Latest news with #virtualreality
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Sandia National Labs team with Explora for X-R Conference
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – Explora visitors can soon step into the world of extended reality, thanks to Sandia National Labs. This week, technology enthusiasts can experience augmented, virtual, and mixed reality as part of Sandia's Seventh Annual X-R Conference. Story continues below Food: Albuquerque diner named one of the best in the country by Food Network New Mexico Crime Files: NM town mayor and police chief caught smuggling guns to Mexican cartels Sports Office: Playing defense from the offensive line with Teton Saltes Community: What's happening in New Mexico July 18-24? Route 66 Summerfest and more The event brings leaders in the industry together to explore the future of extended reality. The labs will host a demo day at Explora this Wednesday from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Oculus Founder Palmer Luckey's 'Lord Of The Rings'-Inspired Digital Bank Hits $2 Billion Valuation With Backing From Founders Fund
Palmer Luckey is making another big bet: this time, not in virtual reality or military defense, but digital finance. The Anduril CEO and Oculus founder has launched Erebor, a digital bank that already holds a valuation of $2 billion as it raises at least $225 million in funding, Business Insider reports. Venture firms Founders Fund and 8VC, led by Peter Thiel and Joe Lonsdale, respectively, are backing the project, according to sources with knowledge of the deal who spoke with Business Insider. The fundraising remains in progress, and details could still change, but the size of the round and the players involved have already drawn attention across Silicon Valley. Don't Miss:Named a TIME Best Invention and Backed by 5,000+ Users, Kara's Air-to-Water Pod Cuts Plastic and Costs — Erebor's Tolkien Name Isn't Just for Show Erebor takes its name from J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Lord of the Rings," where the Lonely Mountain is described as a place of treasure and power, Business Insider says. That symbolism may not be coincidental, as Luckey has a track record of blending fantasy themes with serious business. His earlier startup, Anduril, shares the name of a legendary sword from the same fantasy universe. Erebor has applied for a U.S. bank charter that would allow it to operate as a regulated institution, according to internal documents reviewed by Business Insider. The bank plans to offer crypto-collateralized loans and other services tailored to startups and digital asset companies. Jacob Hirshman, who previously worked at stablecoin issuer Circle, and Owen Rapaport, co-founder of Aer Compliance, will lead Erebor as co-CEOs, Business Insider reports. Mike Hagedorn, the former CFO of Valley National Bank, lists his current role as Erebor president on LinkedIn. Trending: $100k+ in investable assets? – no cost, no obligation. Trump's Crypto Pivot Aligns With Erebor's Rise Erebor's launch comes as the Trump administration takes a more favorable stance on the cryptocurrency sector. In recent months, President Donald Trump has endorsed creating a strategic bitcoin reserve. Trump also appointed venture capitalist David Sacks as the country's first crypto czar, tasking him with developing a legal framework to provide long-sought clarity for the cryptocurrency industry and leading the Presidential Council of Advisors for Science and Technology. The venture firms funding Erebor have clear political ties to Trump. Peter Thiel donated over $1 million to pro-Trump super PACs during the 2016 election, according to CNN. Lonsdale, co-founder of Palantir (NASDAQ:PLTR), has also supported America Pac, a group that backed Trump's 2024 re-election campaign, Financial Times Oculus to Anduril to Erebor, Palmer Luckey Keeps Building Billion-Dollar Systems Luckey founded Oculus at age 19 and sold the VR company to Facebook, now Meta (NASDAQ:META), for $2 billion just two years later. Business Insider says that after leaving Meta in 2016 following controversy over a $10,000 donation to a pro-Trump meme group, Luckey co-founded Anduril, which reached a $30.5 billion valuation in June 2023 after raising $2.5 billion. Although Meta and CEO Mark Zuckerberg denied politics played a role in Luckey's exit, Business Insider says the two have since reconnected through a military tech collaboration announced earlier this year. Following Circle's (NYSE:CRCL) recent public market debut, with shares up over 113% since listing, Erebor's launch enters a crypto sector already drawing heightened institutional interest. Read Next: Here's what Americans think you need to be considered wealthy. Image: Shutterstock Up Next: Transform your trading with Benzinga Edge's one-of-a-kind market trade ideas and tools. Click now to access unique insights that can set you ahead in today's competitive market. Get the latest stock analysis from Benzinga? APPLE (AAPL): Free Stock Analysis Report TESLA (TSLA): Free Stock Analysis Report This article Oculus Founder Palmer Luckey's 'Lord Of The Rings'-Inspired Digital Bank Hits $2 Billion Valuation With Backing From Founders Fund originally appeared on © 2025 Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved. Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Oculus Founder Palmer Luckey's 'Lord Of The Rings'-Inspired Digital Bank Hits $2 Billion Valuation With Backing From Founders Fund
Palmer Luckey is making another big bet: this time, not in virtual reality or military defense, but digital finance. The Anduril CEO and Oculus founder has launched Erebor, a digital bank that already holds a valuation of $2 billion as it raises at least $225 million in funding, Business Insider reports. Venture firms Founders Fund and 8VC, led by Peter Thiel and Joe Lonsdale, respectively, are backing the project, according to sources with knowledge of the deal who spoke with Business Insider. The fundraising remains in progress, and details could still change, but the size of the round and the players involved have already drawn attention across Silicon Valley. Don't Miss:Named a TIME Best Invention and Backed by 5,000+ Users, Kara's Air-to-Water Pod Cuts Plastic and Costs — Erebor's Tolkien Name Isn't Just for Show Erebor takes its name from J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Lord of the Rings," where the Lonely Mountain is described as a place of treasure and power, Business Insider says. That symbolism may not be coincidental, as Luckey has a track record of blending fantasy themes with serious business. His earlier startup, Anduril, shares the name of a legendary sword from the same fantasy universe. Erebor has applied for a U.S. bank charter that would allow it to operate as a regulated institution, according to internal documents reviewed by Business Insider. The bank plans to offer crypto-collateralized loans and other services tailored to startups and digital asset companies. Jacob Hirshman, who previously worked at stablecoin issuer Circle, and Owen Rapaport, co-founder of Aer Compliance, will lead Erebor as co-CEOs, Business Insider reports. Mike Hagedorn, the former CFO of Valley National Bank, lists his current role as Erebor president on LinkedIn. Trending: $100k+ in investable assets? – no cost, no obligation. Trump's Crypto Pivot Aligns With Erebor's Rise Erebor's launch comes as the Trump administration takes a more favorable stance on the cryptocurrency sector. In recent months, President Donald Trump has endorsed creating a strategic bitcoin reserve. Trump also appointed venture capitalist David Sacks as the country's first crypto czar, tasking him with developing a legal framework to provide long-sought clarity for the cryptocurrency industry and leading the Presidential Council of Advisors for Science and Technology. The venture firms funding Erebor have clear political ties to Trump. Peter Thiel donated over $1 million to pro-Trump super PACs during the 2016 election, according to CNN. Lonsdale, co-founder of Palantir (NASDAQ:PLTR), has also supported America Pac, a group that backed Trump's 2024 re-election campaign, Financial Times Oculus to Anduril to Erebor, Palmer Luckey Keeps Building Billion-Dollar Systems Luckey founded Oculus at age 19 and sold the VR company to Facebook, now Meta (NASDAQ:META), for $2 billion just two years later. Business Insider says that after leaving Meta in 2016 following controversy over a $10,000 donation to a pro-Trump meme group, Luckey co-founded Anduril, which reached a $30.5 billion valuation in June 2023 after raising $2.5 billion. Although Meta and CEO Mark Zuckerberg denied politics played a role in Luckey's exit, Business Insider says the two have since reconnected through a military tech collaboration announced earlier this year. Following Circle's (NYSE:CRCL) recent public market debut, with shares up over 113% since listing, Erebor's launch enters a crypto sector already drawing heightened institutional interest. Read Next: Here's what Americans think you need to be considered wealthy. Image: Shutterstock Up Next: Transform your trading with Benzinga Edge's one-of-a-kind market trade ideas and tools. Click now to access unique insights that can set you ahead in today's competitive market. Get the latest stock analysis from Benzinga? APPLE (AAPL): Free Stock Analysis Report TESLA (TSLA): Free Stock Analysis Report This article Oculus Founder Palmer Luckey's 'Lord Of The Rings'-Inspired Digital Bank Hits $2 Billion Valuation With Backing From Founders Fund originally appeared on © 2025 Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
