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      <p>
        Microsoft announced the discontinuation of Windows Mixed Reality, including the Mixed Reality Portal app and Windows Mixed Reality for SteamVR.
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        Launched in 2017, Windows Mixed Reality was Microsoft's venture into the VR space, offering a platform for games, apps, and other VR experiences. The decision to deprecate these features indicates a shift in Microsoft's XR strategy.
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        Despite this change, Microsoft's HoloLens 2 recently received a free Windows 11 upgrade and other improvements. Additionally, the company continues to explore VR applications, including the Microsoft Mesh app for virtual meetings and partnerships with Meta for Office app access and Xbox Cloud Gaming on Quest devices.
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  <p>
    <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2023/12/21/24010787/microsoft-windows-mixed-reality-deprecated">
      The Verge
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Extended Reality

INCUMBENTS_PRESENT

PROMINENT_CATEGORY

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 <p>Microsoft has announced that it is discontinuing its Windows Mixed Reality, including the Mixed Reality Portal app and Windows Mixed Reality for SteamVR. This decision symbolizes a shift in Microsoft's XR strategy. Despite the change, the recent HoloLens 2 update to Windows 11 suggests a continued interest in VR applications. Developments include the Microsoft Mesh app for virtual meetings and partnerships with Meta for Office app access and Xbox Cloud Gaming on Quest devices.</p>
 
</div>

Microsoft discontinues Windows Mixed Reality platform; focuses on XR ventures

A new wave of meat, fish, and poultry alternatives are driving this hyper-growth industry into the mainstream.

Plant-based Meat

<div>
 <p>Matr Foods, a mycelium meat production company, has received a debt funding of EUR 20 million from the European Investment Bank, with the support of the InvestEU scheme.</p>
 <p>This funding will enable Matr Foods to build their first factory at a commercial scale, with plans to open in 2026. The annual production is projected to increase to over 3,000 tonnes of clean-label meat analogs from the current 30-40 tonnes produced at the pilot plant. Matr Foods is also set to invest more in R&amp;D.</p>
 <p>The company employs a unique solid-state fermentation process, using upcycled ingredients like beetroots, potatoes, lupins, peas, and oats. They claim their products have a significantly lower climate footprint (1.6 kg CO2e/kg) which is 94% less than beef, in line with the EU's Green Deal target of achieving net zero emissions by 2050.</p>
</div>

Matr Foods raises EUR 20 million in debt funding to build mycelium meat factory

Using online platforms, autonomy, electric and fuel-cell tech solutions to shape the future of trucking.

Truck Industry Tech

<div>
 <p>IoT-based fleet management solutions provider, Platform Science, has unveiled its plans to acquire Trimble's global transportation telematics business units for an undisclosed sum. Trimble is a technology firm that provides positioning, modeling, and data analytics solutions. The acquisition is part of Platform Science's strategy to strengthen its fleet management platform, known as "Virtual Vehicle."</p>
 <p>Post-acquisition, the firm plans to give its customers access to Trimble's range of transportation solutions via this same platform. Moreover, it also intends to offer Trimble's global transportation telematics customers access to the Virtual Vehicle platform.</p>
 <p>Once the transaction concludes, Trimble will obtain a 32.5% stake in Platform Science and get one seat on the latter's board.</p>
 
</div>

Platform Science to acquire Trimble's global transportation telematics business units

Modern tools to train and motivate staff, and bridge emerging skill gaps.

EdTech: Corporate Learning

<div>
 <p>Digital Adoption Solutions provider, Whatfix, originating from India, achieved a funding input of USD 100 million in a Series E (primary + secondary) investment round. The investment was headed by Sweet Nectar Investments, a Warburg Pincus entity, and SoftBank, leading to a company worth ranging from USD 820 million to USD 830 million.</p>
 <p>The firm intends to use the capital raised primarily for business enlargement and development. It has been three years since the company’s last capital raise.</p>
 <p>In the deal, there were 13,201 Series E compulsory convertible preference shares issued. As a consequence of the allocation, SoftBank’s stake in the company grew to 15.51%, while Warburg Pincus' Sweet Nectar Investments ended up with an 8.94% interest.</p>
</div>

Whatfix raises USD 100 million in Series E funding to expand business

A decentralized version of the web powered by the blockchain

Web3 Ecosystem

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 <p>The blockchain-based game developer, Sky Mavis, has introduced its cross-game onboarding solution called Ronin Waypoint. This platform allows players to access games on Ronin using a single account via email or social logins, eliminating the need for seed phrases or browser extensions. This is achieved through the implementation of multi-party computation (MPC) technology which securely produces keyless wallets in the background.</p>
 <p>Ronin Waypoint is designed to enable users to trade, swap, and mint assets across partner games within the Ronin ecosystem. It's currently operational in Axie Classic and will be extended to Axie Origins and further games. Moreover, Ronin Waypoint provides cross-platform functionality and is compatible with Unity, Telegram, iOS, and Android platforms.</p>
</div>

Sky Mavis launches cross-game onboarding solution

Leveraging personal data for custom-fit diagnosis and treatment

Precision Medicine

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 <p>Bicara Therapeutics has successfully raised USD 315 million in its Initial Public Offering (IPO), selling 17.5 million shares at USD 18 each. Initially, the company planned to garner USD 200 million but subsequently increased the share offering to USD 250 million and later to the final pricing.</p>
 <p>The funding will be allocated towards the development of its primary candidate, ficerafusp alfa. Bicara aims to begin a Phase II/III trial for this candidate by either late 2024 or early 2025.</p>
 <p>Bicara Therapeutics primarily focuses on producing dual-action biologics for treating solid tumors. Their lead resource, ficerafusp alfa (BCA101), is a pioneering bifunctional antibody that tackles tumor growth and restores immune cell activity within the tumor environment concurrently. It is mainly being developed for head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC), advanced squamous non-small cell lung cancer (SqNSCLC), and cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma.</p>
 
