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Good morning!
This weekend, we launched an online course on Virtual Production - and the course sold out so quickly, we decided to run it again next month! Click here to learn more and register for the next run, September 26 through October 10.
Plus, you can hear from the course instructor, RLab's Technical Director Todd Bryant, as well as our Director of Education Alexis Seeley, at the Play NYC virtual festival today (Sunday) at 2:30PM ET (it's free to RSVP). We'll be joining Luis Cataldi from Epic Games, Kyle Li from Parsons, and James Calhoun from SVA to talk about teaching with Unreal Engine.
Epic made headlines this week by launching its own in-app payment system for Fortnite, and filing lawsuits against Apple and Google after they removed the game from their app stores. This move comes on the heels of a wide-ranging interview we covered in last week's newsletter with Epic CEO Tim Sweeney, where he outlined a vision for the economy of the Metaverse - an open marketplace that Sweeney says has been "outlawed" by the anti-competitive policies of companies like Apple.
Meanwhile, Burning Man offers up its own vision of a brand-less Multiverse in XR, and Mozilla, a bastion of the open-source web movement, lays off a quarter of its workforce as it prepares to create a new product organization focused on generating more revenue.
Scroll down for photos of dogs in mocap suits, and enjoy the rest of your weekend!
- the RLab team
We're always working to improve this newsletter - let us know how we're doing and send tips, feedback or questions to info@rlab.nyc.
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MUST-READS
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| Epic Games' Lawsuits Fire a Shot at Apple and Google's App Store 'Monopolies' |
Epic Games has filed lawsuits against Apple and Google for "anti-competitive conduct" hours after both companies removed Fortnite from their mobile game marketplaces. The removal was attributed to Epic instituting its own in-app payment system, and offering users discounts for making purchases directly from Epic.
Epic is not seeking monetary damages, but is instead asking the court to force the companies to change "monopolistic" policies that take a 30% cut of all in-app purchases, while prohibiting developers from selling the same services outside of their app stores.
The lawsuits are the latest confrontation in Epic's long-standing battle for open digital marketplaces (they previously launched their own PC gaming portal to undercut Valve's Steam store). In a move intended to turn 350 million Fortnite fans against the tech companies, the game developer also launched a #FREEFORTNITE campaign, alleging that Apple and Android stores keep prices high and prevent Epic from passing on savings directly to users. Other companies are throwing their support behind Epic as well - including Spotify, which launched its own complaint against Apple last year.
10 min read
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| Digitizing Burning Man |
For the first time, Burning Man isn't taking place in the desert, but the Multiverse. The nonprofit's organizers got together a motley group of technologists with backgrounds ranging from VR to hypnotism to blockchain, to create "a web of hacked-together social products" that they hope can encapsulate the experience.
CTO Steven Blumenfeld, who joined the Burning Man team days before they publicly announced the cancellation of the physical event, was eager to take on the challenge. But after taking stock of staff and schedule, "a big 3D VR wold" was just not feasible.
Luckily Blumenfeld and co had loyal Burners: 14k people wanted to contribute to a virtual Black Rock City. A group of indie teams created eight "recognized universes," each a radically different representation of the Burning Man experience (no branded or sponsored work was accepted). Universes span native apps, HTML5 and existing tech platforms like Second Life or AltspaceVR, and contain social elements like video chat. Many of the more ambitious attempts to recreate the playa experience take place in 3D worlds that can be accessed through VR headsets as well as 2D browser experiences on desktop and mobile.
13 min read |
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| Nreal's Augmented Reality Glasses Are Shipping This Month in Korea |
Nreal Light MR glasses are launching for consumers in South Korea, as part of a predicted influx of smart glasses hitting retail markets alongside 5G smartphones and tablets. The glasses are being sold as a standalone device, as well as part of a bundle with Samsung's Galaxy Note 20. Nreal is pitching the glasses as a "more spacious alternative to a smartphone" for videos, games, and web browsing.
The glasses include several accessories: a corrective lens frame for nearsighted users, nose pads of various sizes, and a lens shade cover for immersive VR experiences. The China-based company also signed a partnership with Japan's telco giant KDDI and Germany's Deutsche Telekom. No plans yet for a US launch.
2 min read |
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| Mozilla Lays Off 250 People, Teams Working on XR-Related Projects Affected |
Due to COVID-19, Mozilla's pre-pandemic plans have been shaken up. Citing a significant impact on revenue, Mozilla will be laying off 250 employees (a quarter of its workforce) and reassigning 60 (this is in addition to the 70 layoffs in January).
The employees affected include those responsible for most of Mozilla's web-based XR projects, though the impact on the popular social VR app Hubs remains to be seen. According to a message sent to employees, Mozilla will be "organizing a new product organization outside of Firefox that will both ship new products faster and develop new revenue streams. Our initial investments will be Pocket, Hubs, VPN, Web Assembly and security and privacy products."