CTV News
12-07-2025
- Entertainment
- CTV News
Tech promised virtual reality would revolutionize entertainment. That moment might finally be closer than we think
A woman plays a video game with the Oculus Rift VR headset at a video arcade dedicated to virtual reality in Paris, France. (Benoit Tessier/Reuters via CNN Newsource) Virtual reality was supposed to transform entertainment. At least, that was the expectation roughly a decade ago with the arrival of the Oculus Rift, the first virtual reality (VR) headset that many believed would push VR into the mainstream. In 2025, the industry has failed to deliver on that promise. But tech and entertainment giants alike believe that moment could be closer than ever. The evidence is there. The Wall Street Journal reported last month that Meta is in talks with Disney, A24 and other entertainment companies to produce immersive content for its Quest VR headsets. Apple announced an update to its Vision Pro headset in June, enabling users to share content with other headsets — ideal for watching movies together in 3-D. Earlier this year, Apple also launched an immersive Metallica concert for the Vision Pro and announced in July it's readying its first upgrade to boost the Vision Pro's performance. Taken together, this signals that tech and media behemoths are still betting that consumers will be willing to spend hundreds, if not thousands, to experience concerts, movies and sporting events beyond the confines of a traditional screen. A chicken-and-the-egg paradox In the 10-plus years since Oculus debuted the Rift, headset manufacturers have produced lighter, more powerful devices. Meanwhile, companies are finally warming to the idea of another medium for storytelling. Tech companies have a history of flirting with VR projects aimed at mainstream users. In June, Meta offered live virtual rinkside tickets to Stanley Cup games, echoing previous NBA and WNBA offerings. Headset owners have attended virtual concerts for years, including Apple's immersive Alicia Keys session and Meta's Blackpink show. Disney even launched a Disney+ app for Apple's Vision Pro on Day 1 in 2024. But these have been pilots to gauge interest, not long-term investments. Historically, headsets have been trapped in a chicken-and-egg paradox: to woo entertainment content, they need mass adoption; but to reach that scale, headsets need premium content. The technology must also be comfortable, powerful and popular enough to gain mass appeal. For Sarah Malkin, director of entertainment content for Meta's VR division Reality Labs, that cycle is already being broken. 'I think the 'it moment' is when you are regularly engaging in experiences in mixed reality that are super complementary and part of your integrated life,' Malkin told CNN. 'To me, that's already happening.' Global shipments of augmented reality (AR) and VR headsets increased by around 10 per cent in 2024 to 7.5 million and nearly 30.8 per cent to 3.4 million in the US, according to IDC, a global market intelligence and data company. Although IDC predicts shipments around the world will tumble this year due to delayed product launches, it expects a massive rebound in 2026 with worldwide shipments surging 98.5 per cent to 11.3 million. However, the results haven't always lived up to the hype. Mark Zuckerberg's Metaverse has cost Meta US$46 billion over three years. Reality Labs, the company's VR division, posted $4.2 billion in operating loss and just $412 million in sales in Q1, down from the previous quarter. But tech giants continue to experiment with the technology. Meta invested $3.5 billion in eyewear manufacturer EssilorLuxottica SA to bolster its AI spectacle gambit, according to Bloomberg. (A Meta spokesperson declined to comment on the report.) Snap recently said it plans to launch new augmented reality spectacles next year, and Google continues to work with partners like Xreal and Samsung on upcoming headsets and glasses that run on its new Android XR software. Samsung will be among the first to launch such a device with its upcoming Project Moohan headset. With more sophisticated hardware and a budding content portfolio, Bertrand Nepveu, a former Vision Pro contributor and partner at Triptyq Capital, said wider adoption is crucial. 