- Oculus VR (NASDAQ:FB) has bought Nimble VR, a startup said to be developing "machine learning and computer vision capabilities to enable high-quality, low-latency skeletal hand tracking."
- It has also bought 13th Lab, a startup working on creating "an efficient and accurate" way to acquire/reconstruct 3D models in real-time. Oculus: "The ability to acquire accurate 3D models of the real-world can enable all sorts of new applications and experiences, like visiting a one-to-one 3D model of the pyramids in Egypt or the Roman Colosseum in VR."
- Also: Oculus has hired NYU prof./motion capture expert Chris Bregler. Bregler, who has done work for Disney, H-P, and LucasFilm, will be directing a "vision research team" at Oculus.
- The moves drive home Oculus' long-term goal of seeing its VR platform used for applications that go well beyond gaming. They follow Samsung's recent launch of the Oculus-powered Gear VR, The Gear VR, which sells for $199-$249 and relies on a Galaxy Note 4 to provide its display and camera, is aimed at developers and early adopters rather than mainstream consumers.
- Meanwhile, Mark Zuckerberg states during a Q&A session Facebook has been thinking about adding a "dislike" button, albeit while cautioning he doesn't want it to act as a way to shame users. Zuck suggests the button could act as a way to express sympathy over a sad event.