Meta Shuts Down Population: One Quest 1 Support 🎮

Scott D. Clary | Daily Business, Tech & Finance Newsletter

Hi there 👋. This is a daily newsletter that covers the top business, tech and finance stories for today.

Here’s what’s happening:

Meta shuts down 🎮 VR game for Quest 1 owners
Amazon will acquire 🤖 iRobot in an all-cash deal
Recursive validity proof 💻 technology launched by StarkWare founder
Project Solar gets the money ☀️
Baidu 🤖 gets the green light for its Robo-driven cars 🚗

Meta Shuts Down Population: One Quest 1 Support 🎮

Meta is shutting down its Quest 1 virtual reality (VR) headset support for ‘Population: One.’ This is one of the most popular and biggest battle-royale games set in VR.

Is it already shut down?

Not yet. Quest 1 owners will not be able to launch or play the game starting October 31. However, Quest 1 players can still technically play the game if they have a VR-ready PC.

That’s some bad news for Quest 1 users.

The good thing: The game developers note that you can still play Population: One via Air Link — a feature that lets you wirelessly play games on your PC from your headset. Players using the Quest 2, Oculus Rift, and Oculus Rift S will still have access to the game.

But why is it shutting down the game?

BigBox VR says that the shutdown is necessary to focus on developing new experiences “that will push the boundaries of multiplayer VR.”

Amazon Signs Agreement to Acquire iRobot 🤖

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E-commerce giant Amazon and consumer robot firm iRobot have entered into a definitive merger agreement under which Amazon will acquire iRobot.

What’s so big about the deal?

The deal is valued at approximately $1.7 billion, and Amazon will acquire iRobot for $61 per share in an all-cash transaction.

That’s some big money, right?

But why is Amazon putting in some much money on the deal?

iRobot has been designing robot vacuums since 2002 and has sold millions of its popular Roomba vacuums.
Earlier in 2022, the company launched its latest iRobot OS, an AI-powered platform for its robot vacuums and mops.
The iRobot OS, with additional software features and capabilities, will give Amazon an incredible amount of data in a modern smart home.

The combination of Roomba, Alexa, and Amazon’s other smart home products will provide Amazon with a competitive edge as the smart home space gets increasingly competitive.

Note: The deal’s completion is subject to customary closing conditions, including approval by iRobot’s shareholders and regulatory approvals.

Starkware Founder Launches 💻 Recursive Validity Proof Technology

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Zero-knowledge rollup tech company StarkWare founder Eli Ben-Sasson announced the launch of its new Recursive validity proof technology on August 7 in Seoul.

What’s so great about this new technology?

The StarkWare founder says this new technology could theoretically roll up as many as 60 million transactions into one on the Ethereum blockchain.

He also said that recursive validity proofs could further scale up transaction throughput to a factor of at least ten compared to standard Validium scaling, noting that they’ve already been rolling up 600,000 mints of nonfungible tokens (NFTs) on the ImmutableX protocol.

Those are some big numbers, right?

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Why does this matter?

This scaling solution could be a game-changer for Ethereum as layer-2 scaling solutions as the recursive validity proofs can offload much of the network congestion and data availability issues that have caused trouble on the Ethereum Mainnet.

Additionally, recursion is excellent for scaling as it lowers gas costs, has a higher proof capacity, and offers lower latency.

Project Solar ☀️ Raises $23 Million in Series A

This leading US-based e-commerce brand for solar installations has raised $23 million in its Series A funding round.

Project Solar’s funding was led by Left Lane Capital. Beyond Left Lane Capital, the company declined to share who chipped in on the funding round, calling them “strategics within the industry.”

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About Project Solar

Founded in 2020, Project Solar is a startup focused on technology to optimize and streamline its customers’ quoting, permitting, and engineering stages.

The company has built the world’s largest network of installers through its unparalleled process efficiency paired with complete installation services through its proprietary network of contractors.

Where will the money go?

The funding represents the first institutional capital for Project Solar and will help them scale their digital-first, direct-to-consumer offering in additional markets.

What else? The startup will also further invest in developing its solar installation technology stack that sits across the entire solar process — from automated quoting to project management.

Baidu’s Robotaxis 🤖 Don’t Need Human Drivers 🚗

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Chinese tech company Baidu has become the first robotaxi operator in China to obtain a license for selling rides with no human driver or staff member inside the vehicles.

The local government approvals obtained in two suburban areas of Wuhan and Chongqing allow Baidu’s Apollo Go robotaxi business to eliminate the cost of human personnel in some instances.

That’s a wrap for today, ladies & gents. See ya next week!

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