<div>
  <ul>
    <li>
      <p>
        ByteDance subsidiary, Pico Interactive, announced support for the OpenXR protocol for all of its Pico headsets.
      </p>
    </li>
    <li>
      <p>
        OpenXR ensures compatibility between XR apps and devices, eliminating the need for costly software customization, allowing Pico headsets to access a broader range of apps and incentivizing developer support, given the multiple other VR headsets that support OpenXR. Pico Interactive also added support for haptic feedback, challenge and private room invitations, leaderboard and achievement notifications, and additional features through updates to its OpenXR SDK.
      </p>
    </li>
    <li>
      <p>
        <b>Analyst QuickTake: </b>
        Pico Interactive was a late adopter of the OpenXR standard, which was launched in 
        <a href="https://vrvisiongroup.com/future-of-virtual-reality-the-openxr-framework-metas-prototypes/">
          March 2019
        </a>
        . Microsoft, in contrast, implemented the protocol for the HoloLens 2 in 
        <a href="https://www.roadtovr.com/openxr-1-0-release-microsoft-hololens-vr-oculus-rift-quest/">
          July 2019
        </a>
        . However, Pico's recent introduction of OpenXR support will broaden its range of supported VR content, giving consumers access to a wider variety of content and making its VR headsets more competitive.
      </p>
    </li>
  </ul>
  <p>
  </p>
</div>


<div>
  <p>
    <a href="https://mixed-news.com/en/pico-4-now-offers-full-openxr-support-why-this-is-important/">
      Mixed Reality News
    </a>
  </p>
</div>


Extended Reality

ByteDance subsidiary Pico Interactive announces support for OpenXR for its XR headsets

The toolkit to build machine learning applications at scale

Machine Learning Infrastructure

ANALYST_QUICK_TAKE

<div>
 <p>Kneron, an AI chip manufacturer, aims to raise USD 300 million in its latest funding round, potentially bringing its evaluation to USD 1 billion. The company has received investments from Qualcomm Ventures, Sequoia Capital China (now HongShan), Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., and Horizons Ventures in the past.<p>
  
<p>With this new funding, Kneron plans to fuel product innovation and expansion plans that include establishing a regional office and an R&D lab in Saudi Arabia. The round is likely to be its last before the company's expected public listing in 2025.</p>
 
</div> <p><b>Analyst QuickTake:<br>
</b> The surging demand for AI chips has helped Kneron to raise significantly more funding than its USD 49 million Series B funding raised in <a href="https:<br>
//sp-edge.com/updates/22177"> September 2023 </a> . Additionally, funding proceeds from last year helped the company launch its new KNEO 330 AI chip for on-premise AI applications in <a href="https:<br>
//sp-edge.com/updates/30098"> June 2024 </a> .</p>

AI chip maker Kneron seeks USD 300 million in funding from investors

Empowering Tomorrow's Innovations with Generative AI Infrastructure

Generative AI Infrastructure

<div>
 <p>AI chip manufacturer Kneron is reportedly seeking to raise approximately USD 300 million in a new funding round. This significant investment would place the value of the Taiwanese-American company at an estimated USD 1 billion. In the previous funding rounds, Kneron received support from renowned investors such as Qualcomm Ventures, Sequoia Capital China (now known as HongShan), Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., and Horizons Ventures.</p>
 <p>Kneron plans on allocating the funds towards the advancement of product innovation and company expansion. One of the company's more specific objectives include the creation of a regional office and a research &amp; development lab located in Saudi Arabia. This fundraising is projected to be the final private round for Kneron, as it plans to pursue a public listing in 2025.</p>
</div> <p><b>Analyst QuickTake:<br>
</b> The surging demand for AI chips has helped Kneron to raise significantly more funding than its USD 49 million Series B funding raised in <a href="https:<br>
//sp-edge.com/updates/22177"> September 2023 </a> . Additionally, funding proceeds from last year helped the company launch its new KNEO 330 AI chip for on-premise AI applications in <a href="https:<br>
//sp-edge.com/updates/30098"> June 2024 </a> .</p>

Clear the air on carbon capture, reuse, and storage

Carbon Capture, Utilization & Storage (CCUS)

