TREND REPORTS
(Patent) Little Caesars Patents Pizza-Making Robot
[Tech]
2018/03/19 10:49
Little Caesars was today issued a patent for a robot designed to help assemble pizzas, meaning life’s about to get a lot easier (or a lot harder, depending on your perspective) for hapless human cheese spreaders.The patent shows a device shaped like a stove top, with stations for different pizza-making tasks. The robot picks up a pan with pizza dough, squishes it, and then distributes sauce, c...
(M&A) L’Oreal Acquires Modiface, A Major AR Beauty Company
[Investing]
2018/03/19 10:48
L’Oreal announced today that it has acquired Modiface, a company that’s had a hand in the creation of many custom augmented reality beauty apps, including those from Sephora and Estée Lauder. L’Oreal didn’t disclose the amount spent, but it did tell Reuters that it now owns Modiface’s numerous patents that help users visualize makeup and hairstyles on themselves. The partnership makes sen...
Stock Trade App Robinhood Raising at $5B+, Up 4X in a Year
[Investing]
2018/03/19 10:48
By adding a cryptocurrency exchange, a web version and stock option trading, Robinhood has managed to quadruple its valuation in a year, according to a source familiar with a new round the startup is raising. Robinhood is closing in on around $350 million in Series D funding led by Russian firm DST Global, the source says. That’s just 11 months after Robinhood confirmed TechCrunch’s scoop tha...
Amazon's "Checking Account-Like Product"
[Business]
2018/03/19 10:48
Lots of chatter last week about how Amazon is in discussions with JPMorgan about partnering on a "checking account-like product". This is right on the heels of similar discussions with Bank of America about putting capital behind its SME lending business. So since when are banking products or lending products or investment products just a "-like" product. Meaning, don't you have to have a bank...
Goodyear's Oxygene Concept Tire to Improve Air Quality
[Design]
2018/03/19 10:47
The future of mobility is electric, but Goodyear wants to enhance that further through their latest concept tire, Goodyear’s Oxygene. Introduced at 2018 Geneva International Motor Show, this futuristic concept tire offers a visionary solution for cleaner, safer, and sustainable urban mobility. The unique structure of this tire features living moss growing within the sidewall. The tire’s smart...
Europe Electric Car Sales In January — VW e-Golf Starts In The Lead
[Business]
2018/03/18 09:10
The European passenger plug-in car market started the 2018 season with almost 26,000 registrations, growing 36% compared to the same period last year, a promising start that unfortunately is being made for the most part thanks to growth in plug-in hybrids (+44% year over year). In fact, plug-in hybrids now represent more than half (53%) of deliveries.And yet, out of the five best selling PEVs,...
Smart Glasses Can Convert Text Into Sound for the Visually Impaired - Oton Glass
[Tech]
2018/03/18 09:09
Japanese company Oton Glass is developing a par of glasses that can convert text into audio. The glasses are meant to help those with visual impairment, and provide them a way to understand the text around them.A Japanese company is in the midst of developing a pair of smart glasses that can help those with visual impairments or comprehension problems to read written text more easily. Called th...
(PDF) PwC : Artificial Intelligence : Touchpoints with Consumers
[Consumer]
2018/03/18 09:08
In this year PwC’s Global Consumer Insights Survey, the artificial intelligence (AI) story is all about potential:- While just 10% of respondents said they currently own AI devices, nearly one in three said they plan to buy an AI device.- For those who own one, 18% said they spend more on shopping.- One in five of our Chinese respondents told us they own an AI device.1. In some ways, AI is the...
(Video) CUE Robot Uses AI to Shoot Hoops Better Than the Pros
[Tech]
2018/03/18 09:07
Electric Hoop Dreams: CUE uses AI to beat the pros.The Toyota Engineering Society has created an android that scores baskets better than professional basketball players. Named CUE, the robot reportedly uses artificial intelligence to learn to shoot better than players from Japanese B League team Alvark Tokyo. It can apparently now shoot with nearly 100-percent accuracy at short distances.It see...
