Google’s Lack of Vision 😎🍏

👀 TLDR:

In this week’s What’s Appening, we take a look at Google’s attempts to create a rival for the Apple Vision Pro AR headset. Google has been in the augmented reality game for a long time, but what does it really have to show for it? A collaboration with Samsung on a Vision Pro rival is the next step, but industry insiders are skeptical that a new headset can be developed before Apple takes command of the market. In other news this week, we look at Beamer’s $20m raise in an era where customer retention is paramount. Our Stat of the Week hails the Base blockchain. And What’s dAppening looks at how Tomorrowland is using NFTs for brand engagement long after the party stops.

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Takes 🎬️

🍏🏃🏽 Google – Project “Moohan” Aims to Catch up with Apple Vision Pro

Google has been in the AR/VR game for a long time, and it has precious little to show for it. You’ll remember the disastrous Google Glass, sure, but there have also been Daydream, Tilt, Cardboard, Tango, Iris, and countless others either underused or resigned to the dustbin. What’s next? It seems the big bet is a collaboration with Samsung and others on a project codenamed “Moohan”, which will be their collective answer to Apple’s Vision Pro. Google, for its part, is taking a back seat in the hardware, content that the device will run on Android. There are emerging reports that the predicted release date of 2024 is way off the mark, though, with Google’s AR/VR division said to be exasperated at constantly shifting leadership and project goals. The pressure on Google (and Samsung) might be even more intense soon as developers testing the Vision Pro have been drip-feeding info about Apple’s headset. By all accounts, it’s going to blow the doors off when it comes out early next year, a good thing given the cost. Nobody but Meta spends more on AR tech than Google, but a lack of vision (🤭) has left them playing catch up. #GoogleCatchUp Read more here.

🏗️💰 Beamer – Customer Engagement & Analytics Platform Raises $20 Million

A $20 million funding raise announced by no-code product engagement monitor Beamer caught our eye this week. Not just for the ingenuity of the platform itself (Beamer, founded in 2017, is similar to others like Intercom and Batch), but due to a shifting focus to customer retention in a challenging economy. Beamer allows those building apps, products, and services to avail of a constant customer feedback loop, helping them prioritize builds and tweak through data-driven decisions. The $20 million will go to expanding Beamer’s existing solutions and (unsurprisingly) developing AI tools for the platform. #BeamerMeUpScotty Read more here.

Other News: A Brief Roundup of Interesting Stories this Week

🔙 Former President Trump (briefly) returns to X with a solitary post. The “will he, won’t he” debate of Donald Trump returning to Twitter/X kind of had a conclusion. The former POTUS returned after a hiatus of over a year, posting one tweet. A week later, he hasn’t posted again. Read more here.

🐍 Microsoft is bringing Python libraries to Excel. Microsoft will now allow advanced spreadsheet users to combine scripts in Python programming language. Read about that here.

✈️ Google will tell you the cheapest time to book flights. Google Flights has some new features, including one that helps users pinpoint the cheapest flights through predictions. Could be a problem for price-prediction apps like Hopper. Read all about it here.

🎤 AI, copyright, and music royalties in the spotlight. Voices aren’t technically copyrightable, and this is a big challenge for the music industry in the age of AI music. Read the fascinating story, which even involves Ol’ Blue Eyes Frank Sinatra, right here.

🧐 Stat of the Week:15.88 TPS

⏩🥇 Base – New Blockchain Surpasses Ethereum in Transactions Per Second

Last week, we told you that Base, the blockchain from Coinbase, could be the next big thing in web3, and the latest data lends weight to that prediction. Despite being just weeks old, Base even surpassed Ethereum and all major L2s in TPS (transactions per second) across a 24-hour period last week. Much of that was due to the Friend.tech frenzy, but everything is pointing to Base being a huge success in the web3 space. #BuildingOnBase Read more here.

🕸️ What’s dAppening?

🕺🏽🖼️ NFTs – Tomorrowland Proves the Show Can Go On with Digital Assets

Tomorrowland is the dance music festival that attracts all the cool European kids (and rich American kids who can afford to travel) for a couple of weekends of raving in Belgium. The festival organizers have, however, found a way for the show to keep going long after the lights have gone out – NFTs. Sales of the NFTs have hit over $2 million since the festival ended on July 30th, with festival-goers snapping them up to get exclusive content, early-bird access to future event ticketing, and other perks. It’s a brilliant example of how to use NFTs for continued brand engagement, and it seems that other festivals are aiming to copy Tomorrowland’s NFT strategy. #NFTFestival Read more here.

Meanwhile at 3Advance…

We’ve got another Clutch Review 🥰 … And we couldn’t be more proud! Valerie Evans from Northeastern Pennsylvania hired 3Advance to develop No Weigh, a behavioral analysis based app for weight loss. This uniquely fantastic app went live earlier this Summer, and last week Valerie’s review was published on Clutch.co. Click here to read it in its entirety, and don’t forget to check out No Weigh in the App Store or Google Play. Thank you Valerie! 🙏

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