'It's still early, but there's no technical limitation right now, it's more (that) we need people to invest because you need a critical mass,' Nepveu told CNN. Samsung's Project Moohan Attendees photograph Samsung's Project Moohan mixed-reality headsets with Google at the Galaxy Unpacked event in San Jose, California, on Jan. 22. (Michaela Vatcheva/Bloomberg/Getty Images via CNN Newsource) A paradigm shift in content Although big names like James Cameron and Sabrina Carpenter are already beginning to explore VR, immersive storytelling has yet to gain that crucial widespread popularity. Slow growth can be partially attributed to incorrect assumptions by studios. 'You can't just take the flat version of what you put on Disney+ or Netflix or Amazon, and just throw that up,' Jenna Seiden, an industry consultant and adviser who has worked with Skydance Media, Niantic, CAA, and Xbox, told CNN. 'You need to build natively so the audience is going to have a different experience per platform.' While creating media for virtual and mixed reality may seem like a departure from developing content for 2-D screens, Seiden says the secret to success is a tactic media companies are already familiar with: exclusivity. 'You look at the creation of HBO (Max), you look at the creation of Apple TV+, they grew their audiences based on exclusives, that's why you went to them,' Seiden said. 'I think that model is very familiar to entertainment companies, and they can go to their board saying, 'Hey, this is how platforms grow, with exclusive content.'' That's what makes live virtual sports an easy way to break down extended reality (XR) barriers for audiences. Paul Raphaël, co-founder of Felix & Paul, said sports can be easily adapted for immersive platforms using 180-degree cameras. 'You already have quite a few events and sports being broadcast, whether it's live or asynchronous,' Raphaël said. 'As the audience grows, it's a really straightforward path to create the content or to broadcast the content.' For Hollywood, the possibility of a new major distribution platform couldn't come at a better time. In today's fracturing media environment — shaken by streaming, the collapse of the cable bundle, and post-Covid box office woes — a new medium could be a crucial selling point, especially for entertainment boards looking for a new revenue vein. Jack Davis, co-founder of CryptTV, said headsets might provide a much-needed pipeline for premium content. 'As gigantic structural changes happen in TV and film, the industry is going to need to replace those things in the aggregate,' Davis said. 'This could be one of the only formats that premium entertainment actually seems like it makes sense (for) the user base.' Budgetary and content hurdles Over the past decade, investment in VR has been eclipsed by more pressing innovations, including self-driving cars and AI. Although it's difficult to determine how that has directly impacted XR investment, funding data from Crunchbase, a predictive company intelligence solution, shows that backing for AI and self-driving has steadily increased, rising from $39.96 billion in 2019 to $105.36 billion by 2025. Meanwhile, XR funding has experienced more erratic behavior — reaching a peak of $4.087 billion in 2021 but dropping to $347.69 million by 2025. Things were much the same in the venture capital world, where the number of global VR deals has also dropped in recent years. PitchBook, which examines private equity and VC deals, notes that 2019 was the largest year for VC deals in VR in the last decade, recording $6.43 billion in deals worldwide. That was significantly smaller than the $57.084 billion from AI-focused venture capitalists that year. In 2025, VR VCs have fallen to only $3.61 billion in global deals while AI VCs have grown to $130.89 billion. But Nepveu said that's changing. 'Now that AI is more understood, you know what it's good for, what it's not capable of, the budgets now are going back into XR,' Nepveu claimed. Still, tech giants investing in the development of mixed reality headsets face a daunting challenge that extends beyond the entertainment available. They need to convince consumers that the devices are both worth paying for and putting on their faces. That's partially why Apple emphasized the Vision Pro as a spatial computing tool, focusing on work and productivity rather than just 2-D and 3-D entertainment capabilities. Still, even a decade later, experts can't seem to agree on exactly when VR will have its breakout moment. Nepveu said it could happen any day. Raphaël expected one or two years. Davis suggested three to seven. Seiden said five to 10. Raphaël, however, believes 2-D content may soon feel as dated as pre-Technicolor entertainment. 'Content, the way it is consumed today, is going to be much like we think of black and white movies, where, if a film isn't immersive, it doesn't lose its value, but it becomes something of another era,' Raphaël said. By Liam Reilly.
