C_NCENTRATE #866: Gig-economy Horizon Worlds, black box for the world, camel botox... +++
THIS ISSUE OF C_NCENTRATE IS FREE THANKS TO TBD CONFERENCE
Get your ticket to ‘Espérance’ now, and you’ll hear from The Economist, Babylon, FT, top writers, and exciting special guests. March 31, ‘22 - all day.
NOTE ON HOLIDAY HOURS: 19th December will be the final issue for 2021. Normal service resumes in the New Year! Happy Holidays.
METABOOK LAUNCHES HORIZONS IN US/CANADA
The basics: Horizon Worlds is a VR universe that users can build in, play games, communicate and express themselves through; +18 only and, in (virtual) reality, looks nothing like this video (more like this):
SHOCKER ALERT! MetaBook didn’t think about harassment before launching, it seems.
Whoops. While Horizons sounds fun enough (Ultimate Frisbee?!), it’s clear this cookie is far from baked. Analysts, experts and hot takers let rip on multiple elements when Facebook launched this week. Why is this a problem? “Oculus researchers found that the sense of presence in VR makes harassment feel more intense.” That’s an excellent PR play wrapped in a sh!t sandwich - not good. We’re so immersive that when you get bullied, it stays with you. Jesus.
The biggest issue a lot of early takers seems to get stuck on is that Horizons plumped for making people look like themselves (minus the legs). A design choice that they may come to regret, other platforms allow people to really change their appearance, clothing etc. Perhaps purposefully boring to play up to the more communication-based activities, MetaBook has a long way to go before this will thrill the average consumer, but it’s a future MetaBook will be pushing hard.
__ DO __ Know this will excite a lot of people. Especially spammers etc. New ‘worlds’ always do. There’s a lot to enjoy/like though, explore it and see the opportunities. // __ DON'T __ Think we’re doomed to be digital amputees. The Founder of SecondLife, Michael Rosendale, says it best; “We've been led by the bad examples of a few big tech companies to think that the only way to make big money is to make people hate each other. It doesn't have to be that way.”
C_NCENTRATE RECOMMENDS:
Paper // MOO.com // 20% off use 'XN5MF6' (new customers only).
Live Video // Groovy Gecko // Their clients include Mark Zuckerberg and co.
Sleep // Motion Nutrition // Free sample of Power Up and Unplug, you just pay shipping.
Read // Stack Magazines // Amazing, independent, bi-monthly magazine inspiration.
AR/VR // Sliced Bread Animation // Immersive technology experience experts.
Coworking // Fora // Coworking for adults.
Tea // Grass People Tree // 10% off everything, use ‘GPTTEAHOUSEFAM” at the checkout.
World population is set to decline for the first time in centuries. > 4 mins
New Zealand is banning cigarettes for the next generation. > 4 mins
DeepMind has developed an AI with almost human-level reading ability. > 4 mins
Camels are getting botox. You read that right. > 2 mins
Rolls-Royce has hit a hybrid-electric power goal for airliners. > 4 mins
Feedback isn’t enough to help employees grow. > 6 mins
How gig-economy platforms set women up to fail. > 6 mins
Meet iRonCub…the cute robot with jetpacks for arms. > 4 mins
Scientists have created a ‘Black Box’ for the end of civilization. > 6 mins