NEWS
Meta Unveils Host of New AI Tools, New Quest 3 Headset, New Smart Glasses
Courtesy of meta/Instagram
Meta unveiled a host of new tools and products that leverage artificial intelligence at the company’s two-day Connect conference at it headquarters in Menlo Park, Calif., this week.
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg presented new artificial intelligence tools, the new Quest 3 virtual reality headset, and the new Ray-Ban smart glasses to the conference for VR developers on Wednesday.
Meta is rolling out its ChatGPT rival Meta AI in beta. The “advanced conversational assistant” will be able to access Microsoft’s Bing search engine to reference real-time information in its responses to queries. Meta AI will be available to users in WhatsApp, Messenger, and Instagram, and later in Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses and Quest 3.
AI-powered stickers created by user prompts are coming to WhatsApp and Messenger, and next month, Instagram will get new AI-powered editing tools for altering photos and images with written prompts.
Marva Bailer, a tech and AI expert, says AI-powered stickers will bring more creativity to social platforms.
“Creativity will have strong value in society and support the desire for self- expression. The ultimate outcome will be happier, connected, and deeper relationships.”
A further 28 AIs are being released in beta, some of which are based on real celebrities with whom Meta partnered for the project, including Snoop Dogg, Tom Brady, Kendall Jenner, Paris Hilton, and Mr. Beast.
Each AI has a unique character and area of expertise or purpose, like “Dwyane Wade as Victor, Ironman triathlete motivating you to be your best self,” or “Roy Choi as Max, Seasoned sous chef for culinary tips and tricks.” Zuckerberg said that users will eventually be able to create their own virtual assistants.
The new AI tools are powered by Meta’s Emu foundational model for image generation, and Llama 2 the company’s large language model.
“Meta has an undeniable track record in humanizing their technology, to the point where everyone can get on board and this will undoubtedly follow in the same vein,” said Peter Swain, an AI advocate.
“Of concern, however, is how Meta will be approaching the privacy of their users’ data. With access to Instagram and Facebook alone, Meta has a huge library of training data it can use and finding the acceptable usage in the eyes of their users will be an interesting challenge. When thinking through if this will be a success, I have to admit I can’t wait to have a quick chat with Snoop!” Swain said.
The next-generation Ray-Ban smart glass have been “redesigned from the ground up,” according to Meta, and are available for pre-order starting at $299.
The Meta Quest 3 mixed reality headset, meanwhile, is available for pre-order starting at $499.99, and hits shelves in October.
The virtual reality headset boasts double the graphic processing power of the Quest 2, and features the new Snapdragon XR2 Gen 2 platform. The new headset has a 4K+ infinite display, with a 40% slimmer optic profile than the Quest 2, the company said.
TMX contributed to this article.