Times
12-07-2025
- Business
- Times
Caroline Keeling immerses herself in interactive agency
Caroline Keeling's CBA investment group has just taken a chunk of Niall O'Driscoll and Andrew Jenkinson's experiential agency, vStream. The Dublin firm develops a pile of immersive content using augmented and virtual reality, such as developing interactive experiences for VIP guests of the software group SAP at Levi's Stadium, home of the NFL's San Francisco 49ers. It also creates medical animation and patient-centric information. Keeling stepped down from running the vast fruit, flowers and vegetable empire of Keelings last December after almost 20 years holding the joystick at the multinational. She has started to invest in medical-focused groups including Ciara Clancy's Beats Medical. Looks like it takes more than an apple a day to keep the doctor away. Colm Piercy is shifting through the gears as he gets set to make another fortune. Piercy set up Digiweb, a residential telecoms provider, which merged with the European operations of US telco Viatel in 2013. It was turned into a whopper of a business communications, cloud and cybersecurity company, which was valued internally at more than €500 million a few years back. Piercy also moved into property — both personally and through Clyde Real Estate, a partnership with the former presidential candidate Seán Gallagher, actively managing the assets, adding value and selling on. He is also knee-deep in venture capital investing through Colin Meagle's Continuous Ventures. Piercy's data centre interests seem to be positively ballooning. Apart from his 365 Data Centers business, which is a top ten operator in the US, he is also involved with development of digital infrastructure. His Chirisa Technology Parks teamed up with the private equity investor Blue Owl Capital and PowerHouse Data Centers to develop more than $5 billion of data centre projects all over America. I'm told that the lads have just inked their first deal. It's a $750 million data centre development in Chesterfield, Virginia, that will help to power the cloud infrastructure needed to run the insanely fast artificial intelligence developed by companies such as Nvidia, the owner of CoreWeave, which is the data centre end user. Piercy will be disturbing the top ten of any Irish rich list before long, or I'll eat my hat. Ronan Murphy, who sold his AI cybersecurity business Getvisibility for an estimated €80 million, is getting ready to splurge some dough. And why not? The US firm Forcepoint bought his company, which specialised in data security, last March. It was chaired by Herb Hribar, who used to be the chief executive of Eir. Apart from Murphy, the deal generated some excellent returns for Barry Downes's Sure Valley Ventures and a bundle of institutional backers. It was Murphy's second big exit, having floated his cybersecurity firm Smarttech247 in 2022. • Irish cybersecurity boss about to go global on generative AI I'm told that Murphy is now planning to build a whopper of a gaff in Crosshaven, overlooking the west Cork coastline. He bought a house for almost €800,000 in the area, which he has been trying to develop for years. I see that Murphy's Applied Contracting business is going to lend him money 'to finance the construction of a principal private residence'. It's an interest-free loan too. The loan to Murphy is to provide him with 'a benefit and incentive'. In fairness, given what he has delivered to his backers in the last two companies, it's probably not a bad shout. Put the Pinarello back in the garage. It's so 2022. Padel is clearly by far the cooler sport for middle-aged corporate lawyers. Ben Keohane is certainly hoping so. His Padel 100 business has raised a wodge of money to help commercialise the tennis-lite sport and get courts built around the country. These generate a potentially whopping return for the court backers — assuming that padel remains popular. I hear that Keohan and his team, which includes the former Ireland hooker Frankie Sheahan, have also been backed by former Arnotts boss Michael Nason and ex-Meta veepee Ciarán Quilty, who is now banging the drum at Intuit. Other backers include Primesel engineering's James