Nvidia CEO Jen-Hsun Huang debuted the much-anticipated GeForce GTX 1080 gaming GPU, the first based on the new Pascal architecture, promising dramatic improvements in performance, memory and power efficiency. Huang told the crowd at DreamHack in Austin, Texas that the new GPU delivers twice the performance and three times the efficiency of Titan X. For a sense of Pascal’s capabilities for gaming and virtual reality, attendees were treated to demos involving next generation character models, the Ansel game capture tool and the compelling “VR Funhouse” experience. Continue reading Nvidia Unveils GeForce GTX 1080 Advanced Graphics Card

During the Nvidia keynote at CES 2016, CEO and co-founder Jen-Hsun Huang introduced a new computer for autonomous vehicles called the Drive PX2. Following last year’s Drive CX, the PX2 touts processing power equivalent to 150 MacBook Pros, according to Huang. The lunchbox-sized, water-cooled computer features 12 CPU cores that support eight teraflops and 24 “deep learning” tera operations per second. As a result, the PX2 can reportedly process data in real time from 12 video cameras, radar, lidar and additional sensors to enhance the self-driving car experience. Continue reading CES: Nvidia Unveils New ‘Supercomputer’ for Self-Driving Cars

When Tesla released all of its patents to the public in 2014, it jumpstarted the electric car ecosystem while continuing to succeed. Facebook made its data-center architecture available to the masses, still making a tidy $12+ billion in revenue last year. Open source code is now fueling tremendous innovation and digital capabilities. Whereas companies in the past dominated by using licensed software to create monopolies, today’s companies relying on open source code differentiate themselves by the services they offer. Continue reading Open Source Speeds Developments in Artificial Intelligence

DesignWorks, Nvidia’s newly announced suite of software tools, technologies, and libraries for designers enables “photoreal rendering for unparalleled accuracy, easy transfer of materials and digital models between applications, and the ability to incorporate virtual reality into design software,” the company said in a press announcement. Alongside the launch of DesignWorks, Nvidia also announced two new professional GPUs: the Quadro M5000 and Quadro M4000, based on Nvidia’s Maxwell GPU architecture. Continue reading Nvidia Launches DesignWorks Software Suite for Designers

Qualcomm announced that its Snapdragon 810 CPU and Adreno 430 GPU will power Google’s next generation Project Tango smartphone, coming out in the third quarter of 2015. The new phone promises to offer the same capabilities of the Nvidia-powered Project Tango tablet, but in a smaller form factor. “We’re excited to work together with Google and Android developers to help deliver new, innovative visual experiences using depth-sensing technology on mobile devices,” said Raj Talluri, SVP of product management, Qualcomm. Continue reading Qualcomm Tech to Power Next-Gen Project Tango Smartphone

Oculus is getting ready for the release of its long-awaited Oculus Rift VR headset with recommendations for PC specs and a special event on June 11. The company recommends a powerful GPU to handle rendering. The Rift will initially require a desktop PC running Windows 7 SP1 or newer, 2 USB 3.0 ports, and HDMI 1.3 video output supporting a 297MHz clock through a direct output architecture. Meanwhile, Oculus has halted work on Mac and Linux support while it readies the PC software for launch. Continue reading Oculus Reveals PC Specs for Upcoming Launch of Rift Headset

The latest trend in artificial intelligence involves implementing a much more efficient microprocessor rather than a whole cloud computing system to power deep learning research. These microprocessors, or graphical processing units (GPUs), are great at math-crunching skills, which makes them ideal for deep learning networks. Now, companies such as Google, Facebook, and various labs that run supercomputers, are using GPU-based computers to power their AI and deep learning operations. Continue reading AI: GPU-Based Computing is Proving Ideal for Deep Learning

Japanese startup FOVE has developed a virtual reality head-mounted display with built-in eye tracking. The eye tracking enables the software to render the areas where the viewer is not looking with less precision than the area where the viewer is staring, allowing for more efficient CPU/GPU resource utilization. The rendered image was very clear, and the eye tracking worked well. When the headset goes to market, a FOVE rep expects the HMD with headtracking to sell for $400-$450. Continue reading Startup Demos New Eye Tracking Virtual Reality HMD at CES

According to insiders at LG, the company’s new 8K display has been airlifted to Las Vegas for next month’s 2015 International Consumer Electronics Show. LG Display engineers will accompany the prototype to its CES booth. Codenamed “Mabinogion,” the 55-inch display features a resolution of 33.2 million pixels, more than 20 display driver integrated circuits, and a brightness of 500 nits. LG Electronics (LG Display’s largest client) is rumored to be adding an 8K TV to its UHD lineup next year. Continue reading CES 2015: LG Expected to Unveil its New 55-Inch 8K Display

Samsung’s plans for mobile virtual reality are now underway. The company recently released details about its ongoing project with Oculus VR. The Gear VR Innovator Edition is a headset powered by Oculus Mobile built for the Samsung Galaxy Note 4. The headset plans to launch in December, and Oculus has released its Mobile SDK to foster the creation of apps. As part of an open software license, the SDK includes source code for Oculus Cinema, Oculus 360 Photo and Oculus 360 Videos. Continue reading Samsung to Ship Gear VR Headset, Oculus Unveils New SDK

Amazon announced its new video streaming device called Amazon Fire TV that intends to take on products such as Roku and Apple TV. During a presentation this morning, Amazon’s Peter Larsen suggested that Amazon’s new hardware will address areas in which competing devices struggle including search, performance, and a closed ecosystem. The $99 Fire TV features a quad-core processor and 2GB of RAM. Larsen claims it provides speeds three times faster than the latest Roku and Apple boxes. Continue reading Fire TV: Amazon Unveils its $99 STB-Game Console Hybrid

Trends in electronic gaming, virtual reality and the impact of the cloud were topics addressed during last week’s Digital Entertainment World conference in Los Angeles. During “The State of the Game Industry” panel, Machinima co-founder Allen DeBevoise said that gameboy culture is driving entertainment. Companies including Warner Bros. are exploring games as a service; gaming in the cloud seems inevitable, but faces challenges; and VR tech is supported by most, while consumer adoption remains a hurdle. Continue reading Industry Execs Discuss Direction of Games, VR and the Cloud

Google Glass moved Augmented Reality from the science fiction depicted in “Minority Report” to the real world. But the technology — which allows the superimposition of data, 3D CGI or video over a real environment, in real time — still has a long way to go. More importantly, the work has barely begun to make AR a revenue-generating business. “We’re not just putting content on top of the world but using context to decide what to display and how to display it, to expand the story and the experience,” said DAQRI CEO Brian Mullins. Continue reading Augmented Reality Needs Powerful Storytelling and Interaction

There are only 300 of Valve’s Steam Machine gaming PCs, and they’re being shipped to beta testers. But Valve’s production of the device will end there — this is just a prototype. Third party-manufactured machines will be revealed in January at the next Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, during which consumers will get more information about Steam’s specs. What we know now is that the device will have high- and low-end models. Continue reading Valve Releases Steam Game Machine Prototypes for Testing

Since a group of students from the University of Texas unveiled the Lynx A 3D camera project on Kickstarter earlier this year, it has raised far beyond the project’s $50,000 fundraising goal. And as of last week, Lynx Laboratories was getting ready to ship out the first cameras. At the DEMO Mobile SF event, Engadget had an opportunity to demo a prototype, watching firsthand as the camera scanned a person’s head in real time. Continue reading Kickstarter-Funded Lynx 3D Camera Works as Advertised