5 min read |
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| MUST-SEE |
Build for Inclusion is a new initiative designed to "welcome every member of the broader AR/VR community in a meaningful conversation about diversity and inclusion in our industries." The first event, Raising Black Voices in Gaming & XR, was held this week - you can watch the recording here.
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| COMMUNITY NEWS |
Vermeer (RLab Accelerator Fall' 19) was awarded two Phase II Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) contracts by the United States Air Force. Vermeer is an AR and AI enabled tool that allows an operator to use intuitive gestures and visualization to manipulate robotic systems, such as drones, in the field, as well as visualize sensory data in a purely synthetic environment. According to Vermeer CEO Brian Streem: “We only introduced this product in the last 5 months, so getting not one, but two SBIR contracts this quickly shows the incredible value and demand our product has within the DoD to eliminate friction while working with robotic systems.”
Recordings from the 2020 Games for Change Festival are now available online. Sessions featuring members of the RLab community include:
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| TWEET OF THE WEEK |
According to Naughty Dog lead animator Jeremy Yates: "All our AI dogs were implemented using our new motion matching animation system. Winnie, Moxie, Kippy, and Stetson all contributed to create the library of motions used. For the cinematics with Alice, we used Roach. Any animations that could cause a dog harm were hand keyed."
And because you can never have enough dogs in mocap suits:
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TECH TALK
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In their recent NeRF in the Wild paper, Google researchers describe a system for taking in online photos from sites like Flickr and creating explorable 3D renderings that can be altered with various lighting effects, which will make it easier to create assets needed for a range of different VR and AR applications.
NeRF-W builds on Neural Radiance Fields (the new paper shares one of the authors), a similar but more restricted approach. NeRF-W accounts for various lighting conditions in the input photos, as well as obstructions like ever-shifting cars and pedestrians. Here's the GitHub page - and check out a deeper dive into the tech below.
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| EVENTS & OPPORTUNITIES |
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UPCOMING CLASSES AT RLAB
Online Intensive: Virtual Production
September 26 - October 10
Learn virtual production tools and techniques for remote multi-user collaboration and content creation in the Unreal Engine. This two-week online course will help digital filmmakers, directors, producers and other creators address remote production challenges and develop the skills and processes that are most relevant to their projects and pipelines. Register Here. |
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Event: XRJobs Office Hours
August 20, 12PM - 1PM
Monthly office hours hosted by RLab featuring a panel and Q&A on jobs in XR. This month's topic is Getting Started: Corporate, Consulting or Startup?
Event: SIGGRAPH 2020
August 24-28
The year's top advancements in computer graphics and interactive techniques through on-demand presentations (available starting August 17) and interactive sessions with contributors.
Event: AWE Nite NYC
August 25, 7-8PM
This month's online meetup for AR enthusiasts features a talk with Jacob Loewenstein, head of business at Spatial.
Event: MAVRIC 2020
September 10-11
3d annual conference (online this year) exploring the impact of XR in healthcare, business, art, intelligence, defense, and government.
Event: Ethics and Privacy: Terms of Usage
September 14, 10AM - 11:30AM
As part of the Data Science Institute's flagship annual event, Eric Schmidt will join for a discussion with Jeannette M. Wing.
Opportunity: MIT OpenDocLab & BPMplus Fellowship
Deadline: August 16
Remote fellowship offered to one Black filmmaker or storyteller developing a nonfiction project using AR, AI, IOT, VR, robotics, or other emerging technology.
Opportunity: NEW INC Mentor Open Call
Deadline: August 17
Annual open call seeking experts, professionals, and leaders to join as NEW INC program mentors in Year 7, which runs from September 2020 - August 2021.
Opportunity: Oculus Launch Pad
Deadline: August 20
Open call for program to support promising VR content creators from diverse backgrounds with hands on training and support.
Opportunity: Journalism 360 Challenge
Deadline: August 20
Open call for ideas using immersive storytelling to discover new ways to engage audiences and advance the field of journalism.
Opportunity: Kaleidoscope Artist Grants
Deadline: August 31
Monthly grants for projects in development include Activist Lens for documentary projects, Black Realities for projects by Black artists, and more.
Opportunity: Techstars Anywhere
Deadline: October 11
While anyone from anywhere building anything can apply to Techstars' remote program, they're specifically looking for founders building products and services catalyzed by a remote-first world.
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| OTHER NEWS |
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How Employers Can Train Front-Line Workers to Implement Mask Rules
Google Expands Lookout App for People Who Are Blind or Vision-Impaired
Facebook Researchers Develop Bleeding-Edge Facial Reconstruction Tech So You Can Make Goofy Faces in VR
Samsung says 6G will bring ‘digital twins’ – and it’s two years ahead of schedule
From Animal Crossing To Digital-Only Dresses, Is Fashion Becoming Our New Virtual Reality? |
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