WhatsApp founder Jan Koum leaves Facebook
"It is time for me to move on”
WhatsApp co-founder, CEO, and Facebook board member Jan Koum announced today that he will be leaving Facebook. The news comes after Washington Post eported that Koum would leave due to disagreements with Facebook management about WhatsApp user data privacy and weakened encryption. Koum obscured that motive in his note that says "I'll still be cheering WhatsApp on – just from the outside."
Koum, who sold WhatsApp to Facebook for more than $19 billion in 2014, also plans to step down from Facebook’s board of directors. The date of his departure isn’t known.
Koum’s exit is highly unusual at Facebook. The inner circle of management - and the Board of Directors - have been fiercely loyal during the scandals that have rocked the social media giant. In addition, Koum is the sole founder of a company acquired by Facebook to serve on its board. Only two other Facebook executives - Zuckerberg and Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg - are members of the board.
ROBOT CHEF WHO COOKS
I NEED HIM IN MY LIFE! LADIES, THIS ONE IS FOR YOU .
It’s not always easy to motivate yourself to cook a proper meal when you get home after a long day at work. London-based company Moley Robotics, has developed a prototype “robochef” designed for the home. Ladies, who is excited?
Germany’s Hannover Messe technology fair presented the machine which consists of two remarkably dexterous robotic arms installed atop a cooking area, complete with hobs, a sink and an oven. The robot’s sophisticated and fully articulated hands were created by another London based firm, Shadow Robot Company.
Rumor had it was suppose to be available for purchase in 2017. Robot chef comes with several additions, including a library of thousands of recipes, a dishwasher and a refrigerator. So you don't cook and don't wash dishes and you can control it remotely using an app.
It won’t come cheap and will set you back close to $15,000 (£10,000), but like any new technology, with time the price will go down. Who is excited?
APPLE JOINS INSTAGRAM
That's right! Apple has finally launched an Instagram account and it's a must-follow. We have the details!
The Cupertino-based company launched an account with Instagram. It joined affiliate accounts including iTunes, Apple Music and Planet of the Apps. Already 574,000 followers and only 18 posts.
The new account features iPhone and it's photography and videos highlighting mobile device's stunning image making capabilities.
$314 TIE IS BIOTECH BREAKTHROUGH IN FASHION
After years of research, the biotech startup Bolt Threads is debuting its lab-grown proteins in the real world.
Spider silk is a protein fibre spun by spiders. Spiders use their silk to make webs or other structures, which function as sticky nets to catch other animals, or as nests or cocoons to protect their offspring, or to wrap up prey. Spider silk is also one of the design industry's biggest—and most elusive—material obsessions because it's naturally lightweight, stretchy, antimicrobial, and strong.
Year to year we've been told that soon, we will wear garments made from this wonder material, and even see it in medical applications. However, last we heard it was in research and yet to hit the consumer market.
But, Bay Area biotech company Bolt Threads launching a limited-edition synthetic spider silk tie. You'd never guess that the tie was made in an industrial lab by the appearance or feel. It looks like a fashionable Bouclé knit you'd find in a GQ spread.
Only 50 ties are being made by Bolt Threads each available at a cost of $314. And if a prospective buyer is ready to shell out that sum, they'll have to enter a lottery for the chance to buy one.
"This marks the end of a chapter of this technology where it was all research," Dan Widmaier, Bolt Threads' CEO, says. "I see the ability to put out a fully baked, commercial product as marking the moment where were ready and able to make cooler products."
BEST ROBOTS AT CES 2017
"Technology is part of the conversation and it affects all aspects of the fashion ecosystem"
Mankind has dreamed of a robot who can help with every day tasks for quiet some time now. At at the 2017 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Nevada, many new innovations were put on parade for our pleasure and like always, the robots stole the show.
Meet Pepper - the first personal and emotional humanoid robot. It is capable of recognising the principal human emotions and adapting his behaviour to the mood of his interlocutor. Pepper is much more than a robot, he is a genuine humanoid companion created to communicate with you in the most natural and intuitive way, through his body movements and his voice. Pepper can recognise your face, speak, hear you and move around autonomously.
Meet Lynx - the humanoid from China-based manufacturer Ubtech Robotics. Unlike the prominent wheel-based models on the market, Lynx has a nimble frame and is more than capable of walking and even cutting a rug on the dance floor. This robot utilizes Alexa integration to fulfill an array of helpful tasks. All of these functions are accessible by simply stating your specific commands. Lynx is compatible with Amazon Music and Spotify, and even set up reminders for your busy schedule. Lynx will do the work for you and even read your emails aloud to you. If taking up yoga is your New Year’s resolution, you’ll certainly enjoy Lynx. Simply ask Lynx about a particular yoga pose and the robot will actually instruct you on correctly positioning yourself.
Meet Curi - Mayfield Robotics product designed with three basic ideas in mind: mobility, awareness, and personality. And what a big personality it has. The 20-inch-tall Curi blinks, glows, and even chirps playfully once the unit is addressed by name. A series of built-in LEDs also change color to let you know what kind of mood it is in at a given time. Kuri is able to create and “remember” a digital, room-by-room map of your home down to the millimeter. Just like "Ok, Google", Curi is ready to roll once you’ve spoken the wake phrase “Hey, Kuri”. The robo-companion responds to 12 other voice commands as well. Curi can also be controlled remotely via the companion Curi app. As an added bonus, Kuri also doubles as a Bluetooth-connected speaker. The built-in camera can even record and save video. Using this camera, Curi is engineered to be able to identify individuals it has come in contact with. This allows the robot to perform correlating tasks such as alerting parents when their children are home from school.
