Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg kicked off the tech giant91裸聊视频檚 Connect developer conference on Wednesday with a focus on virtual and augmented reality and artificial intelligence
The company, which renamed itself Meta two years ago, unveiled the next version of its virtual reality headset, the Quest 3. It will cost $499 and begin shipping Oct. 10.
Standing in a courtyard at his company91裸聊视频檚 Menlo Park, California headquarters, Zuckerberg told the audience of developers, employees and journalists that Meta is 91裸聊视频渇ocused on building the future of human connection91裸聊视频� 91裸聊视频� and painted a near-future where people interact with hologram versions of their friends or coworkers and with AI bots built to assist them.
91裸聊视频淪oon the physical and digital will come together in what we call the metaverse,91裸聊视频� he said.
Zuckerberg introduced an AI personal assistant people can interact with using any of Meta91裸聊视频檚 messaging apps 91裸聊视频� along with a smattering of AI characters he called 91裸聊视频渁 bit more fun,91裸聊视频� such as 91裸聊视频淢ax the sous chef,91裸聊视频� who can help come up with ideas for dinner, or Lily, a 91裸聊视频減ersonal editor and writing partner.91裸聊视频�
91裸聊视频淭hese are just a few we have trained, there are a lot more coming,91裸聊视频� he said.
He also introduced the next version of Meta91裸聊视频檚 Ray Ban Stories smart glasses, which let people record video or photos, livestream, listen to music and interact with the Meta AI assistant.
91裸聊视频淪mart glasses are the ideal form factor for you to let an AI assistant see what you are seeing and hear what you are hearing,91裸聊视频� Zuckerberg said. The glasses will launch Oct. 17 and cost $299.
Meta is in the midst of a corporate transformation that it says will take years to complete. It wants to evolve from a provider of social platforms to a dominant power in a nascent virtual-reality world called the metaverse 91裸聊视频� sort of like the internet brought to life, or at least rendered in 3D.
But this transformation has been slower than expected 91裸聊视频� and has already cost billions of dollars 91裸聊视频� and Meta91裸聊视频檚 main business remains advertising on its social media platforms, Facebook and Instagram. Competition with TikTok remains Meta91裸聊视频檚 biggest challenge, said Insider Intelligence analyst Yoram Wurmser.
91裸聊视频淎 lot of this effort around chatbots and stories and other ways just to keep engagement going (like) AI-driven personalization and stuff like that, that91裸聊视频檚 the overarching challenge for the company,91裸聊视频� he said.
Squeezed by a slump in online advertising and uncertainty around the global economy, Meta has since last November. Zuckerberg dubbed 2023 the company91裸聊视频檚 91裸聊视频測ear of efficiency91裸聊视频� as it reduces its workforce while focusing on more technical hires such as experts in AI to focus on Meta91裸聊视频檚 long-term vision.
Artificial intelligence is central to that vision. Over the summer, Meta released the next generation of its and made the technology, known as Llama 2, free for research and commercial use. On Wednesday, it unveiled an AI image generator named Emu, which creates images based on prompts from users.
Much like tech peers Google and Microsoft, Meta has long had a big research team of computer scientists devoted to advancing AI technology. But it91裸聊视频檚 been overshadowed as the release of ChatGPT sparked a rush to profit off of 91裸聊视频済enerative AI91裸聊视频� tools that can create new prose, images and other media.
Zuckerberg said at the time that people can download its new AI models directly or through a partnership that makes them available on Microsoft91裸聊视频檚 cloud platform Azure 91裸聊视频渁long with Microsoft91裸聊视频檚 safety and content tools.91裸聊视频�
Barbara Ortutay, The Associated Press
