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AR App Cupixel Helps You Find Your Inner Artist

From vrscout

Access live and on-demand lessons from artists around the world.

Cupixel is a unique smartphone app that removes the barrier around creating art by making it possible for everyone to explore their own unique creative outlet.

The app uses augmented reality (AR) and ‘Smart Trace’ technology to cast outlines of various images over the real world. You can choose from a gallery of preloaded content or project a picture from your own library onto any flat surface.

Cupixel helps you develop the basic skills necessary to start creating art on your own. As you make your way through the app, you will uncover different tips and tricks from official Cupixel artists as they guide you through step-by-step lessons available live or on-demand.

The app has already attracted the attention of one of the biggest retailers of art and craft supplies. JOANN recently announced that they will be investing $5M in seed money to help the company grow. 

“JOANN is committed to bringing our customers the best tools and assortment available and has been investing in the latest craft technology over recent years,” said Rob Will, Executive Vice President and Chief Merchandising Officer at JOANN in an official press release. “We believe that Cupixel is at the cutting edge and is providing users of all skill levels with the unique and significant rewards that come from creating art.”



In addition to Cupixel’s menu of interactive AR tools, you can also purchase the Cupixel Acrylic Art Set, a physical art set with premium materials such as high-quality paints, brushes, and canvases for paintings.

There’s also a Greeting Card Set filled with art supplies for creating your own personalized greeting cards, including premium blank card stock and envelopes, 12 dual-tipped markers, and a selection of greeting card covers. 

In the same press release, Elad Katav, Founder and Chief Executive Officer at Cupixel said, “Cupixel offers daily live and on-demand art experiences that continually provide value for our users and their families —whether they are making greeting cards, uploading their own photos and drawing them, or more — everyone can produce their own masterpiece.”

To learn more about Cupixel, just hit the link and check out their website. I would also recommend checking out Cupixel’s YouTube page for some great how-to videos.

The Cupixel app is available on Google Play and the Apple App Store for $12.99/month. Cupixel also offers a limited experience to users for free.

Image Credit: Cupixel

VR Takes You Inside Bruce Lee’s Hong Kong Home

From vrscout

Enter the Bruceleeverse.

Created in honor of the martial arts legend, “Revival of the Memory: Bruce Lee’s Home in Metaverse” is an upcoming exhibition that will allow you to explore Lee’s old Hong Kong home in VR and participate in a “series of interactions.”

Located at No.41 Cumberland Road, Hong Kong, Lee’s old home, otherwise known as the “Crane’s Nest,” was demolished in 2019. Thanks to the efforts of three students from the Hong Kong Institute of Vocational Education (Shatin), however, fans of the martial arts legend will be able to make their own virtual pilgrimage to the Crane’s Nest via the metaverse.

The project is being helmed by the Bruce Lee Club in partnership with PRIZM Group and will be available around the globe on July 20th, 2023, the 50th anniversary of Lee’s death. Moving forward, the space may be used to host various events and activities for fans. How cool would it be to attend a Bruce Lee movie marathon hosted in his old home?

“We want people to know more about Bruce Lee’s last trail via VR technology, and understand more about his ‘Water Philosophy’,” said Wong Yiu-Keung, Chairman of the Bruce Lee Club. “The project collaborates with universities and organizations including three young students hoping to pass on the Bruce Lee spirit from generation to generation in unrestricted formats.”

“Bruce Lee is a representative of cultural exchanges between the East and the West,” added Jeffrey Hau, Director of PRIZM Group. “This exhibition hopes to revive the traditional culture with the enablement of Web 3.0 elements and pass on Bruce Lee’s spirit to the next generation. As a digital marketing company, PRIZM will continue to embrace the latest technology to promote the cultural scenes.”

For more information visit here.

Image Credit: Bruce Lee Club, PRIZM Group

VTuber App Lets You Create An Avatar With Your Smartphone

From vrscout

Those in Europe can download the app for free via the Apple Store and Google Play.

CUSTOMCAST is an all-in-one mobile app that allows you to create your very own virtual entertainer, aka ‘VTuber’, using a smartphone or tablet. You can control your avatar using facial tracking and even broadcast live to audiences around the world with ease.

Developed by Dwango and S-court, the app allows you to customize premade 3D avatars using a variety of accessories, face types, hairstyles, skin colors, and clothing. You can then use your smart device’s camera to control your digital persona with facial tracking, lip sync, and various poses/expressions.

There’s also the option to customize your virtual background. If you have an iPhone with a True Depth camera you can even project your avatar over the real world via augmented reality (AR). Once you’ve finished customizing your digital persona you can connect to the Niconico Live app and begin broadcasting.