Meet Yumii with Cutii - French Startup known as Yumii with Cutii.
This helper bot has been designed specifically for at-home elderly care. The unit can respond to verbal cues and can also assist in an array of daily activities including setting up reminders and assisting with cooking. Yumii with Cutii can also allow individuals to contact members of their families and even make doctor’s appointments. This device can roam completely autonomously around the house or be simply controlled via a remote. Yumii has some pretty serious on-board software. However, the startup laid claim to some rather illustrious hardware as well when it was selected as a CES 2017 Innovation Awards Honoree in the Tech For a Better World category.
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE BY CODAME
CODAME ART + TECH is a San Francisco based company whose projects and nonprofit events inspire through experience. With the support of like-minded partners they bring innovative, independent, and creative spirit of CODAME around the world. Last night CODAME hosted Artificial Experiences event at the iconic convergence of San Francisco’s Union Square, SoMa and Financial Districts, Hotel Zetta. Number of artist were sharing their creations. Here are a few to note.
Inverse Dollhouse by Dustin Freeman who has built several low- and high-level technologies for immersive experiences. His doctoral work was Improv Remix - a Kinect interface for improv performers to create video mashups on the fly. At Microsoft Research, he did interaction design for Kinect Fusion. Most recently, he worked at Occipital on the scripting system and components of their Bridge Mixed Reality platform.
Deep Dream Vision by Gary Boodhoo who combines videogames, machine learning and interface design to rediscover ancient images — spirit animals. Born in Jamaica, his relocation to the United States provided a crash course in how to construct mythology out of the 1980's. Then computers happened and then Dungeons and Dragons happened. Today he designs and bleeds user interfaces for videogames including The Sims and The Elder Scrolls Online. His work examines roleplaying and transformation in digital environments. He lives in San Francisco and develops humane experiences with game studios and other creative clients.
Elaine Miu Cheung works at the intersection of art, design, computing and technology. Originally from Los Angeles, she explores themes relating to our embodiment of tech, future systems, and experiential interactions. As a Chinese-American, she bridges ideologies from Eastern and Western perspectives and practices which feeds into her most recent work on the nature on consciousness through wearable technologies.
CODAME enables companies to collaborate with a diverse community of artists making and hacking in a range of media—from projection mapping, motion sensors and wearable technologies to robotics, data visualization and MIDI controllers.
They build immersive, engaging, out of the ordinary experiences by: Playing together with artists, coders, designers, game developers, creators, performers and musicians.
FASHION SHOW IN SILICON VALLEY
WHAT IT'S LIKE
Fashion and technology are slowly but surely coming together. While fashionistas are often portrayed as really really good looking people , techies are rarely seen making statements in fashion. But, the 2016 Silicon Valley Fashion Week shows what happens when the two collide.
Designers and tech companies came together in San Francisco to exhibit their latest creations. Designed with CAD programs, extruded from 3D printers, controlled with smartphones or drones, lit with LED lights, each piece incorporated modern technologies. Check out the gallery below to see some of the most jaw-dropping examples from the show.
Tinsel modeled its new Shot headphone-necklace hybrid. Photo: Andrew Tarantola
Singer Jasmin Cruz opened the second night with her hit single and backing vocals by two Beams telepresence robots from Suitable Technologies. Photo: Andrew Tarantola
The smartphone-controlled CAT Clutch, is a programmable LED handbag. Photo: Andrew Tarantola
Heidi Lee's Echo Hat stole the show on opening night. And fully defends against people trying to sneak up on you. Photo: Andrew Tarantola
Will these things one day replace expensive models?
Great stuff for the start, but there is work and work to be done before it reaches the perfection.
Soon We’ll All Love Robots
TODAY JAPAN, TOMORROW THE WORLD
If to you robots seem eerie and creepy, Japan seems to love them despite all the imperfections and faults. They have a long ongoing love affair with humanoid robots. So what you ask. Well, like it or not, robots are a glimpse of the future.
The more human-like, the more positive we'll respond right? The robots get more and more human-like and soon our acceptance will rise. Japan moved into a robot valley a while back.
Let's take a look at a couple of present-day examples of robots in Japan. Take a look at the Toshiba’s Aiko Chihira, which has worked as a receptionist in Tokyo department stores.
Here is another example where Dr. Yoshio Matsumoto presented a test involving putting their Actroid F twin androids in doctor’s offices as support for patients during consultations. The results showed that patients generally felt their doctor was more sympathetic, better understood what they were being told, and generally felt less anxious when the android was in the room with them.
Japanese people are generally more exposed to robots today than anyone else on the planet. The exposure is partially why Japanese people in general find robots acceptable, including the eerie ones. People living in Japan encounter robots and other kinds of automated systems — in their day-to-day life way more than most people. It seems robots are viewed more positively there. Japan is busy deploying robots for many different tasks. It is, in fact, an initiative that the government believes will help revitalize the Japanese economy. Robots are already used in health care and in elder care. One interesting fact is that elderly people, sometimes happily use the robots as conversation partners.
While Japan is aging rapidly the same can be said for many parts of the rest of the world. Silicon Valley investors are catching up. How about Anybot? Virtual Presence that utilizes the Internet to transmit audio & video between the pilot and his QB avatar.
As history evolves and cultures change, exposure to robots will increase. Part of the reason why this seems to be going smoothly in Japan is that Japanese people have been exposed to robots more than most other people on planet.
The results indicate that once you get to know them, they really are not that creepy at all.
"I am going to be fired for that"