News

Everything Announced At Meta’s Connect 2023 Event

Including the Meta Quest 3, Ray-Ban smart glasses, and Meta AI updates.

Published

8 months ago

September 28, 2023

everything announced at meta's connect 2023 event

The Meta Connect 2023 keynote event saw the company share news about its latest products and technologies. CEO Mark Zuckerberg revealed updates to Meta’s AI, a new pair of smart glasses in collaboration with Ray-Ban were previewed, and the company’s flagship Quest 3 headset was given a release date.

Meta Quest 3 Release Date

The Meta Quest 3 blends augmented reality into the wearer’s physical surroundings. The headset runs on Qualcomm’s Snapdragon XR2 Gen 2 chip to double the performance of its predecessor and offer higher resolution and increased depth of field.

Meta has revamped the Quest’s controllers by ditching the tracking rings and adding haptic feedback, while interpupillary adjustment helps glasses wearers get more comfortable.

Along with upcoming native VR games, the Quest 3 will support Xbox Cloud Gaming this December. In addition, Microsoft 365 apps will be compatible by the end of the year, and users will soon be able to access Windows on the headset.

Meta Quest 3 pre-orders are open now, starting at $500 for the 128GB version. The headsets will be shipped by October 10.

Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses

Meta has teamed up with Ray-Ban to develop a new pair of smart glasses that offer much-improved specs (no pun intended) over the original Ray-Ban Stories. A 12MP wide-angle camera can record 1080p video at 60fps, while the glasses also include 32GB of storage, five spatial audio mics and upgraded speakers.

Pre-orders for the $299 Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses open today, shipping on October 17.

Meta AI Updates

Meta now offers a range of AI chatbot personalities and a new generative AI assistant, available on WhatsApp, Messenger, Instagram and other new hardware.

Meanwhile, generative AI image editing is coming to Instagram, along with a green screen similar to the one already unveiled by YouTube. In addition, AI-generated stickers are being rolled out across Instagram, WhatsApp, Messenger and Facebook Stories.

News

NASA Forms New Partnership With Saudi Space Agency

The pair will collaborate on the Center for Space Futures, advancing space tech by bringing together public and private stakeholders.

Published

22 hours ago

May 16, 2024

Nour Nasir

Saudi Space Agency

Saudi Arabia’s space industry is on the brink of substantial expansion after generating $400 million in revenue in 2022, according to a report by the Saudi Communications, Space and Technology Commission.

Now, in a new venture with NASA, plans for a “Center for Space Futures” are set to further drive the Kingdom’s aspirations of becoming a leading player in space exploration and technology.

Capturing moments from the joint delegation visit with leaders from the Saudi and American Space Agencies @NASA to @PSU_RUH, along with scenes showcasing the audience's engagement. pic.twitter.com/oB1cFTiRNl

— وكالة الفضاء السعودية (@saudispace) May 14, 2024

The partnership between NASA and Saudi Arabia goes beyond economic advantages. The pair have already cooperated on preliminary work for the Artemis II lunar mission, which is slated for a September 2025 launch and aims to land astronauts near the moon’s South Pole.

Also Read: Plans Underway For Massive Middle East Autonomous Freight Network

During a visit to the capital, Riyadh, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson emphasized in a TV interview the broader objectives of the collaboration, which encompass “returning to the moon and then [to] Mars” while utilizing space exploration to glean important insights into climate change. The NASA spokesman also reiterated the space agency’s dedication to collaborating with Saudi Arabia on other future ventures.