“I am extremely skeptical about the quality of the artificial intelligence behind the housekeeping robot in Samsung’s CES video. They show it performing an extremely wide variety of tasks, from pouring wine to loading the dishwasher to doing laundry. Developing an AI robust enough to go into an unknown consumer home and learn from them how they want to pick up toys is already a hard problem.”
Tech
What is Clubhouse App, and Why Does it Matter?
Let’s talk about Clubhouse app. The app is the beginning of a wildly underrated, emerging, social media platform. Why is it underrated? Because most people don’t know about it yet. While many of you might already know about Clubhouse, in the scheme of 300 million-plus Americans and 7.5 billion people on earth, very few do. The […]
ForeVR Raises $1.5M to Bring Popular Real Life Games to VR
The virtual reality gaming market is expected to reach $45B/yr by 2027. The increased affordability of VR sets like Oculus’s Quest 2 will contribute to this massive growth. ForeVR, founded by two ex-Zynga employees, is seeking to capitalize on this trend with its VR-focused gaming studio. Emerging recently from stealth, the company’s first title, launching in early 2021, is focused on bowling and ForeVR plans to build new games that are based on popular games in real life. LA TechWatch caught up with CEO and Cofounder Marcus Segal to learn more about the genesis of the company, its future product pipeline, first institutional round of funding from investors that include Galaxy Interactive Fund, Presence Capital, Emmett Shear, Justin Kan, Mark Pincus, and Justin Waldron.
The Next Stage in the Financial Revolution: AR and VR Solutions
The next step in the financial evolution has welcomed the applications of immersive Augmented and virtual realities. AR and VR can transform traditional banking and financial services into staggering, visual experiences by developing a personalized, face-to-face virtual environment.
Radiant Raised $1.2M to Bring Portable Nuclear Microreactors to the Market
Most entrepreneurs believe that they are going to change the world. However, there are very few that actually will have such an impact. Meet Doug Bernauer, a former SpaceX engineer that left the company to launch Radiant, an LA startup developing the world’s first portable, nuclear microreactor. The company’s vision is grand and if they are successful, they will be able to seamlessly bring energy to many places that need it the most. LA TechWatch caught up with Bernauer to learn more about the company’s vision, future plans, and recent funding round from investors that include Charlie Songhurst, Hank Vigil, Josh Manchester, and Tom McInerney.
Xos Trucks Raises $20M to Make Last-Mile Delivery Cleaner and Greener
California recently passed regulations requiring that over 50% of all commercial trucks sold in the state must be zero-emissions by 2035 and other states have signed a memorandum to phase out all diesel-burning medium- to heavy-duty truck and bus sales by 2050. These new laws signal promise and opportunity for companies like Xos Trucks, the LA company building state-of-the-art OEM electric trucks that forge together battery packs, chassis, and software. Xos Trucks’ flagship X-Platform 1 is fully electric and compatible with a variety of medium-duty bodies, wheelbases, and range requirements up to 200 miles. The X-Platform 1 is often customized into Class 6 medium-duty bodies that fulfill short-range deliveries, which have been used by UPS. Xos Trucks is also developing the ET-One, a Class 8 heavy-duty truck that can carry 80,000 pounds and can travel 150 miles per charge. 65% percent of trucks on the road travel less than 150 miles per day and Xos is addressing this market with its solutions to make last-mile delivery sustainable and efficient. COO and Cofounder Giordano Sordoni shares more about Xos Trucks is disrupting an $8T industry from the ground up with saavy engineering and software.
Instagram Reels vs. Tiktok: 13 Things You Need to Know
Facebook is preparing to launch its very own competitor to TikTok, Instagram Reels. Using the popular photo-sharing platform as a testing field, Instagram Reels will have several, nearly identical, features that mirror TikTok’s; the Chinese based newcomer.
How Augmented Reality Can Completely Change Ecommerce for Buyers and Sellers
In the balmy summer of 1995, an American entrepreneur who had just quit his job on Wall Street wrote a list of items he thought it would be possible to sell on the internet. It wasn’t long. He eventually came up with five contenders before narrowing it down to one – books. The entrepreneur’s name was Jeff Bezos and the company he incorporated that year was Amazon.
Datch Raises $3.2M for its Voice Assistant Technology Platform for Industry
No more canary in a coal mine. Datch is the AI-powered voice assistant for the mining, manufacturing, and utility sectors. Mark Fosdike, a first-time founder and CEO of Datch, walks us through the practical application of Datch’s technology in industry, raising as a first-time founder in a new country, and the company’s recent funding round from investors that include Plug and Play Ventures, Stage Venture Partners, Acceleprise, Tuhua Ventures, and Predictive Venture Partners.
Smiling Robots Alleviate Human Anxieties with Expper Technologies
Loneliness and isolation are heightened in the midst of the pandemic. Can robots fill a void? Expper’s founder Karén Khachikyan says the company’s robot Robin changes a kid’s perception of medical treatments, where they will no longer feel isolated, lonely, and scared. The innovator explains how his whimsical four-foot robot employs digital facial expressions to form lasting bonds with its young users.
The Single Most Important Thing In Tech
Whether you’re a tech investor, a tech operator, or just a user of tech, the single most important thing in tech is FAMGA, and the profound implications of their domination of tech value creation.