PROMINENT_CATEGORY

<div>
 <p>Swiss direct air capture company, Climeworks, has joined forces with CO2 sequestration firm, CapturePoint Solutions. The partnership will involve the transport and storage of CO2 from Climeworks' Project Cypress DAC hub in Louisiana.</p>
 <p>CapturePoint is set to carry the captured CO2 from Climeworks' facility in Calcasieu Parish to its CENLA Hub in Vernon and Rapides Parishes for permanent underground storage. The CENLA Hub is among the largest onshore carbon storage developments in the US.</p>
 <p>The development of the Project Cypress DAC Hub will occur in two stages, starting with an initial capacity of 300,000 tons of CO2 per year, which can be upscaled to one million tons. The project has landed USD 50 million from the Department of Energy's OCED program, supplemented by an additional USD 51 million in private funds.</p>
</div>

Climeworks partners with CapturePoint Solutions for Project Cypress CO2 storage

Metaverse Experience Platforms

<div>
 <p>Roblox is set to launch new parental controls termed "Roblox accounts with parent privileges". They enable parents to supervise and control their children's activities on the platform.</p>
 <p>Features of this system include being able to modify controls, monitor screen time, and view who the child interacts with on the platform. Enhanced content maturity settings will categorise experiences by content type for parents to comprehend what their child can access. Default settings for underage users will necessitate parental consent for accessing chat features and certain content types.</p>
 
</div>

Roblox launches parental controls and insights for children's accounts

INCUMBENTS_PRESENT

<div>
 <p>Minecraft's Mojang Studios will stop supporting PC VR versions of their game by 2025. This will affect the Bedrock Edition where the VR/MR experience will be discontinued after the last update in March 2025. However, the game will still receive standard updates.</p>
 <p>While VR/MR options cease, players' Marketplace purchases and Minecoins remain functional on non-VR/MR devices. This decision ensures players maintain access to in-game resources and can continue their Minecraft world building.</p> 
</div> <p><b>Analyst QuickTake:<br>
 </b> Mojang Studios is ending support for PC VR versions of Minecraft by March 2025, citing declining user demand and a strategic shift toward the Bedrock Edition. This decision reflects a broader trend at Microsoft, which has reduced its involvement in the VR/AR market, including the discontinuation of <a href="https:<br>
//forums.flightsimulator.com/t/microsoft-is-discontinuing-windows-mixed-reality-wmr/622334"> Windows Mixed Reality. </a> Mojang Studios is prioritizing resources for more widely used platforms to better engage its player base.</p>

Mojang Studios plans to discontinue PC VR support for Minecraft in 2025

Automation to improve business efficiency

Workflow Automation Platforms

<div>
 <p>ServiceNow, a business transformation AI platform, has named Amit Zavery its president, chief product officer (CPO), and chief operating officer (COO), effective from October 28, 2024.</p>
 <p>Zavery's responsibilities will encompass ServiceNow's platform, products, engineering, cloud infrastructure, user experience, and operations throughout the enterprise. He will pay particular attention to the integration of advanced technologies, such as GenAI. </p>
 <p>With over thirty years in enterprise technology, Zavery's past roles include VP/GM and head of platform at Google Cloud for almost six years, and 25 years at Oracle. At Oracle, he began as a software engineer before eventually becoming the executive vice president of product development. In this role, he oversaw cloud platform initiatives and managed a 4,500-strong team.</p>
</div>

ServiceNow appoints Amit Zavery as president, CPO, and COO

<div>
 <p>ServiceNow, an AI-powered business transformation platform, announced partnerships with NVIDIA, Rimini Street, Databricks, and Snowflake, aimed at enhancing AI and data automation features. The strategic partnership with NVIDIA will utilize NVIDIA's AI infrastructure to develop advanced AI agents within the ServiceNow platform. These agents will understand context and break down complex outcomes into prioritized tasks, additionally incorporating governance levels through NVIDIA NeMo Guardrails software.</p>
 <p>Another partnership involves Rimini Street, an enterprise software support solutions provider, for overhauling ERP systems utilizing ServiceNow's AI platform, Rimini Support for software maintenance, and Rimini Manage for application management, eliminating the need for expensive migrations.</p>
 <p>A partnership with Databricks and Snowflake will implement zero copy integration for improved machine learning and AI capabilities. The collaboration allows for bi-directional data exchange between ServiceNow's RaptorDB database and Databricks and Snowflake's platforms, enabling data and insight access for workflow triggers.</p>
 
</div>

ServiceNow partners with NVIDIA to develop enterprise AI agents using NIM blueprints

