This week’s update includes a rare partnership between some of tech’s biggest players (to self-govern AI development), a watershed stat for Amazon in the US and reflections on Snap’s Spectacles. Oh, and in case you missed it, we’re going to Mars guys!
HEADLINES
- Facebook, Amazon, Google, IBM and Microsoft come together to create a Partnership on AI.
- Spotify is rumoured to be in talks to buy Soundcloud.
- HTC’s VR app store opens today, making it easier for users to find non-gaming content.
INSIGHTS
- A small survey but significant shift: more than 50% of US shoppers turn to Amazon (not Google) first to find products.
- A (free, one-click download) infographic showing how Echo users are using the device so far.
- Deloitte’s Mobile Consumer Report 2016 (UK)
COOL
- Fove – VR with eye tracking.
- IBM Watson and The Weather Company are ready to launch the first Cognitive Ads.
- Slightly beyond digital media but pretty big future facing news: Elon Musk is going to take us to Mars.
DEEP READS
- ‘Snapchat Spectacles and the future of wearables’
- ‘What the next few years look like for VR’
- ‘In one experiment 98% of users failed to notice a clause requiring them to give up their first-born as payment’ – how the digital age has destroyed the concept of ownership.