</div>

Bicara Therapeutics raises USD 315 million in IPO; plans to develop lead candidate ficerafusp alfa

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 <p>AI-driven clinical trial matching platform provider, Massive Bio, has joined forces with next-gen sequencing leader, Foundation Medicine, to expand patient access to cancer clinical trials.</p>
 <p>The partnership seeks to tackle low patient enrollment rates in oncology clinical trials. This will be achieved by utilizing Massive Bio's AI-driven patient-matching technology in conjunction with Foundation Medicine's expertise in genomic profiling. By sharing data and employing AI analytics, the partnership aims to improve the speed and accuracy of clinical trial matching, which could enhance patient outcomes worldwide.</p>
 <p>The collaboration will use the combined networks and capabilities of both companies across the healthcare sector. They will apply advanced AI techniques and a strong digital health platform to refine clinical trial procedures and boost precision oncology.</p>
 
</div>

Massive Bio and Foundation Medicine partner to improve cancer clinical trial enrollment

Novel therapies to reboot cells and organs

Cell & Gene Therapy

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 <p>Moffitt Cancer Center and AstraZeneca have established a strategic collaboration to expedite the development of cancer cell therapies. This partnership primarily focuses on enhancing CAR-T and TCR-T cell therapies, with AstraZeneca having priority access to Moffitt's clinical environment.</p>
 <p>Collectively, the two organizations aim to tackle challenges in cell therapy development, extend patient reach, speed up clinical studies, particularly in solid tumors, and streamline clinical operations for rapid delivery of autologous cell therapies to patients.</p>
 <p>Combining Moffitt's clinical expertise with AstraZeneca's investigational cell therapies, global reach, and leadership in oncology, the alliance intends to swiftly bring novel cell therapies to patients, potentially revolutionizing cancer treatment for those with limited alternatives.</p>

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Moffitt Cancer Center partners with AstraZeneca to advance oncology cell therapies

Quantum information processing is slowly becoming a reality, ushering in a new technological era.

Quantum Computing

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 <p>European photonic quantum computing firm, Quandela, has launched Quandela Canada, its Canadian subsidiary, in Montreal and deployed its first European quantum computer in North America at Bellevue Data Center operated by Eaxion, a subsidiary of Groupe EDF.</p>
 <p>This move is a part of the partnership between Quandela and Exaion, inked in November 2023. The quantum computer is incorporated with the high-performance computing infrastructure of PINQ² and Exaion's hybrid HPC/quantum cloud platform. This integration is expected to enable the creation of advanced solutions for complex challenges across multiple sectors.</p>
 <p>The combined offering of Quandela and Exaion includes team training, use case identification, and co-development of algorithms. The company believes this integration will significantly impact several key industries, including energy, cybersecurity, automotive, aerospace, and finance.</p>
 </div>

Quandela launches European quantum computer in North America

<div>
 <p>IonQ, a quantum computing firm, has achieved over 99.9% two-qubit gate fidelity on its upcoming barium platform, marking a 4X improvement compared to its existing commercially available systems.</p>
 <p>This significant progress, made with the same methods used in IonQ's production quantum computers, is a vital step towards creating high-performance, enterprise-grade quantum systems. It also aids in understanding and eliminating errors in larger systems.</p>
 <p>According to IonQ, improved native gate fidelity leads to reduced error correction requirements, thus enabling faster and more precise quantum applications. Barium qubits, they say, provide advantages over the traditionally used ytterbium ions, such as higher fidelity, faster gate speeds, and superior overall stability.</p>
 </div>

IonQ achieves high qubit gate fidelity on barium development platform

Incorporating technology to improve efficiency and success rate of clinical trials

Clinical Trial Technology

<div>
 <p>Massive Bio has collaborated with Foundation Medicine to enhance cancer patient access to clinical trials. Massive Bio is an AI-platform provider for clinical trial matching while Foundation Medicine specialises in next-gen sequencing.</p>
 <p> Their collective goal is to combat the low enrollment rate in oncology clinical trials. They plan on utilizing Massive Bio's AI-driven patient-matching technology and Foundation Medicine's experience in genomic profiling. This collaboration aims to utilise shared data and AI analytics to augment the speed and accuracy of clinical trial matching, thereby potentially improving patient outcomes on a global level.</p>
 <p>Their shared vision extends to using their networks and proficiency across the healthcare sector. They plan to implement sophisticated AI methods and a robust digital health platform to improve clinical trial procedures and boost precision oncology.</p>
 
</div>

All Updates

Microsoft discontinues Windows Mixed Reality platform; focuses on XR ventures

Matr Foods raises EUR 20 million in debt funding to build mycelium meat factory

Platform Science to acquire Trimble's global transportation telematics business units

Whatfix raises USD 100 million in Series E funding to expand business

Sky Mavis launches cross-game onboarding solution

Bicara Therapeutics raises USD 315 million in IPO; plans to develop lead candidate ficerafusp alfa

Massive Bio and Foundation Medicine partner to improve cancer clinical trial enrollment

Moffitt Cancer Center partners with AstraZeneca to advance oncology cell therapies

Quandela launches European quantum computer in North America

IonQ achieves high qubit gate fidelity on barium development platform

Massive Bio and Foundation Medicine partner to improve cancer clinical trial enrollment

Extended Reality

Microsoft discontinues Windows Mixed Reality platform; focuses on XR ventures

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