. Iris bundles hardware and software into a single package, and it comes in two flavors: a more technologically sophisticated version that powers hands-free “freeway autonomy,” and a cheaper ADAS version that provides autonomous functions like emergency braking and steering. Volvo says that Iris — in tandem with cameras, radars, and backup systems for steering, braking, and power — will underpin the SPA2’s Highway Pilot feature, which is designed to enable fully autonomous highway driving in specific locations and conditions. (Volvo originally planned to launch Highway Pilot in 2021 with its XC90 SUVs , but production is now expected to begin in 2022.) Volvo SVP of research and development Henrik Green previously said that Highway Pilot will be an optional over-the-air upgrade for car owners and cost around “four figures.” VB Event The AI Impact Tour Connect with the enterprise AI community at VentureBeat’s AI Impact Tour coming to a city near you! “Soon, your Volvo will be able to drive autonomously on highways when the car determines it is safe to do so,” said Green in a statement. “At that point, your Volvo takes responsibility for the driving and you can relax, take your eyes off the road and your hands off the wheel. Over time, updates over the air will expand the areas in which the car can drive itself. For us, a safe introduction of autonomy is a gradual introduction.” Compared with rivals like Alphabet’s Waymo, Volvo’s path toward fully driverless cars has been riddled with setbacks and detours. The Sweden-based automaker, which sells ADAS solutions to Daimler, Ford, and Honda, among others, pushed back plans to provide families in Sweden, U.K., and China access to driverless vehicles as a part of a pilot program, and it recently said it would split its autonomous driving development arm Zenuity into two separate entities in a bid to accelerate development of its Pilot Assist self-driving system. As for Luminar, the strengthened collaboration with Volvo comes after the debut of Hydra , a subscription-based lidar platform for highway scenarios. During Hydra’s unveiling at the 2020 Consumer Electronics Show, Luminar claimed it has a range of up to 500 meters and uses only 30 watts of power. Luminar previously worked with Autonomous Intelligent Driving (AID), Audi’s driverless technology spinoff and a supplier for Volkswagen Group brands like VW and Porsche, to outfit prototypical vehicles with object-detecting lidar sensors. The two firms have also tested fleets with forward vision systems powered by Luminar’s sensors. Beyond Audi and Volvo, Luminar says it’s actively working with 40 automotive partners and 12 of the world’s 15 largest auto OEMs, and that it now has 80 patents and a team of over 350 across Palo Alto, Orlando, and Colorado Springs. Contracts for its Iris system alone are worth more than $1.5 billion combined, claims Luminar. The lidar market is projected to be worth $1.8 billion in just five years, and it’s a crowded field, to say the least. Innoviz raised $38 million in June, following financing tranches by Oryx and TetraVue. Lidar startup Baraja last January raised $32 million for its innovative prism-like optics design, and Alphabet subsidiary Waymo said last year that it would begin selling its proprietary near-range, 360-degree lidar design — Laser Bear Honeycomb — to “dozens” of customers. That’s not to mention far-infrared pioneer AdaSky , ground-penetrating radar startup WaveSense , and velocity-measuring sensor company Aeva , all three of which seek to develop technologies that complement traditional vision-based autonomous car perception systems. VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Lidar is dull on iPads, but could go beyond AR on the iPhone 12 Pro | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2020/09/04/lidar-is-dull-on-ipads-but-could-go-beyond-ar-on-the-iphone-12-pro"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Lidar is dull on iPads, but could go beyond AR on the iPhone 12 Pro Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn The 2020 iPad Pro camera array, which features a built-in lidar sensor. Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. While many of Apple’s investments in innovative technologies pay off, some just don’t: Think back to the “ tremendous amount ” of money and engineering time it spent on force-sensitive screens , which are now in the process of disappearing from Apple Watches and iPhones, or its work on Siri , which still feels like it’s in beta nine years after it was first integrated into iOS. In some cases, Apple’s backing is enough to take a new technology into the mainstream; in others, Apple gets a feature into a lot of devices only for the innovation to go nowhere. Lidar has the potential to be Apple’s next “here today, gone tomorrow” technology. The laser-based depth scanner was the marquee addition to the 2020 iPad Pro that debuted this March, and has been rumored for nearly two years as a 2020 iPhone feature. Recently leaked rear glass panes for the iPhone 12 Pro and Max suggest that lidar scanners will appear in both phones, though they’re unlikely to be in the non-Pro versions of the iPhone 12. Moreover, they may be the only major changes to the new iPhones’ rear camera arrays this year. If you don’t fully understand lidar, you’re not alone. Think of it as an extra camera that rapidly captures a room’s depth data rather than creating traditional photos or videos. To users, visualizations of lidar look like black-and-white point clouds focused on the edges of objects, but when devices gather lidar data, they know relative depth locations for the individual points and can use that depth information to improve augmented reality, traditional photography, and various computer vision tasks. Unlike a flat photo, a depth scan offers a finely detailed differentiation of what’s close, mid range, and far away. Six months after lidar arrived in the iPad Pro, the hardware’s potential hasn’t been matched by Apple software. Rather than releasing a new user-facing app to show off the feature or conspicuously augmenting the iPad’s popular Camera app with depth-sensing tricks, Apple pitched lidar to developers as a way to instantly improve their existing AR software — often without the need for extra coding. Room-scanning and depth features previously implemented in apps would just work faster and more accurately than before. As just one example, AR content composited on real-world camera video could automatically hide partially behind depth-sensed objects, a feature known as occlusion. In short, adding lidar to the iPad Pro made a narrow category of apps a little better on a narrow slice of Apple devices. From a user’s perspective, the best Apple-provided examples of the technology’s potential were hidden in the Apple Store app, which can display 3D models of certain devices (Mac Pro, yes; iMac, no) in AR, and iPadOS’ obscure “Measure” app , which previously did a mediocre job of guesstimating real-world object lengths, but did a better job after adding lidar. It’s worth underscoring that those aren’t objectively good examples, and no one in their right mind — except an AR developer — would buy a device solely to gain such marginal AR performance improvements. Whether lidar will make a bigger impact on iPhones remains to be seen. If it’s truly a Pro-exclusive feature this year, not only will fewer people have access to it, but developers will have less incentive to develop lidar-dependent features. Even if Apple sells tens of millions of iPhone 12 Pro devices, they’ll almost certainly follow the pattern of the iPhone 11, which reportedly outsold its more expensive Pro brethren across the world. Consequently, lidar would be a comparatively niche feature, rather than a baseline expectation for all iPhone 12 series users. Above: Portrait Mode lets you adjust background blur (bokeh) from f/1.4 to f/16 after taking a photo. That said, if Apple uses the lidar hardware properly in the iPhones, it could become a bigger deal and differentiator going forward. Industry scuttlebutt suggests that Apple will use lidar to improve the Pro cameras’ autofocus features and depth-based processing effects, such as Portrait Mode , which artificially blurs photo backgrounds to create a DSLR-like “bokeh” effect. Since lidar’s invisible lasers work in pitch black rooms — and quickly — they could serve as a better low-light autofocus system than current techniques that rely on minute differences measured by an optical camera sensor. Faux bokeh and other visual effects could and likely will be applicable to video recordings, as well. Developers such as Niantic could also use the hardware to improve Pokémon Go for a subset of iPhones, and given the massive size of its user base, that could be a win for AR gamers. Apple won’t be the first company to offer a rear depth sensor in a phone. Samsung introduced a similar technology in the Galaxy S10 series last year, adding it to subsequent Note 10 and S20 models , but a lack of killer apps and performance issues reportedly led the company to drop the feature from the Note 20 and next year’s S series. While Samsung is apparently redesigning its depth sensor to better rival the Sony-developed Lidar Scanner Apple uses in its devices, finding killer apps for the technology may remain challenging. Though consumer and developer interest in depth sensing technologies may have (temporarily) plateaued, there’s been no shortage of demand for higher-resolution smartphone cameras. Virtually every Android phone maker leaped forward in sensor technology this year, such that even midrange phones now commonly include at least one camera with 4 to 10 times the resolution of Apple’s iPhone sensors. Relying on lidar alone won’t help Apple bridge the resolution gap, but it may further its prior claims that it’s doing the most with its smaller number of pixels. Ultimately, the problems with Apple-owned innovations such as 3D Touch, Force Touch, and Siri haven’t come down to whether the technologies are inherently good or bad, but whether they’ve been widely adopted by developers and users. As augmented reality hardware continues to advance — and demand fast, room-scale depth scanning for everything from object placement to gesture control tracking — there’s every reason to believe that lidar is going to be either a fundamental technology or a preferred solution. But Apple is going to need to make a better case for lidar in the iPhone than it has on the iPad, and soon, lest the technology wind up forgotten and abandoned rather than core to the next generation of mobile computing. VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Researchers propose using AI to predict which college students might fail physics classes | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2020/07/29/researchers-propose-using-ai-to-predict-which-college-students-might-fail-physics-classes"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Researchers propose using AI to predict which college students might fail physics classes Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Bots on campus? Are you ready to bring more awareness to your brand? Consider becoming a sponsor for The AI Impact Tour. Learn more about the opportunities here. In a paper published on the preprint server Arxiv.org, researchers affiliated with West Virginia University and California State Polytechnic University investigate the use of machine learning algorithms to identify at-risk students in introductory physics classes. They claim it could be a powerful tool for educators and struggling college students alike, but critics argue technologies like it could harm those students with biased or misleading predictions. Physics and other core science courses form hurdles for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) majors early in their college careers. (Studies show roughly 40% of students planning engineering and science majors end up switching to other subjects or failing to get a degree.) While physics pedagogies have developed a range of research-based practices to help students overcome challenges, some strategies have substantial per-class implementation costs. Moreover, not all are appropriate for every student. It’s the researchers’ assertion that this calls for an algorithmic method of identifying at-risk students, particularly in physics. To this end, they build on previous work that used ACT scores, college GPA, and data collected within a physics class (such as homework grades and test scores) to predict whether a student would receive an A or B in the first and second semester. But studies show AI is relatively poor at predicting complex outcomes even when trained on large corpora — and that it has a bias problem. For instance, word embedding, a common algorithmic training technique that involves linking words to vectors, unavoidably picks up (and at worst amplifies ) prejudices implicit in source text and dialogue. And Amazon’s internal recruitment tool — which was trained on resumes submitted over a 10-year period — was reportedly scrapped because it showed bias against women. VB Event The AI Impact Tour Connect with the enterprise AI community at VentureBeat’s AI Impact Tour coming to a city near you! Nevertheless, the researchers drew samples from introductory calculus-based physics classes at two large Eastern academic institutions to train a student performance-predicting AI algorithm. The first and second corpora included physical science and engineering students at a college serving roughly 21,000 undergraduate students, with a sample size of 7,184 and 1,683 students, respectively. A third came from a primarily undergraduate and Hispanic-serving university with approximately 26,000 students in the Western U.S. The samples were quite diverse in terms of makeup and demographics. The first and second were collected during different time frames (2000-2018 and 2016-2019) and included mostly Caucasian students (80%), with the second reflecting curricular changes during the 2011 and 2015 academic years. By contrast, the third covered a single year (2017) and was largely Hispanic (46%) and Asian (21%), with students who took a mix of lectures and active-learning-style classes. The researchers trained what’s called a random forest on the samples to predict students’ final physics grades. In machine learning, random forests are an ensemble method that constructs a multitude of decision trees and outputs the mean prediction of the individual trees — in this case, students likely to receive an A, B, or C (ABC students) or a D, F, or withdraw (W) (DFW students). According to the researchers, an algorithm trained on the first sample predicted “DFW students” with only 16% accuracy, likely because of the low proportion of DFW students (12%) in the training set. They note that when trained on the entire sample, DFW accuracy was lower for women and higher for underrepresented minority students, which they problematically say points to a need to demographically tune models. Demographically sensitive at-risk student prediction models are fraught, needless to say. An estimated 1,400 U.S. colleges including Georgia State are using algorithmic techniques to identify students who might be struggling so they can provide support, even encouraging those students to change their majors. But while national graduation rates started ticking back up again in 2016 after years of steep decline, there’s a fear the algorithms might be reinforcing historical inequities, funneling low-income students or students of color into “easier” and lower-paying majors. “There is historic bias in higher education, in all of our society,” Iris Palmer, a senior advisor for higher education at think tank New America, told AMP Reports. “If we use that past data to predict how students are going to perform in the future, could we be baking some of that bias in? What will happen is they’ll get discouraged … and it’ll end up being a self-fulfilling prophecy for those particular students.” In this latest study, when applied to the second sample, the researchers found the random forest performed marginally better (which they attribute to limiting the scope to three years and one institution as opposed to a decade and several institutions). They also found that institutional variables like gender, standardized test scores, Pell grant eligibility, and credit hours received from AP courses were less consequential than in-class data such as weekly homework and quiz grades. Random forests trained on the in-class data became better than institutional data-based models after week five of the physics classes and “substantially” better after around the eighth week. That being the case, the institutional variables and in-class data had more predictive power when combined: Compared with an institutional variable-only model, a model trained on both showed a 3% performance improvement in week one, 6% in week two, 9% in week five, and 18% in week eight. With respect to the third sample, the researchers say models trained on it had lower DFW accuracy and precision (i.e., a measure of how close two or more measurements are) than models for the first and second corpora. The performance of models predicting only the outcomes of minority demographic subgroups in the third sample was approximately that of the overall model performance, according to the researchers, suggesting differences in performance for subgroups in the first sample weren’t a result of those groups’ low representation. The researchers caution that no model will ever be 100% accurate, as evidenced by their best-performing model for the first sample (it achieved 57% accuracy overall, or only slightly better than chance). Yet they assert machine learning classification represents a tool for physics instructors to shape instruction. “If an instructor is to use the predictions of a classification algorithm, it is important that these results do not bias his or her treatment of individual students,” the coauthors of the study wrote. “Machine learning results should … not be used to exclude students from additional educational activities to support at-risk students … However, the results of classification models could be used to deliver encouragement to the students most at risk to avail themselves of these opportunities.” VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Why GM is making a dramatic move to electric vehicles | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2017/10/05/why-gm-is-making-a-dramatic-move-to-electric-vehicles"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Why GM is making a dramatic move to electric vehicles Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Are you ready to bring more awareness to your brand? Consider becoming a sponsor for The AI Impact Tour. Learn more about the opportunities here. “Electrification” has long been a buzzword in the automotive sector. Now, GM has decided to raise the stakes with the announcement that it’s planning “an all-electric future.” In the next 18 months, the company will introduce two new electric vehicles. By 2023, it will introduce another 20. “GM is taking this strategy because our customers are moving in this direction,” said Pam Fletcher, executive chief engineer of global electric and autonomous vehicles, speaking to VentureBeat. “When we introduced the first-generation Chevrolet Volt in 2011, we weren’t sure how the market would respond. Turns out, Volt owners were among the most satisfied in the industry, same for the Bolt EV. The Bolt EV and Volt are bringing new customers to GM that would not have considered any of our brands. Having electrified solutions like the Volt and Bolt EV were what drive them to the brand.” Of course, “electrified” and “all-electric” are not necessarily the same thing. And for a company famous for making the Corvette, the road to either might be a little bumpy, since there’s the almost insurmountable problem of driver perception. Americans like their trucks, their sporty cars…and their gas engines. Lauren Fix, a well-known automotive expert , says GM is making this dramatic shift because it has no choice. “GM must make this offering, whether they make a profit or not, because government regulations are putting pressures on auto manufacturers to meet higher environmental standards, and they must comply,” Fix explained, in an email to VentureBeat. “They are offering a full line of hybrid/plug-in options. The combustion engine is not dead, but GM is forced to meet the CAFE (corporate average fuel economy) standards by 2034 of 54.5 miles per gallon [on average across all vehicles].” Meanwhile, Michelle Krebs, director of automotive relations for the AutoTrader Group, says this move is all about China. “China is the world’s biggest car market. China buys somewhere in the neighborhood of 24 to 28 million vehicles a year there,” Krebs noted, in an email to VentureBeat. “The U.S. is second, with last year’s record sales of 17. 5 million vehicles. China has said that it would like to be all electric — no gasoline or diesel engines — by 2040. It is not a law yet, but it is where China is going directionally. If GM wants to continue being a global player in the future in this large, growing market, it must go electric.” Of course, GM is not the only manufacturer feeling pressure to take its foot off the fossil fuels. But how different car companies define “electric” can be a little confusing. Tesla makes an all-electric sedan, and the Chevy Bolt EV runs only on battery power. But the experts argue that GM means “electrification” in terms of plug-ins, like the newly released 2017 Cadillac CT6 Plug-in and other “electrified” gas engine cars. Hybrids are, as the name implies, a compromise in the form of a gas engine with some electrical assist to boost fuel economy — though at low speeds many plug-in hybrids run in all-electric mode. Krebs said GM’s ultimate goal is completely electric vehicles, but as we witnessed when Volvo announced an all-electric future, the wording can be tricky. “The Volvo story was highly misleading and poorly reported,” Krebs explained. “Volvo said ‘electrified’ in the short term — that can mean hybrid, plug-in hybrid, pure electric. GM is saying ‘all-electric’ — that means battery electric or fuel-cell electric. GM will continue to have hybrids and plug-in hybrids — those are ‘electrified’, not ‘electric’. GM sees hybrids and plug-in hybrids as a bridge to electric.” “The preference is not for vehicles like the Camaro,” Krebs added. “Muscle cars get a lot of attention, but look at the sales. They are in a downward spiral. Camaro buyers are largely aging baby boomers who are dying out, and the Camaro is very much a U.S. thing.” Fix is not sure if this move will resonate with drivers, though. “The huge missing piece is customers are not buying plug-in cars due to range anxiety and charger anxiety,” she said, noting that the total sales for all-electrics is around 2 percent. Regardless, GM sees this as a planet-saving endeavor. “We look at this in a holistic way — better aligning our energy strategy and our product portfolio to enable cleaner cars to drive on a cleaner grid,” said Fletcher. “That’s why we’ve committed to generate or source all electrical power for our global operations with 100 percent renewable energy by 2050. By the end of 2018, we’ll be 20 percent there.” However you view the change to electrification, one thing is clear — we will keep hearing more about these advances, even if we don’t actually go out and buy an electric car anytime soon. VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Volkswagen targets North America for new electric vehicle factory | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2018/11/28/volkswagen-targets-north-america-for-new-electric-vehicle-factory"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Volkswagen targets North America for new electric vehicle factory Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn The charging plug of an electric Volkswagen Passat car is pictured at charging station at a VW dealer in Berlin, Germany, February 2, 2016. Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. ( Reuters ) — Volkswagen is deciding where to locate a new factory in North America to build electric vehicles for the U.S. market, the German automaker’s new head for the Americas said on Wednesday. Scott Keogh, the newly appointed CEO of Volkswagen Group of America, said a new plant was needed to build a vehicle yet to be revealed under the Volkswagen brand, priced between $30,000-$40,000, that is due in 2020. “We are 100 percent deep in the process of ‘We will need an electric car plant in North America,’ and we’re holding those conversations now,” Keogh told journalists at the Los Angeles auto show. An electric car that could take on Silicon Valley’s Tesla is part of the massive investment in electric vehicles that Europe’s largest carmaker plans to make. Volkswagen announced earlier this month it would spend almost 44 billion euros ($50 billion) on developing electric cars, autonomous driving and new mobility services by 2023, while exploring areas of cooperation with U.S. automaker Ford. To meet a production timeline for 2020, the new electric car will initially be sourced outside of the United States, Keogh said, but then will be produced at the newly chosen site. Volkswagen’s existing U.S. plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee, where the Passat and Atlas are built, could be one option as there is enough room at that facility, but it will not necessarily be chosen, Keogh said. Tesla has thus far captured the largest share of the U.S. market for electric vehicles, but a host of new models will hit the market from German automakers and others over the next two years. For Volkswagen, although it is behind Tesla, it is not necessarily too late to capture a U.S. market that presents a “massive opportunity,” Keogh said. “The market timing actually is quite perfect,” he said. “You need to have this intersection of, ‘Can you get costs down enough that you can produce a car at that price point, make enough money, have the technology capabilities that this is a car that we would want to put in the marketplace, and have market acceptance?’” he said. “And when all these things intersect that’s ideally when you want to throw the dart.” VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Chevy Bolt EV review: An electric car that combines cool tech with a good price | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2019/09/23/chevy-bolt-ev-review-an-electric-car-that-combines-cool-tech-with-a-good-price"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Chevy Bolt EV review: An electric car that combines cool tech with a good price Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn 2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV Are you ready to bring more awareness to your brand? Consider becoming a sponsor for The AI Impact Tour. Learn more about the opportunities here. Yes, I’m afraid that might have been me you spotted driving around in a 2019 Chevy Bolt EV electric car. I’ve picked up a habit off reviewing cars , and I can’t seem to shake it. I’m not driving these cars around a track like a professional car reviewer, but I have driven a lot of tech-laden electric cars in the past year, including the Jaguar I-Pace, the BMW i3s , the Mini Cooper SE Countryman (hybrid), the Volkswagen e-Golf, and the Ford Fusion Energi. After I came back from the CES 2019 tech trade show in January, I figured it made sense to start writing about cars now that companies are packing so much technology into these vehicles. I’m also getting ready for the day when these cars can drive themselves. And I’m looking at the other tech embedded in the cars as it starts to fade into the woodwork and become just one more feature. Like a lot of cars I’ve driven this year, this one uses technology for advanced safety features, passenger comfort, infotainment, and general driver assistance. Basics of the Chevy Bolt EV Above: 2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV The premium version of this small wagon sells for $37,495 with 240-volt DC fast-charging — and before federal or state tax incentives. That compares to the $42,550 Nissan Leaf SL Plus that I drove recently. On a single charge, the Bolt EV can travel an estimated 238 miles (next year’s model will get 259 miles). The drive system uses a single, high-capacity electric motor for propulsion. And the motor can produce up to 266 lb.-ft. (360 Nm) of torque and 200hp (150 kW) of motoring power, enabling zero to 60 miles per hour in 6.5 seconds. Translation: It has a lot of zip. It has a 60-kilowatt-hour lithium-ion battery pack made up of 288 individual cells. You can use the DC fast-charging system to enable a battery charge of 90 miles in 30 minutes. When I plugged it into my standard wall charger, the charging was a lot slower. With the “Regen on Demand” feature, you can convert kinetic energy into stored energy within the battery for future use. If you drive this car an average daily commute of 40 miles, you could fully replenish the battery in less than two hours. It also has what Chevrolet calls one-pedal driving. While driving in Low mode at any speed, you can speed up and slow down using only the accelerator pedal. When you want to speed up, press your foot down like you normally would. And when you want to slow down, just lift your foot off the accelerator. One Pedal Driving helps you capture some of the energy from the moving vehicle and turn it back into electrical energy, which is then stored in the battery. Of course, you should always use your brake pedal if you need to stop quickly. A paddle on the left side of the steering wheel lets you use more regenerative braking and can stop the car. Infotainment Above: 2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV The car has a dashboard screen and a larger 10.2-inch diagonal infotainment screen. The infotainment screen is a color touch-screen display with “flip-board” operation. You can plug a smartphone into the USB connector in the center console, and the center compartment is actually large enough to stow a tablet. The car supports Apple Car Play and Android Auto. This means I was able to connect my phone directly to the car via the USB connector and then display the apps on my iPhone on the car’s display. I could see my car navigation screen from my Google Maps or Waze apps. I could also play my Spotify songs on the dashboard and control them on the touchscreen. Apple Car Play is a standard feature in many of the 2019 models I’ve driven this year. You can link your iPhone to Bluetooth or the car’s Wi-Fi network, which can be used as a hotspot. The car also features Marketplace, which is an in-vehicle commerce platform for making purchases and reservations. To use Marketplace, log in through an icon on the vehicle’s touchscreen. You can then interact and transact with merchants such as Dunkin’ Donuts, Applebee’s, Yelp Reservations, Shell, ExxonMobil, Priceline.com, and more. To do mobile ordering and payments, you need to sync a personal rewards account. Connected access Above: 2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV dashboard You can download mobile app myChevrolet to check your vehicle’s status and locate the car using a remote key fob. If you go into the OnStar icon, you can access the car’s infotainment system and select Wi-Fi settings. Up to seven laptops and smartphones can connect to the network within a 50-foot range of the car. The Connected Access also enables vehicle diagnostics, dealer maintenance notification, and other features. In-vehicle apps that you can download include the Weather Channel, USA Today , People Magazine , the Wall Street Journal , audiobooks, and more. The version I used also had SiriusXM Satellite Radio, which offers a much wider range of content. Safety and comfort features Above: 2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV interior The car has an optional OnStar safety and security system, as well as automated crash response. If the car’s cameras detect that you are approaching a vehicle too quickly, it will flash a red light and slow your car with automated emergency braking. The brakes will be automatically applied if the sensors detect either a pedestrian or another vehicle. The Bolt EV also has lane-departure warnings, so if you get drowsy and start to drift, the car will nudge you awake and shift back into its lane. The car also has a blind-spot monitor. If someone is driving in your blind spot, cameras on the car will fire up an orange light on the mirror. The Bolt EV includes roadside assistance provided by Allstate, stolen vehicle assistance, and the ability to make emergency services calls for you if you have an accident. The car does not have power-adjustable seats, but there are 10 air bags in the car, and it has a standard rear-vision camera and tire-fill alert, as well as rear park assist. Surround vision and rear camera mirror are standard on the Premier version. Worth the price? The price is pretty good compared to rivals like the Nissan Leaf SL Plus, and the car is priced about the same as the $36,550 standard Nissan Leaf. The Bolt EV has enough range to get you from San Jose to San Francisco roundtrip without fear that you’ll run out of electric power. If you can figure out how to get this kind of car at a discount, it would be a decent deal. And you can feel good knowing you won’t be emitting greenhouse gases into the environment. Beyond that, the car drives fast, feels smooth, and it is designed for comfort and safety. What’s not to like? VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Watch as Valve shows how the unorthodox Steam Controller works with Portal and Civ | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2013/10/11/steam-controller-valve-demonstrates-how-the-odd-looking-device-actually-works"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Watch as Valve shows how the unorthodox Steam Controller works with Portal and Civ Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Valve showing how to use the Steam Controller with Civ V. Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. Two weeks ago, Valve revealed its Steam Controller to close out a trio of announcements that also saw the company lift the veil on its SteamOS operating system and Steam Machine PC consoles. Now, Valve is finally showing us all exactly how the weird, touchpad-based controller works. Valve just released a video that shows how the Steam Controller deals with a variety of different games. In the clip, one of the controller’s creators used the device to play first-person puzzler Portal 2, turn-based strategy game Civilization V, first-person shooter Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, and the point-and-click adventure Papers, Please. From the video, it doesn’t seems like Valve’s engineer has any issues playing these very different games using the new hardware. Check it out for yourself below: Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! The Steam Controller is fully configurable. Players can even adjust the trackpads independently. That means one of the inputs can act like a mouse and the other can act like a keyboard’s WASD keys. The Counter-Strike clip even proves that the trackpads can handle precise movements. This video should help gamers to get a better understanding of the Steam Controller, but it is still likely one of those scenarios where the majority of people are going to need to use it for themselves before knowing how to feel about it. GamesBeat's creed when covering the game industry is "where passion meets business." What does this mean? We want to tell you how the news matters to you -- not just as a decision-maker at a game studio, but also as a fan of games. Whether you read our articles, listen to our podcasts, or watch our videos, GamesBeat will help you learn about the industry and enjoy engaging with it. Discover our Briefings. Join the GamesBeat community! Enjoy access to special events, private newsletters and more. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Valve's Steam Controller is a weird mutant with potential | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2015/11/10/steam-controller-is-weird-but-i-did-accidentally-play-5-hours-of-civ"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Valve’s Steam Controller is a weird mutant with potential Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Valve made this ... and I don't get it. Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. Valve is getting into the hardware business — and you can’t make video game hardware without having your own controller. We’ve reached a point of near standardization of the gamepad. Everything is basically just a riff on the Xbox 360 controller we’ve used for years, and that’s one of the reasons Valve’s Steam Controller is so damn strange. So if you drop the $50 to pick up one of these input devices, you need to have no expectations that it’s going to work like other popular controllers. Steam’s gamepad has no real D-pad. It only possesses a single analog stick. It does feature two circular trackpads that can act as virtual sticks. It’s crazy — and even after a few weeks with it, I’m still not really used to it. Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! What you’ll like It’s different Valve is in a weird position with the Steam Controller. It knows that if you want a gamepad for your PC, Steam Machine, or Steam Link, you can’t go wrong with the DualShock 4, Xbox One, or Xbox 360 controllers. So instead of producing another me-too product, the Steam Controller flies boldly in another direction. The big change here are the two touchpads. I’ve used similar Valve tech with the HTC Vive, and I know they’re capable of empowering very interesting mechanics. The truth is that the Valve controller can do things the other devices simply cannot. And that’s exciting even if it’s mostly unfulfilled potential at this point. It work well with games that have no business working with a controller The Steam Controller was always pitched as Valve creating a couch-friendly input device for mouse-and-keyboard games. That’s something two analog sticks have never handled well. Unsurprisingly, the Steam Controller doesn’t fall short here. I know because I accidentally ended up playing Civilization V for way longer than I intended to after booting it up on my Steam Link. I don’t know if I really need to play Civ on my couch, but I now know that the control input is no longer a barrier to doing so. What you won’t like It requires you to relearn too much I’m 32. This means I have aged alongside the video game controller. I learned to first play on the Nintendo Entertainment System’s D-pad and two-button configuration. As my hands became more capable and I learned better manual dexterity, hardware manufacturers added more complexity to their pads. Shoulder buttons with the Super Nintendo. The analog stick on the Nintendo 64. The right analog stick with the PlayStation’s DualShock and secondary shoulder buttons. What you notice, if you look back at that technological progression, is that each new controller built on top of the last. Nintendo didn’t remove the D-pad to add the analog stick, for example. But Valve, to include its two thumbpads, has removed the right analog stick and moved the face buttons way down and to the left. I am not compatible with all of this change, and I think you’ll need time to grow accustomed to it as well. I tried all kinds of big games — Skyrim, The Witcher, Far Cry, and Fallout 4 — and I don’t see how I could ever get this pad to work in a way that I would find acceptable. I understand that other people said that it has clicked for them — it hasn’t for me. Maybe it will, but I think it’s hard to feel good about any controller with a harsh learning curve. It feels cheap This does not feel like a premium piece of equipment. Its plastics feel hollow — like a toy you’d get out of a cereal box. The shoulder buttons are mushy. The Steam button’s click has no oomph until the haptic feedback kicks in. It is $15 less expensive than a DualShock 4 or Xbox One controller, but it also feels way cheaper than either (at least the latest revisions of those peripherals). Now, it doesn’t exactly feel like a $20 third-party Nintendo 64 controller you would have bought from Blockbuster. Its analog stick (it’s weird to use the singular of that term) and haptic feedback both have a good feel. But we’re at a point where everything we own is so precisely engineered that it’s disappointing when every aspect of a product doesn’t come together. Nothing uses its most interesting features Yes — the Steam Controller is different, but it’s a distinction without a purpose. The touchpads and rumble feedback are so damn interesting. For example, if you slide your finger across the right thumbpad like it’s a track ball, the haptic motor will continue to rumble afterward as if it is continuing the momentum of your swipe. It’s a unique sensation, and I bet you won’t even notice it because I couldn’t find any games that take advantage of it. Maybe this isn’t a problem with the controller itself. It’s not this thing’s fault that Valve hasn’t built a game to take advantage of it. But it is certainly a problem for anyone thinking about buying it. Conclusion Unless you have a terrible need to play keyboard-and-mouse games on your television, I’d recommend waiting before buying the Steam Controller. Microsoft and Sony make better controllers for most kinds of games, and they both work just fine with your PC — and the DualShock 4 will even connect wirelessly over Bluetooth with a Steam Link or Steam Machine without any extra dongles. If Valve or other developers step up with games that make more sense for this controller, then maybe it will make sense. But not yet. Valve provided GamesBeat with the Steam Controller for the purpose of this review. GamesBeat's creed when covering the game industry is "where passion meets business." What does this mean? We want to tell you how the news matters to you -- not just as a decision-maker at a game studio, but also as a fan of games. Whether you read our articles, listen to our podcasts, or watch our videos, GamesBeat will help you learn about the industry and enjoy engaging with it. Discover our Briefings. Join the GamesBeat community! Enjoy access to special events, private newsletters and more. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"This Steam Controller analysis may make you rethink Valve's PC gamepad | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2017/07/10/this-steam-controller-analysis-may-make-you-rethink-valves-pc-controller"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages This Steam Controller analysis may make you rethink Valve’s PC gamepad Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Valve's Steam Controller up close. Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. When I reviewed the Steam Controller , I called it a “weird mutant with potential.” I still think it’s weird, but I had lost faith in the potential part … until I saw a lengthy documentary about the device on YouTube. In a two-part hour-long video, Steam Controller defender and YouTube creator James Minicki talks about the history of the gamepad and how a community of PC gamers have learned to love it since it debuted in November 2015. Minicki’s video spends a lot of time on a history lesson before ever touching on why skeptics and nonbelievers should reconsider the Steam Controller. But his primary argument in defense of the product is that it has a lot more features than most people even realize and Valve keeps improving the software that powers the pad. One of the hidden features that Minicki swears by is the Steam Controller’s gyroscopic aiming for first-person shooters. I’ll admit that I didn’t know it had tilt controls when I reviewed it, and we know that kind of aiming can work well with shooters after games like Splatoon. Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! As for the software, Valve introduced an alternative to the XInput software that enables the Xbox controllers to work with PC games. XInput has some issues, including locking out non-Xbox controllers. That led to the Steam Controller API (SCAPI). Valve plans to use SCAPI to add support for almost any controller you can connect to a computer. But, more importantly, SCAPI enables developers to map in-game actions directly to buttons on a gamepad. For example, instead of saying jump is space bar and then setting “A” on the gamepad as space, SCAPI can apply the jumping action directly to “A.” It can also apply camera movement directly to the gyro aiming. I don’t know if any of this makes the Steam Controller amazing. I dug it out after seeing this video, and I still think its plastics are cheap and its buttons are flimsy. But I’m willing to give it another shot to win me over after learning more about how fully some people have adopted it. GamesBeat's creed when covering the game industry is "where passion meets business." What does this mean? We want to tell you how the news matters to you -- not just as a decision-maker at a game studio, but also as a fan of games. Whether you read our articles, listen to our podcasts, or watch our videos, GamesBeat will help you learn about the industry and enjoy engaging with it. Discover our Briefings. Join the GamesBeat community! Enjoy access to special events, private newsletters and more. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Baton Systems raises $12 million for blockchain-inspired bank payments infrastructure | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2019/08/30/baton-systems-raises-12-million-for-blockchain-inspired-bank-payments-infrastructure"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Baton Systems raises $12 million for blockchain-inspired bank payments infrastructure Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Are you ready to bring more awareness to your brand? Consider becoming a sponsor for The AI Impact Tour. Learn more about the opportunities here. Baton Systems , a three-year-old Fremont, California-based provider of bank-to-bank payments infrastructure modeled on blockchain technology, today announced that it’s raised $12 million in series A funding from Trinity Ventures, with participation from Alsop Louie and Commerce Ventures. Founder and CEO Arjun Jayaram said the capital will bolster Bolton’s distributed ledger-based system, which enables on-demand payments without the need for prefunding of margin requirements (the percentage of stocks, bonds, and other securities investors must cover with their own cash). “This investment provides us with the strategic support and firepower to scale our bank-to-bank payment solution for the world’s leading financial institutions even faster and more effectively,” he added. “Speed to market is critical in an industry that is crying out for modernization while at the same time facing a daunting global regulatory environment.” Baton’s hybrid cloud platform acts as a gateway between bank ledgers for real-time reconciliation, the accounting process that confirms whether money leaving an account matches the amount that’s been spent. Using a shared and permissioned ledger, clients can clear and settle asset classes and currencies in real time and gain visibility into the flow of funds across banks and exchanges, all without disrupting existing ledgers. Baton asserts its system is redundant across geographic regions and that the underlying architecture — which autoscales to handle bursts in transaction traffic — is highly robust and customizable. To this end, APIs and functionality sets let customers create custom workflows for settlement while leveraging Baton’s platform for transactions. It’s worth noting that Baton isn’t the only firm with legacy ledger systems in its crosshairs. Blockchain-inspired bank Secco is built around a database distributed among customers’ phones, while Sila’s solution connects to existing payment systems with smart contract functionality on the Ethereum network. Separately, a report published by the World Economic Forum earlier this year found that several dozen different central banks are exploring, researching, or actively experimenting with in-house blockchain technology. But Baton has made substantial inroads into the $2 trillion payments market, with a pilot involving the Bank of England and a client base that includes three of the world’s top 10 global banks. The company says its network currently processes more than $12 billion each business day in payments between market participants and clearinghouse counterparties. “We’ve been a firm believer in the potential of what Baton is doing for the payments industry since day one,” said Gilman Louie, partner at Alsop Louie. “Since those first conversations, Arjun and his team have rapidly moved from concept to reality with a top-tier set of initial clients, and advanced discussions taking place with the A-list of central banks and global financial institutions.” Trinity Ventures general partner Schwark Satyavolu, who’s also a member of Baton’s board, added: “Bank-to-bank settlement today is slow and manual, trapping billions of dollars that could instead be used to grow businesses. Baton is completely transforming the global bank payments infrastructure, leveraging the best of blockchain’s potential while mitigating its key concerns. Arjun and his team are the ideal visionaries and practitioners capable of turning this tremendous need into reality — and are already doing so for their many top-tier banking clients.” VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Apple doesn’t need to win the streaming war  | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2019/11/04/apple-doesnt-need-to-win-the-streaming-war"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Guest Apple doesn’t need to win the streaming war Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Apple's TV+ service was free during its first year, which included the debuts of multiple forgettable TV shows and a handful of movies. Are you ready to bring more awareness to your brand? Consider becoming a sponsor for The AI Impact Tour. Learn more about the opportunities here. On November 1, Apple launched its much anticipated streaming service aptly named Apple TV+. The service enters a competitive consumer landscape with offerings from the likes of Netflix, Amazon, Hulu and HBO already clamoring for subscribers. This is in addition to a packed line-up of new entrants slated to hit the market with Disney’s offering landing later this month as the most anticipated of the year. While the market is becoming increasingly crowded, what is being lost in much of the “streaming wars” horse race analysis is the reality that not every entrant is competing for the same crown. For Netflix, the streaming wars are life or death. For Disney, it’s about futureproofing the business and ensuring its incredible IP sustains its value in a changing media ecosystem. For Amazon, it’s about making Prime stickier. For Apple, however, streaming is really more of value add play — a vehicle for the world’s most valuable company to continue its evolution away from a pure hardware company into a services business. This is a playbook Apple has effectively deployed in the past and one we are already beginning to see take shape as it competes in the streaming landscape. One only needs to look back at the Apple Music launch to understand the strategy. By building an ecosystem for Apple hardware users to seamlessly integrate music into their digital life, Apple managed to overtake Spotify’s subscriber growth in the U.S. and ultimately reach more than 60 million subscribers (and growing) for its music service. According to the most recent quarterly earnings released last week, Apple’s services business alone is growing at more than 20% annually — surpassing $12 billion in the latest quarter. Just as Jeff Bezos once famously said that every time an Amazon original wins a Golden Globe it helps the company sell more shoes, with Apple News+, Apple Music, Apple Arcade, and now Apple TV+, Apple is building ever deeper connections into every aspect of the consumer content experience that will pay dividends far beyond the streaming wars. As Apple TV+ enters the market this month it does so with three advantages likely to bolster the network effects of Apple’s already strong content services business. Overnight, Apple TV+ will be available on more than 900 million mobile devices globally. The sheer magnitude of its mobile distribution is an advantage no other streaming provider can counter today. This is particularly important as mobile has become a key growth accelerant for streaming. Where I would argue Roku is winning the battle for the connected living room, Apple will capture mobile streaming. The average streamer today spends more than six hours each day on their phone, and more than two hours of that time is spent consuming all forms of mobile video. Just as with Apple Music, the allure of combining all digital content — from music to games to video — in one seamless mobile offering is compelling. And the network effects are clear. As the services become stickier, so too does the device preference. Apple’s second strength is the price point. At $4.99 a month, Cook and Co. came to play by undercutting every other subscription based competitor in the market. Perhaps far more strategic is the company’s offer for every new Apple subscriber to access Apple TV+ free for one full year. When 45% of U.S. adults have yet to join any streaming service, remaining on the sidelines of the video evolution waiting for a reason to dip their toes in, Apple’s free trial provides is a chance for millions of users to try out the platform while Apple builds out its content pipeline. The third pillar of the Apple strategy is the sheer enormity of resources Apple can pour into making this work. No studio in the world has a war chest anywhere close to what the company can pump into the effort. While these advantages are impressive, they do not guarantee entirely smooth sailing ahead. Apple faces clear challenges on the content and competition front that should not be ignored. Content, and specifically a lack of it, is a major challenge. Where other streaming services offer thousands of television shows and movies, Apple TV will launch with just a dozen shows and one original movie. This massive disadvantage is a key reason many analysts believe Apple will dip into its coffers and make a large studio acquisition in the next 12 months to accelerate its content game. The second headwind is simply one of timing and competition. Half a dozen new entrants will join the streaming race in the coming months, with the most anticipated offering following on the heels of Apple’s launch. Disney+ will enter the market on November 12 and has a content lineup with something for nearly every home (certainly every home with children). Recent polling shows consumers are twice as likely to sign up for Disney’s offering than Apple’s. While it may be too late for Apple to dominate the streaming space, it is important to remember that it doesn’t need to win the streaming wars to succeed. Apple’s strategy is markedly different from nearly every other player as it focuses on doing what it does better than anyone else in modern history: building a consumer friendly, sticky ecosystem that leverages a massive installed base and unmatched consumer loyalty. Can Apple build this into a nice business? Of course it can. But rather than look at just streaming, the real race to watch is Apple’s shift into services. [ VentureBeat regularly publishes guest posts from experts who can provide unique and useful perspectives to our readers on news, trends, emerging technologies, and other areas of interest related to tech innovation.] Dallas Lawrence is the Chief Brand Officer for global advertising exchange OpenX. VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Investors are missing the point on Roku | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2019/11/07/investors-are-missing-the-point-on-roku"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Guest Investors are missing the point on Roku Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Roku Streaming TV & Media Player Are you ready to bring more awareness to your brand? Consider becoming a sponsor for The AI Impact Tour. Learn more about the opportunities here. On Wednesday Roku announced what by all accounts were positive results for the third quarter. Active accounts were up by nearly 2 million, cresting 32 million; the company beat revenue projections by more than $4 million, hauling in $261 million; and it delivered a loss of 22 cents per share, again beating analyst estimates of a loss of 28 cents. Roku did all of this while driving average revenue per user from $21.06 in the prior quarter to $22.58. It even raised its full year guidance, reporting an expected $1.1 billion in revenue for the full year. Despite this solid performance, the stock got hammered in after-hours trading and ultimately opened down by as much as 17% in the first hour of trading today, apparently the latest forced sacrifice on the investor altar — Tom Forte of DA Davidson and Co. called it a “victim of investor sentiment”. As the streaming wars heat up, it is clear consumers are not the only ones both overwhelmed and confused by the choices emerging between the likes of Amazon, Netflix, Disney, Comcast, Hulu, CBS, and, yes, Roku. While it may be tempting to lump all of these players together, they are competing in different ways, and Roku stands singularly apart as the one company positioned to benefit as each and every new player enters the market and each new streaming subscription is added. Rather than pay billions of dollars to try and out-produce Netflix , Disney , or Apple in original content, Roku sits in the enviable position today of being the top distribution platform for all of this content. More than 60% of US households today own a smart television, and Roku is dominating that market — one out of every three smart televisions uses the Roku operating system. Where the other major streaming players are waging a $20 billion content war, Roku has systematically positioned itself to win the battle for the connected living room, benefiting from the large amounts of money being spent by the content creators. While the distribution platform is a key pillar in the Roku business, it is only one of several levers the company has at its disposal. By far the biggest is the platform business, which makes up the lion’s share of the business and grew 79% year over year in Q3, topping out at $179 million. Roku has the unique position in the market as the platform on which all of connected television streaming content is available for advertising. The company has done an incredible job leveraging its access to first party data to create a compelling and highly effective advertising business. There is $70 billion spent today on TV ads in the US, and only 5% of that goes to streaming services. This happens despite the fact that more than 30% of people claim they no longer watch any live TV. As more and more users migrate away from traditional television, advertising dollars will follow. And Roku has positioned itself to be a key benefactor of that shift. Roku’s model enables the company to sell advertising for its own Roku channel as well as for the more than 1,000 apps available within the Roku ecosystem. The value behind the Roku data is compelling. The first party data it has access to means it can deliver the same advertiser ROI with half the ad load for consumers. In addition to direct ad sales, Roku also serves as a discovery and subscription platform for all the other content platforms like Apple TV+, HBO, and Disney. With the click of a button, Roku users can seamlessly and quickly add a subscription to their televisions, and in the process Roku is served up a share of the subscription revenue. The Roku model is a rare one where everyone wins: Consumers get access to content on the streaming platform of their choice, and they see significantly less advertising than on traditional TV; marketers can tap into streaming video and reach the cord cutters who have abandoned live TV; and content creators are making real money through the Roku ecosystem. It seems many analysts and investors are too blinded by the harsh struggle among the various participants in the streaming wars to see that Roku is flourishing in a relative position of calm. The Street’s reaction seems to stem almost entirely from the company’s reduced outlook on profitability as they target $30 million rather than the $35 million analysts had come to expect. Although Roku made it clear this decision was about reinvesting to sustain growth, investors did not seem to care much, taking a billion dollar haircut to the company in the first hours of trading. The stock had been one of the best performing of the year — up more than 400% since January, signaling this may simply be a correction addressing sky-high valuation rather than any deeper concerns about the business. At the end of the day, Roku is a technology company on the bleeding edge of the connected television revolution — a revolution it is helping to drive. Directing investments back into the platform to sustain and strengthen the growth numbers that matter — user growth, which was up by 2 million; average revenue per user, which was up 7%; overall engagement, which topped more than 10 billion hours; and the growth of its platform business, which grew by more than half — is what will enable the company not just to survive the streaming wars but to emerge as one of the key enablers of the future of television. [ VentureBeat regularly publishes guest posts from experts who can provide unique and useful perspectives to our readers on news, trends, emerging technologies, and other areas of interest related to tech innovation.] Dallas Lawrence is the Chief Brand Officer for global advertising exchange OpenX. VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Disney+ opens up a new front in the Streaming Wars | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2019/11/11/disney-opens-up-a-new-front-in-the-streaming-wars"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Guest Disney+ opens up a new front in the Streaming Wars Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn President of Walt Disney Distribution Franchise Management, Business & Audience Insights Cathleen Taff speaks during CinemaCon. Are you ready to bring more awareness to your brand? Consider becoming a sponsor for The AI Impact Tour. Learn more about the opportunities here. The past few weeks have seen a number of big news announcements in the rapidly evolving streaming landscape — most notably the highly publicized launch of Apple TV+ and Roku’s stock thumping. Disney’s arrival to the battlefront tomorrow is perhaps the most anticipated streaming development in years. There are three races to watch as the House of the Mouse enters the field, and there is good reason to believe Disney not only came to play but came to win all three. 1. $2 billion to fight on the content front On the content side, Disney has big plans for its streaming service and is looking to invest more than $2 billion in original programming to bolster its already strong library. Unlike the soft (some would say weak) content launch Apple TV+ debuted with last month, Disney+ launches with more than 500 movies and 7,000 episodes of television. Compare that to the one original movie and nine shows Apple has planned for 2020, and you begin to see the Hulk-sized content advantage Disney brings to the table. If content is king in the streaming wars, Disney would appear to own the castle. The company plans to generate dozens of original series and movies for the platform, including the highly anticipated Star Wars themed Mandalorian and a slew of Marvel and Pixar based shows. Here we see one of Disney’s key content advantages – its ability to leverage the network effects of the broader business to drive streaming engagement. Disney plans to tie its streaming originals directly into its motion picture franchises, according to Marvel’s chief creative officer Kevin Feige, who shared recently that “if you want to understand everything in future Marvel movies, you’ll probably need a Disney+ subscription, because events from the new shows will factor into forthcoming films.” This “connected” strategy appears to be working already with Disney’s built-in and energized fan base as polling shows consumers are twice as likely to select Disney+ as they are services like Apple TV+. 2. Distribution could hit 90 million users in 4 years The second front in the streaming wars is the battle for distribution. Here too Disney has leaned into its deep marketing and consumer insights business to develop a compelling launch strategy that has many analysts believing the company will reach 90 million subscribers by 2024. On day one, Disney+ will be available for free for one year to every Verizon customer, providing a built-in subscriber base of more than 20 million users. Importantly, this also gives Disney+ a strong mobile play. Mobile streaming is exploding in growth, and Disney’s ability tap into the always-connected mobile streamer at massive scale is a key advantage. When it comes to the battle for the connected living room being waged by the likes of Amazon and Roku and Apple TV, Disney once again has outflanked everyone taking the “be everywhere” approach to platform distribution. Disney+ will be available on nearly every service (including Amazon, Roku, and Apple) and will be built into nearly every major smart TV’s app store, providing near universal market penetration. Importantly, Disney+ will also be available globally, again leveraging the network effects of its business – in this case the international appeal for the Disney content — to drive streaming adoption globally. In this regard, Disney+ appears to be the only truly scaled competitor for Netflix outside the US for at least the near future. And while the Netflix horse race comparisons are to be expected, in the connected television landscape the “who will dethrone Netflix” battle is not the only race unfolding. While competing for share of consumer time with other streaming services is important, the most important target for Disney are the millions of uninitiated streaming households the company is uniquely positioned to convert. Forty-eight percent of US consumers today are still sitting on the edge of the streaming content ocean waiting to dip their toes in. They have looked at all the providers, some for years, and hesitated to jump in. Disney is betting big that its beloved catalog of content combined with billions of new dollars invested in original programming, plus the option to bundle with Hulu and ESPN+ at a price comparable to Netflix will serve as a tipping point. It will compete with Netflix to be sure, but it will also have vast open space to attract first-time streamers. 3. Smart bundling will target new streaming users and a slice of TV’s $70B ad pie By leveraging the excitement of Disney+ to drive adoption of a new Hulu and ESPN+ bundle, Disney is poised to profit from the billions of dollars in traditional television advertising that are beginning to migrate to streaming services. The $12.99 monthly bundle of Disney+, ESPN+, and Hulu’s ad-supported service is core to Disney’s long term strategy to benefit from both the SVOD (subscription video on demand) and AVOD (advertising video on demand) consumer movements. With $70 billion spent on TV ads in the US today — and just 5% going to streaming services – advertising based streaming services stand to benefit significantly from the cord-cutting revolution. As more and more users migrate away from traditional television (30% of US adults report watching zero cable television today), advertising dollars will follow. And Hulu, thanks to the 20th Century Fox acquisition Disney now controls, stands to be a primary beneficiary of that migration. Seven out of 10 subscribers to Hulu today have chosen the ad-based service over the ad-free subscription service. This trend will only widen with the new Disney+ package as we see yet again the network effects flying. During last week’s quarterly earnings call, Disney CEO Bob Iger made clear his intention of winning the streaming wars was clear. The company, he said, had an “all-in commitment” to “launch big and scale fast.” From content to distribution to advertising, it’s clear Disney is all in and the streaming space is about to get a lot more competitive. Dallas Lawrence is an advisor with Channel Factory and previously served as the Chief Brand Officer for the global advertising exchange OpenX. [Find out about publishing a guest post on VentureBeat] VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Karakuri raises $9 million for robotics that help kitchens personalize meals and portions | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2019/05/09/karakuri-raises-9-million-for-robotics-that-help-kitchens-personalize-meals-and-portions"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Karakuri raises $9 million for robotics that help kitchens personalize meals and portions Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Karakuri founders with "Marley" robot Are you ready to bring more awareness to your brand? Consider becoming a sponsor for The AI Impact Tour. Learn more about the opportunities here. Karakuri , a fledgling robotics startup that’s meshing machine learning, optics, and sensors to help commercial kitchens automate the process of dispensing ingredients and measuring precise quantities, has raised £7 million ($9.1 million) in a seed round of funding led by U.K. supermarket giant Ocado. Hoxton Ventures, Firstminute Capital, and Taylor Brothers also participated in the round. London-based Karakuri is a product of Founders Factory , an incubator that matches investors with startups and helps with product validation, market insights, distribution, and more. Karakuri currently has two robots — one of which is the DK-One , pitched as a “high throughput” machine that can be customized and used for personalizing meals, managing portion control, and dispensing food on a mass scale. Above: Karakuri: DK-One Diets Millions of people follow some form of restricted diet, whether for reasons of ethics, health, or allergies — in fact, around 4% of adults have some form of food allergy. One of Karakuri’s aims is to help commercial kitchens automate the processes involved in preparing a meal — making the preparation faster while removing human error from the equation. VB Event The AI Impact Tour Connect with the enterprise AI community at VentureBeat’s AI Impact Tour coming to a city near you! “Consumer eating habits in and out of the home are changing rapidly as demand increases for healthier options that match specific dietary requirements,” noted Karakuri CEO and cofounder Barney Wragg. “This growth in menu personalization is putting huge pressure on restaurants, cafes, and other food retailers. These providers have historically relied on identically mass-produced meals to maintain their profit margins. By using robotics and machine learning, Karakuri’s systems provide localized micro-manufacturing within an existing restaurant, retail, or commercial kitchen.” According to Wragg, automation will also enable restaurants to minimize their food waste, packaging, and distribution costs, which collectively have a big impact on a company’s bottom line — not to mention the environment. This is a trend we’ve seen elsewhere in the technology realm, with numerous startups raising big bucks to help companies cut waste. A couple of months back, VentureBeat wrote about another London-based startup, called Winnow , which is using computer vision and machine learning to help kitchens cut food waste. There are plenty of other examples of automation infiltrating the food services industry, including Mountain View-based Zume Pizza, which operates a kitchen in which robots are heavily involved in the entire pizza-making process. Karakuri isn’t purely targeting commercial kitchens, though — its robots can be customized for any scenario that requires precise measurements of ingredients. The company will also start selling a lower-cost robot called Marley that is designed for smaller food production hubs and can be used for such “novel applications” as measuring out candy, making ice cream, or pouring cocktails. Above: Karakuri: Marley Karakuri’s seed funding is notable, as this is the first technology startup investment for Ocado, a publicly traded U.K. grocery giant built on robotics and automation. Ocado previously developed a picking and packing robot that uses computer vision to determine the best grasp for specific goods, while its customer fulfillment centers (CFS) use conveyors, automated cranes, “ goods-to-person systems ,” and robots to cart products ready for shipping. “Our investment in Karakuri, potentially a game-changer in the preparation of food to go, gives us the opportunity to bring the best innovation to the benefit of our own customers, as well as our partners,” added Ocado CEO Tim Steiner. Karakuri said it will use its fresh cash injection to develop its technology, including patents, and build its team as it looks to expand around the world. And now that Ocado is on board, the supermarket will be looking to leverage Karakuri’s robotics internally, particularly as part of its Ocado Zoom delivery service. Moreover, Ocado said it plans to put Karakuri’s robots in its own staff canteen later this year. VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Infarm raises $100 million to expand its urban farming platform to the U.S. and beyond | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2019/06/11/infarm-raises-100-million-to-expand-its-urban-farming-platform-to-the-u-s-and-beyond"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Infarm raises $100 million to expand its urban farming platform to the U.S. and beyond Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Infarm @ Auchan, Luxembourg Are you ready to bring more awareness to your brand? Consider becoming a sponsor for The AI Impact Tour. Learn more about the opportunities here. Infarm , a Germany-based startup that distributes “modular farms” to grocery stores and other urban locations, has raised $100 million in a series B round of equity and debt funding led by Atomico, with participation from existing investors including Balderton Capital, Cherry Ventures, Astanor Ventures, and TriplePoint Capital. The CO2 emissions produced by growing, farming, and transporting food around the world is significant, with some estimates pegging the food footprint (“foodprint”) at around one-quarter of the total global greenhouse gas emissions. By creating a system of vertical micro-farms in cities, which entails producing food indoors within a stack of glass cases in a controlled environment, Infarm is pushing to reduce the environmental burden that food production has on the planet. Founded out of Berlin in 2013 by Osnat Michaeli alongside brothers Erez and Guy Galonska, Infarm has partnered with a number of food retailers across Europe, including Amazon Fresh, Metro, Edeka, Migros, Casino, Auchan, and Intermarche to install vertical indoor farms inside their outlets. Above: Infarm @ Metro in France Infarm said that its technology is designed to be built and distributed in any available space, and there is no need for a centralized warehouse or other infrastructure setup costs. The farms can be found in restaurant kitchens, supermarket aisles, and warehouses, and are designed to scale and make cities self-sufficient in producing their own plant-based food. Each farm is “connected,” with sensors collecting and recording growth data, while they can be controlled remotely by the Infarm platform that “learns, adjusts and improves itself continuously,” according to the company. Above: Infarm Prior to now, Infarm had raised nearly $34 million, and with another $100 million in the bank, it’s now gearing up to add additional markets to its roster, including the U.K., where it’s launching in September. The company said that it’s also in “advanced discussions” with retailers in the U.S. and Japan, while it plans to invest in various R&D, commercial, and operational initiatives. “Infarm was founded with an ambitious vision to feed the cities of tomorrow by bringing farms closer to the consumer, and with this round of funding we aim to grow our presence further — sowing the seeds for a delicious and sustainable food system in urban centers across North America, Asia, and Europe,” noted Erez Galonska, Infarm cofounder and CEO. Vertical Infarm isn’t alone in its quest to introduce indoor farming to market. U.K. supermarket giant Ocado yesterday announced it was investing $22 million and joining a vertical farming joint venture, while back in December Alphabet’s VC arm GV led a $90 million investment in New York-based Bowery, taking its total funding to nearly $120 million. And San Francisco-based Plenty has raised north of $200 million for a similar proposition. For Atomico, Infarm represents the latest in a line of “sustainable”-focused investments. Just yesterday, the London-based VC firm announced it had led a $25 million investment in Norway’s Spacemaker, which is working toward optimizing urban development projects with AI-powered simulation software, to cater to the expected population surge over the next few decades. “The consumption of fresh produce is a huge environmental burden on our planet, one that will only increase as urban populations increase,” added Atomico partner Hiro Tamura, who now joins Infarm’s board of directors. “This is not sustainable long-term. Infarm has perfected the holy trinity when it comes to solving this massive global problem; their unique technology makes fresh food production sustainable, their solution has a global audience which means they have operated internationally from day one; and this has resulted in the company being a commercially attractive proposition for all stakeholders in the supply chain.” Infarm also fits into a broader sustainability investment trend that has seen startups across urban mobility and waste reduction rake in investor cash. And in the food realm, meat substitute company Beyond Meat raised $122 million in funding ahead of its IPO last month — the company’s shares are currently red hot. VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Walmart marries AI and human intelligence for in-home grocery delivery | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2019/07/25/walmart-marries-ai-and-human-intelligence-for-in-home-grocery-delivery"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages VB Event Walmart marries AI and human intelligence for in-home grocery delivery Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Are you ready to bring more awareness to your brand? Consider becoming a sponsor for The AI Impact Tour. Learn more about the opportunities here. At Transform 2019 , Walmart’s VP of customer experience engineering Aanan Contractor and Walmart ecommerce’s VP, Lucinda Newcomb sat down with FEM CEO Rachel Payne to discuss Walmart’s latest forays into blending the online and offline worlds using AI and automation. The fastest-growing illustration of this is grocery pick-up of orders made online; by the end of the year, the service will be available in 3,000 out of Walmart’s 5,000 stores. “Think about a family,” says Newcomb. “You have two little kids strapped in the back seat, and instead of having to get them in a cart and push them around, you can just roll up and have somebody bring out everything you wanted.” The goal is to enable Walmart customers to do this as efficiently and easily as possible. Their data shows that 65% of a customer’s order will be a repeat basket, re-stocking things they buy regularly. “It shouldn’t take, every week, 30 to 40 minutes to build that basket,” says Aanan. “How do we leverage voice commerce? Walmart has a very good partnership with Google in terms of launching our voice ordering system. It’s as easy as saying, hey, Google, talk to Walmart.” VB Event The AI Impact Tour Connect with the enterprise AI community at VentureBeat’s AI Impact Tour coming to a city near you! If 65% of a basket is stocking regular items, Walmart wants to ensure it’s using the massive amounts of data it collects to help a customer find what they want, before they even know they want it. “What do we know about her?” explains Newcomb. “How do we make sure that we’re helping her realize this is something she seasonally does? Have we figured out that there’s an allergy in her family? Or maybe we’ve figured out that she’s very organic-sensitive and organic-focused. How do we help recommend other types of products specific to her needs? We’re awash in data. We’re constantly looking at how we can make sure we get to the most delightful experience possible.” In building the models to make these recommendations and guide customers, accuracy has become a north star for the company. “Ninety percent precision confidence is very important in this mix for us to be really effective in terms of predictive basket,” says Aanan. “We don’t deploy the algorithm until it’s at least 90% confidence.” That critical data is also used in inventory management to avoid ‘basket breakers’ where an item indispensable to a customer is unavailable. “We have all this other data to know which are the fast-moving inventory items,” says Newcomb. “These are the most likely to go out of stock. These are the ones that are seasonal. How do you use that to figure out what are the types of items that are at risk, as well as figuring out, which of those do we consider to be basket breakers?” Yet, substitutions are a reality. “We have a great inventory management system, but at the same time, situations happen,” she adds. “We spend a disproportionate amount of effort on making sure we nail substitutions. They’re so infrequent relative to the broader basket, and yet when we have to substitute, it has such an impact on a customer’s NPS [net promoter score] and on her happiness with us.” This is where the merger of AI and humans becomes essential. “In this smart substitution that we’re talking about, algorithmically, there’s a kind of place for these associates, these personal shoppers, who have known that customer,” says Aanan. “They know what’s really going to be accepted as a substitute for their customers. So how do we really add an aspect of a signal from our associates, these personal shoppers, into the algorithm, which is also taking input from the customer preferences and personal aspects? That’s a human aspect. Not just leveraging AI, but it’s really a combination of human intelligence and AI and merging them together.” In the near future, those worlds are going to collide even more. Starting this fall, Walmart will be introducing in-home grocery delivery — not just to a customer’s front door, but right into their home, and into their refrigerator. There’s too much risk in leaving perishable items outside while a customer’s at work all day, so beginning in three markets — Pennsylvania, Florida, and Missouri — Walmart associates will be equipped with cameras (for security) as they deliver groceries right into customers’ kitchens. “We’ve been in test for this, and anything with AI and personalization and in-home, people start to say, what about trust? What about the creep factor? Number one, we’re extremely careful about this. It’s always internal Walmart associates who’ve been there at least a year. They’re really well-trained. We have the cameras, so you can see what’s happening. At the same time, what we’re finding is that before Uber, would anyone say they’d get into a random car that drove up by the side of the road? Nobody would have trusted that. But now we find that customers just say, ‘Oh my God, somebody delivered my groceries and Marie Kondo’ed my refrigerator while they were at it. That’s pretty magical. I can’t go back to how I did things before.'” It all comes down to how Walmart frames the mission of the customer journey. Their customers don’t want to go to the grocery store, they just want to feed their families, with a lot less stress and headache. Watch the full video of the session and find all the other panels at this year’s Transform, right here. VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Assassin's Creed: Odyssey review -- Impossibly dense | VentureBeat | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2018/10/01/assassins-creed-odyssey-review-in-progress-impossibly-dense"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Review Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey review-in-progress — Impossibly dense Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn King Leonidas in Assassin's Creed: Odyssey. Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. For the second year in a row, Ubisoft is launching a new Assassin’s Creed game. Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey is the latest entry in the series, and it is coming out on October 5 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC. It follows the adventures of Greek mercenaries Alexios or Kassandra, depending on who you choose. And it takes place during the Peloponnesian Wars that pitted Athens and Sparta against one another. But within that new setup, you’ll recognize a lot of Assassin’s Creed formula. The biggest difference this time around is that you will get more Assassin’s Creed than ever before. You will also get more variety and role-playing elements. Is all of that enough to justify another trip into history with Ubisoft? Along with some overall refinements and some entertaining writing and direction, yes. This is my favorite Assassin’s Creed since Brotherhood. Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! Review-in-progress: I have not finished Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey, and I have not played enough to feel comfortable assigning a final score. The text of this review may change as I complete more of the game and finalize my thoughts. What you’ll like (so far) Good pacing in a huge open world Odyssey is a mammoth game. That’s true both in terms of square mileage and the amount of stuff that fills that world. And while it has more of those things than most other games, that’s not too impressive on its own anymore. What’s more important is that Ubisoft has built in a sense of momentum that will drive you through the Odyssey in a way that makes you actually want to go out and explore all of that content. That comes down to a refined sense of pacing, and that’s super difficult to pull off in an open-world game. In Odyssey, Ubisoft accomplishes this in a number of ways. Dense, but not busy The Greek world in Odyssey seems to have more missions, quests, characters, and side diversions than any Assassin’s Creed ever. At the same time, the world has enough space to let each of those activities breathe. Some past open-world Ubisoft games seem like Yves Guillemot threw mission icons onto every possible square inch. Odyssey is the opposite of that. All of its map icons exist as distinct little islands. As a result, the entire adventure is much more manageable. Your brain actually has a chance to meaningfully process the information. It’s as if Ubisoft is treating you like a human and not some kind of box-checking automaton. Mission-type and design variety And then each of those icons often have enough variance that they feel like fleshed out, unique experiences. Odyssey has built a pyramid of design buckets in order to create that variety. Each mission either fits into a land or naval setting. Then that filters down into story missions, cultist assassinations, the mercenary system, contracts, or character missions. And then those can either focus on killing someone specific, taking out an enemy outpost, destroying war-supply crates, decimating Athens’ or Sparta’s forces in a region, or a million other specific design elements. The point here is that each mission isn’t just the same thing over and over. On one quest, you may have to take out a specific mercenary that is wandering the map taking on contracts of their own. In the next, you may have to carry an imprisoned ship captain out of his cell. I don’t know a lot about the inner workings at Ubisoft, but people seem to like working at the publisher — at least as far as I can tell. And I hope that’s because it is taking care of the people who have made so many entertaining and bespoke missions. Before Odyssey, I would’ve considered this kind of consistent variety across such a massive world impossible or unsustainable. Maybe it still is the latter, but that doesn’t change the fact that Odyssey is an incredible achievement. Variety in execution And then when you actually play through a mission, it feels like you have enough options to keep things feeling fresh. Now, this isn’t The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. You won’t have some flash of insight about how to exploit the physics system over and over. But you can lead a lion into an enemy encampment. Odyssey at least nails the transitions really well. You can start off in stealth mode and move into head-on-combat in a way that feels good. Slow introduction of major mechanics The final point that contributes to the great pacing is that Ubisoft holds back a lot of its biggest features. When you start, your menu only has a handful of tabs. That grows consistently for the first 20 hours or so. Like with the icons and the map and the use of space, withholding mechanics makes the game much easier to manage. You’re an expert at the basics by the time you get the new menu to start upgrading your ship, for example. This design decision fits into an overall attention-to-detail that I think defines Odyssey. And all of that feeds into this dedication to variety and creativity that will have you jumping from one quest to another for hours at a time Stealth that obeys some kind of logic Speaking of stealth, Odyssey feels like a bit of a miracle coming off of Ubisoft’s Far Cry 5. In that shooter from earlier this year, enemies had some sort of hive-mind connection. No matter where they were, they could sense that you just silently and instantly murdered one of their comrades. I hate that, and thankfully, Odyssey doesn’t share that problem. You can kill a guard without alerting everyone else. But this game goes way beyond that when it comes to improving stealth. As an assassin, you don’t have any shortage of silent ways to kill someone. But if you fail to take out an enemy with one quick dagger to the ribs, you’re not suddenly going to have to fight off 15 people. You can get into a full head-to-head fight with someone inside of a base and go right back into stealth afterward. The key is that you’ll only draw more soldiers if they witness or hear it directly. Fun characters, world, and story I don’t care about Assassin’s Creed lore. Or I didn’t. I can’t explain what is happening to me, but Odyssey has me thinking about its stupid precursor race and Abstergo in a way that is not altogether dismissive. What I think is happening is that I’m having so much fun with the characters and setting, that I’m assuming I’ll get a similar reaction from diving into the overall meta story. I doubt that’s the case, but at least Odyssey is a good time. Kassandra the great I’m primarily playing as Kassandra, and she’s just so damn cool. She’s not over-the-top, but I love the way her Greek accent chews through some of the “Proper Nouns” like Cult of Kosmos (“Coat of Cuhzmos”). I also adore her design. Ubisoft built Kassandra like Doug Flutie. She looks like she could play quarterback for a Canadian Football team or like she could easily kill you in combat. She has shoulders and biceps that look mean and lean. I don’t want to get hung up on her body, but I appreciate that she looks like a warrior and not a model. Although, that’s not to say a model couldn’t easily kill me in a sword fight. Kassandra, as a mercenary, is a blast to pilot as well. She’s not Bayek. She’s not an officer of the law. People pay her to fix (read: kill) their problems, and so I don’t feel like I have to turn away payment. That’s her job. So I feel free to play her as cocky, impatient, and only interested in money. Sexual healing A character like Kassandra is especially fun during the “romances.” Although it’s a stretch to call them that. The game has no qualms about letting you have sex with one character after another, and I don’t think it has any real long-term relationships. And Kassandra is just as likely to “neg” her potential mates as she is to woo them. During the dialogue scenes, where you can choose a response, I had Kassandra tell a woman she is pretty when she’s angry. In response, the woman said something to the effect of “you don’t really mean that.” And it was great to get an option where Kassandra was like, “OK. Fine. You’re ugly then.” Kassandra wants to bang, but she doesn’t have time for your games. But the highlight for me is the gerontophilia scene, which plays out as a cutscene where Kassandra pleases an elder Greek woman all night while her husband sits on the curb outside playing the lute. Skyrim-like environment and Roman-like Markos The world of Odyssey is great to explore because it adapts the design of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim to the Assassin’s Creed model. You will find caves to wander and bandit enclaves to fight all across the land. If you take one of those on and then get a mission to clear out the camp, you will get the credit for doing so immediately. That’s just like Skyrim. Odyssey even has environmental storytelling skeletons and bodies. The rest of the world and characters are also great. I still prefer Florence from Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood. But that’s just more about the density of that city and its recognizable architecture. Greece still has plenty of monuments to explore, and Ubisoft populates them with memorable characters. I’m especially fond of Markos from the starting area, who is very reminiscent of cousin Roman from Grand Theft Auto IV. I half expected him to call me to go bowling. What you won’t like (so far) Combat is vague and frustrating You’ll spend a lot of time in combat in Odyssey, and that created the biggest impediment for my enjoyment. The fighting system is fine, but it has some glaring issues. Eating inputs and lack of feedback First, input lag can cause you to miss dodges and blocks. It feels like maybe the game is still processing previous inputs before it lets you do anything else, but you don’t get any feedback to tell you that’s what is happening. If my character has a cooldown, I need that information. Put it on the screen somehow so I can understand what is happening. Because without that feedback, it just feels like the character isn’t responding to my inputs during critical moments. Even when you can get your inputs in on time, however, that lack of feedback rears its head in other areas. Most notably, it was impossible for me to tell what I was supposed to do during an enemies unblockable attack. Every opponent has a glowing-red move that you can’t stop by holding up your weapon. Instead, you need to dodge, but if you dodge in the wrong direction or wrong time, you’ll take damage. I still don’t know if I was messing up the timing or something else because, again, Odyssey has no way of providing that data. Bad lock-on Odyssey has a lock-on mechanic, but I hate it. It’s hard to tell when you’re locked on for one thing. That’s because the indicator is small and white, and it blends in with the action to the point that you can’t see it. And when you are locked on, the camera isn’t effective at following the action. OK. Most of the time, it is serviceable, but I try to adjust the perspective myself with the right stick quite a lot. But that just changes focus from one enemy to another, and that makes the camera swing around wildly. It’s a disorienting system that took me a long time to get accustomed to. You spend a lot of time in slow menus I typically don’t like games where you spend forever making decisions in menus. So I was surprised to find that I really like doing that in Odyssey. It’s great to have the map and quest log or a list of potential targets and make decisions about where to next. But that fun evaporates quickly when you’re waiting for the menus to load or when you have to deal with the slow Destiny 2-style cursor to perform actions on a controller. I get why the cursor pointer is so popular with designers all of the sudden. The pointer is easier for most people who haven’t used a D-pad to navigate menus for the last 30 years … but here’s an idea: why not both? Why can’t I use the analog to move the cursor around and the D-pad to jump from one option to another instantly? That input method and the loading gives the whole process this sluggishness. And you start to feel the pain of that when you’re juggling multiple things at once and are diving into the menu over and over. Leveling progression is unrewarding Odyssey has a lot of role-playing elements. You get color-coded gear, and your character has a level that you improve with experience points. But this has two flaws that drag down the game a bit for me. First, the game scales enemy levels too closely to your own. If your character goes from level 6 to 7, all of the animals and most of the nearby enemies will also jump from 6 to 7. This eliminates that moment where you instantly feel more capable and competent for a while after leveling up. Instead, the grind is this constant mountain climb with zero plateaus to rest and feel powerful. Second, you’ll hit some brick walls when it comes to progression. I was making good progress with my character up until level 15. At that point, I had a story mission that required me to take on a level 17 assassin. That was so challenging that I decided to get to 17 myself first. That seemed like a good plan because I had leveled up at a decent rate up until that point. But it took me six hours to go from 15 to 17. Conclusion (so far) Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey is dense, detailed, and varied. It is more dense, detailed, and varied than I considered possible for a video game before playing this. It is a stunning accomplishment, and the 500-to-1,000-plus people who worked on it should feel proud. It has its problems. Combat is clunky, the menus are a slog, and leveling feels off. But those issues never made me want to stop playing. I want to keep playing right now. Score: Pending Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey is out October 5. Ubisoft provided a code for the purpose of this review. GamesBeat's creed when covering the game industry is "where passion meets business." What does this mean? We want to tell you how the news matters to you -- not just as a decision-maker at a game studio, but also as a fan of games. Whether you read our articles, listen to our podcasts, or watch our videos, GamesBeat will help you learn about the industry and enjoy engaging with it. Discover our Briefings. Join the GamesBeat community! Enjoy access to special events, private newsletters and more. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"This chart visualizes why live-service games are the 'it' thing for publishers | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2019/03/04/this-chart-explains-why-publishers-are-chasing-live-service-games"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Analysis This chart visualizes why live-service games are the ‘it’ thing for publishers Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. The video game business is an expensive and risky hit-driven market. But live-service games are altering this dynamic. Instead of trying to hit a home run with a massive blockbuster, companies are trying to build platforms that people will come back to for months or years. Ubisoft , for example, has explicitly said that it doesn’t want to make game products anymore — it wants to make platforms. It has seen success doing that with Rainbow Six: Siege , and it has emulated that with For Honor and The Division. But if you’ve played games for a significant amount of time, you may wonder why this change is happening. Why are publishers like Ubisoft abandoning a product model that worked for decades? Well, you can find the answer to that in the Steam peak concurrent players chart. And YouTube channel TheRankings has visualized that list over the four-year period from 2015 through 2018 to make it easier to parse. The video shows the peak concurrent players for the top 15 games on Steam every day starting on January 1 2015 and running through the end of last year. As games grow or as new games get released, they jump up the chart. And as people lose interest in existing games, they fall out of the top 15. Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! You can watch the chart in action by clicking play on the video at the top of this list. But let’s talk about what it highlights and what it reveals. Blockbusters exist, but they come and then go The first thing I noticed while watching this video is just how infrequently we get games that are big enough to make a dent on Steam. And even when a blockbuster does come along, it tends to falls off the charts after a few weeks — or sometimes in a few days. Did you even notice The Witcher III: Wild Hunt on the chart? It popped up to No. 4 when it came out in May 2015. But by July 2015, it was gone. The Witcher III is one of the biggest games of the last five years. But CD Projekt Red did not build it to hang on this list. It’s a single-player campaign that you experience and then put away. Games like that can obviously still make money. Witcher III certainly has. But the behavior of this chart highlights how a game like The Witcher III may not get the best return on investment. Live-service games stick around for years and can even grow over time By January 2015, Warframe was already almost two years old. The free-to-play sci-fi shooter was also still among the 15 most played games on Steam. And as the video reveals, it was consistently in the top 15 all the way through December 2018. What’s most impressive about Warframe, however, is that its daily peak concurrent number grows over time. On January 1, 2015 it has 24,000 players. That number gets leaps over 100,000 players by October 2017. It does so again in August 2018. Throughout all of last year, Warframe’s daily peak concurrent players is in the 70,000-to-80,000 range with those occasional peaks closer to 100,000. Warframe started small, and it has grown over time. And it’s not the only game to follow that trajectory. Ubisoft’s Rainbow Six: Siege did not crack the top 15 when it debuted in December 2015. It doesn’t even consistently rank among the most-played games on Steam until early 2017. But it has turned into a monster ever since. It’s gone from approximately 40,000 daily peak concurrent players on Steam in 2017 to regularly having more than 100,000 by the end of 2018. Other live service games have seen similar staying power. The car-soccer game Rocket League is almost always in the top 10. And survival sims Rust and Ark: Survival Evolved are also nearly always on the chart. This doesn’t even count the thriving and growing audience for live-service games on console, which includes Warframe, Rocket League, and Siege. Is the risk worth the investment What this chart drives home more than anything is that making a massive, triple-A blockbuster is potentially not worth the cost. The Witcher III came and went. But even something like Fallout 4 quickly fell back behind games like Rust and Ark. In fact, the one blockbuster that hasn’t lost its place at the top of the chart is Grand Theft Auto V, and that has a massively popular live-service mode in GTA Online. Game companies don’t share their budgets, but it’s probably fair to assume that The Witcher III is a more expensive game to make than Rocket League. And that is the crucial point here. Game companies have this data. And they are learning the lesson that even if they make a game as beloved as The Witcher III (which most developers probably cannot do), people are still going to put it away after a few weeks. But if they make a live-service game, even if it’s not perfect at launch and starts small, they have a chance of making something that could turn into a consistent source of revenue. On top of that, a live-service game is probably less expensive to make. And while they are functionally more expensive to maintain, they give developers a good reason to keep talented staff on board instead of laying people off between games. That alone can save time and money in hunting down staff. It’s still risky Just because The Witcher 3 fell off the chart quickly and Rocket League is still around doesn’t mean that games-as-a-service is free from risk. Live-service games are still subject to the hit-based nature of this medium. Ubisoft’s The Division is an example. It is a blockbuster-scale shooter that the publisher designed to operate as a platform. But it also came and went in March 2016. And while the consistent success of Warframe, Rocket League, and Ark are a positive sign for the viability of live-service games, few new games broke into that top 15 list on Steam since 2015. So it’s not like this is a recipe for a guaranteed hit. But the industry isn’t turning to live-service games because they believe it guarantees them Siege like player numbers. It’s just that this model mitigates some of the risks. Anthem vs. Andromeda Electronic Arts may reveal over the next year how the live-service model is a smart evolution of how to make and sell games. The company has had two critically disappointing games from developer BioWare with this year’s Anthem and 2017’s Mass Effect: Andromeda. Mass Effect: Andromeda is a largely single-player role-playing adventure. Like other games of that type, it came and went shortly after its debut. But many fans didn’t love it, and EA and BioWare decided to abandon the game and its plans for expansion-style downloadable content. Now, two years later, Anthem is in a similar position. It is dealing with middling reviews and a mixed reaction from fans. But unlike Andromeda, Anthem already has a roadmap of content and updates for the next 12 months. EA and BioWare have a clear path in front of them to turn Anthem into something that grows over time like Rainbow Six: Siege. Again, nothing is guaranteed. BioWare still has to do the work to get Anthem into shape. But the point is that the live-service model gives it the chance to do that. The older model of building a standalone game and then adding onto that with DLC did not. From a publisher’s point of view, it is far less risky to spend years working on a live-service game that you can eventually improve than on a product that bombs and everyone forgets about a few months later. GamesBeat's creed when covering the game industry is "where passion meets business." What does this mean? We want to tell you how the news matters to you -- not just as a decision-maker at a game studio, but also as a fan of games. Whether you read our articles, listen to our podcasts, or watch our videos, GamesBeat will help you learn about the industry and enjoy engaging with it. Discover our Briefings. Join the GamesBeat community! Enjoy access to special events, private newsletters and more. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Sony begins courting indie devs again as PlayStation 5 approaches | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2019/11/07/playstation-5-indie-games"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Sony begins courting indie devs again as PlayStation 5 approaches Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Shuhei Yoshida is head of Sony Interactive Entertainment's Independent Developer Initiative. Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. Sony Interactive Entertainment appointed a new head of its PlayStation Worldwide Studios today. Of course, that’s Sony veteran Shuhei Yoshida’s old job. But while Yoshida vacated that position in 2016 , he’s still at the company. And now, he has a new responsibility as the head of an initiative to support independent developers on PlayStation platforms. “I am thrilled to announce Shu Yoshida as head of this new initiative,” SIE president and chief executive Jim Ryan said in a statement. “Everybody knows just how passionate Shu is about independent games – they are the lifeblood of the industry, making our content portfolio so special for our gamers. These wildly creative experiences deserve focus and a champion like Shu at PlayStation. [He] will ensure the entire SIE organization works together to better engage with independent developers through a culture of supporting and celebrating their contributions to PlayStation platforms.” This means that Yoshida is leaving Worldwide Studios. Now, he reports directly to Ryan as the leader of this new group. As PlayStation indie ambassador, he will build relationships with smaller studios around the globe. Yoshida will also work to ensure that those teams have the tools and technology that they need. Shuhei Yoshida may rebuild Sony’s relationships with indie developers in time for PS5 Yoshida is one of Sony’s most beloved executives. And he already has a strong relationship with many indie developers around the world. Now, he can use that network to help bring unique content to Sony platforms. Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! The timing of this move is notable because it comes ahead of the PlayStation 5’s expected launch next fall. And the last time Sony made an effort to court indie studios was at the beginning of the PlayStation 4. When that console launched in 2013, Sony had few first-party games. Instead, the publisher turned to indies to help fill out its release schedule. In recent years, however, PlayStation has deemphasized indies. Instead, the company is putting much more effort into talking about its own blockbuster releases. This has enabled Nintendo and Microsoft to swoop in and win over much of that community. For Nintendo, the Switch is an indie powerhouse. Smaller games regularly sell significantly better on Switch than PlayStation 4 or Xbox One. But for Microsoft, it has begun working to put many indie games into its Xbox Game Pass subscription service. Just this year, beloved hits like Outer Wilds, Void Bastards, and Lonely Mountain Downhill launched on that service. While Sony is likely more prepared for PlayStation 5 in terms of first-party games, it probably still sees indie studios as crucial to the launch of that console. Sony may not want to launch too many of its own exclusives on PS5 in the first year. Instead, it may wait until the device has more of install base. In the meantime, Yoshida can help fill out those early month with the helps of indie devs from around the world. GamesBeat's creed when covering the game industry is "where passion meets business." What does this mean? We want to tell you how the news matters to you -- not just as a decision-maker at a game studio, but also as a fan of games. Whether you read our articles, listen to our podcasts, or watch our videos, GamesBeat will help you learn about the industry and enjoy engaging with it. Discover our Briefings. Join the GamesBeat community! Enjoy access to special events, private newsletters and more. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Google Stadia will launch with 22 games on first day, up from just 12 last week | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2019/11/18/google-stadia-will-launch-with-22-games-on-first-day-up-from-just-12-last-week"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Google Stadia will launch with 22 games on first day, up from just 12 last week Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Google has a few colors for its Stadia controllers. Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. Google announced tonight that its Stadia cloud-gaming service will launch on November 19 (yes, Tuesday) with 22 titles, up from just 12 last week. I’m not sure what changed so fast to allow Google to add 10 more titles, but last week’s announcement of just 12 titles was greeted as a pathetic line-up. Now Stadia has a much broader set of games to please more gamers. “Alongside our publisher and developer partners, we’ve been working around the clock on getting ready for Stadia’s launch, and we are adding more incredible titles to our day one launch line-up,” the Stadia team said in an email. “Gamers will have a total of 22 titles available to choose from to experience Stadia for the first time on Tuesday, with more games coming by the end of the year.” In addition, gamers will be able to claim both Destiny 2: The Collection and Samurai Shodown as part of the November Stadia Pro subscription. Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! Stadia’s day one titles include: Assassin’s Creed Odyssey Attack on Titan: Final Battle 2 Destiny 2: The Collection (available in Stadia Pro) Farming Simulator 2019 Final Fantasy XV Football Manager 2020 Grid 2019 Gylt Just Dance 2020 Kine Metro Exodus Mortal Kombat 11 NBA 2K20 Rage 2 Rise of the Tomb Raider Red Dead Redemption 2 Samurai Shodown (available in Stadia Pro) Shadow of the Tomb Raider Thumper Tomb Raider 2013 Trials Rising Wolfenstein: Youngblood Additional games expected to be playable on Stadia by the end of the year include Borderlands 3, Ghost Recon: Breakpoint, Dragon Ball: Xenoverse, and Darksiders Genesis. Many more titles have been announced as coming to Stadia in 2020 including Doom: Eternal, WatchDogs: Legion, Gods & Monsters, and Cyberpunk 2077. GamesBeat's creed when covering the game industry is "where passion meets business." What does this mean? We want to tell you how the news matters to you -- not just as a decision-maker at a game studio, but also as a fan of games. Whether you read our articles, listen to our podcasts, or watch our videos, GamesBeat will help you learn about the industry and enjoy engaging with it. Discover our Briefings. Join the GamesBeat community! Enjoy access to special events, private newsletters and more. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Sony and fans fire back as Microsoft claims 'nobody's asking for VR' | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2019/11/26/sony-and-fans-fire-back-as-microsoft-claims-nobodys-asking-for-vr"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Sony and fans fire back as Microsoft claims ‘nobody’s asking for VR’ Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn PSVR. Virtual reality is either an important, transformative technology or a niche innovation that’s destined to be subsumed into “mixed reality” — no one’s quite sure yet. But two of the industry’s biggest players are now taking opposing positions on the subject, as executives from Microsoft and Sony have shared thoughts on whether users are actually interested in VR, and fans are weighing in with their own views. The flashpoint was a comment from Microsoft’s Xbox chief Phil Spencer , who reportedly downplayed VR as an “isolating” experience, and said that “nobody’s asking for VR” — at least, from his customer base. “The vast majority of our customers know if they want a VR experience, there’s places to go get those,” he explained, though he also said “nobody’s selling millions and millions” of VR headsets. For these reasons, the company isn’t planning to support VR on its next Xbox console, codenamed Project Scarlett. Spencer’s take apparently didn’t sit well with Sony’s Shuhei Yoshida , who led the company’s worldwide studios through much of the growth of PlayStation VR — a headset that has, in fact, sold well over 4 million units. This morning, Yoshida tweeted that “we oftentimes work hard to make things that no customers are asking for,” a fairly gentle retort that recalls the supposed quote from car pioneer Henry Ford , “if I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said faster horses.” On one hand, the companies’ respective positions are hardly a surprise at this point. Microsoft has placed its largest mixed reality bets on AR, releasing two Hololens headsets — solely for enterprise customers — while providing lukewarm support for Windows VR , and killing a nascent VR initiative for the Xbox One X. By contrast, Sony completely embraced VR for both its current- and next-generation PlayStation consoles. The company has promised that the existing PlayStation VR and its software will work on the new console, as well as teasing a next-generation VR headset for release after the PlayStation 5’s 2020 launch window. Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! The easiest way to square Spencer’s comments with reality is a literal but properly in-context interpretation of his words. He wasn’t necessarily saying that no one wanted VR — just not Xbox customers. And although his claim about “millions and millions” of headsets is inaccurate for Sony, it’s true about Microsoft’s Windows Mixed Reality platform, which opened PCs to any company interested in creating a VR headset. So many headsets were released as a consequence that consumers didn’t gravitate to just one model, leading virtually every company to fall short of the multi-million mark. Judging by responses on social media, VR fans aren’t pleased with Spencer’s take. Many of the replies to Yoshida’s tweet are praising Sony for having taken risks with virtual reality, and saying that regardless of consumer interest, PSVR “ sparked an interest ” in VR that will pay off in the next generation. “I’m asking for it and millions of others are,” said @JRPyznar. “VR is going to storm the gates next gen and Sony already has a massive foundation.” Tweets directed at Spencer’s “nobody’s asking” claim express similar sentiments. “How can you look at the data and say that?” asks @Slashim. “Have you not seen Oculus rise over the last decade? It’s the next frontier.” And numerous others are undercutting the suggestion that Xbox fans don’t want VR. “While I’m still getting the Scarlett, this is really frustrating,” says @iN7trepid. “I’m definitely one of those ‘nobodies’ who wants VR on my Xbox.” But not everyone disagrees with the Xbox head’s views. Some Xbox fan tweets have written off VR as unappealing or impractically priced for the console market. Similarly, Redditors on r/Xboxone are generally lining up behind Spencer, though there are some dissenters — and one commenter who reminds us that “Reddit is not a good indication for the mass market.” Regardless, it appears that Sony will have the console VR market largely to itself in the upcoming generation — unless, of course, Nintendo opts to take its VR efforts beyond the experimental (and largely mediocre ) Labo VR to a better level in the future. Thus far, the demand for VR hardware has depended considerably on compelling VR games, a point reinforced by the heightened interest in PC VR following the announcement of Half-Life: Alyx, so if Valve’s title gets people to buy VR headsets, perhaps that will be enough to change Microsoft’s mind. VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. Join the GamesBeat community! Enjoy access to special events, private newsletters and more. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"WhatsApp sues surveillance firm NSO for allegedly helping spies hack phones | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2019/10/29/whatsapp-sues-surveillance-firm-nso-for-allegedly-helping-spies-hack-phones"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages WhatsApp sues surveillance firm NSO for allegedly helping spies hack phones Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. ( Reuters ) — WhatsApp sued Israeli surveillance firm NSO Group on Tuesday, accusing it of helping government spies break into the phones of roughly 1,400 users across four continents in a hacking spree whose targets included diplomats, political dissidents, journalists, and senior government officials. In a lawsuit filed in federal court in San Francisco, messaging service WhatsApp, which is owned by Facebook, accused NSO of facilitating government hacking sprees in 20 countries. Mexico, the United Arab Emirates, and Bahrain were the only countries identified. WhatsApp said in a statement that 100 civil society members had been targeted and called it “an unmistakable pattern of abuse.” NSO denied the allegations. VB Event The AI Impact Tour Connect with the enterprise AI community at VentureBeat’s AI Impact Tour coming to a city near you! “In the strongest possible terms, we dispute today’s allegations and will vigorously fight them,” NSO said in a statement. “The sole purpose of NSO is to provide technology to licensed government intelligence and law enforcement agencies to help them fight terrorism and serious crime.” WhatsApp said the attack exploited its video calling system in order to send malware to the mobile devices of a number of users. The malware would allow NSO’s clients — said to be governments and intelligence organizations — to secretly spy on a phone’s owner, opening their digital lives up to official scrutiny. WhatsApp is used by some 1.5 billion people monthly and has often touted a high level of security, including end-to-end encrypted messages that cannot be deciphered by WhatsApp or other third parties. Citizen Lab, a cybersecurity research laboratory based at the University of Toronto that worked with WhatsApp to investigate the phone hacking, told Reuters that the targets included well-known television personalities, prominent women who had been subjected to online hate campaigns, and people who had faced “assassination attempts and threats of violence.” Neither Citizen Lab nor WhatsApp identified the targets by name. Governments have increasingly turned to sophisticated hacking software as officials seek to push their surveillance power into the furthest corners of their citizens’ digital lives. Companies like NSO say their technology enables officials to circumvent the encryption that increasingly protects the data held on phones and other devices. But governments only rarely talk about their capabilities publicly, meaning digital intrusions like the ones that affected WhatsApp typically happen in the shadows. Unprecedented move Lawyer Scott Watnik called WhatsApp’s move “entirely unprecedented,” explaining that major service providers tended to shy away from litigation for fear of “opening up the hood” and revealing too much about their digital security. He said other firms would be watching the progress of the suit with interest. “It could certainly set a precedent,” said Watnik, who chairs the cybersecurity practice at the Wilk Auslander law firm in New York. The lawsuit seeks to have NSO barred from accessing or attempting to access WhatsApp and Facebook’s services and seeks unspecified damages. NSO’s phone hacking software has already been implicated in a series of human rights abuses across Latin America and the Middle East, including a sprawling espionage scandal in Panama and an attempt to spy on an employee of the London-based rights group Amnesty International. NSO came under particularly harsh scrutiny over the allegation that its spyware played a role in the death of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi, who was murdered at the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul a little over a year ago. Khashoggi’s friend Omar Abdulaziz is one of seven activists and journalists who have taken the spyware firm to court in Israel and Cyprus over allegations that their phones were compromised using NSO technology. Amnesty has also filed a lawsuit, demanding that the Israeli Ministry of Defense revoke NSO’s export license to “stop it profiting from state-sponsored repression.” NSO has recently tried to clean up its image after it was bought by London-based private equity firm Novalpina Capital earlier this year. In August, NSO cofounder Shalev Hulio appeared on 60 Minutes and boasted his spyware had saved “tens of thousands of people.” He provided no details. NSO has also brought on a series of high-profile advisers, including former Pennsylvania governor Tom Ridge and Juliette Kayyem, a senior lecturer in international security at Harvard University. Last month, NSO announced it would begin abiding by U.N. guidelines on human rights abuses. VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Akamai: Fortnite ransomware scams should force developers and gamers to think about security | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2019/09/07/akamai-fortnite-ransomware-scams-should-force-developers-and-gamers-to-think-about-security"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Akamai: Fortnite ransomware scams should force developers and gamers to think about security Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Fortnite: Battle Royale Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. The game industry has long been a target for cybercriminals, and so it was no surprise in the past couple weeks to see the discovery of ransomware that attacks the accounts of Fortnite players. Cybersecurity firm Cyren found a free game hack tool, Syrk, that players download as a way to cheat in the game. But they discover it disables malware defenses and then deletes batches of the users’ files and encrypts them. To un-encrypt them, the player has to pay to receive a password. Akamai also noted that there is a big rise in credential stuffing attacks, where criminals use stolen identities in automated attacks that use brute force to break into accounts. From November 2017 to March 31, 2019, Akamai found 55 billion credential stuffing attacks. Gaming sites saw 12 billion of those attacks. No organization or gamer is immune. Gaming is a target because that’s where the money is today. I recently spoke about this with Nelson Rodriguez, global director of media industry strategy at Akamai. Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! Here’s an edited transcript of our interview. Above: Nelson Rodriguez is head of media strategy at Akamai. GamesBeat: Can you tell me more about what you’re doing? Nelson Rodriguez: Talking about the Fortnite scams, I think the key for us to talk about this is that we see it as very much a hygiene story. It’s a security hygiene story. It’s not like there’s much that Epic can do directly about it, or much that Akamai would be doing to prevent it from the perspective of a game, someone installing the wrong kind of software in their computer. I do think, though, that for us this raises the broader issue of what the popularity of games is creating in terms of security risk. You might remember from 10 or 15 years ago, the way folks got access to your computer was often through things like fake security scares or fake security software. Now games are such a rich way in. Players have such an incentive to try to maximize their experience with a game. Really, free-to-play is driving it more than anything. When it was a premium game, premium games didn’t have the mechanics that would encourage you to install some external piece of software to maximize your experience. But for free-to-play games, the way they’re built and designed, they lend themselves to manipulation, or at least the desire for players to have some kind of advantage. That’s relevant to us, what the popularity of games is doing to drive those kinds of threats. We think there is technology that all consumers and all companies should have in place on their computers, to prevent bad software from being installed, and to monitor the way your software is operating and behaving. Data exfiltration, that’s something that is relevant for us. But more than anything, game companies need to look at these trends to see — sure, it wasn’t your game that created this problem, but the popularity of your game is creating this dynamic where players want to go out and gain advantage outside of the game. It’s something everyone has to pay attention to. Above: Gamers are targets. GamesBeat: Did Akamai take a look at some data here as well, related to the Fortnite ransomware scams? Rodriguez: Our security team took a look to see what the nature of this threat is. We recognized it had nothing to do with the game. It looks a lot like typical ransomware. We look at it not from a statistics point of view, but a technology point of view. There is a stat angle, where game companies are the most attacked companies in the world, more attacked than defense contractors or financial services companies. Gaming companies are a really rich attack surface. That we know from a statistics point of view. From a technology point of view, we recognize that this particular exploit looks a lot like any other data exfiltration exploit. If you can get someone — think of it as a classic phishing scam. If somebody can get you to click on something because you think it’s going to do one thing and it ends up on your machine and does something else, we understand that technology. It’s preventable, particularly in a proper network environment where the network is monitoring — let me step back a second. A lot of what we think about security is outside in. Building a wall — this gets to the concept of zero trust. The historical model is, you build a wall and you make sure nobody can get inside the wall. The trick to that technique is, as soon as somebody gets inside the wall, they have full access to everything. One of the steps to having a zero trust approach to security — first of all, don’t assume the wall is going to protect everyone. Get away from this model of a wall. There is no such thing as a wall. Yes, you have access controls, but don’t assume that those controls will be foolproof. The next thing you have to do is evaluate inside out. Not just what’s trying to get in, but what’s trying to get out. That’s where a lot of these kinds of scams get revealed — if you monitor what is asking for access outside your computer that you didn’t drive, that wasn’t driven by the user. Not just what’s trying to get in, but what’s trying to get out. It’s like those classic horror movies. The killer is inside the house. That’s the thing. It’s not just what’s trying to break in from the outside, but what’s already inside your machine that’s trying to exfiltrate data. From a technical point of view, that’s what’s most interesting about this. Also, it just highlights the fact that having any trust in a login or authentication system is just old-fashioned. Nowadays you have to assume that no machine is safe. You have to be managing security at a machine level with a perspective toward — assume that if someone is logged in, they might already be infected. What are they pulling out? What’s leaving the machine or leaving the network? GamesBeat: Just on the basics, what did we have happen here? We had Fortnite accounts where players invested a lot of money being held hostage for some specific amount of money? They had to pay or lose the account. Rodriguez: Yeah, but the way it was happening is folks were trying to gain advantage. They gave over access to their accounts. It was classic ransomware. Above: Russia is a big sources of cyberattacks. GamesBeat: I remember there was one ransomware outbreak when bitcoin was starting to happen. Hospitals were getting attacked because they couldn’t back up their data anywhere else, and bitcoin payments were untraceable, especially in eastern Europe. I guess they’re just building on this style of attack that’s worked elsewhere? Rodriguez: For sure. There are a couple of ways to think of it. You can think of it as a classic con, a classic scam. First, is there some kind of weakness? Is there something somebody wants that they can’t get legitimately? If so, the scammer has the opportunity to offer that. That’s one facet of it. The next facet, is there an untraceable method or an ambiguity that allows the scammer to gain value without having to reveal who they are? That’s the blockchain component here. Being able to do it because you have an untraceable currency is part of what powers that kind of scam. GamesBeat: What are you telling people they should do? Just don’t click on it? Rodriguez: [laughs] One thing is, make sure that you are in a secure network environment. If it’s from work, does your workplace have the right protections in place at the computer level, at the login level, at the network level? That’s one thing to always have in mind. The other is very old-school, but if it seems too good to be true and it’s not being offered by the game publisher, then it’s not something that’s going to work out for you. I know there are secondary markets for all sorts of goods and services in gaming, but the fact is, if it’s not coming from the publisher, you’re opening yourself up to risk. I remember working at Xbox 13 years ago. We had to tell people, “Don’t share your Xbox Live account with anyone.” You can’t share it with your friends. If somebody sends you a message saying they can help you level up in a game, that never ends well. That’s the other thing you have to constantly remind people around. There’s no reason to do it, because in fact a lot of games now are designed well enough so that you can get a lot of value out of it within the game itself. There are all sorts of mechanics beyond just paying that allow you to unlock things. There’s no way to get that done illegitimately in a safe way. Above: Akamai is turning a spotlight on game security. GamesBeat: As far as Akamai itself, where are you contributing most here? Rodriguez: We’re now one of the world’s largest cloud security companies, which is funny if you think about us historically as a CDN. A lot of people think of us as a CDN, and yet we’re one of the largest security providers now. It’s one of our fastest-growing business segments. That means we’ve strongly adopted a zero trust stance, a zero trust philosophy, to our security. We encourage every company to make sure that there are multiple layers of security. You don’t ever make any assumptions that an authenticated or logged-in user is necessarily a safe user who has full access and whose machine or account hasn’t been compromised. We offer products in that category, but we also take a strong stance that there should be multiple layers of authentication, and even once someone is authenticated, that doesn’t mean they should have free access to every aspect of the network or of a given account. There have to be many layers. That’s our position as a security company that serves a lot of big gaming companies. We see ourselves as a consultant in the space. We have a strong opinion around it. It’s part of what we do with the products that we build. GamesBeat's creed when covering the game industry is "where passion meets business." What does this mean? We want to tell you how the news matters to you -- not just as a decision-maker at a game studio, but also as a fan of games. Whether you read our articles, listen to our podcasts, or watch our videos, GamesBeat will help you learn about the industry and enjoy engaging with it. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Lyft says ride-hailing price war with Uber is easing up | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2019/08/07/lyft-says-ride-hailing-price-war-with-uber-is-easing-up"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Lyft says ride-hailing price war with Uber is easing up Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Are you ready to bring more awareness to your brand? Consider becoming a sponsor for The AI Impact Tour. Learn more about the opportunities here. ( Reuters ) — Lyft on Wednesday said a price war with rival Uber was easing, boosting shares of both companies and allowing Lyft to raise its outlook for the year and forecast a faster path to profitability. Lyft said increased revenue per rider would lift both third-quarter sales and full-year revenue above Wall Street estimates. That sent Lyft shares up 5% and shares of Uber up 3.8% in after-hour trade. “We believe these price adjustments are an industry trend,” Chief Financial Officer Brian Roberts said on a call with analysts. He said 2018 was likely the peak of losses for Lyft, an improvement from the company’s previous target of reporting its biggest loss this year. Lyft shares temporarily turned negative after it announced plans to bring forward its lock-up period – the time after a public offering in which large shareholders are prohibited from selling shares – to Aug. 19 from Sept. 24. Lyft estimated that about 257.6 million shares could become eligible for sale when the trading restrictions ended. A loss of $2.23 per share in the quarter was worse than the $1.74 per-share loss expected, on average, by analysts, according to IBES data from Refinitiv. Still, Lyft’s raising its outlook for revenue and adjusted losses for the full year were “welcome signs,” said Wedbush analyst Ygal Arounian. Lyft’s 72% jump in revenue was fueled by more active riders, who spent about a quarter more than they had a year ago. Roberts said that pricing for rides had become “more rational” in the quarter, meaning that Lyft spends less on promotions to beat rival Uber. He also said that the company was focused on profitable growth, rather than growth at all costs. Shares of Lyft are down 25% since their market debut on March 29, erasing about $5 billion from its market capitalization, as investors continue to question whether the ride-hailing industry can be profitable. Lyft and larger rival Uber, both loss-making, have historically relied on heavy subsidization to attract riders. While the companies last quarter reported signs that price competition was easing, both are also spending to expand services into areas including self-driving technology for Lyft and food delivery for Uber. On average, Lyft received $39.77 in revenue from each of its nearly 22 million active riders in its second quarter as a public company, a 22% rise in revenue per rider and 41% increase in riders over the same period in 2018. Chief Executive Officer Logan Green said in a statement that 2019 losses would be “better than previously expected.” Lyft has said its ride-hailing services would be profitable in the future, without giving any timeline, while also warning regulators that as a company it might continue posting losses as it invests heavily in self-driving cars , renting scooters, and other ventures. The company forecast third-quarter revenue of $900 million to $915 million, above the average analyst estimate of $840.9 million. Lyft also raised its forecast for full-year revenue to between $3.47 billion and $3.5 billion, up from its prior range of $3.28 billion and $3.3 billion. Its revenue in the second quarter rose 72% to $867.3 million, above the average analyst estimate of $809.3 million, according to IBES data from Refinitiv. But its net loss widened to $644.2 million from $178.9 million a year earlier as costs more than doubled to $1.54 billion from a year earlier. On a per share basis, it narrowed to $2.23 per share from $8.48 per share, a year earlier, as the number of outstanding shares rose. Lyft, which beat Uber to go public first, operates in over 300 cities in the United States and Canada. Uber says it had over 30 million riders in 2018. VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Blake Harris talk -- How 'The History of the Future' almost didn't happen | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2019/03/16/blake-harris-talk-how-the-history-of-the-future-almost-didnt-happen"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Blake Harris talk — How ‘The History of the Future’ almost didn’t happen Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Palmer Luckey, founder of Oculus Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. Blake Harris is a historian of the video game wars. His first book — Console Wars: Sega, Nintendo and the Battle that defined a generation — came out in 2014 and it chronicled the fight between Sega and Nintendo in the 1990s as Sega stole a march on Nintendo with the launch of the Sega Genesis. The book was written in a dramatic way, and it was licensed for a film adaptation by Hollywood directors Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg. That book’s success let Harris quit his day job as a Wall Street trader, and it enabled him to research his newest book, The History of the Future: Oculus, Facebook, and the revolution that swept virtual reality. Harris spent more than four years on the book, with close access to Palmer Luckey, who founded Oculus as a 19-year-old living in a trailer in front of his parents’ house. After Facebook acquired Oculus in 2014 for nearly $3 billion, Harris was able to get exclusive access to the executive team to chronicle the revival of virtual reality. But after Luckey was let go in March 2017 and Facebook learned the inside story that Harris was picking up, he lost access. That made his work harder, but Harris persevered and published a 500-page tome on the story. In the book, we see the role that CEO Mark Zuckerberg played in Luckey’s departure, as well as the fraying of the relationship among the top leaders. We asked Facebook for a comment to some of the stories in the book, but did not receive a response. I attended a book reading that Harris gave in Mountain View, California, and this is a transcript of that session. In it, I asked some questions, as did members of the audience. I also did an interview with Harris that will run on another day. I found Harris’ talk, interview, and book to be very illuminating on the history that I covered on a day-to-day basis as a writer at GamesBeat. Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! Here’s an edited preview of our interview. Above: Blake Harris is the author of Console Wars and The History of the Future. Blake Harris: Ten years ago, or even seven years ago, I had a day job trading commodities for a financial brokerage in New York. I was working for Brazilian clients, trading coffee and soybeans and corn and all this stuff. When I first started out of college, it was fun. It was a lot like the movie Trading Places, with all that chaos. Then everything went electronic and it wasn’t very fun, but that gave me more time to daydream about writing. Throughout my 20s I was screenwriting on the side, very unsuccessfully. I ended up spending all the money I had saved up from this job making movies, also very unsuccessfully. One of the big turning points for me, a disappointing turning point, was that my screenwriting partner and I wrote a script called The Sordid Tales of an Evil Tyrannical Ex-Dictator. It was about a dictator who was overthrown from his country in Europe, comes to the United States, and works at a DMV in the Witness Protection Program. This was the script we were sure was going to finally break us and make us millions of dollars and launch our careers and let me wear shorts every day. Then, a week after we finished it and sent it to our manager, Sacha Baron-Cohen announced he was doing a movie called The Dictator. Everything we had put together was immediately worthless. I understood that. If I was a studio I’d much rather bet on Sacha Baron-Cohen, who has a great track record and is very funny, than me and my buddy Jonah. Around that time — I was probably 27 years old — I’d always been hoping to make it as a writer, I was starting to think that maybe wouldn’t happen. I guess I had always imagined somewhere in my mind — this was probably inspired by Dave Coulier on Full House — if I don’t make it by the time I was 30 or 35, I was going to give this up, it was never going to happen. But I was always going to write, and since I was going to do that, I wanted to make sure to write things I really love, because there’s always a possibility that Sacha Baron-Cohen might be working on a similar project, and what I’m doing might end up being–not worthless, but commercially not viable. As seems to often be the case when I’ve interviewed people who found success, the one project that I set out to do with no monetary goal in mind was the one that ended up being successful. It doesn’t always work that way, but it tends to be in the ballpark. This was the one I did purely out of passion and not to try to fit some template of an action comedy about a dictator. Above: The Oculus Rift. Before I even set out to write Console Wars, I really just wanted to read it. I grew up in the ‘80s and ‘90s. I now, as an adult, love behind the scenes business stories. I remember going to a Barnes and Noble on 86th Street in Manhattan — I live in New York — and asking where the video game history section was, thinking it would be near the music history or film history. Then I learned that there was no such section in the store, and there wasn’t even a single book in the store about video games, the history of video games, the business of video games. The only somewhat related thing they had were walkthrough guides. That just seemed very odd to me. At the time I hadn’t played games in many years, but I knew it was a big industry. I liked watching other people play. I’m very bad at video games, which is partly why I don’t play all that much. But I love the industry and I love what’s being done out there. And so, again, before even really imagining that there was a project here, I just started trying to get in touch with Sega and Nintendo employees from the early ‘90s. My biggest worry was that–as a kid growing up I imagined that working at Sega or Nintendo was like working at Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory. Although I guess the working conditions weren’t that great there. Like going to his factory, maybe. I would talk to these people and they would say, “No, working at Sega and Nintendo was just like any job, punching a time card.” But almost everyone I spoke with, especially in the beginning, they described it as the greatest experience of their lives. That was inspiring to me. I ended up accumulating more and more contacts and starting to put together an outline and a story. Console Wars is essentially a narrative, a case study, of how Sega went from five percent of the market to 55 percent of the market and toppled Nintendo’s monopoly, and then shot straight back down. The rising part of that trajectory, there’s a lot of business lessons I learned. One of them was that Sega did a really good job of identifying that they were an unknown, as was I, and they aligned themselves with younger celebrities who would help their brand. I literally googled for celebrity gamers and Seth Rogen’s name came up. He was definitely out of my league. I didn’t expect to hear back from him. But I knew this guy liked Nintendo, probably also liked Sega, so I had my manager send him a copy of a treatment I put together. Miraculously, he was interested in meeting. I met with him and his partner Evan Goldberg in January of 2012, seven years ago now, and I remember meeting with them on a Thursday. Not only was it surreal and unusual to be hobnobbing with someone who I knew from the movies, but I remember thinking, “Wow, this is the first time I’ve ever had a meeting with an actual decision-maker.” I’d always met with creative executives that would end up with us telling each other that our people would call each other and nothing would happen. At the end of that meeting–we spoke for a couple of hours, and then later that day I got a call that Seth wanted to produce a movie based on the book that I hadn’t written yet. But I had interviewed about 100 people, so I had a good sense of the story. He also wanted to produce a documentary. That was amazing and life-changing. I remember going back to my commodities job four days later on Monday and thinking, “Wait, my life was supposed to change, but I’m back to work at 6:30.” Eventually Scott Rudin joined the project, and we ended up going out with the book proposal. Flash forward a bit from here, but the last note here was that I remember, when we went out with the book proposal, that even with this great package of people who were way more successful than I was, who were making movies and documentaries based on this–we went to 25 publishers, and 22 of them passed because they said video game books don’t sell. I remember thinking that was a weird thing to say. That’s a segue way to saying that if anyone out there is interested in writing a video game book, I always try to make myself available to provide advice, because I thought that was a pretty crazy thing for them to say. I’m glad that Console Wars sold well, and I like reading video game books, so if you have an idea, get in touch. That came out in May 2014. It was a very big, life-changing experience for me. I quit my day job. I remember telling my manager that it was kind of sad that I would never write a book as good as Console Wars, and he said, “No, you’ll keep getting better with each book.” I said, “Well, I hope so, but I’ll never find a topic that has such a convergence of pop culture, technology, entertainment, larger than life personalities, and billions of dollars.” It remains to be seen whether VR and the legacy of Oculus will come anywhere close to Sega and Nintendo, but I did end up sinking my teeth into this story, spending three and a half years working on it. I think the earliest memory I have of it was–because this was such a big deal, that I had a book coming out, it was also a very big deal when someone wanted to write an article about me. I think the first publication to contact me was Popular Mechanics. They did a profile on me. It was such a big deal that my dad came to the photo shoot. Everyone in my family was super excited about it. The issue came out on Mother’s Day of 2014, so I slipped out of Mother’s Day brunch to get an issue of Popular Mechanics. I was so excited to finally see myself. Before I even got to that point, though, I was so interested in what was on the cover, which was Palmer Luckey, the founder of Oculus, and this cover story about how his company had sold to Facebook for a few billion dollars. I was somewhat familiar with Oculus, but I never stopped to pay much attention to it. I thought it was a good sign when I was heading back to the restaurant and not giving my mom the issue with her son in it because I was captivated by the story about Oculus. After that, I knew that I wanted to write a book about Oculus, or in the near future I suspected that would be something I’d like to do. But also, to tell the stories in the way I liked to tell them, it requires really credible access to the people involved. I want to be able to place readers in the room with them, on their shoulders, in their heads. It took me about 14 months from my first visit to Oculus to get permission from Oculus and Facebook to be introduced to anyone at the company and set up interviews. That finally happened in February 2016. This was one month before Oculus launched the Rift product, CB1. I felt like I was right there, on the precipice of something great. My last book was a rise and fall story, and I thought this one was just going to be upward to the top of the world. That’s not how it turned out. I wouldn’t say this has been a rise and fall story, but I think anyone who’s interested in VR has been a little surprised by how it played out over the past few years. Also, the fact that the main character, one who appeared on the cover of Popular Mechanics and inspired my interest, he was no longer at the company within less than a year. It turned the book upside down. But as writers we go where the story takes us. I tried to follow that story when it went to places I never imagined I’d be writing about, particularly politics and crazy sub-Reddits. Above: Oculus Quest fine print: “Neon circles not included.” This book took three and a half years. This was three and a half years of me working full time on it. Console Wars took three years, but I had a day job for two of those. It was not the emotional investment that this one was. Because this one got into politics, and a lot of times politics I don’t agree with, it was pretty exhausting. I kind of can’t believe it’s finished. It was a running joke between me and my wife — or not a joke, because she didn’t find it funny at all — that I’d be done with the book in the next couple of weeks, because I said that every week or so for two and a half years. She deserves a huge award. I wish she were here. She got the dedication in this book. My mom was pretty upset about that, but Katie really deserved it. The publisher didn’t sign up for this three-and-a-half year project either. They expected the book to be done in 18 months. For the most part they were supportive. There were some ups and downs. Because I didn’t turn it in on time — I ended up turning it in two years later — that was two years I wasn’t getting paid. My wife was wonderful enough to financially support me during that time. I’m glad she did. I’m glad I didn’t take the easy way out of just trying to finish the book for the sake of fulfilling a contract. I made sure to get to the bottom of the topics I was investigating. Question: There was a post that went on your Reddit AMA where you mentioned that at a certain point, Facebook pulled access due to something they saw in one of the advance copies you sent them. Would you be able to talk about that? Harris: Oh, yeah. It wasn’t an advance copy. In general, I’ve always tried to be very open and transparent and semi-collaborative with the people whose stories I’m writing, because I feel like they’re owed that much. Obviously that doesn’t mean they’ll have editorial approval over what I write, but I find that sharing with them–at worst they can give me feedback I disagree with. But often it spurs other ideas. Early on, or I guess throughout the two years of my relationship with Facebook, we had a pretty good relationship. I shared materials with them and the people involved. When it came to the issue of Palmer Luckey, the founder of Oculus, and his not being at the company anymore–for those who are unfamiliar with him and his exit from Facebook, the short version is that in September 2016, he made a $10,000 donation to a pro-Trump organization. That organization’s goal was to put up billboards across the country, meme-like billboards, a very internet-inspired organization. Their objective had nothing to do with the internet, but the way the story was reported was that, essentially, Palmer and this group had been responsible for all the crazy shit you’d see on the internet, all the hateful, misogynist, anti-Semitic stuff from the past election season. That wasn’t true, but it certainly felt true, if you were on social media, because it kept being reported and referenced in articles reporting the same thing. From that point on Palmer was basically sidelined at Oculus for six months, and then he exited the company. There were not too many details when that happened, in March 2017. I had come to know Palmer pretty well through where I was at this point in the project. I knew that it wasn’t his choice to leave. But initially Facebook declined to comment about what happened. Then, after I continued sharing material with them, I told them, frankly, my biggest concern with the book was Palmer’s exit and how to handle it. I couldn’t have one of the main characters in the book just disappear and say, “Whoops, that was the end.” I needed to provide some explanation. Eventually I did get an explanation from a handful of people on a pretty senior level, people who could speak on behalf of the company. I came to believe that that explanation was fictional. They were going so far as to say that he chose to leave the company, which I would bet my life is not true. Some other details seemed to not add up. I started thinking about why they were telling me this and not just saying, “No comment,” or presenting a more plausible story. I was thinking that because of my narrative non-fiction writing style, which intentionally does not attribute specific information to sources, I felt like they were essentially trying to launder misinformation through that style. I was hearing the same story from multiple people, having it confirmed. Palmer couldn’t talk to me, or wasn’t talking to me, I assume, because he was legally gagged from doing so. I felt I was being used to put this information out there. I ended up sending a chapter that was just a straight-up question and answer transcript with one of the people there, to see how they would react when their names were put on this material. The conversation was on the record. The irony of the conversation I sent was that, in the conversation, I had asked this person if they felt that Palmer had been treated poorly by journalists who broke the news about him, because the conversation with the journalists had been off the record, and then this person said said, “No, no, it’s not off the record unless you specifically get a journalist to agree it’s off the record.” I thought that if there was any doubt about it, this was certainly not an off the record conversation. After I shared that with them, the situation escalated to a whole different bunch of people who I had no relationship with. They asked me not to publish that. They gave me a different story about why Palmer was fired, having to do with bad performance reviews, which I also knew was not true. Also, around that time, the head of AR and VR at Oculus told all the employees not to speak with me anymore. That was pretty much the end of that relationship. I felt like I was lied to, and also I was no longer able to speak with employees. A lot of them continued to speak with me, of course, because they were not happy with the situation. 1 2 3 View All Join the GamesBeat community! Enjoy access to special events, private newsletters and more. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"The future of computing and games | Page 2 of 3 | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/business/the-future-of-computing-and-games/2"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages The future of computing and games Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn TIFCA is trying to figure out the future of computing. Above: Google Stadia Controller Shih: Obviously we see things like cloud streaming for games — Stadia, Xbox, PlayStation, and everyone else starting services. But in any kind of app development is very tricky, and games especially. Games have FPS requirements, physics, rendering, all these components. Even if you have 5G, it’s a very hard experience to pull off. However, I think the trend is that we’re going to start to see devices that are basically clones, and then you’re starting to see a lot more improvement from a cloud infrastructure perspective. Things like 5G and the underlying platforms will get better. We’ll see that more on the app development side. We’re already starting to see that in gaming. You’ll start to see that with all kinds of mobile development. MacLean: Every person on the planet, I believe, should love playing games. But they’re not going to love playing every game. There is no way that my 70-year-old aunt, who spends hours of every day playing mobile games, is going to enjoy a session with Dark Souls III. It’s not going to happen. One of the things we have to be conscious of when we think about democratization of any type of technology service, are we creating a service that is accessible and approachable to consumers? Are we giving them a good experience? Are we giving them joy, entertainment, an emotional connection, and emotional resonance? A lot of the experiences we create, whether they’re games or other types of technology, are not accessible to a mass market. Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! One of our challenges, when we think about democratization, which I’m sure is used in every investor pitch ever and is a great buzzword — are we really, truly solving customer problems? Are we making a great customer experience? Are we making somebody’s life better? I think that as an industry, we have a ways to go there. Above: The Unity Obstacle Tower Challenge offered $100,000 in prizes for solving AI problems. GamesBeat: Bebo was one of the first webmasters in the United States. You brought up, in our pre-call here, that you were interested in the decentralized web. I wonder why that is. Do you see computing technologies like decentralization as being the thing that will get you there? Why is that important to you? White: I’d first like to make a comment as far as the client versus cloud. I’m definitely in favor of cloud in that sense. People brought up the idea about leveraging the capability of the clients that you have. I’m a firm believer in the concept of bringing your own device, and then allowing people to not have a diminished access to resources, but then being able to access those resources in a way that’s most familiar to them. That’s part of democratization in that case. If a smartphone is what you have, for one reason or another, or if that’s what you prefer, for one reason or another, you shouldn’t be made to feel like a second-class citizen. GamesBeat: So technology should evolve to a point where it doesn’t matter what you’re connecting with. White: Just so long as you have access to the services that you want, in that case. In terms of your question about the decentralized web, basically the idea there is allowing people, users, to regain access to their own personal data. Which, unfortunately, due to the rapid evolution of the web, they’ve lost in some ways. Allowing them to not only have control over their data, but letting them do things like dictate the use and the monetization of their data, those kinds of things. There’s a lot of characteristics of decentralized systems that more closely support that. There’s also, in this case — the web was originally a centralized system. That’s why we get 404s when something is not found. Wouldn’t it be nice, in a decentralized system, never to get a 404 again? Because the data is there. You’re not relying on the presence or the absence of a resource. Shih: Blockchain has become a good example of a decentralized system. White: Exactly. We’re going to talk about that tomorrow. You’re exactly right. But I think that’s a different issue. Blockchain is an example of a technology that could lead to a decentralized web. But I think you could certainly have all the characteristics of decentralized web without the adoption of something like blockchain. Rehbock: It’s interesting that from a futurist standpoint, when you look at the panel here — AWS is the notion of accessibility of a server to anybody that needs one at any time, and ease of bringing it up. Five or 10 years ago, you had to be in the know to know who the rack space guys were and get a server up. Now, if you have an Amazon Prime account, you get AWS access. The bottom line is, AWS is access. Dell, going back to the original Dell ads on the back cover of PC Magazine, was about accessibility of PCs to people. I used to order PCs for my company in Chicago from Michael Dell in his dorm room. The bottom line was, the notion of Dell fundamentally was accessibility to a builder of PCs so you didn’t have to be in the know yourself. And Unity is about accessibility of being creative around games. God knows, the internet period, just the accessibility of data. The summary is that — we’re using democratization as the buzzword, but accessibility is what the future is all about. Above: Our futurist panel at TIFCA. MacLean: One of the things I get excited about in our own services is Sagemaker, which is the easiest-to-use machine learning service that we offer through AWS. What that means fundamentally is that at a 10-person game development shop, you can use machine learning to make your game better without having a PhD in data science or AI on your team. That’s the kind of accessibility that’s going to come with the next generation. It’s not just access to physical resources, or even the cloud. It becomes access to the services that we’re building on top of the cloud, like machine learning and AI. The backbone of Alexa is available to any AWS customer. That’s amazing when you think about being able to create great customer experiences, because you have access to an amount of technology that was unimaginable 10 years ago. White: I think there’s also some social responsibility in there, in the sense that — if somebody has the crazy notion that they’re going to do Bitcoin mining on AWS, they’re in for a big surprise, because it’s not going to be a good return on their investment. I think Amazon makes that perfectly clear as far as the limitations of their infrastructures. MacLean: We make our user agreements clear and we help our customers to understand them. GamesBeat: There’s this interesting theme of centralization and decentralization in computing technology, but there’s also the same sort of tug of war that happens in politics and industry. If you centralize an industry too much, you wind up with anti-trust cases. If you decentralize your politics, you get democracy. It feels like all of these things are intertwined in some way. The funny thing is that centralizing computing in a company like Amazon can actually decentralize an industry by giving indie game developers a chance to access technology. White: My comment about that, in terms of decentralization — I think we’re not talking, for one thing, in terms of breaking up, as it were, the large — it has characteristics of a monopoly. 1 2 3 View All Join the GamesBeat community! Enjoy access to special events, private newsletters and more. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"The future of computing and games | Page 3 of 3 | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/business/the-future-of-computing-and-games/3"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages The future of computing and games Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn TIFCA is trying to figure out the future of computing. Above: Amazon Echo Loop GamesBeat: I think we’ve agreed to say “tech giants.” White: Basically, if nothing else, it’s going to improve your relationship to understand your contract with them, in the sense of saying, for social media, they’re not going to be able to use my personal data willy-nilly, but I am possibly willing to sell it to you. Something of that nature. Really having a greater understanding of the relationship. It’s not about totally shutting them out. That’s not one of the goals of the decentralized web. Radburn: As far as centralization and decentralization, we’ve always been on a constant kick of iteration, iteration, iteration. We were centralized in mainframes, and then we were decentralized to the edge. The time frames are getting shorter and shorter. But where we are now is, it gets hard to tell whether we’re centralized or decentralized. When we actually look at the cloud, the cloud says, hey, everything’s going out there. Now we’re moving to 5G, and your data has to be co-located with a 5G antenna, because otherwise you have that latency in accessing your data remotely. Now I have to have copies of all my data from that central source out at the edge so that I can access it immediately and get the response times I need. Is that centralizing my data, or decentralized? I haven’t quite gotten my head around that one yet. Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! Rehbock: The bigger issue is really ownership of the data, rather than centralized versus decentralized. One of the big things that we do at Shadow is that every user has 100 percent control. Shadow has no access to your copy of Windows or to any of the games you have. It’s your little virtual machine. When you’re logged in, that gets mounted to a GPU and a CPU, but when it’s shut down it’s encrypted. Nobody, not even customer support, has access to it. It’s a very weird thing, because for Shadow users, when they need customer support, you have to use Windows Remote Desktop to get there to help them. But that’s important. Even though the computing is centralized, the ownership of the Windows instance and the data is sacred. That’s what it comes down to. At AWS, you have your AWS instance, and it’s your machine. Jeff Bezos doesn’t have access to any of it. MacLean: And we have encryption tools to make sure that our customers always retain control over their data. Rehbock: Exactly. I think that’s where the mindset is, which puts it in a pretty good place. MacLean: And I think it has to be. If you’re a cloud infrastructure provider, understanding that the customer’s data is always the customer’s data is absolutely important to your business. It becomes a more interesting case — “interesting” as in we need to talk about it a lot more as a society — when we look at what Bebo mentioned earlier about how people are using our personal data. Not every company is ethical about how they’re using your personal data. They’re certainly not transparent about how they’re using your personal data. Even with the advent of things like GDPR — it still means that your personal data is being used in ways that you’re not aware of and that you may object to, or that may not come with what you see as fair and reasonable compensation. Above: Blade promises quality Shadow cloud gaming on any device. Question: It’s a futurist panel, and you’ve been painting a rosy picture of the future so far. When you give this kind of power to the masses, with that comes great responsibility, and there are a lot of irresponsible people in the world. What do you foresee as the most negative things that can come out of this kind of power, and what do you think we should do to try to overcome that? MacLean: One of the big things I worry about is how we’re empowering very bad behavior in multiplayer games. You can be a terrible gamer in a multiplayer game online and face no consequences. As a woman in games, I’ve seen what that means outside of games. No one should ever experience death threats or rape threats because they make video games, and yet we see that happening to game developers. That’s not acceptable. As an industry, we need to take a much harder stance on what we think is acceptable, because fundamentally, what you allow in your community, what you allow in your game, sends an implicit message about what’s allowed in your contact with other human beings. Radburn: From my perspective it’s a case of checks and balances. You mentioned earlier about introducing technology as fast as we possibly can. I think due diligence needs to be done along the way, because we don’t know what we don’t know. The onus is on us to find out what we don’t know, to ensure that there’s no longer-term effect. A case in point would be with VR. We don’t market to anybody under the age of 13. When account managers come to me saying, “Hey, we have this great educational thing for K-12,” as long as K is involved, we say no. We’re hitting that 13-year-old and up. We all need, as an industry, to be responsible for that. There’s the potential for psychological harm. We already know that VR can affect the mind, because we use it as a sedative, to treat PTSD, to work with autism, whatever. It could also have negative effects as well. We as an industry need to police that. We need to make sure that everybody upholds that same standard, and make sure that we don’t give ourselves problems in the future because of our reckless abandon to make a buck. Shih: I think a lot of problems could be prevented with better positioning and better policy. We talk about the possibility of negative uses of AI or machine learning, and if you look around, there’s really no policy or standards. It’s the role of government to have these debates and create better policy, because asking a lot of companies to just self-police is a little optimistic. White: In terms of bad behavior, to give another example, there are cases where we’re not talking about technology. I’m not sure that people want to have computer scientists develop a code of ethics for them, something of that nature. Now, I have trust in the community to self-regulate. In terms of governing behavior, the way you suggest, unfortunately I see that as being one more step toward censorship. I think people can make their choices, and I can give an example of that quickly. A number of you are probably familiar with the Internet Archive, the goal of which is to archive all the content on the web. But they have consciously chosen not to archive pornography, not to archive hate sites or anything of that nature. They have taken it on their own initiative to do that. I think, once again, it’s got to be a decision that cannot actually have, through its consequences, the potential to support arguments for censorship or anything of that nature. I believe in government regulations, but it’s a slippery slope, and it doesn’t have a technical solution. One other thing that I think is quite possible, and a strength of the decentralized web, is provenance. Being able to establish the validity of something, being able to establish the goal of something — if this is coming from a particular site, you understand the probability of it being true. The expansion of those sorts of ideas is something we can do a lot more with. Rehbock: If I were Disney, and I made a theme park, and I built a ride that encouraged people to sling racial epithets at each other, or misogynistic comments, all across the ride, society would not allow that. Yet we have that, unfortunately, in the digital playgrounds that many developers have set up. That’s a bit scary. Would you consider it censorship? I don’t know. But we’re on a slippery slope there as well. MacLean: We not only allow it in those digital playgrounds, but we allow it in their surrounding community spaces. We allow it on major social media platforms. I don’t know if anyone else in this room has experienced harassment on Twitter. Did you report it? What happened? It went into the ether. Even when there are policies in place, if the platform doesn’t have the will to enforce it — which is often a business decision — those policies aren’t relevant. GamesBeat: I subscribe to this notion that the road to hell is paved with good intentions. Who would have thought that the internet would have led to Facebook and Cambridge Analytica? I like these notes of caution, like Kurt Vonnegut’s line about how we are who we pretend to be, so we must be careful who we pretend to be. Technology has a way of being very unpredictable as far as its consequences. White: I have no doubt that Facebook had great intentions to start off. Somehow they got lost along the way. Rehbock: Oh, I don’t think they had that great of intentions. Mark Zuckerberg wanted to find a date for the weekend. White: In any case, the chickens have come home to roost. Bringing people together is not bad. Facebook is not bad. If you’re 75 or 80 years old, that might be an important part of your social interaction. The concept is not bad. But it’s in how it’s allowed itself to be used. Above: Unity’s game engine can be used to create more than just games. GamesBeat: Facebook’s concept of using real names seemed like a great idea to hide all the problems of anonymity, but then that allows us to have our privacy invaded. Radburn: Every major technology along the line has been used in some form or another that wasn’t what was originally intended. Question: You hit the nail on the head in more ways that you realize, I think, when you talked about accessibility. Each panelist represents an element of accessibility. The cloud, the client, the tools, the platform. What do you think about what needs to happen for this next computing era to happen? White: Certainly one thing that happened in the early days of the web, it was basically the wild west, without leadership and without standards, and certainly that has led to a lot of its problems. Also, combine that with the fact that it was pretty naive. People had great aspirations how it could be used. Nobody had ever dreamt about things like cyberbullying on the web, or even security issues on the web. It’s a case in point. Even though it seems like a good idea, and there’s the whole issue around the fear of missing out, we have to tread quite carefully in terms of development. Otherwise, the web is a great example of how something can get totally out of hand. MacLean: There are people who would have thought about cyberbullying on the web. Any woman who’s ever been whistled at as she walks down the street probably could have told you what would happen in chat rooms. Any person who’s had a racial epithet yelled at them could have told you what would happen in a chat room. One of the fundamental flaws in our industry and our community is that we’re not diverse. We don’t have people who’ve had that diversity of experiences at the table and making a point, particularly in the development of new technologies like AI. We know what’s going to happen, because we’ve lived it. That’s something we all need to do better, because otherwise we’ll repeat the same mistakes. GamesBeat: There’s a good point to be made there about how you can’t see what’s around you when you’re inside a bubble. We have this all the time in Silicon Valley. We have all these great bubbles. We have the esports bubble right now, and it seems like it’s going to be the next great thing and we’ll all make billions of dollars from it. But when that bubble pops, you realize in hindsight what was really happening. White: I will say that I think the web has a bright future. It’s going through a mid-life crisis now. But I think a lot of people are committed to it. I’m hopeful that it’s going to continue to be a defining force. I have a 14-year-old kid, and she’s what’s referred to as a digital native. They haven’t known a world without this. Certainly in the case of whatever future that we have, we have to be cognizant of the fact that we can’t necessarily just talk about the next generation. We’re talking about the generation that’s already in it, and how we can change their experience. Radburn: I think we’re realizing the ramifications of being free and easy with our data. We’re thinking about how to get that genie back into the bottle around things like decentralization and all the rest, so that you can control who has it, who uses it, who monetizes it. MacLean: I talked about using technology to build emotional connections. I think we do need to do that. I have more than a thousand friends on Facebook, probably too many, but many of them are people who live on the other side of the planet, or who I haven’t seen physically in 20 years, and I feel like we’re still friends. I know about my friend Leslie’s dog Moose and how he’s this great old retired police dog. I know about my friend Emily being named to the New Zealand Game Developers Association. It gets back to, are we using technology to build those emotional connections and make the world a better place? And often, maybe not often enough, but often, the answer is yes. I’m grateful to live in a world where that’s possible. 1 2 3 View All GamesBeat's creed when covering the game industry is "where passion meets business." What does this mean? We want to tell you how the news matters to you -- not just as a decision-maker at a game studio, but also as a fan of games. Whether you read our articles, listen to our podcasts, or watch our videos, GamesBeat will help you learn about the industry and enjoy engaging with it. Discover our Briefings. Join the GamesBeat community! Enjoy access to special events, private newsletters and more. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

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Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. Sometimes it’s good to think about the future. And that’s what a group of thinkers did at The International Future Computing Association , which held a conference recently at the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, California. The event was about the coming era of any place, any time, and any device user experiences delivered both on devices and via the cloud. To make this happen, we need a full ecosystem of partners across computing, immersive technology, content and applications, and infrastructure, according to TIFCA, which is chaired by partners such as Intel, Advanced Micro Devices, and M2 Insights. TIFCA’s executive director is Neil Schneider, who is also the founder of Meant to be Seen. I moderated a panel at the event with a group of industry veterans. We asked them to toss out their day job concerns and be futurists for an afternoon. Our panelists included Jen MacLean, head of worldwide business development for small-and-mid-sized game studios at Game Tech at Amazon Web Services; Bebo White, department associate emeritus at SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory at Stanford University; Bill Rehbock, head of content partnerships for Blade Group/Shadow; Jeffrey Shih, lead product manager for AI at Unity Technologies; and Gary Radburn, director of virtually everything Dell. We opened it up by asking them what computing will deliver to them in their dreams, and how we will get to that future in terms of the client, cloud, application, and infrastructure technology that will be needed. We wandered all over the place in our conversation, but I enjoyed the journey, and I hope you do too. Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! Here’s an edited transcript of our panel. And if you prefer, I have embedded a video of the conversation as well below. Above: Left to right: Futurist panelists Bebo White, Bill Rehbock, Dean Takahashi, Gary Radburn, Jeffrey Shih, and Jen MacLean. Jen MacLean: I’m the head of worldwide business development for AWS game tech for small and mid-sized studios. I’ve been in game development and technology in some way, shape, or form for more than 25 years. I don’t know that anyone has ever accused me of providing “dreamy” wisdom before, but I’ll do my best. Gary Radburn: I’m from Dell. I’m director of virtualization, virtual reality. I’ve been in the industry for a very long time. I’m looking forward to speaking on that today. Jeff Shih: I’m lead product manager for AI at Unity. Most of my background is AI and machine learning research. At Unity, obviously, we focus a lot on AI in gaming. Bebo White: I’m emeritus at the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory at Stanford, which is the national lab behind physics and basic energy scientist. I’m a computational physicist. Bill Rehbock: I head developer relationships for a company called Blade Group that produces the Shadow PC streaming service. I go all the way back to–the first trade show I ever worked at was the summer CES in 1978 demoing Star Raiders on the Atari 800. I worked for Atari. I was at Nvidia for 15 years. GamesBeat: What we’ll start with is, what dreamy thing do you want computing to accomplish for you? A little later we’ll get to what you need to get there, or how you might actually shoot that dream down. But let’s start with Bill. What’s the thing that you really want computing to do for you? Rehbock: I would say that the biggest win that we could see in the industry in the next, hopefully, five to 10 years, maybe 15, is that the internet of entertainment finally gets to the point where it’s truly ubiquitous. We had the conversation earlier with a lot of people in the room and up on stage over the course of the day saying that they’re not gamers. Which is still weird in this day and age, that there’s a stigma associated with being a gamer. It would be like going to the VSDA show, the big linear content show, and hearing people say, “Well, I don’t watch movies.” Interactive entertainment could be democratized to the point that it becomes very accessible to everybody, so that it isn’t just people who can afford $2,000 PCs who are talking about raytracing and stuff like that. What we talk about today as being the cutting edge can become more commonplace. That would serve us all better, both from an education standpoint, as well as for our entertainment. White: I’m going to respond a bit to what you said about gaming. When I first heard about coming to this, that was my response. What do I know about games? But one thing I certainly learned today is the way in which the gaming ecosystem, as it were, really does encompass a lot more issues, a lot more fundamental issues, than simply entertainment. But in terms of my dreams? I’m going to agree with your consensus that I look forward to that true ubiquitousness. One of my bigger dreams is basically thinking about computing as a utility, just like the lights or the water or anything of that nature. A utility that basically becomes a human right and is available to everyone. GamesBeat: I think Amazon has created that, except they charge for it. MacLean: That’s not true! We have a free tier. Shih: For me, it’s the intersection of AI systems and human interaction in the space of education and entertainment. I think there’s a lot of untapped potential in our human abilities that can be unlocked by having a lot of AI systems unlocking our abilities for us. I’m excited about a future our own potential is revealed by better compute, better design, better algorithmic systems. When I’m much older, hopefully I’ll be a much improved, much better version of myself. GamesBeat: You want to hack yourself. Shih: Yes, exactly! Above: FundamentalVR trains surgeons with virtual reality. Radburn: For me it’s really about, first of all, the media and entertainment industry, where they actually take the technology into new directions and really push the envelope. Where I’m standing, it’s really impacting health care. We deal a lot in the industry with people who are now using VR and AR in training surgeons, the treatment of PTSD, autism, giving people awareness of dementia or physical diseases inside of them. All of this is brought about by work that’s being done in service of getting people out of the house and entertaining them, whether it be in film, digital techniques there, or the creation of VR pieces. Taking all of that and putting it into a package that makes something good for humankind. Gamification is a big thing. One of the examples is doing your exercises. People go for physiotherapy and they have to do this repetitive movement 15 or 20 times in the evening before you go to bed. Oh, I’ll skip that. But if you can put a headset on and play a game, do something where you actually do that, but you don’t know you’re doing it, then that can only be a good thing. I’m looking forward to that more and more. MacLean: I’d love to see us use computing to build emotional connections with other people. I’d love to see us use computing to address some of the fundamental inequalities that we’re struggling with globally. Fundamentally, I think we should be using computing to make a better place. We shouldn’t hold ourselves to any lesser yardstick. GamesBeat: It’s interesting that nobody really said, “I want to have all the technology come as fast as it can.” Make it happen without regard to the impact it has. Is that fair to say? White: I think a couple of people have made the comment that just because we can do it, it doesn’t mean that we should do it, in terms of the capabilities we have. Which one of those should be the driving factor for future computing? Is it simply the growth of the technology, or our ability to use it in a productive way? MacLean: It’s also interesting to think about how computing actually has a cost, a physical, tangible cost in terms of energy consumption. Everyone in this room, I’m sure, is very aware of climate change. Again, when we think about resources, is using computing in a certain way the best way to use a resource? We’ve had the luxury of not having to think about that, and there are companies, including Amazon, that are making a commitment to renewable energy for computing. But we also have to move past the idea that computing is free, because it’s not. Above: Real-time ray tracing scene on Nvidia RTX. GamesBeat: We can switch it up a bit and ask you about some of the how, how you would get to the things you want. Maybe in the context of the client or the cloud. Bill, you’re at a cloud gaming company. I assume you’d say cloud is going to be very important to where you want entertainment to go. Rehbock: When I was at Nvidia, I was there when they originally made GeForce Grid, multi-core GeForce and Nvidia’s streaming service. I had a lot of internal arguments there, because I was running developer relations at Nvidia and trying to figure out how cloud computing and cloud gaming for Nvidia could come together more quickly. The challenge I presented to both Jensen Huang and the GeForce Grid team was, well, this whole notion of containerized gaming and cloud gaming and all that was very interesting, but the problem was that it was really all about–we’re going to offer this selection of games, very console-esque, but no matter how good the developer relations group at Nvidia is, even if we select what we think is the most brilliant collection of 100 games, if you turn around and there’s a user out there that says, “But I want to play Space Engineers, and that’s not one of those 100 games,” that guy still has to turn around and buy a PC to be able to play Space Engineers. That means you’ve failed, because of game number 101. The thing that attracted me to Shadow is the notion of truly democratized access to high-performance gaming hardware. At the time we were deploying GTX 1080s, and we just started deploying RTX 2080s, so you can do raytracing. But here in the cloud is a great performance PC that will be upgraded on a regular basis for $15 to $30 a month. Giving users access to that hardware, because it’s in the cloud, is much easier. It’s easier to control energy costs and cooling and things like that. But for Shadow, the important thing is it’s not democratized if you take away choice from the user. Because it’s a full Windows 10 PC and they can install any game they want from Steam or the Epic store or GOG–they can develop their own Unity games on Shadow and it all just works, just like a local PC. That’s the vision for what needs to happen in the future. The bottom line is, there’s no one in the world who buys a GTX 1060 or 1070 GPU because they want to. They’re settling for it because of the price. The idea of getting access to mass users and education and schools and things like that, because the PCs themselves are in the cloud, is a great futurist way of approaching the technology. GamesBeat: I’m going to guess that the panel likes this idea of using computing for various kinds of technology. Mr. Unity there, democratization of game development is your motto, right? Shih: It actually was the motto. It still floats around at Unity, though. GamesBeat: Democratization isn’t really a function of the most computing power you can have. What does democratization mean? How is it important as far as what you want to see happen? Radburn: Democratization is great. It’s giving access to all. The more people who can use it, the more people who can experience it, that’s great. There was a big thing when we started to virtualize servers way back when. The response from some people was that you can’t virtualize servers because server sales are blowing up. People will only buy one. But the world’s selling more servers now than ever, because more people realize the benefits of it. They realize it’s actually game-changing. In much the same way now, I think the days of democratization are going to lead to more kinds of IP that people wouldn’t have otherwise invested in. They’re going to see that. They’re going to play that. They’re going to go more and more professional, go into esports, things like that, where latency becomes more important. No matter what you do with a remote situation, you still have the speed of light coming into it. You can compress or whatever else, but if you’re not co-located in the same place as your data and your compute, you’ll have increased latency time or ping time or whatever you want to call that. Consequently people are going to want to own their own hardware. Somebody was saying earlier that not everybody is a gamer. I think that’s going to be the case less and less, because you’re going to embrace the casual gamer. You’re going to get people on a subscription model who wouldn’t buy hardware otherwise, and that will be great for the industry as a whole. Above: Google Stadia Controller Shih: Obviously we see things like cloud streaming for games — Stadia, Xbox, PlayStation, and everyone else starting services. But in any kind of app development is very tricky, and games especially. Games have FPS requirements, physics, rendering, all these components. Even if you have 5G, it’s a very hard experience to pull off. However, I think the trend is that we’re going to start to see devices that are basically clones, and then you’re starting to see a lot more improvement from a cloud infrastructure perspective. Things like 5G and the underlying platforms will get better. We’ll see that more on the app development side. We’re already starting to see that in gaming. You’ll start to see that with all kinds of mobile development. MacLean: Every person on the planet, I believe, should love playing games. But they’re not going to love playing every game. There is no way that my 70-year-old aunt, who spends hours of every day playing mobile games, is going to enjoy a session with Dark Souls III. It’s not going to happen. One of the things we have to be conscious of when we think about democratization of any type of technology service, are we creating a service that is accessible and approachable to consumers? Are we giving them a good experience? Are we giving them joy, entertainment, an emotional connection, and emotional resonance? A lot of the experiences we create, whether they’re games or other types of technology, are not accessible to a mass market. One of our challenges, when we think about democratization, which I’m sure is used in every investor pitch ever and is a great buzzword — are we really, truly solving customer problems? Are we making a great customer experience? Are we making somebody’s life better? I think that as an industry, we have a ways to go there. Above: The Unity Obstacle Tower Challenge offered $100,000 in prizes for solving AI problems. GamesBeat: Bebo was one of the first webmasters in the United States. You brought up, in our pre-call here, that you were interested in the decentralized web. I wonder why that is. Do you see computing technologies like decentralization as being the thing that will get you there? Why is that important to you? White: I’d first like to make a comment as far as the client versus cloud. I’m definitely in favor of cloud in that sense. People brought up the idea about leveraging the capability of the clients that you have. I’m a firm believer in the concept of bringing your own device, and then allowing people to not have a diminished access to resources, but then being able to access those resources in a way that’s most familiar to them. That’s part of democratization in that case. If a smartphone is what you have, for one reason or another, or if that’s what you prefer, for one reason or another, you shouldn’t be made to feel like a second-class citizen. GamesBeat: So technology should evolve to a point where it doesn’t matter what you’re connecting with. White: Just so long as you have access to the services that you want, in that case. In terms of your question about the decentralized web, basically the idea there is allowing people, users, to regain access to their own personal data. Which, unfortunately, due to the rapid evolution of the web, they’ve lost in some ways. Allowing them to not only have control over their data, but letting them do things like dictate the use and the monetization of their data, those kinds of things. There’s a lot of characteristics of decentralized systems that more closely support that. There’s also, in this case — the web was originally a centralized system. That’s why we get 404s when something is not found. Wouldn’t it be nice, in a decentralized system, never to get a 404 again? Because the data is there. You’re not relying on the presence or the absence of a resource. Shih: Blockchain has become a good example of a decentralized system. White: Exactly. We’re going to talk about that tomorrow. You’re exactly right. But I think that’s a different issue. Blockchain is an example of a technology that could lead to a decentralized web. But I think you could certainly have all the characteristics of decentralized web without the adoption of something like blockchain. Rehbock: It’s interesting that from a futurist standpoint, when you look at the panel here — AWS is the notion of accessibility of a server to anybody that needs one at any time, and ease of bringing it up. Five or 10 years ago, you had to be in the know to know who the rack space guys were and get a server up. Now, if you have an Amazon Prime account, you get AWS access. The bottom line is, AWS is access. Dell, going back to the original Dell ads on the back cover of PC Magazine, was about accessibility of PCs to people. I used to order PCs for my company in Chicago from Michael Dell in his dorm room. The bottom line was, the notion of Dell fundamentally was accessibility to a builder of PCs so you didn’t have to be in the know yourself. And Unity is about accessibility of being creative around games. God knows, the internet period, just the accessibility of data. The summary is that — we’re using democratization as the buzzword, but accessibility is what the future is all about. Above: Our futurist panel at TIFCA. MacLean: One of the things I get excited about in our own services is Sagemaker, which is the easiest-to-use machine learning service that we offer through AWS. What that means fundamentally is that at a 10-person game development shop, you can use machine learning to make your game better without having a PhD in data science or AI on your team. That’s the kind of accessibility that’s going to come with the next generation. It’s not just access to physical resources, or even the cloud. It becomes access to the services that we’re building on top of the cloud, like machine learning and AI. The backbone of Alexa is available to any AWS customer. That’s amazing when you think about being able to create great customer experiences, because you have access to an amount of technology that was unimaginable 10 years ago. White: I think there’s also some social responsibility in there, in the sense that — if somebody has the crazy notion that they’re going to do Bitcoin mining on AWS, they’re in for a big surprise, because it’s not going to be a good return on their investment. I think Amazon makes that perfectly clear as far as the limitations of their infrastructures. MacLean: We make our user agreements clear and we help our customers to understand them. GamesBeat: There’s this interesting theme of centralization and decentralization in computing technology, but there’s also the same sort of tug of war that happens in politics and industry. If you centralize an industry too much, you wind up with anti-trust cases. If you decentralize your politics, you get democracy. It feels like all of these things are intertwined in some way. The funny thing is that centralizing computing in a company