<div>
  <p>ServiceNow, a platform utilising artificial intelligence for business transformation, has introduced Workflow Data Fabric, a novel platform for the integrated data layer designed to connect enterprise data across different systems. This undertaking was done in partnership with systems integrator Cognizant.</p>
  <p>Workflow Data Fabric is capable of connecting and processing a range of data, including structured, unstructured, semi-structured, and streaming data from various enterprise sources. The platform operates on the basis of the Automation Engine provided by ServiceNow, which encompasses pre-built integrations, data streaming in real-time, tools for robotic process automation (RPA), and process mining capabilities. The platform also houses the ServiceNow Knowledge Graph, a tool that facilitates the conversion of raw data into contextual insights, as well as program AI agents to function autonomously across the enterprise.</p>
  <p>ServiceNow is a company providing cloud-based software solutions that promote digital workflow assistance to organisations, assisting them in managing and automating their business processes across several departments such as IT, customer service, human resources, and others. Their primary product, the Now Platform, acts as the basis for its varying product offerings, utilising a unified data model and architecture to streamline integration and automate workflows. The core products of ServiceNow encompass IT Service Management (ITSM), IT Operations Management (ITOM), Customer Service Management (CSM), and Human Resources Service Delivery. </p>
</div>

ServiceNow launches Workflow Data Fabric data integration platform

A concentration of wealth and a willingness to adopt age-in-place technologies present new opportunities.

Age Tech

<div>
 
 <p>Audientes A/S, a hearing health company, has raised DKK 1.7 million (USD 250,000) via a directed issue. The income includes a DKK 1.28 million (USD 190,000) cash capital increase from 13 independent investors, while the remaining amount was raised from debt conversion by trade creditors. The share price was fixed at DKK 0.014 (USD 0.002) each.</p>
 <p>These funds will be used to finance operational costs for market entry in China and Japan, expanding operations in Europe and India, maintaining products, supporting customers, and developing new products.</p>
 <p>Post the capital increase, the share count of Audientes will grow by 121,638,386 to 322,031,063 shares, resulting in a dilution impact of about 37.77%. In order to achieve its break-even goals by 2025, the company is planning to pursue a long-term bond of up to EUR 1 million (USD 1.08 million).</p>
 
</div> <p><b>Analyst QuickTake:<br>
 </b> Earlier in <a href="https:<br>
//sp-edge.com/updates/32645"> August </a> this year, Aufientes partnered with Shenzhen Hengtong, a Chinese medical product distributor, to form a joint venture that would develop and commercialize hearing solutions for the Chinese market. With this funding, the company appears to be supporting this initiative, while additionally supporting its other initiatives targeting global expansion.</p>

Audientes A/S raises DKK 1.7 million in directed issue to support global operations

Sustainably solving the food shortages of the future

Smart Farming

<div>
 
 <p>Nasdaq-listed AI drone solutions company, ZenaTech, is set to acquire ZooOffice Inc., which encompasses software companies Jadian and DeskFlex. The acquisition price remains undisclosed. Jadian creates software solutions that tackle compliance, audits, inspections, licenses, permits, and risk management for municipal and county governments. DeskFlex, on the other hand, develops AI room booking software that aids organizations in optimizing office space allocation.</p>
 <p>The acquisition intends to elevate ZenaTech's ZenaDrone AI drone solutions by merging it with compliance and inspection software from Jadian. This merge is primarily targeted towards the agricultural sector. Furthermore, the scheduling and mapping software from DeskFlex will be incorporated within property management sector solutions.</p>
 
</div>

All Updates

ByteDance subsidiary Pico Interactive announces support for OpenXR for its XR headsets

AI chip maker Kneron seeks USD 300 million in funding from investors

AI chip maker Kneron seeks USD 300 million in funding from investors

Climeworks partners with CapturePoint Solutions for Project Cypress CO2 storage

Roblox launches parental controls and insights for children's accounts

Mojang Studios plans to discontinue PC VR support for Minecraft in 2025

ServiceNow appoints Amit Zavery as president, CPO, and COO

ServiceNow partners with NVIDIA to develop enterprise AI agents using NIM blueprints

ServiceNow launches Workflow Data Fabric data integration platform

Audientes A/S raises DKK 1.7 million in directed issue to support global operations

ZenaTech acquires ZooOffice Inc. with subsidiaries Jadian and DeskFlex for undisclosed sum

Extended Reality

ByteDance subsidiary Pico Interactive announces support for OpenXR for its XR headsets

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