In the recently concluded 2-day Meta Connect 2024 event, Meta unveiled a wave of exciting innovations, once again pushing the boundaries in virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR) and artificial intelligence (AI).
Formerly known as Oculus Connect and rebranded to Meta Connect in 2021, Meta has evolved its vision toward the Metaverse, broadening its scope to include not only VR but also AR, AI, and other technologies. It continues to serve as a platform for Meta to announce its latest hardware, software, and AI developments for both developers and consumers.
At the Meta Connect 2024, several advancements were unveiled. Below is a summary of their key announcements:
Meta Quest 3S is a budget-friendly VR headset. It features Fresnel lenses offering lower resolution (1,832 x 1,920), and starts with 128GB storage. The Meta Quest 3S features the same Quest 3 capabilities; but this time at a lower cost making VR technology more accessible to many.
Ray-ban Smart Glasses is Meta's updated version of its smart glasses. In partnership with Ray-Ban, these glasses feature improved cameras, enhanced audio, and the ability to integrate AI-powered live translation and object recognition.
AI Chatbots with celebrity voices including John Cena and Kristen Bell were introduced enhancing Meta's AI capabilities. These chatbots can now handle more conversational interactions and edit photos through text prompts on Meta platforms.
Meta AI is Meta's new AI assistant available across platforms like WhatsApp, Instagram, and Messenger. In addition, the event showcased their generative AI tool, which can create images and stickers in seconds based on text prompts enhancing creativity across Meta’s apps. AI Studio was likewise introduced, allowing users to create their custom AI personalities.
Meta LLaMA 3.2 AI positions its AI in competition with other advanced AI platforms like ChatGPT. This AI model has vision capabilities that enables it to analyze and describe images.
A preview of the Orion Holographic Avatar was presented and it is a new AR feature that enables lifelike holographic avatars for more immersive communication in virtual environments.
So there you have it. Through these advancements, Meta demonstrates how AR, VR, and AI are becoming increasingly relevant as they integrate into our daily lives, making sophisticated technology accessible to everyone.