CUSTOMCAST is now available free in Europe via the Apple Store and Google Play in the following languages: English, Japanese, and Chinese (Traditional/Simplified). You can also purchase additional customizations via the in-app store or subscribe to the CUSTOMCAST official channel for exclusive perks.

In celebration of its European launch, the company has partnered with the popular visual novel series Nekopara to offer new avatar clothing based on fan-favorite characters.

We’ve talked about different types of VTuber software in the past. That said, CUSTOMCAST is one of the first to offer users an all-in-one experience that includes everything from character customization to broadcasting.

Image Credit: CUSTOM CAST Inc.

VR Surgical Training Platform Raises $20M, Further Solidifying VR’s Place in Medicine

From roadtovr

VR surgical training platform FundamentalVR today announced it has raised a $20 million Series B investment to further expand its VR surgical training platform. The company is among a growing list of companies taking root in what appears to be a prime use-case for VR.

FundamentalVR today announced it has raised a $20 million Series B investment, bringing the company’s total fundraising to a purported $30 million. The round was led by EQT Life Sciences and prior investor Downing Ventures. As part of the investment, Drew Burdon of EQT Life Sciences will join FundamentalVR’s Board of Directors.

FundamentalVR says it combines high-fidelity medical simulations with VR and haptics so that trainees can “experience the sights, sounds, and physical sensations of real-life surgery.” The goal, says the company, is to make it more affordable for medical institutions to bring “professionally accredited surgical training [to] their organizations.”

According to FundamentalVR, the investment will be used to “enable further development of [the surgical training platform], the machine learning data insights product, and [drive] geographic expansion throughout the US.”

“Our platform can conduct a walkthrough of a procedure through to a full operation, facilitating surgical skills transfer—which is why we have been enthusiastically embraced throughout the medical industry, from med-device manufacturers to pharmaceuticals” says FundamentalVR CEO Richard Vincent. “Our immersive environments transform surgical skills acquisition in a scalable, low-cost, multiuser way. We are excited to scale our vision of creating a medical education environment unhindered by borders.”

Image courtesy FundamentalVR

VR surgical training is a growing use-case that appears to deliver significant return-on-investment for organizations that would otherwise pay for most costly and/or less effective and flexible methods of surgical training—and FundamentalVR is far from the first company to have bet on this.

One of the leaders in the space, Osso VR, has raised its own small fortune of some $109 million, according to Crunchbase, and has also demonstrated the efficacy of VR surgical training compared to traditional methods.

Image courtesy FundamentalVR

Surgical training specifically is just one slice of where VR is being used in the medical field.

We’ve seen the tech used to train ultrasound operators to identify fetal heart diseases, and recently in preparation for a rare and risky surgery to separate conjoined twins. And let’s not forget mental health, where VR is being used to create safe and accessible spaces for therapy.

Needless to say, these particular projects are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to VR in medicine, a place where VR looks destined to be forever intertwined.

Sensorium Launches 24-Hour Metaverse Streaming Channel

From vrscout

Empyreal Parties 24/7 promises an unreal multi-sensory experience.

The multi-sensory VR platform Sensorium is launching what they claim is the first in-engine metaverse streaming channel, offering an out-of-this-world visual and audio experience like no other. The 24/7 livestream metaverse experience will take you on a journey through multiple locations across the Sensorium Galaxy metaverse.

To kick it all off, Sensorium is hosting its first Empyreal Party at the remote Meteor Vortex with virtual AI artists Kàra Màr, Natisa Sitar, and Ninalis performing aboard a levitating concert module that will transport you into a sublime visual experience featuring sick beats from AI artist and virtual beings.



Each AI-DJ is able to create music that pulls inspiration from over 60 different genres. They are also capable of interacting with the audience in VR. 

Immediately following the inaugural Meteor Vortex event, Sensorium will launch two other Empyreal Parties that will take you to the volcanic surface of PRISM world and the stunning interiors of the Sensorium Starship.

Accessing Sensorium’s out-of-this-world event is easy. No VR headset is required; simply jump in using a web browser of your choice. That said, headphones are highly recommended, as this is an audio-driven experience.

In addition to accessing the world on a desktop, you’ll also be able to tune into Empyreal Parties through the Sensorium mobile app which is available for both Apple and Android devices.

Leading up to this milestone metaverse event, Sensorium showcased its lineup of virtual beings at cutting-edge conferences and festivals such as WebSummit, SXSW, and Sonar. 

In 2021, Sensorium kickstarted the idea of virtual artists being powered through AI with the debut of Kàra Màr’s “Anthropic principle“. The AI-driven character has music streaming on Apple Music, Spotify, and SoundCloud. 



Today’s premier launch is just the beginning for Sensorium Galaxy. In addition to exploring the idea of AI-DJs, they will also host VR shows with real-world artists such as David Guetta, Black Coffee, Steve Aoki, Armin van Burren, and many others. 