Lillis and the OFX boss Maeve McMahon, who is also the independent director at the Football Association of Ireland. Robert Reardon, who used to be chief financial officer of the Blarney Woollen Mills company, is a backer along with Tom Carson, the former Digicel executive; the Ballymooney Foods boss Pat Doyle; and Diarmuid O'Neill, the Doyle shipping chief financial officer. Swapping pedal for padel is a no-brainer. There is a possibly apocryphal story about the late and sometimes great Hollywood actor Michael Madsen, best remembered for his ear chopping-off skills in Quentin Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs. Madsen, who passed away this month, is believed to have looked at making an action film in London with Donal Caulfield, the Celtic tiger developer and kickboxing champion, back in the day. Quite how far the promoters ever got with putting the two together isn't clear but the film never got made. Caulfield was one of the most high-profile and glitzy of the boom-time developers but was scuppered by the crash. The last I'd heard from him was that he was involved in stud farming in the midlands. I see that his business partner Leo Meenagh is getting back in the saddle. Meenagh and Caulfield developed the vast Belmayne scheme in north Dublin that horrified pearl-tuggers by its early use of sex to sell property in an ad hoarding. They also enlisted then A-list couple Jamie and Louise Redknapp to launch Belmayne Gorgeous Living, where the champagne flowed at the event. I hear that Meenagh is involved in the commercial vehicles space as well as moving into contracting and a new biofuels venture. Given that only half of the government's 40,000 housebuilding target may be met this year, it might be time to reform the band. Car hire king Ray McConn will be one of the shareholders keeping an eye on events at Powerscourt Distillery. The director Gerard Ginty filed a petition for the appointment of an examiner at the Co Wicklow whiskey maker a few days after PNC Bank appointed a receiver to the company. McConn is a wily enough investor — he owns the Ecco shoe shop on Grafton Street — when not running the Budget and Avis car rental franchises here. For a number of years the car hire operation ran its own captive insurance operation out of Malta. I see from a recent set of accounts that Flynn Bros Rent A Car Ballygar also bought and sold investment bonds with a value of €105 million in the year to August 2024. That's a pretty hefty trade for the Co Roscommon company. It paid a dividend of €35 million to its shareholders, a pair of Isle of Man-registered companies, in 2023, having enjoyed a big bounce in profits post-Covid. Looks like there is still plenty of money in the game. It's been a solid fortnight for the Byrne clan — particularly for the siblings Phil and Lucy. Phil, who ditched London's greyer pastures for Cantor Fitzgerald in Dublin a few years back, has quietly become the pin-up boy of the local investment scene. His flagship Multi-Asset 70 Fund is a steamroller — top of the heap in May, in the year to date, and over one, three, five and seven years. So no great shock that Cantor Fitzgerald Asset Management scooped equities manager of the year at the European Pensions Awards last week. A tidy bit of validation and, yes, a fillip for Phil. Younger sister Lucy, a PR executive, went Instagram-official with her engagement to Jordan Larmour, the Leinster and Ireland speedster, who got down on one knee during a suspiciously well-lit but delightful moment in Portugal. Mind that hamstring, Jordan. Larmour is also a backer of Sigmoid Apparel, an ambitious play for a slice of Ireland's €200 million athleisure market. With a brother-in-law like Phil on speed dial, he will have no shortage of ideas on where to park any proceeds. In last week's column it was incorrectly stated that Paddy Doherty, a Donegal entrepreneur and founder of Electro Automation, had bought Ashton's pub in Clonskeagh. Contrary to previous reports, Doherty has not acquired the pub and has no involvement or association with the enterprise, or its former owner, Patrick McKillen Jr. We are happy to correct the error and apologise for any confusion or inconvenience caused.