like Amazon can actually decentralize an industry by giving indie game developers a chance to access technology. White: My comment about that, in terms of decentralization — I think we’re not talking, for one thing, in terms of breaking up, as it were, the large — it has characteristics of a monopoly. Above: Amazon Echo Loop GamesBeat: I think we’ve agreed to say “tech giants.” White: Basically, if nothing else, it’s going to improve your relationship to understand your contract with them, in the sense of saying, for social media, they’re not going to be able to use my personal data willy-nilly, but I am possibly willing to sell it to you. Something of that nature. Really having a greater understanding of the relationship. It’s not about totally shutting them out. That’s not one of the goals of the decentralized web. Radburn: As far as centralization and decentralization, we’ve always been on a constant kick of iteration, iteration, iteration. We were centralized in mainframes, and then we were decentralized to the edge. The time frames are getting shorter and shorter. But where we are now is, it gets hard to tell whether we’re centralized or decentralized. When we actually look at the cloud, the cloud says, hey, everything’s going out there. Now we’re moving to 5G, and your data has to be co-located with a 5G antenna, because otherwise you have that latency in accessing your data remotely. Now I have to have copies of all my data from that central source out at the edge so that I can access it immediately and get the response times I need. Is that centralizing my data, or decentralized? I haven’t quite gotten my head around that one yet. Rehbock: The bigger issue is really ownership of the data, rather than centralized versus decentralized. One of the big things that we do at Shadow is that every user has 100 percent control. Shadow has no access to your copy of Windows or to any of the games you have. It’s your little virtual machine. When you’re logged in, that gets mounted to a GPU and a CPU, but when it’s shut down it’s encrypted. Nobody, not even customer support, has access to it. It’s a very weird thing, because for Shadow users, when they need customer support, you have to use Windows Remote Desktop to get there to help them. But that’s important. Even though the computing is centralized, the ownership of the Windows instance and the data is sacred. That’s what it comes down to. At AWS, you have your AWS instance, and it’s your machine. Jeff Bezos doesn’t have access to any of it. MacLean: And we have encryption tools to make sure that our customers always retain control over their data. Rehbock: Exactly. I think that’s where the mindset is, which puts it in a pretty good place. MacLean: And I think it has to be. If you’re a cloud infrastructure provider, understanding that the customer’s data is always the customer’s data is absolutely important to your business. It becomes a more interesting case — “interesting” as in we need to talk about it a lot more as a society — when we look at what Bebo mentioned earlier about how people are using our personal data. Not every company is ethical about how they’re using your personal data. They’re certainly not transparent about how they’re using your personal data. Even with the advent of things like GDPR — it still means that your personal data is being used in ways that you’re not aware of and that you may object to, or that may not come with what you see as fair and reasonable compensation. Above: Blade promises quality Shadow cloud gaming on any device. Question: It’s a futurist panel, and you’ve been painting a rosy picture of the future so far. When you give this kind of power to the masses, with that comes great responsibility, and there are a lot of irresponsible people in the world. What do you foresee as the most negative things that can come out of this kind of power, and what do you think we should do to try to overcome that? MacLean: One of the big things I worry about is how we’re empowering very bad behavior in multiplayer games. You can be a terrible gamer in a multiplayer game online and face no consequences. As a woman in games, I’ve seen what that means outside of games. No one should ever experience death threats or rape threats because they make video games, and yet we see that happening to game developers. That’s not acceptable. As an industry, we need to take a much harder stance on what we think is acceptable, because fundamentally, what you allow in your community, what you allow in your game, sends an implicit message about what’s allowed in your contact with other human beings. Radburn: From my perspective it’s a case of checks and balances. You mentioned earlier about introducing technology as fast as we possibly can. I think due diligence needs to be done along the way, because we don’t know what we don’t know. The onus is on us to find out what we don’t know, to ensure that there’s no longer-term effect. A case in point would be with VR. We don’t market to anybody under the age of 13. When account managers come to me saying, “Hey, we have this great educational thing for K-12,” as long as K is involved, we say no. We’re hitting that 13-year-old and up. We all need, as an industry, to be responsible for that. There’s the potential for psychological harm. We already know that VR can affect the mind, because we use it as a sedative, to treat PTSD, to work with autism, whatever. It could also have negative effects as well. We as an industry need to police that. We need to make sure that everybody upholds that same standard, and make sure that we don’t give ourselves problems in the future because of our reckless abandon to make a buck. Shih: I think a lot of problems could be prevented with better positioning and better policy. We talk about the possibility of negative uses of AI or machine learning, and if you look around, there’s really no policy or standards. It’s the role of government to have these debates and create better policy, because asking a lot of companies to just self-police is a little optimistic. White: In terms of bad behavior, to give another example, there are cases where we’re not talking about technology. I’m not sure that people want to have computer scientists develop a code of ethics for them, something of that nature. Now, I have trust in the community to self-regulate. In terms of governing behavior, the way you suggest, unfortunately I see that as being one more step toward censorship. I think people can make their choices, and I can give an example of that quickly. A number of you are probably familiar with the Internet Archive, the goal of which is to archive all the content on the web. But they have consciously chosen not to archive pornography, not to archive hate sites or anything of that nature. They have taken it on their own initiative to do that. I think, once again, it’s got to be a decision that cannot actually have, through its consequences, the potential to support arguments for censorship or anything of that nature. I believe in government regulations, but it’s a slippery slope, and it doesn’t have a technical solution. One other thing that I think is quite possible, and a strength of the decentralized web, is provenance. Being able to establish the validity of something, being able to establish the goal of something — if this is coming from a particular site, you understand the probability of it being true. The expansion of those sorts of ideas is something we can do a lot more with. Rehbock: If I were Disney, and I made a theme park, and I built a ride that encouraged people to sling racial epithets at each other, or misogynistic comments, all across the ride, society would not allow that. Yet we have that, unfortunately, in the digital playgrounds that many developers have set up. That’s a bit scary. Would you consider it censorship? I don’t know. But we’re on a slippery slope there as well. MacLean: We not only allow it in those digital playgrounds, but we allow it in their surrounding community spaces. We allow it on major social media platforms. I don’t know if anyone else in this room has experienced harassment on Twitter. Did you report it? What happened? It went into the ether. Even when there are policies in place, if the platform doesn’t have the will to enforce it — which is often a business decision — those policies aren’t relevant. GamesBeat: I subscribe to this notion that the road to hell is paved with good intentions. Who would have thought that the internet would have led to Facebook and Cambridge Analytica? I like these notes of caution, like Kurt Vonnegut’s line about how we are who we pretend to be, so we must be careful who we pretend to be. Technology has a way of being very unpredictable as far as its consequences. White: I have no doubt that Facebook had great intentions to start off. Somehow they got lost along the way. Rehbock: Oh, I don’t think they had that great of intentions. Mark Zuckerberg wanted to find a date for the weekend. White: In any case, the chickens have come home to roost. Bringing people together is not bad. Facebook is not bad. If you’re 75 or 80 years old, that might be an important part of your social interaction. The concept is not bad. But it’s in how it’s allowed itself to be used. Above: Unity’s game engine can be used to create more than just games. GamesBeat: Facebook’s concept of using real names seemed like a great idea to hide all the problems of anonymity, but then that allows us to have our privacy invaded. Radburn: Every major technology along the line has been used in some form or another that wasn’t what was originally intended. Question: You hit the nail on the head in more ways that you realize, I think, when you talked about accessibility. Each panelist represents an element of accessibility. The cloud, the client, the tools, the platform. What do you think about what needs to happen for this next computing era to happen? White: Certainly one thing that happened in the early days of the web, it was basically the wild west, without leadership and without standards, and certainly that has led to a lot of its problems. Also, combine that with the fact that it was pretty naive. People had great aspirations how it could be used. Nobody had ever dreamt about things like cyberbullying on the web, or even security issues on the web. It’s a case in point. Even though it seems like a good idea, and there’s the whole issue around the fear of missing out, we have to tread quite carefully in terms of development. Otherwise, the web is a great example of how something can get totally out of hand. MacLean: There are people who would have thought about cyberbullying on the web. Any woman who’s ever been whistled at as she walks down the street probably could have told you what would happen in chat rooms. Any person who’s had a racial epithet yelled at them could have told you what would happen in a chat room. One of the fundamental flaws in our industry and our community is that we’re not diverse. We don’t have people who’ve had that diversity of experiences at the table and making a point, particularly in the development of new technologies like AI. We know what’s going to happen, because we’ve lived it. That’s something we all need to do better, because otherwise we’ll repeat the same mistakes. GamesBeat: There’s a good point to be made there about how you can’t see what’s around you when you’re inside a bubble. We have this all the time in Silicon Valley. We have all these great bubbles. We have the esports bubble right now, and it seems like it’s going to be the next great thing and we’ll all make billions of dollars from it. But when that bubble pops, you realize in hindsight what was really happening. White: I will say that I think the web has a bright future. It’s going through a mid-life crisis now. But I think a lot of people are committed to it. I’m hopeful that it’s going to continue to be a defining force. I have a 14-year-old kid, and she’s what’s referred to as a digital native. They haven’t known a world without this. Certainly in the case of whatever future that we have, we have to be cognizant of the fact that we can’t necessarily just talk about the next generation. We’re talking about the generation that’s already in it, and how we can change their experience. Radburn: I think we’re realizing the ramifications of being free and easy with our data. We’re thinking about how to get that genie back into the bottle around things like decentralization and all the rest, so that you can control who has it, who uses it, who monetizes it. MacLean: I talked about using technology to build emotional connections. I think we do need to do that. I have more than a thousand friends on Facebook, probably too many, but many of them are people who live on the other side of the planet, or who I haven’t seen physically in 20 years, and I feel like we’re still friends. I know about my friend Leslie’s dog Moose and how he’s this great old retired police dog. I know about my friend Emily being named to the New Zealand Game Developers Association. It gets back to, are we using technology to build those emotional connections and make the world a better place? And often, maybe not often enough, but often, the answer is yes. I’m grateful to live in a world where that’s possible. GamesBeat's creed when covering the game industry is "where passion meets business." What does this mean? We want to tell you how the news matters to you -- not just as a decision-maker at a game studio, but also as a fan of games. Whether you read our articles, listen to our podcasts, or watch our videos, GamesBeat will help you learn about the industry and enjoy engaging with it. Discover our Briefings. Join the GamesBeat community! Enjoy access to special events, private newsletters and more. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Intel: Moore's Law isn't slowing down | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2017/03/28/intel-moores-law-isnt-slowing-down"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Intel: Moore’s Law isn’t slowing down Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Stacy Smith of Intel Intel said that the fundamental progress of the chip industry, which underlies everything electronic, is still on track and that it is still the leader in chip manufacturing technology. The world’s biggest chip maker runs its business on Moore’s Law — the prediction in 1965 made by Intel chairman emeritus Gordon Moore that the number of transistors on a chip will double every year. And at an event in San Francisco, Intel executive vice president Stacy Smith said that Moore’s Law is on track as the company moves to 10-nanometer manufacturing, where the width between circuits is 10 billionth of a meter. “Our cost per transistor is coming down at a slightly faster rate than historical,” he said. “Moore’s Law is alive and well. We are taking bigger steps. We have a three-year lead over the industry.” Above: Intel’s view of how small chip circuits are. The chip industry has been on the metronome of Moore’s Law for decades, and that progress has delivered computing power in a smartphone that once took a whole room of computers. Smith said that if every industry had moved forward on the same line as the chip industry has, we would be able to travel to the sun on a single gallon of gas, feed the world’s population on a square kilometer of land, and travel at 300 times the speed of light. Qualcomm has previously announced it was using a 10-nanometer manufacturing process, created by Samsung, for its new Snapdragon 835 processors. But Intel believes that it has the most advanced chip manufacturing in the world and that it is a generation ahead of its rivals. A nanometer is a billionth of a meter, and it only takes four silicon atoms in a crystal lattice to make one nanometer. In a 10-nm process, the circuits are only 10 nm apart. A virus is about 100 nm in length. Smith, who’s the executive vice president of manufacturing, operations, and sales, said at the press event that Intel hasn’t lost its lead. Rather, he said that the new 10-nm process from rivals is equivalent to Intel’s 14-nm process introduced three years ago. Mark Bohr, Intel senior fellow, said at the event that the density of transistors that rivals can pack in a 10-nm chip the same number of transistors as Intel can in a 14-nm chip. Intel is planning on delivering “true” 10-nm chips later this year. This essentially means that Intel has a 30 percent cost advantage at any given time. “They can give it whatever node name they want, and we can agree that node names have lost their meaning,” he said. It costs about $10 billion to build a brand new chip factory. To equip a modern factory with equipment, it takes about $7 billion in investment in equipment. Over the past five years, Intel has invested $50 billion in manufacturing. A decade ago, there were 18 companies that had a leading-edge chip factory, Smith said. Now there are only four: Intel, Global Foundries, Samsung, and TSMC. “We are pleased to see competitors following our lead with the introduction of low-power 22nm processes. Almost two years ago, we launched our 22FDX FD-SOI technology for wireless, battery-powered intelligent systems,” said Alain Mutricy, an executive at Global Foundries, in a statement. “We chose FD-SOI over bulk planar or FinFET because it provides the best combination of performance, power and area for these applications. Our process is fully qualified for production and we are seeing strong customer demand, with more than 50 active engagements in high-growth areas such as mobile, IoT, and automotive.” Intel has 100,000 employees worldwide. There are 50,000 in the U.S. and a total of 30,000 working in manufacturing. Intel invested $7 billion in the U.S. from 2011 to 2015, and its contribution to the U.S. gross domestic product is $90 billion a year. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_41LBziOMpM VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Black Friday 2019 gift guide: For PC gaming | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2019/11/22/black-friday-2019-gift-guide-for-pc-gaming"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Black Friday 2019 gift guide: For PC gaming Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Let's go holiday shopping for the PC gamers in our lives. Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. It’s time for a PC gaming gift guide to help you get through Black Friday 2019 and beyond. And this is easier than ever to put together because competition has led to a ton of great products. It’s a great time to build a PC. Great gaming CPUs AMD Ryzen 5 3400G Price: $140 Where to buy: Newegg The Ryzen 5 3400G is an excellent entry-level CPU. It includes AMD’s Vega graphics, so you don’t need a dedicated GPU. This makes an ideal chip for a media PC or building a PC for a family member. It runs on AMD’s older Zen+ architecture, but it still gets solid performance in gaming. AMD Ryzen 5 3600 Price: $190 Where to buy: Newegg Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! The Ryzen 5 3600 is one of the best deals in all of PC hardware. It’s a 6-core and 12-thread CPU with a base clock of 3.6GHz. That gives it the speed for gaming and enough extra cores for the next-generation of games. It’s even solid for productivity. Intel i9-9900K Price: $490 Where to buy: Newegg If you want the best gaming CPU, I’d still point you to Intel’s behemoth i9-9900K. It’s an 8-core and 16-thread CPU with a 3.6GHz clockspeed, but it can boost up to 5GHz on one core. You can even overclock many 9900K chips to run at 5GHz on all cores. Intel called it the best gaming CPU when it launched, and it is still earning that title. Powerful GPUs MSI Radeon RX 580 Armor OC Price: $170 (after $20 rebate) Where to buy: Newegg The RX500-series GPUs are still among the best choice for most people — at least until AMD launched the RX5500 series for desktop. At $170, this MSI RX 580 is an affordable way to get great 1080p60 performance across almost all modern games. And considering most people use a 1080p60 monitor, you don’t need anything more than this. Radeon RX 5700XT Price: $400 Where to buy: Newegg If you do need more than 1080p60, though, AMD has a great option in the 5700XT. This is great if you have a 1440p monitor or a high-refresh-rate monitor. Nvidia RTX 2070 Super Price: $500 Where to buy: Best Buy If you want to do some light 4K gaming or want to do 1440p with the option to use ray-tracing lighting features in select games, Nvidia is your only option. And the 2070 Super is the best bang-for-your-buck at any tier over 1080p60. Low-latency memory HyperX Predator Black 16GB CL17 3600MHz DDR4 RAM Price: $173 Where to buy: Newegg The HyperX Predator Black 3600MHz CL17 is great low-latency memory that works especially with recent AMD CPUs. Affordable, speedy storage Crucial MX500 1TB SSD Price: $110 Where to buy: Crucial The MX500 is one of the easiest recommendations on this list. It has great all around performance, but it’s especially great for gaming. And now a 1TB drive is down to an extraordinarily reasonable $110. That’s 11 cents per gigabyte. If I was building a PC for a family member or myself, the MX500 is absolutely the drive I would go with. A 1440p144Hz HDR monitor BenQ EX2780Q Price: $600 Where to buy: BenQ HDR monitors are finally common, and BenQ is going after that space with its newest displays. The EX2780Q is a 27-inch monitor with a 1440p resolution and a 144Hz refresh rate. A FreeSync gaming TV Samsung Q80R Price: $1,300 (down from $1,700) Where to buy: Best Buy Using a TV with a PC was traditionally a bad experience, but Samsung has done a lot of work to change that. Its Q80R series of TVs support 4K, 120Hz refresh rate, AMD FreeSync, and automatic game mode switching. It also has almost no input lag. I tested one with my gaming PC and consoles, and I loved it. Gaming mouse and keyboards Logitech G Pro X Price: $150 Where to buy: Here Logitech has spent the last few months updating its Logitech G Pro X gaming lineup of products. And that includes the excellent Pro X keyboard with swappable switches for complete customization. Razer Huntsman Tournament Edition Price: $130 Where to buy: Here The Razer Huntsman Tournament Edition is a trimmed down version of Razer’s excellent Huntsman. It features optical switches for instant actuation. Its small profile also makes it ideal for players that need a lot of room on a desktop for their mouse arm. Razer Viper Price: $80 Where to buy: Here The Razer Viper is a great gaming mouse with a comfortable and super lightweight design. Like the Huntsman, it also has optical activation for its buttons. It’s going to make you feel more in control than ever. GamesBeat's creed when covering the game industry is "where passion meets business." What does this mean? We want to tell you how the news matters to you -- not just as a decision-maker at a game studio, but also as a fan of games. Whether you read our articles, listen to our podcasts, or watch our videos, GamesBeat will help you learn about the industry and enjoy engaging with it. Discover our Briefings. Join the GamesBeat community! Enjoy access to special events, private newsletters and more. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Xbox overthrows Nintendo for most-seen TV ads game industry ramps up spending | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2019/09/28/xbox-overthrows-nintendo-for-most-seen-tv-ads-game-industry-ramps-up-spending"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Guest Xbox overthrows Nintendo for most-seen TV ads game industry ramps up spending Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn iSpot.tv's stats for August 16-September 15 Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. Xbox has overtaken longtime chart-topper Nintendo for TV ad impressions in the most recent 30 days; its commercials account for almost 60% of the industry’s impressions. Football, both college and NFL, was a huge driver of impressions for Xbox. GamesBeat has partnered with iSpot.tv, the always-on TV ad measurement and attribution company, to bring you a monthly report on TV advertising by the gaming industry. These are the ads, and by extension the games, that publishers are putting major muscle (and bucks) behind. Below are the top five most-seen gaming industry TV advertisers from August 16 through September 15. As summer came to a close, gaming brands amped up their outlays: The industry had an estimated spend of $19.6 million, compared to $5.6 million in the previous 30 days, with 10 brands airing 34 spots over 3,100 times, racking up 1.04 billion TV ad impressions. Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! First place goes to Xbox with over 616.9 million impressions generated by four ads that aired 1,601 times. The Gears 5 commercial “The Chain” was its most-seen spot with over 385.8 million impressions. Fox, NBC, and ESPN were three of the networks generating high impression-counts for Xbox, while top programming included the NFL, college football, and SportsCenter. Propelled by its campaign for the release of Borderlands 3, 2K Games takes second place with 163.8 million TV ad impressions generated by six commercials that ran 762 times. With 58.3 million impressions, “Top Five Budget Summer Fashion Styles” was the company’s most-seen ad. Three of the networks with high impression-counts included ESPN, TBS, and Comedy Central; top programming included the NFL, college football, and Ridiculousness. At No. 3: EA Sports, which had 138.4 million impressions generated from seven spots that aired 108 times. The Madden NFL 20 ad “Superstar KO: Available Now,” featuring Alvin Kamara, was its most-seen commercial with 64.2 million impressions. EA Sports prioritized reaching a sports-loving audience: top networks included ESPN, NFL Network, and NBC, while top programming included the NFL, NFL Kickoff 2019 , and SportsCenter. Nintendo, which had ruled with TV ad impressions over the summer, drops to fourth place. It aired nine spots 446 times, resulting in 94.1 million impressions. “Disney Channel: Summer Fun,” advertising the Switch, was its most-seen commercial with 43.5 million impressions. Three of the networks with high impression-counts included Disney Channel, Nick, and Cartoon Network, while some of the top shows were SpongeBob SquarePants , The Loud House , and Bunk’d. PlayStation closes out the chart with 11.6 million impressions generated by a single ad, “Become Your True Self,” featuring Megan Fox, which aired 116 times. Adult Swim, A&E, and Independent Film (IFC) were three of the networks that generated the most impressions, while top shows included Dragon Ball Super , Live PD , and Family Guy. GamesBeat's creed when covering the game industry is "where passion meets business." What does this mean? We want to tell you how the news matters to you -- not just as a decision-maker at a game studio, but also as a fan of games. Whether you read our articles, listen to our podcasts, or watch our videos, GamesBeat will help you learn about the industry and enjoy engaging with it. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"PlayStation leads October's game industry ad spend, but NFL TV networks are the big winners | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2019/11/10/playstation-leads-octobers-game-industry-ad-spend-but-nfl-networks-are-the-big-winners"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Guest PlayStation leads October’s game industry ad spend, but NFL TV networks are the big winners Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. The game industry’s TV ad spend increased in October for the second month in a row, up to an estimated $60.3 million from September’s $39.3 million, with over a third of the total outlay focused entirely on the NFL. Leading the way: PlayStation , accounting for over 62% of the industry spend, with Xbox , and Activision in second and third place, respectively. GamesBeat has partnered with iSpot.tv, the always-on TV ad measurement and attribution platform, to bring you a monthly report on how gaming brands are spending. The results below are for the top five gaming-industry brands in October, ranked by estimated national TV ad spend. PlayStation spent an estimated $37.6 million on seven spots that aired over 2,900 times, generating nearly 1.5 billion TV ad impressions. The commercial with the biggest budget (est. $14.9 million) was “Hundreds of Incredible Games on Demand,” promoting PlayStation Now. Four out of the top five programs for spend were sports-related, with the NFL, college football, and the NBA taking the lead; ESPN, Fox, and CBS were the three networks with the highest spend. At No. 2: Xbox, which spent an estimated $11.3 million on seven commercials that ran over 1,400 times, resulting in 584.8 million TV ad impressions. The Gears 5 spot “Gears Forever” saw the highest outlay, an estimated $3.8 million. As usual, Xbox prioritized reaching a sports-loving audience: the NFL, college football, and the NBA were among the top programming for spend, and top networks included Fox, CBS, and ESPN. Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! Third place goes to Activision, which spent an estimated $5 million on placing two ads that aired 110 times, generating 168.6 million TV ad impressions. The bulk of the spend ($3.8 million) went toward the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare spot “Rules of Engagement,” featuring music by Metallica. As with the other brands, sports was a priority: the NFL was the dominant target of Activision’s spend, followed by the 2019 World Series and college football, while networks with the largest outlays included ESPN, Fox, and CBS. EA Sports takes fourth place with an estimated spend of $2.7 million on six spots that ran 276 times, resulting in 194.2 million TV ad impressions. The Madden NFL 20 commercial “Victory Bath” featuring JuJu Smith-Schuster had the biggest budget (est. $1 million). Almost all of EA Sports’ budget went toward the NFL, with smaller outlays to college football and SportsCenter With Scott Van Pelt , among others. Top networks for spend included ESPN, NFL Network, and ESPN2. Electronic Arts (EA), the parent company of EA Sports, rounds out the ranking with an estimated spend of $1.1 million on over 1,200 airings of a single ad, the “Official Launch Trailer” for Plants vs. Zombies: Battle for Neighborville. EA strove to reach a younger, more family-friend audience: The Thundermans, SpongeBob SquarePants, and iCarly were the three programs with the biggest budgets, and top networks included Teen Nick, Nick Toons, and Cartoon Network. For more about iSpot’s attention and conversion analytics, visit iSpot.tv. GamesBeat's creed when covering the game industry is "where passion meets business." What does this mean? We want to tell you how the news matters to you -- not just as a decision-maker at a game studio, but also as a fan of games. Whether you read our articles, listen to our podcasts, or watch our videos, GamesBeat will help you learn about the industry and enjoy engaging with it. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"IBM debuts integrations and consulting services for Red Hat's OpenShift container platform | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2019/08/01/ibm-debuts-integrations-and-consulting-services-for-red-hats-openshift-container-platform"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages IBM debuts integrations and consulting services for Red Hat’s OpenShift container platform Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Are you ready to bring more awareness to your brand? Consider becoming a sponsor for The AI Impact Tour. Learn more about the opportunities here. IBM only last month closed its $34 billion acquisition of open source software developer Red Hat, but the Armonk, New York company wasted no time synergizing the two businesses’ offerings. It today revealed that it’s revamped its software portfolio to run on public clouds like AWS, Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud Platform, Alibaba, IBM Cloud, and Red Hat’s OpenShift, and it took the wraps off of Red Hat OpenShift on IBM Cloud, a fully managed service running on IBM’s cloud platforms. “IBM is unleashing its software from the data center to fuel the enterprise workload race to the cloud. This will further position IBM as an industry leader in the more than $1 trillion dollar hybrid cloud opportunity,” said IBM senior vice president of cloud and cognitive software Arvind Krishna. “We are providing the essential tools we think enterprises need to make their multi-year journey to cloud on common, open standards that can reach across clouds, across applications, and across vendors with Red Hat.” IBM’s new cloud-native capabilities come in the form of Cloud Paks (formerly IBM Cloud Private for Data), which comprise certified and containerized models, accelerators, and services. The use cases range from identity management and security to monitoring, logging, and auditing, and the Paks’ components are configurable through a unified dashboard across cloud environments and hosts. Over 100 products across IBM’s extensive software library form the basis of Cloud Paks, all of which are optimized to run on OpenShift. They’re delivered as packages tailored to specific scenarios, and each provides built-in support for migrating and integrating apps and Kubernetes-based workloads. VB Event The AI Impact Tour Connect with the enterprise AI community at VentureBeat’s AI Impact Tour coming to a city near you! Here’s a sampling of the Cloud Paks currently available: Cloud Pak for Data: Automates how organizations deliver insights from data and provides an extensible architecture to virtualize said data. Cloud Pak for Applications: Helps build, deploy, and run apps. Cloud Pak for Integration: Integrates apps, data, cloud services, and APIs. Cloud Pak for Automation: Transform business processes, decisions, and content. Cloud Pak for Multicloud Management: Provides multicloud visibility, governance, and automation. As for the aforementioned Red Hat OpenShift on IBM Cloud, it’s an extension of IBM’s Cloud Kubernetes Service, where IBM orchestrates OpenShift Container Platform plans for businesses. Clients can manage both community Kubernetes and OpenShift clusters with the same IBM Cloud Kubernetes Service API, CLI, and console, and they gain access to Red Hat packaged open source tools, including app runtimes, frameworks, and databases. Separately, as previously announced, IBM said today that it’ll bring Red Hat OpenShift to its IBM Z and LinuxONE server platforms, its enterprise server platforms that power more than 30 billion transactions a day globally. And it announced that it’ll launch consulting and technology services for Red Hat to help customers move, build, and manage their workloads in cloud environments. “Red Hat is unlocking innovation with Linux-based technologies, including containers and Kubernetes, which have become the fundamental building blocks of hybrid cloud environments,” said Jim Whitehurst, president and CEO of Red Hat. “This open hybrid cloud foundation is what enables the vision of any app, anywhere, anytime. Combined with IBM’s strong industry expertise and supported by a vast ecosystem of passionate developers and partners, customers can create modern apps with the technologies of their choice and the flexibility to deploy in the best environment for the app — whether that is on-premises or across multiple public clouds.” VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Employee passwords are behind massive security breaches | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2017/03/22/employee-passwords-are-behind-massive-security-breaches"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Sponsored Employee passwords are behind massive security breaches Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Presented by Dashlane Yahoo, MySpace, Tumblr, and LinkedIn made headlines in the last 12 months for their enormous data breaches. Hackers released the data for 1.5 billion Yahoo accounts, 167 million LinkedIn users, 360 million user records on Myspace, and over 65 million Tumblr accounts. Even more striking is the number of weak passwords revealed during such data breaches. For instance, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg fell victim to a cyber hack when a group called OurMine Team discovered his credentials in the leaked data. It was later revealed that his password “dadada,” was used to protect his Twitter and Pinterest accounts. The recent mega breaches are not only unsettling in their magnitude, but they also illustrate the consequences poor password practices can have for both your employees and business. It’s not ‘what’ makes bad passwords, but ‘who’ Passwords aren’t necessarily the root of the problem; the security risk originates when you ask employees to create and manage their passwords without providing them with the tools to do so. Your employees are juggling a growing number of logins, policies, and devices, and are left with almost no choice but to settle for poor password habits and security shortcuts that put your company at risk. Employees are suffering from password overload Dashlane’s password overload study discovered that the average number of accounts registered to one email address is 130 in the United States, 118 in the United Kingdom, 95 in France, and 92 for the rest of the world. And that number is doubling every 5 years. With over 100 personal and work accounts, it is impossible to create and remember a unique, strong password for all of them. As a result, employees create passwords that are simple to use, easy to remember, and often meet the bare minimum password security requirements — and they most likely do not bother segregating the passwords they use for their personal and work accounts, even if the company has created policies that explicitly forbid this. The struggle to create (and remember) strong passwords Employees create passwords that are easy to remember, often using easily predictable information such as names, places, sports teams, important dates, or even the name of the site or system where the account is registered — which explains why “linkedin” is the second most popular password found in the hacked LinkedIn data. Requiring complex passwords results in the reuse of passwords for multiple accounts. If a hacker manages to steal an employee’s credentials for instance on one of their personal accounts, chances are that they will also attempt to use those credentials to access company accounts, and/or try to access information belonging to your valued customers. Unsecure sharing is not caring One study found that 1 in 3 employees share their credentials with other employees for various reasons: because their manager, boss, or colleague asked for them, to give access to team members while they’re out of the office, etc. And that sharing is done using unsecure channels, ranging from a post-it note to sending an email or chat message. More often than not, employees don’t share passwords with any malicious intent, but 52 percent of employees in a survey admitted that they did not understand the risks they could be implicating by sharing work-related login information using unsecure mechanisms. Employees and IT administrators are responsible for good password security Hackers are really targeting the weakest link in your security infrastructure — your employees. The best way to strengthen the security of your entire business is to make sure both your employees and IT admins are aware of their responsibility to maintain good password security, and that they have the tools to fulfill that responsibility. Tips for employees: Education is key : Educate employees on how to identify a potential security breaches, how to generate strong passwords they can use and remember, and how to manage them safely. Be transparent about security : Be proactive and transparent about your company’s security policies and infrastructure. Consider sending a company-wide incident report to raise employee awareness, and/or having regular training sessions or town hall meetings where you educate employees about your current security policies. Offer them a Password Manager : To help your employees store, manage, and secure the password to their accounts, provide them with a password manager. Password managers help combat insecure password sharing, password overload, and manually generating weak passwords. Make it clear to your employee that this is also a benefit for them as they can use it to manage their personal credentials. Tips for IT administrators: Rethink your security policies: Be cognizant of unrealistic restrictions that not only put your systems at risk, but also promote cynicism about security. When you create your security policies, ask yourself: Is this policy difficult to understand/adhere to for employees? Do employees know why this policy is in place? Can they recognize a potential security threat or breach? How can you create the right incentive for employees to not just comply but actively support security in the company? Keep your systems and networks secure : Use and regularly patch data loss prevention (DLP), anti-malware software, anti-DDoS services, and other security software. For companies with BYOD policies, make sure employees’ devices are password protected, antivirus and DLP software is installed, and their data and online communication fully encrypted. Enable two-factor authentication : Give your employees an extra layer of security by enabling two-factor authentication for their accounts. Monitor user behavior : Make sure to keep track of system usage, external hard drives, and USBs, as well as which employees have access to sensitive work accounts–and if ex-employees still have access. Make sure you have proper policies and tools to manage offboarding of employees who leave the company, in particular when it comes to passwords. In 2016, there were 82,000 reported “cyber incidents”–which includes ransomware, distributed denial of service attacks (DDoS) and more–negatively impacting organizations. In other words, there are over 82,000 reasons why the security of your business’ data should be a top priority. Emmanuel Schalit is CEO of Dashlane. Sponsored posts are content produced by a company that is either paying for the post or has a business relationship with VentureBeat, and they’re always clearly marked. Content produced by our editorial team is never influenced by advertisers or sponsors in any way. For more information, contact sales@venturebeat.com. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Google launches Password Checkup Chrome extension to thwart data breaches | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2019/02/05/google-launches-password-checkup-chrome-extension-to-help-thwart-data-breaches"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Google launches Password Checkup Chrome extension to thwart data breaches Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Google Password Checkup Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. Google has launched a new Chrome extension that warns you if your login credentials for any website have been involved in a data dump from other services. Password Checkup , as the extension is called, sits in your browser waiting for you to log into any website. If it detects that your username and password combination are unsafe, due to their appearance on some internet data dumping ground, it will tell you that you should change the password. It’s worth noting that to secure its own services Google has already worked to thwart credential dumps. As part of that effort, the company may reset Google Account passwords if someone has reused a username or password on another site that has been subsequently hacked. But now it’s doing the same thing for third-party sites. Above: Google Password Checkup Warding off data-privacy questions this new tool could raise, Google is quick to point out that it developed Password Checkup in conjunction with “cryptography experts” from Stanford University. This step was taken to ensure that “Google never learns your username or password, and that any breach data stays safe from wider exposure,” according to a company blog post. VB Event The AI Impact Tour Connect with the enterprise AI community at VentureBeat’s AI Impact Tour coming to a city near you! A number of services already exist to warn you if your login credentials have been leaked. Have I Been Pwned? (HIBP), for example, offers a database of breaches that allows you to check whether one of your online accounts has been compromised. Mozilla recently partnered with HIBP for Firefox Monitor, which serves as a rebranded version of the main HIBP database. And there are other similar extensions out there, such as PassProtect , which searches the HIBP database for previous breaches involving your credentials. But Google is Google, and anything it develops is likely to gain far more exposure as a result. VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Mozilla brings its Firefox Lockbox password manager to Android | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2019/03/26/mozilla-brings-its-firefox-lockbox-password-manager-to-android"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Mozilla brings its Firefox Lockbox password manager to Android Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. Mozilla is bringing its Firefox Lockbox password management app to Android, nine months after it debuted on iOS. Firefox Lockbox lets users log into their native mobile apps using passwords that are already stored in their Firefox browser, thereby relieving people of the burden of remembering all their passwords. So if, for example, you typically access Netflix or Twitter from your desktop browser, you can automatically pull your credentials over to the mobile app equivalent by logging into Firefox Lockbox with your usual Firefox Account credentials. Above: Firefox Lockbox: iOS Firefox Lockbox actually began life as part of Firefox Test Pilot, an experimental program that launched back in 2016 to enable early adopters to try out fledgling Firefox apps and features that were still works in progress. The Test Pilot program was killed earlier this year , but Mozilla confirmed that some of the existing projects would continue to be developed and iterated. VB Event The AI Impact Tour Connect with the enterprise AI community at VentureBeat’s AI Impact Tour coming to a city near you! As a result, Firefox Lockbox was optimized for iPads a few weeks back, with the promise of an Android incarnation coming soon. Security Firefox Lockbox serves a number of purposes. First up, it helps Mozilla expand its security-focused credentials, something that it has been doubling down on in recent times. By way of example, last year Mozilla introduced the Facebook Container add-on that isolates users’ web browsing activities from Facebook. Now, rather than having users write down passwords or constantly reset their accounts to get a new password, Firefox Lockbox provides a seamless mechanism for accessing passwords that are already stored in the Firefox browser — no setup required. Above: Firefox Lockbox for Android The Firefox Lockbox launch comes less than a week after Firefox Send, another former Test Pilot experiment, landed on Android. Along similar lines as Test Pilot, Firefox Lockbox is at least partially designed to encourage Firefox users to stay logged in while using the browser — Lockbox doesn’t work unless you have elected to use a Firefox Account. Firefox Send, an encrypted file-transfer service , offers a limited number of features for those who choose not to log in. In short, Mozilla is pushing hard to get more people to use Firefox Accounts. Firefox Lockbox is available to download on Android now. VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Password manager 1Password raises $200 million in its first round of funding | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2019/11/14/password-manager-1password-raises-200-million-in-its-first-round-of-funding"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Password manager 1Password raises $200 million in its first round of funding Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. Popular password-management company 1Password has raised $200 million in a series A round of funding led by Accel, with participation from Slack Fund and Atlassian founders Scott Farquhar and Mike Cannon-Brookes, among other angel investors. This is the first time 1Password has raised any outside investment in its 14-year history, and according to Dealroom data it represents the biggest series A round ever in the security sector, and is in the top 50 series A rounds overall. Founded out of Toronto, Canada in 2005, 1Password is one of a number of companies dedicated to storing passwords securely, allowing users to log into myriad online services with a single click. The platform can also be used to store other private documents, such as software licenses, credit cards, and driver’s licenses. Above: 1Password Breaches Barely a day goes by without some form of data breach hitting the headlines, and poor password management is a significant factor. In the consumer realm, individuals are prone to reusing the same passwords across multiple services, and if one of those services is hacked the perpetrator can reuse the same credentials to access victims’ other accounts. To help counter this, a number of online tools can warn you if your login credentials have been leaked, such as Have I Been Pwned? (HIBP) and Google’s recently launched Password Checkup Chrome extension. VB Event The AI Impact Tour Connect with the enterprise AI community at VentureBeat’s AI Impact Tour coming to a city near you! For businesses, poor password hygiene is a major driving force behind security breaches, with 81% of all breaches said to be due to compromised passwords. This is where 1Password is building much of its business — encouraging “unguessable” passwords that users don’t have to memorize or write down. Although consumers represent a big part of its target market, 1Password claims thousands of business customers use the enterprise incarnation of the service, including Dropbox, IBM, and one of its new investors — Slack. “We started 1Password to solve a problem we all feel every day: the hassle of creating and remembering complicated passwords to access the apps we need,” said 1Password CEO Jeff Shiner. “Companies try to enforce strong password policies with unreasonably complex requirements that people can’t follow or remember. As a result, most of them create schemes to get around these rules by reusing the same password everywhere or adding subtle variations. This puts your employees and businesses at risk.” 1Password has clearly managed just fine without external funding — it’s been profitable for years based entirely on organic growth. But an extra $200 million in the bank puts it in a stronger position to scale its enterprise-focused business. For context, rival Dashlane raised $110 million earlier this year, and it also has the business sphere in its sights. So 1Password is clearly taking this opportunity to bolster its coffers in the chase for more corporate dollars. “We don’t come across companies like 1Password very often, especially in an era of growth at all costs,” Accel partner Arun Mathew added. “Like Atlassian and Qualtrics, the 1Password team impressed us by building a business that’s not only scaling extremely quickly but also has been profitable since day one — and that’s why today we’re making the biggest single investment in Accel’s more than 35-year history.” This article was updated 18/11/19 to include Dealroom data VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"The DeanBeat: Riot Games sheds its image as a single-game company | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2019/10/18/the-deanbeat-riot-games-sheds-its-image-as-a-single-game-company"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages The DeanBeat: Riot Games sheds its image as a single-game company Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Marc Merrill (left) and Brandon Beck started Riot Games in 2006. Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. League of Legends is a decade old, and it has become a cultural phenomenon, a rare achievement for any video game. It is an esport, a community, and a fantasy world. But for most of the past decade, it has only been one game. Until this week. Riot Games put the “s” back in its name on the 10th anniversary of League of Legends with announcements of new games, films, and animated series. Riot announced League of Legends: Wild Rift for mobile devices and consoles. It is taking Teamfight Tactics , Riot’s take on Auto Chess, to mobile devices on iOS and Android in early 2020. On the PC, Teamfight Tactics will get a new content drop called Rise of the Elements. Riot is joining the free-to-play strategy card market with Legends of Runeterra in 2020. The tactical PC shooter codenamed Project A will launch in 2020. Riot is also making an animated League of Legends show, dubbed Arcane , for 2020. Project L is the code name for a fighting game (from acquired developer Radiant Entertainment ). Project F is the code name for a project that lets players traverse the world of Runeterra with friends. And League of Legends Origins is a feature-length documentary by filmmaker Leslie Iwerks, available now on Netflix. Above: League of Legends is turning 10. That’s a lot of stuff. And in one fell swoop, the Los Angeles-based Riot Games got rid of the putdown that it is a one-hit wonder. Rivals loved to use that to belittle Riot, which has had phenomenal success with League of Legends, which still has 8 million concurrent players daily. I talked with cofounder Marc Merrill about this week’s big announcements in an interview. Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! I asked him if he was familiar with Clay Christensen’s popular 1997 business book, The Innovator’s Dilemma. It’s about how so many legendary companies had both failed to foresee disruption and how they were unable to follow up a big successful business with a second new business, mainly because all of their new efforts paled in comparison to the standards set by the first venture. Given the opportunity cost of assigning staff to a new game compared to assigning staff to League of Legends, it almost always made sense to support LoL. “That’s something we’ve thought about a lot,” Merrill said. “From our perspective, League of Legends was always viewed as a proof point for the broader company’s thesis. It was always step one for the company. It proved far more successful than we ever expected. It was always our intention to expand. As the world of gaming has evolved, it has continued to evolve around the approach that Riot has of having a long-term direct relationship with players and creating incredible experiences for them that start with games that are much more than a game. We are excited to now be able to start doing that in some other genres. We learned a lot over the last decade.” Too comfortable? Above: Brandon Beck (left) and Marc Merrill, cofounders of Riot Games. Brandon Beck and Merrill started the company in 2006, and in 2009, they launched League of Legends, taking lessons from successful Asian free-to-play game companies like Nexon. League of Legends was one of the first phenomenal Western successes in free-to-play PC games, where players happily pay for items such as new champions, emotes, and skins via microtransactions. Riot made the game into a seemingly eternally renewable franchise by issuing more items for in-game purchases that made the game seem fresh. This business model enabled Riot to hire a staff of more than 2,500, not counting contractors and build what would eventually become famous as one of the best places to work. But Riot’s strength in League of Legends also seemed like a weakness. In a decade, it had never successfully launched a new game. Some developers left in order to work on new games, such as the teams that founded studios such as Singularity6 , Phoenix Labs , Ganymede Games, Vela Games, and Frostkeep Studios. Enemies such as Blizzard’s Overwatch League and Epic’s Fortnite chipped away at Riot’s audience. It seemed like Riot was getting lazy and too comfortable and that League of Legends was doomed to a slow decline. Worse yet, an investigation by Kotaku uncovered hidden bias and a culture of sexism against women at Riot, where only one in five employees was a woman. That story shattered the company’s self-described image as a great place to work, and it revealed a dark side to success. That only seemed to further suggest that Riot was a place where success was leading to hubris and a fall. In the past year, Riot responded to the sexism scandal with some wrenching changes, a greater focus on diversity, and doubling down on its identity as a great employer. “We shared a lot of progress about living up to our values of being this great place to work,” Merrill said. “Every Rioter cares about the company. People are excited to show other people what they have been working on.” 1 2 View All Join the GamesBeat community! Enjoy access to special events, private newsletters and more. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Black Friday 2019 gift guide: For Twitch and YouTube creators | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2019/11/20/black-friday-2019-gift-guide-for-twitch-and-youtube-creators"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Feature Black Friday 2019 gift guide: For Twitch and YouTube creators Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn A Black Friday for streaming on Twitch and YouTube. Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. Thanksgiving is fast approaching for those of us in the United States, and that means it’s almost time for shopping. The holiday gift-giving season begins on Black Friday , but you can’t go out into the cold without some idea of what to get. That’s where GamesBeat comes in. We have a handful of shopping guides to help you pick up the perfect gifts for the special someone in your life. And it’s OK if that someone special is yourself. For this gift guide, we’re looking at the crucial tools to get for anyone who loves livestreaming on Twitch or YouTube. We’ll update this throughout the end of the year with more deals. Here’s what you should get. A CPU and GPU for high-quality encoding Ryzen 7 3700X Price: $330 Where to buy: Newegg Our review: Here Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! The Ryzen 7 3700X is an 8-core powerhouse CPU from AMD. It is fast enough for the most demanding games, but it also has 16 threads for processing video content in Premiere or for livestreaming. Nvidia RTX 2070 Super Price: $500 Where to buy: Newegg Our review: Here Nvidia’s RTX 2070 Super is a great GPU for gaming, but it’s also great for livestreaming. Its built-in NVENC codec is lightweight and looks great even at lower bitrates. This means you can get clear gameplay video without destroying your gaming performance. A top-notch capture card Razer Ripsaw HD Price: $160 Where to buy: Razer , Best Buy If you want to capture your consoles, I love the Razer Ripsaw HD because of its nearly nonexistent latency. It’s also compact and capable of doing 4K passthrough to your TV. AVerMedia Live Gamer 4K Price: $270 (normally $300) Where to buy: Amazon Our review: Here If you are serious about creating content from consoles or a two-PC setup, I would go with the AVerMedia Live Gamer 4K. It can do 4K and HDR at 60 frames per second. This makes it great for recording gameplay from the highest-quality triple-A games. Great microphone and audio equipment Blue Yeti X Price: $170 Where to buy: Google Our review: Here The Yeti X is Blue’s latest and best USB microphone. It sounds great, and it is also bursting with features. I like that it monitors your levels using a hardware light on the exterior of the device. It can also use Blue’s voice modulating software that is simple and powerful. GoXLR Mini Price: $249 Where to buy: Reverb If you to upgrade from a USB microphone, the GoXLR Mini is a great way to do that. It provides a simple way to connect an XLR mic to your PC. It also has a bunch of features that are great for creators on YouTube and Twitch — like the ability to control the volume of your game, chat, and mic all with dedicated hardware sliders. AudioTechnica AT2020 Price: $50 Where to buy: Rudapper If you get the GoXLR, you’ll need an XLR microphone. And the AT2020 from AudioTechnica is one of the best entry-level mics you can get. Lights and a green screen Neewer LED light panel Price: $50 Where to buy: Amazon Some lights can really improve the look and feel of your stream. The Neewer LED light panel is an affordable way to bring that to your setup. Homegear Collapsible Green Screen Price: $120 Where to buy: Amazon A green screen is a great way to ensure you can sit in front of your gameplay without getting in the way of too much of the action. The Homegear collapsible green screen is an easy way to add that to your studio. And then you can put it away when you’re not using it. GamesBeat's creed when covering the game industry is "where passion meets business." What does this mean? We want to tell you how the news matters to you -- not just as a decision-maker at a game studio, but also as a fan of games. Whether you read our articles, listen to our podcasts, or watch our videos, GamesBeat will help you learn about the industry and enjoy engaging with it. Discover our Briefings. Join the GamesBeat community! Enjoy access to special events, private newsletters and more. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Black Friday 2019: The best AI smartphones | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2019/11/27/black-friday-2019-the-best-ai-smartphones"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Black Friday 2019: The best AI smartphones Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Samsung Galaxy S10+ Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. Black Friday or Cyber Monday, take your pick; it’s that time of year again. If you’re in the market for a smartphone — and it’s statistically likely you are, given that 403.5 million handsets shipped last holiday season — there’s no better month to seek out promotions, discounts, and limited-time deals on new devices. Samsung is hosting a sale on Galaxy phones including the Galaxy S10e, S10, S10 Plus, and S10 5G, and OnePlus recently knocked $150 off the price of the OnePlus 7 Pro. Carriers like T-Mobile, Sprint, AT&T, and Verizon are awarding up to $700 in trade-in credits, and as for retailers, there’s the usual doorbusters. It’s almost too much of a good thing — particularly if you aren’t committed to a brand, a model, or a manufacturer. Conventional wisdom would have you judge a device by its screen or perhaps its camera, but we took a different tack last year with our guide to the best phones for the AI enthusiast. In this second edition, we rejiggered the categories somewhat to reflect new industry developments. But we’ve tried to remain true to the original mission: to highlight handsets that stand apart from the crowd with respect to their AI capabilities. Smartphone with the best AI chip iPhone 11 Pro, iPhone 11 Pro, iPhone 11 Pro Max Apple’s flagships nabbed the top spot in last year’s buying guide with their powerful AI chipsets, and the trend continues. The iPhone 11 Pro, iPhone 11 Pro, and iPhone 11 Pro Max sport the Cupertino company’s A13 Bionic , a custom chip manufactured on a 7-nanometer process that packs a whopping 8.5 billion transistors (up from its predecessor’s 6.9 billion transistors). It’s the fastest processor ever in a smartphone, according to Apple senior director of iPhone marketing Kaiann Drance, but arguably the highlight is the improved neural engine. VB Event The AI Impact Tour Connect with the enterprise AI community at VentureBeat’s AI Impact Tour coming to a city near you! Said engine sits alongside the six-core processor (two high-performance Lightning cores and four high-efficiency Thunder cores) and graphics chip, with eight dedicated AI accelerators that that are up to six times faster than those in the previous-generation engine. A specialized controller helps to distribute machine learning workloads among the different subprocessors, enabling them to consume less power than those in the A12 and A11 while running over five trillion operations per second. Tangibly, that translates to improved text-to-speech and computational photography capabilities. Apple senior VP of worldwide marketing Phil Schiller said that there’s “much more” natural language processing in the newest version of IOS — iOS 13 — accelerated by machine learning algorithms running on the neural engine. Also in tow is Deep Fusion , which snaps between three and seven photographs at multiple exposures and selects the best before combining them into one with idealized shadow, color detail, and highlight. And there’s the AI-powered Night Mode, which enhances brightness in dimly lit environments while preserving color and details. Face ID, Animoji and Memoji, Portrait Lighting, and Apple’s ARKit augmented reality framework are among the other features optimized for the neural engine, in addition to the iPhone’s Portrait mode. After the shutter button is pressed, AI models attempt to figure out what kind of scene is being photographed and distinguish any subjects from the background. This thorough understanding of depth enables post-production editing of the blur and sharpness. On the third-party side of the equation, developers can run code on the neural engine. San Jose software company Nex Team’s basketball app, HomeCourt, taps it to track and log shots, misses, and a player’s location on court in real time. Digital Masterpieces’ BeCasso app uses an AI technique called style transfer to recompose paintings, pictures, or sketches in the style of other images. And Memrise packs a classifier model that identifies objects and tells users how to say their names in any language. Runner-up: Huawei Mate 30 Pro Above: Huawei’s Mate 30 Pro. If you’re willing to forego Google apps and services including the Play Store, Huawei’s Mate 30 Pro is worthy of consideration. (Huawei is prevented from preinstalling Google software because of trade restrictions imposed by U.S. Commerce Department.) It tops the charts in AI Benchmark, an app developed by researchers at ETH Zurich that measures performance on a range of machine learning tasks, and it comes out ahead on typical AI benchmarks like MobileNet (Int8). The Kirin 990 5G system-on-chip within is responsible for the computational boost. It’s a 7-nanometer wafer with 10.3 billion transistors and an eight-core architecture, with six cores reserved for low-to-middle-intensity workloads (like music and file transfers) and four high-performance cores. That’s all complemented by a 12-core graphics chip — the Mali-G76 — that leapfrogs the Adreno 640 inside Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 855 in terms of efficiency. But the arguable headliner is the Neural Processing Unit (NPU), a coprocessor optimized for the sort of vector math that’s the lifeblood of machine learning frameworks like Facebook’s Caffe2 and Google’s TensorFlow. Microsoft’s Translator app taps into it for tasks like scanning and translating words in pictures, and Huawei says its heterogeneous computing structure — HiAI — automatically distributes voice recognition, natural language processing, and computer vision workloads across it dynamically. Just one of the cores in the NPU’s Da Vinci architecture — the evolution of the NPU in the Kirin 970 and 980, which were designed by Cambricon — is up to 24 times more efficient than a general-purpose processor core for tasks like facial recognition. Plus, it accelerates up to 90% of commonly used computer vision algorithms, including Inception, Deep Lab, VDSR, VGG, and MobileNet-SSD. These manifest in the Mate 30 Pro’s Master AI, an “intelligent” scene recognizer akin to Samsung’s Scene Optimizer and LG’s AI Cam that adjusts the phone’s camera settings automatically — depending on ambient lighting, contrast, and other factors. An enhanced Night mode composites the best photos of a burst shot taken at multiple exposures, while an AI-assisted stabilization (AIS) and “4D” predict where subjects are moving to keep them in focus while intelligently cropping frames to smooth out jerky footage. Smartphone with the best AI camera features Google Pixel 4 and Pixel 4 XL Above: The Google Pixel 4. Is there a phone superior to the Pixel 4 with respect to AI-powered camera features ? We’d argue not. Last year’s Pixel lineup (the Pixel 4 and Pixel 4 XL ) set a high bar, but Google cleared it with a veritable slew of enhancements. A dedicated AI coprocessor — the next-generation Pixel Visual Core, which improves upon the imaging chip in the Pixel 3 — power-efficiently crunches millions to trillions of operations per second, accelerating the Pixel 4 series’ HDR+ feature (more on that later). It’s also responsible for speeding up Google’s Rapid and Accurate Image Super-Resolution (RAISR) technologies, which use machine learning to produce high-quality versions of zoomed-in images, as well as Zero Shutter Lag, which eliminates the delay between triggering the phone shutter and the moment the photo is actually recorded. That’s only the tip of the iceberg. The Pixel 4 leverages AI to suss out white balance and recognize frequently photographed people, and to focus on those people when they’re detected in-frame. Autofocus mode tracks items of interest in view, eliminating the need to manually lock focus. As for Top Shot, it captures a burst frame before and after the shutter button is tapped and chooses the best shot automatically, taking into account things like smiles, open eyes, and gazes. The Pixel 4’s most impressive photography feature might be Night Sight , which uses machine learning to boost the brightness of flash-free and ultra-dark images. It launched with the Pixel 3, but the Pixel 4’s incarnation boasts improved dynamic range and color thanks to support for longer exposure times (up to around 16 seconds). It also adds a focus option — Infinity — that slots alongside the existing Near, Autofocus, and Far options, as well as an astrophotography mode that enhances the contrast of the night sky to boost star visibility. Smartphone with the best alternative AI assistant Galaxy Note10 and Galaxy S10 series Samsung’s Bixby assistant might not have the ubiquity of Google Assistant, Apple’s Siri, or Amazon’s Alexa, but it’s improving at a steady clip. Bixby now features better natural language processing and faster response times, along with built-in noise reduction tech. And as of October, it recommends voice apps based on context, like ridesharing and navigation apps when a users says “I need a ride.” In July, Samsung launched the Bixby Marketplace in the U.S. and South Korea, a dedicated app store where third-party developers can offer their own Bixby-compatible services, similar to Amazon’s Alexa skills. Through it, users can search for services — which Samsung calls “capsules” — that enhance Bixby. Capsules can be added with a tap, and the Bixby Marketplace supports ratings and reviews to help surface the best, or at least most popular, capsules. Another relatively new addition to Bixby is Bixby Routines , which rolled out earlier this year. Much like Alexa Routines and routines on the Google Assistant, Bixby offers preset and personalized routines, such as Driving and Before Bed routines, that can be customized based on your habits. Like any modern voice assistant, Bixby recognizes requests to add items to a calendar, queue up tunes, place calls, and launch apps, and it can answer basic questions about sports scores, movie showtimes, business hours, and more. More than 3,000 commands in seven languages (English, Korean, Chinese, German, French, Italian, and Spanish) are supported in all, including chained ones like “Open the gallery app in split-screen view and rotate misaligned photos” and “Play videos on a nearby TV.” Conclusion So there you have it: four flagship smartphones that make innovative use of AI across three distinct categories. Apple’s 2019 iPhone lineup is far and away the winner on the chipset front — the upgraded neural engine, combined with powerful software tools and a thriving developer ecosystem, cement its lead. That said, Huawei nips at its heels, particularly when taking into account the Mate 30 Pro’s first-party camera features that tap the Kirin 990’s improved AI chip. But the Mate 30 Pro’s camera falls short of Google’s Pixel 4 in the computational photography category. The Pixel 4 has one of the best smartphone cameras we’ve ever tested , thanks in large part to AI. Last but not least, there’s the Samsung Galaxy Note10 and Galaxy 10 series , showcases for the latest version of Samsung’s Bixby assistant. Bixby might not be the most robust platform on the block, but it’s grown considerably better in recent months. And to our knowledge, Bixby Voice is one of the only (if not the only) voice assistants that can recognize chained commands and interact with app menus and submenus, making it great for hands-free usage. Nearly every phone featured in our roundup is available for purchase at carrier stores, Amazon, Best Buy, and other major brick-and-mortar electronics stores. The Mate 30 Pro, it’s worth noting, hasn’t been made officially available in the U.S. — you’ll have to transact with a third-party retailer to get your hands on it. VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Beat Saber PSVR is 'almost 1-to-1' with PCs, PS4 Pro will bump resolution | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2018/07/13/beat-saber-psvr-is-almost-1-to-1-with-pcs-ps4-pro-will-bump-resolution"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Beat Saber PSVR is ‘almost 1-to-1’ with PCs, PS4 Pro will bump resolution Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Beat Saber is a VR rhythm game played by swinging dual lightsabers at blocks. Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. Beat Saber’s formula — the rhythms of Dance Dance Revolution mixed with Fruit Ninja gameplay and Tron aesthetics — has proved popular with PC VR gamers, and Sony PlayStation VR owners will soon get in on the action. Speaking with GamesBeat this week, Beat Games CEO Jaroslav Beck shared some new details about the upcoming PSVR port, including some good news on its PlayStation 4 performance. Even though Beat Saber is being ported from PCs that have more horsepower, Beck suggested that the PlayStation VR version won’t be noticeably downgraded in graphics, sounds, or motion controls. “We were very surprised that we don’t have to make many changes,” he told us. “PlayStation is capable to deliver almost 1-to-1 experience as we have on PC right now.” Above: You slice blocks with your swords in sync with the beat. The PlayStation VR headset supports both PS4 and PS4 Pro consoles, and players have generally been pleased with VR performance on even the lower-end machine across earlier games. We asked Beck whether PS4 Pro users will see any extra benefits, and the answer was yes: The PS4 Pro “will render the game in higher resolution, and some of the effects will have higher details.” Given the larger size of the audience outside VR, I wondered whether Beat Saber will support non-VR play on TVs. Beck said the company’s “experimenting with some ideas, but we can’t confirm anything yet.” Generally, he said, playing a VR game on a TV is the difference between “watching sports on TV and actually playing them. If you play a football console game on the TV, it can’t be compared to the real experience.” Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! I also asked Beck whether there would be any single feature exclusive to PSVR that PlayStation fans could call their own. “Yes,” he told us. “There will be quite a lot of things we would like to deliver to PS VR exclusively, but it’s a little too soon to talk about it. Stay tuned!” Above: Beat Saber has been one of VR’s biggest hits on PCs, and is coming soon to PlayStation VR, with its even larger installed base. Given how often a given platform is held back by contractual requirements for feature parity, we were surprised that there might be not just one PlayStation-exclusive feature but “quite a lot” — and that’s exciting news for PlayStation VR owners, assuming the extra features pan out. Beat Games has been working on multiplayer support , a level editor , and additional music for the title, which has been one of VR’s biggest indie hits. On PC formats alone, it sold over 100,000 copies in its first month, and is reported to be somewhere in the 200,000 to 500,000 range at this point. Adding the PlayStation VR’s user base, which is currently the largest in the VR industry, could add well over 2 million potential players to the pool. GamesBeat's creed when covering the game industry is "where passion meets business." What does this mean? We want to tell you how the news matters to you -- not just as a decision-maker at a game studio, but also as a fan of games. Whether you read our articles, listen to our podcasts, or watch our videos, GamesBeat will help you learn about the industry and enjoy engaging with it. Discover our Briefings. Join the GamesBeat community! Enjoy access to special events, private newsletters and more. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Oculus Quest: Beat Saber is a blast when it has no wires | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2019/05/22/oculus-quest-beat-saber-is-a-blast-when-it-has-no-wires"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Oculus Quest: Beat Saber is a blast when it has no wires Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. A lot of people are unboxing their Oculus Quest wireless virtual reality headsets this week. And the first game they’re heading for is Beat Saber , the VR rhythm game where you slice red or blue cubes with light sabers as they come at you to the beat of music. Beat Saber from Beat Games has sold more than a million units across the existing VR platforms, including the PlayStation VR, Steam VR (HTC Vive), and the Oculus Rift. But those systems are all wired. They’re a bit of a hassle to set up and connect in your living room. That adds a lot of friction to the notion of jumping into a quick game. But with the Oculus Quest, a standalone, wireless VR headset which debuted yesterday for $400, you can now experience Beat Saber the way it should be played. I got the Quest up and running quite easily. It has passthrough cameras — meaning you can see through the goggles at the floor in front of you. So I was able to quickly set up a Guardian, or the borders for the space around me where it was safe to play. And then I loaded the Quest with games. I started playing Vader Immortal and other titles at first. But then I gave Beat Saber a try. I started moving to the beat, swinging my red sword in my left hand at the red cubes as they came down the lane toward me. And I swung my blue saber at the blue cubes, always careful to swing at them from the direction indicated by a white arrow on the face of the cubes. Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! I didn’t stop playing until about 10 songs later. I never noticed any connection problems or flubs because the sensor couldn’t detect my hands. The Oculus Quest has inside-out tracking, meaning the hand-controller sensors are on the headset itself, so that it can track the position of your hands as you move them about. That compares to the outside-in tracking of the older Oculus Rift, which requires fixed wired sensors to be set up somewhere in the room. The controllers are built in a slightly different way because of the tracking. But I didn’t notice any difference. I don’t know if Beat Saber will be a killer app or not. It is available on a bunch of VR platforms. But I can say that, having played it on wired systems, the wireless Quest is the way this game should be played. Now I can get into the game in a matter of seconds, not counting the relatively quick load time. That might make it much easier to become a habit, and a reason to get a little exercise during the day. Beat Saber costs $30 on the Oculus Quest. Disclosure: Oculus supplied me with a Quest and a copy of the game for the purpose of VR reviews. GamesBeat's creed when covering the game industry is "where passion meets business." What does this mean? We want to tell you how the news matters to you -- not just as a decision-maker at a game studio, but also as a fan of games. Whether you read our articles, listen to our podcasts, or watch our videos, GamesBeat will help you learn about the industry and enjoy engaging with it. Discover our Briefings. Join the GamesBeat community! Enjoy access to special events, private newsletters and more. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Beat Saber's Jaroslav Beck wants to invest in other studios | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2019/08/31/beat-sabers-jaroslav-beck-wants-to-invest-in-other-studios"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Beat Saber’s Jaroslav Beck wants to invest in other studios Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Beat Saber has been a huge hit on VR. Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. Jaroslav Beck recently stepped down from his role as CEO of the company behind Beat Saber to “fully focus on our music roadmap and future opportunities.” Now he’s looking to invest in “supporting new developers.” Time to give something back. If you're VR developer and need some support to finish your awesome idea, play this video. pic.twitter.com/2Z8VLKMwE4 — Jaroslav Beck (@JaroslavBeck) August 22, 2019 Beck is the mind behind the incredibly catchy music of Beat Saber which helped cement its status as worldwide hit by giving players satisfying songs to dance-slice their way to the top of the scoreboard. Beat Games is the Prague-based company behind Beat Saber and it is currently led by Vladimir Hrincar, who co-created the game with Jan Ilavsky. Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! Beck, meanwhile, is apparently working to chart the company’s course through the entrenched players of the music industry. At Gamescom this year he said he saw a number of new VR games and decided “it would be great to put a bunch money together and start supporting new developers who are creating games or applications for VR and who are thinking a little bit more out of the box, because I believe that VR desperately needs new directions in game mechanics and overall approach.” Beck says it is a personal project. I reached out to him after he posted the above video to see what kind of a response he’s getting. He said he’s a bit overwhelmed by that response, but still interested in seeing more VR projects and providing advice or financial investment. Beck’s direct messages on Twitter are open. GamesBeat's creed when covering the game industry is "where passion meets business." What does this mean? We want to tell you how the news matters to you -- not just as a decision-maker at a game studio, but also as a fan of games. Whether you read our articles, listen to our podcasts, or watch our videos, GamesBeat will help you learn about the industry and enjoy engaging with it. Discover our Briefings. Join the GamesBeat community! Enjoy access to special events, private newsletters and more. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Facebook trains AI to generate worlds in a fantasy text adventure | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2019/11/22/facebook-trains-ai-to-generate-worlds-in-a-fantasy-text-adventure"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Facebook trains AI to generate worlds in a fantasy text adventure Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. Procedurally generating an interesting video game environment isn’t just challenging — it’s incredibly time-consuming. Tools like Promethean AI, which tap machine learning to generate scenes, promise to ease the design burden somewhat. But barriers remain. That’s why researchers at Facebook, the University of Lorraine, and the University College London in a preprint research paper investigated an AI approach to creating game worlds. Using content from LIGHT, a fantasy text-based multiplayer adventure, they designed models that could compositionally arrange locations and characters and generate new content on the fly. “We show how [machine learning] algorithms can learn to assemble … different elements, arranging locations and populating them with characters and objects,” wrote the study’s coauthors. “[Furthermore, we] demonstrate that these … tools can aid humans interactively in designing new game environments.” By way of refresher, LIGHT — which was proposed in a March paper published by the same team of scientists — is a research environment in the form of a text-based game within which AI and humans interact as player characters. All told, it comprises crowdsourced natural language descriptions of 663 locations based on a set of regions and biomes, along with 3,462 objects and 1,755 characters. Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! In this latest study, the team built a model to generate game worlds, which entail crafting location names and descriptions including background information. They trained it using example neighboring locations partitioned into test and validation sets, such that the locations were distinct in each set. Two ranking models were considered — one where models had access to the location name only and a second where they had access to the location description information — and architected so that when a new world was constructed at test time, the placed location was the highest scoring candidate of several. To create a map for a new game, the models predicted the neighboring locations of each existing location, and for each location added, they filled in the surroundings. A location could connect to up to four neighboring locations (though not all connections needed to be filled), and locations couldn’t appear multiple times in one map. A separate set of models produced objects, or items with which characters could interact. (Each object has a name, description, and a set of affordances that represent object properties, such as “gettable” and “drinkable.”) Using characters and objects associated with locations from LIGHT, the researchers created data sets to train algorithms that placed both objects and characters in locations, as well as objects within objects (e.g., coins inside a wallet). Yet another family of models that had been fed the corpora from the world construction task created new game elements — either a location, character, or object — by leveraging a Transformer architecture pretrained on 2 billion Reddit comments, which were chosen because of their “closeness to natural human conversation” and because they exhibit “elements of creativity and storytelling.” It predicted a background and description given a location name; a persona and description given an object name; or a description and affordances given an object name. So how did it all work in concert? First, an empty map grid was initialized to represent the number of possible locations, with a portion of grid positions marked inaccessible to make exploration more interesting. The central location was populated randomly, and the best-performing model iteratively filled in neighboring locations until the entire grid was populated. Then, for each placed location, a model predicted which characters and objects should populate that location before another model predicted if objects should be placed inside existing objects. The researchers also propose a human-aided design paradigm, where the models could provide suggestions for which elements to place. If human designers enter names of game elements not present in the data set, the generative models would write descriptions, personas, and affordances. In experiments, the team used their framework to generate 5,000 worlds with a maximum size of 50 arranged locations. Around 65% and 60% of characters and objects in the data set, respectively, were generated after the full 5,000 maps. The most commonly placed location was “the king’s quarters” (in 34% of the generated worlds), while the least commonly placed location was “brim canal,” and 80% of the worlds had more than 30 locations. Despite the fact that the generative models didn’t tap the full range of entities available to them, the researchers say that the maps they produced were generally cohesive, interesting, and diverse. “These steps show a path to creating cohesive game worlds from crowd-sourced content, both with model-assisted human creation tooling and fully automated generation,” they wrote. GamesBeat's creed when covering the game industry is "where passion meets business." What does this mean? We want to tell you how the news matters to you -- not just as a decision-maker at a game studio, but also as a fan of games. Whether you read our articles, listen to our podcasts, or watch our videos, GamesBeat will help you learn about the industry and enjoy engaging with it. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Ampere launches its first ARM-based server processors in challenge to Intel | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2018/09/18/ampere-launches-its-first-arm-based-server-processors-in-challenge-to-intel"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Ampere launches its first ARM-based server processors in challenge to Intel Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Ampere's first ARM-based server chip debuts today. Are you ready to bring more awareness to your brand? Consider becoming a sponsor for The AI Impact Tour. Learn more about the opportunities here. Ampere is launching two versions of its first ARM-based 64-bit server processor today in a challenge to Intel’s dominance of data center chips. Intel dominates about 99 percent of the server chip market with its x86-based processors, but Ampere is targeting power-efficient, high-performance, and high-memory capacity features with its Ampere eMAG processors for data centers. Renee James, former president of Intel and CEO of Ampere, said in an interview with VentureBeat that customers can now order the chip from the company’s website. The chips are aimed at hyperscale cloud and edge computing, using the ARMv8-A cores. The chips target big data and in-memory databases. Santa Clara, California-based Ampere is backed by private equity investment firm The Carlyle Group. James hopes to take on Intel with the ARM architecture used in the world’s smartphones, which is known for its efficiency in providing performance at very low power levels. Ampere was built from the ashes of Applied Micro Circuits, and it now has 400 employees. Based on the SPECint benchmark performance, Ampere’s eMAG processor can deliver about twice the performance of the Intel Xeon Gold 6130 processor at about the same price, the company said. The eMAG with 32 cores and 3.3 Ghz in performance will sell for $850, and with 16 cores at 3.3 GHz will sell for $550. Above: Renee James, CEO of Ampere, is the former president of Intel. And Ampere’s eMAG is about three times better at performance per dollar compared to Intel’s Xeon D processors. You could also replace two Xeon Silver processors with one eMAG processor. James said the company is also designing its next product to use 7-nanometer manufacturing with multi-socket and single-socket options for 2019. “We have multiple products on the roadmap because the big companies buy into the roadmap, not just a single product,” James said. Ampere came out of stealth about eight months ago, and it is partnering with world-class original device manufacturers and original equipment manufacturers (that is, big computer makers). The company isn’t yet ready to announce any customers, James said. “The Ampere eMAG Arm-based SoCs and roadmap are well aligned with the demanding cost and performance requirements of hyperscale cloud computing customers,” said Drew Henry, senior vice president and general manager of the infrastructure business unit at Arm, in a statement. “This underscores the accelerated pace of innovation and broad workload support that infrastructure customers should expect to see from the Arm ecosystem.” Above: Ampere has both 16-core and 32-core ARM-based server processors. The Ampere eMAG platform is meant to lower total cost of ownership (TCO) in comparison to current rival chips. The emphasis will be on providing competitive performance per dollar and performance per watt for high-volume mainstream servers in data center, edge, storage, and web applications. Ampere designed its cores, which feature eight DDR4-2667 memory controllers, 42 lanes of PCIe 3.0 for high bandwidth I/O, 125W TDP for maximum power efficiency, and a 16-nanometer FinFET manufacturing process at contract manufacturer TSMC. “We are pleased with the collaboration between Ampere and our teams to deliver the first generation of products,” said Kevin Zhang, vice president of business development at TSMC, in a statement. “We look forward to continuing to see Ampere’s innovation in hyperscale cloud computing and working with them to deliver products to the market.” Oracle also expressed its support. “Ampere’s high performance, high memory capacity and 2P roadmap provide a strong platform to support Oracle’s enterprise workloads. We applaud Ampere for its aggressive roadmap and rapid progress,” said Edward Screven, chief corporate architect at Oracle, in a statement. The category of 64-bit ARM server chips went through its own hype cycle a few years ago, with companies such as Advanced Micro Devices and Applied Micro trying to design chips based on ARM instead of Intel’s x86 architecture, which powers almost all of the world’s Windows PCs and Macs. But those companies failed. AMD shut its ARM project, and Macom acquired Applied Micro in 2016. The Carlyle Group bought the ARM central processing unit (CPU) division of Applied Micro from Macom in 2017. The acquisition was finalized late last year, and James took over as CEO, leaving her position as an operating executive at The Carlyle Group. James stepped down from her role as Intel’s president in February 2016. She joined The Carlyle Group to make investments and found that semiconductor companies were becoming more popular as investments again. But she said that the amount of money required to bring chips to market is huge, and it required private equity backing from The Carlyle Group to get Ampere off the ground. James isn’t saying exactly how much. Former Intel chip architect Atiq Bajwa is Ampere’s chief architect, while former AMD chip architect Greg Favor is a senior fellow at Ampere. Ampere has an architecture license with ARM and is designing its own custom cores for its ARMv8-A 64-bit server chip. James served at Intel for decades. I met her when she was a technical assistant in the 1990s for then-CEO Andy Grove. He inspired her to move into management, and she climbed through the ranks and became president, the No. 2 job, in 2013. She announced she was leaving in mid-2013 and departed in February 2016. VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Intel reveals its Ponte Vecchio GPU for the datacenter | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2019/11/17/intel-reveals-its-ponte-vecchio-gpu-for-the-datacenter"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Intel reveals its Ponte Vecchio GPU for the datacenter Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Intel has described its Ponte Vecchio GPU. Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. Intel has revealed its long-awaited graphics processing unit (GPU) architecture, which would be the heart of graphics chips designed to handle heavy data and artificial intelligence loads in datacenters. The new Ponte Vecchio GPUs would compete with rival offerings from Nvidia and Advanced Micro Devices. And eventually, the Intel architecture could serve as the foundation for consumer GPU chips from Intel in the future. Intel made the announcement ahead of the Supercomputing 2019 event in Denver. Intel is targeting the high-performance computing (HPC) and AI segments with both the GPU and a new software initiative that aims to shift away from “single-architecture, single-vendor” programming models. (That’s a veiled reference to Nvidia’s CUDA programming platform for getting GPUs to do non-graphics processing tasks). A new supercomputer design dubbed Aurora would have six Ponte Vecchio GPUs. Asked about the leaks last week of Intel’s GPU plans , Jensen Huang, CEO of rival Nvidia, said in an interview with VentureBeat, “I’m anxious to see it, just like you probably are. I enjoy looking at other people’s products and learning from them. We take all of our competitors very seriously, as you know. You have to respect Intel. But we have our own tricks up our sleeves. We have a fair number of surprises for you guys as well. I look forward to seeing what they’ve got.” Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! Intel describes oneAPI industry software initiative as delivering a unified and simplified programming model for application development across heterogeneous processing architectures, including CPUs, GPUs, FPGAs, and NNPs. The launch of oneAPI represents millions of engineering hours in software development, and Intel says it marks a game-changing evolution from today’s proprietary programming approaches to an open, standards-based model for cross-architecture developer engagement and innovation. “HPC [high-performance computing] and AI workloads demand diverse architectures, ranging from CPUs, general-purpose GPUs, and FPGAs, to more specialized deep learning NNPs which Intel demonstrated earlier this month,” said Raja Koduri, chief architect at Intel, in a statement. “Simplifying our customers’ ability to harness the power of diverse computing environments is paramount, and Intel is committed to taking a software-first approach that delivers unified and scalable abstraction for heterogeneous architectures.” Patrick Moorhead, analyst at Moor Insights & Strategy, said in an email, “The industry wants more competition in data center GPUs so there’s no question about the need for it. Intel has never actually tried to build a high-end discrete GPU with a frame buffer, so while there may have been some previous failed attempts at datacenter graphic devices with MIC, those weren’t GPUs architecturally.” Moorhead added, “OneAPI is designed to provide developers simplicity to program across Intel GPUs, CPUs, FPGAs, and Movidius accelerators. It’s an abstraction layer that enables reuse of code, minimizing the need for bespoke acceleration work as it is today. The industry wants this in circumstances when code reuse is needed more than different code for each accelerator. I am pleased to see until delivering on this as the market wants it.” A developer-centric approach to heterogeneous computing Above: Intel’s Aurora would have six Ponte Vecchio GPUs. Intel said the oneAPI initiative will define programming for an increasingly AI-infused, multi-architecture world. The open programming experience lets developers build on the architecture of their choice without compromising performance and eliminating the complexity of separate codebases, multiple-programming languages, and different tools and workflows, Intel said. OneAPI preserves existing software investments with support for existing languages while delivering flexibility for developers. OneAPI includes both an industry initiative based on open specifications and an Intel beta product. The oneAPI specification includes a direct programming language, powerful APIs, and a low-level hardware interface. Intel’s oneAPI beta software provides developers a portfolio of developer tools that include compilers, libraries, and analyzers, packaged into domain-focused toolkits. The initial oneAPI beta release targets Intel Xeon Scalable processors, Intel Core processors with integrated graphics, and Intel FPGAs, with additional hardware support to follow in future releases. Developers can learn more about oneAPI at software.intel.com/oneAPI or download and test drive tools in the Intel oneAPI DevCloud. Regarding the software barriers to adoption, Huang said, “In the area of training, the barrier to adoption is very high. People just don’t — why would they trust the solution? Why would they trust a system to scale out to 100 million, 200 million, sight unseen? It’s just too complicated, I think.” Data-centric strategy for AI/HPC convergence The foundation of Intel’s data-centric strategy is the Intel Xeon Scalable processor, which today powers over 90% of the world’s Top500 supercomputers. Intel asserts that Xeon Scalable processors are the only x86 CPUs with built-in AI acceleration optimized to analyze the massive data sets in HPC workloads. At Supercomputing 2019, Intel unveiled a new category of general-purpose GPUs based on Intel’s X e architecture. Code-named Ponte Vecchio, this new high-performance, highly flexible discrete general-purpose GPU is architected for HPC modeling and simulation workloads and AI training. Ponte Vecchio will be manufactured on Intel’s 7-nanometer technology and will be Intel’s first Xe-based GPU optimized for HPC and AI workloads. Ponte Vecchio will leverage Intel’s Foveros 3D and EMIB packaging innovations and feature multiple technologies in-package, including high-bandwidth memory, Compute Express Link interconnect, and other intellectual property. Building the foundation for exascale computing Intel’s data-centric silicon portfolio and oneAPI initiative lays the foundation for the convergence of HPC and AI workloads at exascale within the Aurora system at Argonne National Laboratory. Aurora will be the first U.S. exascale system to leverage the full breadth of Intel’s data-centric technology portfolio, building upon the Intel Xeon Scalable platform and using Xe architecture-based GPUs, as well as Intel Optane DC Persistent Memory and connectivity technologies. The compute node architecture of Aurora will feature two 10-nanometer-based Intel Xeon Scalable processors (code-named Sapphire Rapids) and six Ponte Vecchio GPUs. Aurora will support over 10 petabytes of memory and over 230 petabytes of storage. Aurora will leverage the Cray Slingshot fabric to connect nodes across more than 200 racks. GamesBeat's creed when covering the game industry is "where passion meets business." What does this mean? We want to tell you how the news matters to you -- not just as a decision-maker at a game studio, but also as a fan of games. Whether you read our articles, listen to our podcasts, or watch our videos, GamesBeat will help you learn about the industry and enjoy engaging with it. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Zynga will buy 80% of Empires & Puzzles maker Small Giant Games for $560 million | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2018/12/20/zynga-will-buy-80-of-empires-puzzles-maker-small-giant-games-for-560-million"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Zynga will buy 80% of Empires & Puzzles maker Small Giant Games for $560 million Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Empires & Puzzles has more than 10 million downloads. Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. Zynga has agreed to acquire the Helsinki-based mobile game maker Small Giant Games , the creator of the hit title Empires & Puzzles. Zynga will pay $560 million in cash and stock for 80 percent of the company, and the rest will come later. It’s the biggest deal since Zynga acquired CSR Racing maker NaturalMotion for $527 million in 2014. And it reflects the strategy of CEO Frank Gibeau to grow during an age of mobile gaming consolidation through both the creation of new games and acquisitions. Back in May, Zynga acquired 1010 mobile game maker Gram Games for $250 million in cash plus other considerations. That was preceded by Zynga’s 2017 purchase of assets, including a casual game studio Peak Games, another Istanbul-based game studio, for $100 million. The deal will close on January 1, pending various approvals. To put the purchase price in perspective, the amount is larger than the $494 million valuation of Cloud Imperium , which is making the Star Citizen and Squadron 42 games, which hold the record for the highest crowd-funded games in history. While Cloud Imperium has 520 employees making its triple-A games, Small Giant Games has just 47. That means Zynga is paying at least $11.9 million per Small Giant Games employee. Event GamesBeat at the Game Awards We invite you to join us in LA for GamesBeat at the Game Awards event this December 7. Reserve your spot now as space is limited! “I’ll take our 47 Finns,” Gibeau said in an interview with GamesBeat. “The Finns have small teams that are very skillful. What they have accomplished with Empires & Puzzles is phenomenal.” Above: Timo Soininen (left) of Small Giant Games and Dean Takahashi of GamesBeat at Casual Connect Europe. Zynga is buying the company because it has a hit game which has been downloaded more than 24 million times in the past 18 months and has broken into the top 10 grossing games on iOS and Android. That’s a remarkable result for the first game from Small Giant Games, which Timo Soininen cofounded in 2013. He previously the CEO of Habbo Hotel, an early hit online game. Small Giant Games is expected to contribute to Zynga’s growth in 2019. Empires & Puzzles game successfully blends approachable match-3 battles with deeper gameplay elements including Hero Collection, Base Building and Social Alliances. “Our studio was founded on the idea that small, skillful teams can accomplish giant things, and I am confident that partnering with Zynga is the right next step in our evolution,” said Soininen in a statement. “We will now operate as a separate studio within Zynga, maintaining our identity, culture and creative independence. By leveraging the expertise and support from the wider Zynga team, we will amplify the reach of Empires & Puzzles and the new games in our development pipeline.” Above: Empires & Puzzles has match-3 gameplay. In terms of details, Zynga will acquire 80 percent of Small Giant for $560 million, made up of approximately $330 million in cash and $230 million of unregistered Zynga common stock (issued at the average closing price per share over the thirty-day trading period ended December 19, 2018). The final upfront transaction consideration will also include customary closing adjustments and will be partially funded by a newly established $200 million revolving credit facility. Zynga will purchase the remaining 20 percent of Small Giant over the next three years at valuations based on specified profitability goals. Gibeau said that represents an “earnout,” or a way to retain the employees of Small Giant Games with the potential of a bigger payday down the road. Small Giant Games had bookings last year of $190 million, which would put it just behind Zynga’s own Words With Friends in terms of revenue generation. “It’s already at scale, profitable, growing, with fantastic engagement metrics,” Gibeau said. “People play it and they keep on playing. The team has great talent.” Empires & Puzzles also gets Zynga to new users, as more of Empires & Puzzle audience is on Android and 60 percent of its revenues are outside the U.S., Gibeau said. “From our perspective, it really checked the boxes,” he said. Over time, Zynga will contribute its own live operations expertise and help take the game into Asia. Separately, Zynga is raising its fourth quarter 2018 guidance based on the strong performance of holiday bold beats across its live service portfolio — in particular, Words With Friends, Merge Dragons! and CSR2. In addition, Wonka’s World of Candy is off to a promising start since its launch in early November. This performance does not include any contributions from Small Giant yet. Small Giant Games raised $41 million in February, making it one of the rare mobile game studios to be able to raise a large round of money in a mature mobile gaming market. The Small Giants Games investors include EQT Ventures, Creandum, Spintop Ventures, and Profounders. Gibeau said they requested to be paid in Zynga stock out of confidence in Zynga’s future. “We have hit our margins, gross revenue goals, and are fundamentals are good,” Gibeau said. “The turnaround is over and it’s all about growth. We are layering in new themes and products as opposed to just trying to fix things. It is emotionally and culturally exciting for the company.” GamesBeat's creed when covering the game industry is "where passion meets business." What does this mean? We want to tell you how the news matters to you -- not just as a decision-maker at a game studio, but also as a fan of games. Whether you read our articles, listen to our podcasts, or watch our videos, GamesBeat will help you learn about the industry and enjoy engaging with it. Discover our Briefings. Join the GamesBeat community! Enjoy access to special events, private newsletters and more. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"Facebook acquires messaging behemoth WhatsApp for more than $16B | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2014/02/19/facebook-acquires-messaging-behemoth-whatsapp-for-16-billion"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages Facebook acquires messaging behemoth WhatsApp for more than $16B Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Are you ready to bring more awareness to your brand? Consider becoming a sponsor for The AI Impact Tour. Learn more about the opportunities here. Facebook today announced in a press release that it intends to acquire titanic messaging service WhatsApp for more than $16 billion. That price consists of $4 billion in cash and approximately $12 billion worth of Facebook shares, in addition to $3 billion in vested shares for WhatsApp employees. Facebook is clearly positioning itself strategically against Google’s Hangouts and Apple’s iMessage — and gaining access to WhatsApp’s 450 million users, most of whom are outside the U.S.. Related: WhatsApp is Facebook’s ticket to its next billion users For comparison, the gross domestic product of Iceland is just $12.3 billion. “WhatsApp is on a path to connect 1 billion people. The services that reach that milestone are all incredibly valuable,” said Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg in the release. “I’ve known [WhatsApp cofounder] Jan [Koum] for a long time, and I’m excited to partner with him and his team to make the world more open and connected.” WhatsApp’s massive userbase largely exists outside of the U.S., which makes this deal Facebook’s ticket to speedier international expansion. As for WhatsApp, the messaging service has yet to truly catch on in the U.S. Facebook can change that. This deal also grants WhatsApp’s team $3 billion in stock that will vest over the course of four years. With this announcement, Facebook also shared noteworthy stats that reveal WhatsApp’s current size. Currently, 450 million people use WhatsApp per month, with 1 million users added daily. As in its Instagram acquisition, Facebook claims that “ WhatsApp’s brand will be maintained ” and “its headquarters will remain in Mountain View, Calif.” VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"WhatsApp launches its web client, but not for iOS users | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2015/01/21/whatsapp-launches-its-web-client"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages WhatsApp launches its web client, but not for iOS users Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Are you ready to bring more awareness to your brand? Consider becoming a sponsor for The AI Impact Tour. Learn more about the opportunities here. WhatsApp said today that it has launched its web client, but not for iOS users. In a blog post , WhatsApp wrote that “Today, for the first time, millions of you will have the ability to use WhatsApp on your web browser. Our web client is simply an extension of your phone: The web browser mirrors conversations and messages from your mobile device — this means all of your messages still live on your phone.” Rumors of a WhatsApp web client began circulating last month. WhatsApp wrote that connecting a web browser to users’ WhatsApp client is easy, starting with going to this site. By scanning the QR code that appears, users will automatically have paired their mobile WhatsApp with the WhatsApp web client. The popular messaging service also said that users’ phones need to stay connected to the Internet in order for the web client to work, and they must install the latest version of WhatsApp on their phone. Because of “Apple platform limitations,” the web client is not currently available to iOS users, WhatsApp said. It did not address when or if that would change. Last February, Facebook bought WhatsApp , one of the world’s most popular messaging services, for $19 billion. The service currently claims 700 million users. VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"WhatsApp for Android now lets all users make voice calls | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2015/03/31/all-whatsapp-users-can-now-access-the-voice-call-feature-on-android"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages WhatsApp for Android now lets all users make voice calls Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn WhatsApp Calls Are you looking to showcase your brand in front of the brightest minds of the gaming industry? Consider getting a custom GamesBeat sponsorship. Learn more. WhatsApp’s much discussed move to support voice calls is nearing completion, as news emerges that anyone on Android can now make calls in-app to other WhatsApp users. The Facebook-owned mobile messaging company first revealed its plans to introduce voice calls way back in February last year , but it wasn’t until the past few months when the feature first started showing up in some Android users’ apps. Things subsequently opened up a little, with the feature being made available to anyone who received a call from another WhatsApp user who had voice calls unlocked. Above: WhatsApp Calls Some reports suggest that the latest official version on Google Play includes the voice-call feature automatically. However, based on our tests it was necessary to upgrade to version 2.12.19 directly from the WhatsApp website. Now, you’ll see an extra tab beside Contacts and Chats called — drum roll — Calls. You then tap the little call icon at the top right-hand side, and you’ll be able to call your WhatsApp contacts. Based on our tests, the call quality was pretty awful though, with huge lags in the conversation. It’s clearly not a finished feature, so hopefully WhatsApp will still improve on it in the coming weeks and months. WhatsApp cofounder Brian Acton also recently revealed the voice call feature would be arriving on iOS in the coming weeks. WhatsApp’s move to include voice calls follows the convergence trend we’ve seen across the mobile messaging realm. Indeed, the degree of differentiation between the various players is shrinking, with the likes of Viber, Korea’s Kakao Talk, Facebook Messenger, Japan’s Line, and now WhatsApp all offering voice. WhatsApp has also semi-emulated its competitors by introducing a web-based client of sorts , which was a major departure for an app that began as a mobile-only affair. Some questioned whether Facebook paid too much to acquire WhatsApp last year, with the $22 billion price tag certainly seeming lofty at the time. However, with one billion installations on Android alone , and 700 million-plus active users sending 30 billion messages each day, Facebook’s move was all about future-proofing itself from the ever-shifting sands of technological change. And by throwing voice calls into the WhatsApp mix, Facebook is striving to cover all communication bases. VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "

"WhatsApp turns on end-to-end encryption by default | VentureBeat"

"https://venturebeat.com/2016/04/05/whatsapp-turns-on-end-to-end-encryption-by-default"

"Artificial Intelligence View All AI, ML and Deep Learning Auto ML Data Labelling Synthetic Data Conversational AI NLP Text-to-Speech Security View All Data Security and Privacy Network Security and Privacy Software Security Computer Hardware Security Cloud and Data Storage Security Data Infrastructure View All Data Science Data Management Data Storage and Cloud Big Data and Analytics Data Networks Automation View All Industrial Automation Business Process Automation Development Automation Robotic Process Automation Test Automation Enterprise Analytics View All Business Intelligence Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Statistical Analysis Predictive Analysis More Data Decision Makers Virtual Communication Team Collaboration UCaaS Virtual Reality Collaboration Virtual Employee Experience Programming & Development Product Development Application Development Test Management Development Languages WhatsApp turns on end-to-end encryption by default Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn WhatsApp Are you ready to bring more awareness to your brand? Consider becoming a sponsor for The AI Impact Tour. Learn more about the opportunities here. Facebook-owned messaging app WhatsApp today announced that it has turned on end-to-end encryption by default. That means content that people share, whether they be text messages, voice messages, photos, and videos, are now more secured. Users will simply need to update to the latest version of WhatsApp to get the new encryption, according to a blog post. “The idea is simple: when you send a message, the only person who can read it is the person or group chat that you send that message to,” WhatsApp said. “No one can see inside that message. Not cybercriminals. Not hackers. Not oppressive regimes. Not even us. End-to-end encryption helps make communication via WhatsApp private — sort of like a face-to-face conversation.” Encryption continues to be trendy. The iMessage messaging protocol available on Apple’s iOS devices has had end-to-end encryption, and the encryption of an iPhone 5c was the subject of a recent standoff between Apple and the FBI. Bespoke encrypted messaging apps have also picked up traction. Telegram, which has an encrypted chat mode that users have to manually turn on for each chat, now has more than 100 million monthly active users. VB Event The AI Impact Tour Connect with the enterprise AI community at VentureBeat’s AI Impact Tour coming to a city near you! Facebook bought WhatsApp in 2014 for more than $16 billion. Now the service has more than 1 billion monthly active users. Open Whisper Systems , which is behind the Signal encrypted messaging app, has been working with WhatsApp to enable encryption over the past several months. More detail on the encryption is available here (PDF). VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Discover our Briefings. The AI Impact Tour Join us for an evening full of networking and insights at VentureBeat's AI Impact Tour, coming to San Francisco, New York, and Los Angeles! VentureBeat Homepage Follow us on Facebook Follow us on X Follow us on LinkedIn Follow us on RSS Press Releases Contact Us Advertise Share a News Tip Contribute to DataDecisionMakers Careers Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information © 2023 VentureBeat. All rights reserved. "