If you’d like to learn more, head on over to the Sensorium Galaxy website. You can check out the livestream itself here.

You can download the Sensorium Galaxy app today on iOS and Google Play and jump in-world to listen anytime!

Image Credit: Sensorium

VR Experience Simulates The Feeling Of LSD & Mushrooms

From vrscout

Could virtual psychedelics have a positive impact on our mental health?

Isness-D is a therapeutic VR experience capable of inducing a sense of self-transcendence similar to a medium dose of LSD or magic mushrooms. The app was developed by David Glowacki, a scientist and digital artist who suffered a near-death experience roughly 15 years ago.

During the accident, Glowacki claims that his body transformed into a glowing ball of light which began to merge with the world around him. He reports having felt a sense of genuine peace, a feeling he hopes to share with others via his mind-altering VR experience.

According to a study by Nature Scientific Reports, Isness-D was shown to have the same effect as a medium dose of psilocybin, the primary component of psychedelic mushrooms, or LSD. The experience itself sounds just as trippy as you’d imagine.

Isness-D is a multiperson experience with support for up to four to five people, regardless of their physical locations. Each user is portrayed as a ball of light surrounded by a plume of smoke. Well, that’s how it starts at least.

Participating in a process called “energetic coalescence,” users’ bodies overlap with one another, offering a sense of “oneness” similar to the feeling experienced by Glowacki. A study involving 75 subjects showed that Isness-D offers an experience near indistinguishable from 20 milligrams of psilocybin or 200 micrograms of LSD.

Credit: David Glowacki

“What happens in VR is that sense of completely forgetting about the existence of the external world,” said Agnieszka Sekula, a PhD candidate at the Centre for Human Psychopharmacology while speaking to MIT Technology Review. “So there is definitely similarity there to this sense of experiencing an alternate reality under psychedelics that feels more real than what’s actually out there.” 

Isness-D is currently being utilized as a therapeutic tool for cancer patients as part of a partnership with VR startup aNUma.

Image Credit: David Glowacki

Meta’s PC VR Dominance Continues as Quest 2 Passes New Milestone

From roadtovr

Quest 2 quickly rose to become the most-used VR headset on Steam, but last month it crossed a new milestone as the majority of headsets used on the platform.

Quest 2’s aggressive price point and ability to be used as both a standalone and PC VR headset propelled it to become the most-used VR headset on Steam back in February 2021, just four months after its launch.

From there it has only continued to grow, and now the latest data from Valve’s Steam Survey shows that Quest 2 now makes up the majority of headsets on the platform at 50.32% (+1.3%).

Of course Quest 2 isn’t the only Meta headset used on Steam. Quest 2, Quest 1, Rift S, and Rift collectively grew slightly in the last month to 67.16% (+0.48%), with the vendor’s overall gains otherwise reduced by the Rift S dropping to 9.88% (−0.72%). That sees Meta continuing to hold more than two thirds of the VR headsets on Steam.

Though Quest 2 has definitely grown quickly, the headset’s recent price increase will probably reduce its growth rate compared to what we’ve seen so far.

While the portion of individual headsets used on Steam appears to be correct in the latest round of data from Valve, the total portion of Steam users using VR headsets has been fluctuating wildly in the last few months, apparently erroneously. We’ve reached out to Valve on multiple occasions for comment on the issue but have yet to receive a response.

Attend A Metaverse Job Fair In VR Later This Month

From vrscout

Connect with immersive technology professionals in VR via Mozilla Hubs.

Interested in working in the field of immersive technology? Then you’ll definitely want to check out Active Replica’s inaugural XR Career and Opportunity Fair, a virtual job fair taking place later this month in the metaverse.

Those interested can attend the limited-time event in VR using Mozilla Hubs. The platform is powered by WebVR, which means you don’t need to download any additional software in order to use it.

All you need is a VR headset capable of supporting a WebVR-compatible web browser such as Mozilla Firefox. Those without a VR headset can also attend via desktop or mobile.

Developed in partnership with Constellation, the metaverse job fair will be accessible to the public from August 25th to the 26th. Attendees will have the chance to speak directly with immersive technology professionals from leading British Columbian organizations about potential jobs, internships, grants, scholarships, and various other opportunities.

Are you an organization in need of new talent? Company’s who register for a spot before August 20th will receive a custom virtual booth featuring integrated graphics.

“Whether you’re a recent graduate, more established in your career, or have a project in mind and want to start building a team, this is your chance to connect with emerging technology professionals while experiencing first-hand how the industry hires today,” says the official event page.

For more information on the event visit here.

Image Credit: Active Replica

Rare Conjoined Twin Surgery Aided by VR Training, Bridging the Gap Between Two Continents

From roadtovr

Practice makes perfect, especially when it comes to life-saving procedures that deal with extreme edge cases like separating conjoined twins. Now a UK-Brazilian team have done just that, which is thanks to detailed planning sessions which allowed the surgical team to model and rehearse the operation in VR from two different continents.

As reported by BBC News, three-year-olds Bernardo and Arthur Lima were born conjoined at the cranium, also know as craniopagus twins.

Now, after seven surgeries, the boys have effectively become the oldest craniopagus twins to have been separated, a process which concluded in a final surgery that lasted 27 hours and involved around 100 medical staff.

Bernardo and Arthur Lima before separation | Image courtesy PA, BBC News

The operation was carried out in Rio de Janeiro with direction from Great Ormond Street Hospital in London.

The planning stage took place over a six-month period which, lead by UK surgeon Dr. Noor ul Owase Jeelani, incorporated models of the twins based on CT and MRI scans which were imported into a program that allowed the Brazilian and UK teams to collaborate in real-time via VR headsets.

“In some ways these operations are considered the hardest of our time, and to do it in virtual reality was just really man-on-Mars stuff,” said Dr. Jeelani.

Bernardo and Arthur Lima after separation | Image courtesy PA, BBC News

Gemini Untwined, the charity founded by Dr. Jeelani, dubbed it “one of the most complex separation processes ever completed.”

“It’s a near impossible task [separating craniopagus twins] that requires a lot of thinking, a lot of planning, and when the final execution happens and you end up with two live kids that are making a good recovery is a great experience.” Dr. Jeelani said in a BBC interview.

Arthur and Bernardo will be celebrating their 4th birthday next month, and are making what Dr. Jeelani says is “an excellent recovery.”

NuEyes & Samsung Creating An AR Solution For Healthcare

From vrscout

NuEyes’s lightweight AR glasses, when combined with a compatible Samsung device, can be used in a variety of medical situations.

NuEyes Technologies and Samsung have announced a partnership that could change patient healthcare forever. The two companies are using augmented reality (AR) technology to give medical professionals access to live videos and remote specialists as well as the ability to pull up images and documents in real-time.

The NuEyes PRO series AR smart glasses, when tethered to a Samsung 5G Galaxy S Series mobile phone or tablet, allows professional in the medical industry to access life-saving information via an OLED display with a generous 52-degree field-of-view. The companies state that the glasses are comfortable enough to be used for common healthcare functions such as ultrasound imaging, remote medicine, and on-the-job support training in any hospital, university, or out in the field. 

Thanks to its hands-free approach, the combination of the two devices will keep doctors and physicians connected as they perform day-to-day medical tasks. The technology could also play a huge role in how paramedics respond to an emergency situation, allowing them to communicate with hospitals and ER doctors through AR. The glasses already feature customizable hand gestures through Manomotion.

In an official press release, Mark Greget, founder and CEO of NuEyes Technologies, Inc, said, “At NuEyes we are focused on delivering solutions that enhance patient care, whether that is through our low vision solutions or with a medical practitioner delivering care.” Greget continues, “Partnering with Samsung Healthcare allows us to expand our reach and deliver solutions that will help advance the medical industry and patient care.”

This alliance between Samsung and NuEyes Technologies marks a crucial step forward for the medical industry by laying the groundwork necessary to develop a seamless ecosystem of medical care throughout the metaverse.

You could imagine how other industries could use this partnership as a solution for other types of emergencies. Accidents can happen in any environment, such as a school, warehouse, manufacturing plant, or music festival.

This isn’t the first collaboration between the two companies in terms of medical solutions. Samsung teamed up with NuEyes to help veterans navigate vision loss earlier in 2022.

“Samsung Healthcare, is thrilled to be in alliance with NuEyes, in offering such bold innovation to serve those in need with Samsung Mobility solutions that complement the NuEyes technology in delivering a best-in-class patient experience,” said Trevor Smith, Head of Business Development for Samsung Healthcare, Mobile B2B. 

Samsung already operates one of the most advanced medical centers in the world, located in Suwon, Korea, and applies that expertise and cutting-edge technologies in developing digital healthcare solutions that drive staff productivity and improve patient experience in hospitals as well as homes.



Through Samsung and NuEye’s AR-powered approach, medical professionals are connected to an ecosystem of secure mobile devices and information that are easy to manage and transition seamlessly across clinical workflows. In the end, the two companies have created enhanced patient care, streamlined critical communications, and raised the visibility of digital solutions for healthcare through innovative smart technologies.

To learn more about the NuEyes and Samsung partnership, check out the NuEyes website by clicking here. 

Image Credit: NuEyes, Samsung