Emerging Technologies That Will Change the World – Meta’s AR Glasses, SpaceX’s Crew Dragon Capsule, and More
After many years of fan speculation, Meta has finally given us a glimpse of its first AR glasses. Meta’s CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, has spent billions of dollars on developing one of the firm’s most anticipated projects – an augmented reality prototype that will change the future of computing as we know it. Meanwhile, SpaceX will help bring back stranded astronauts.
From now on, we may interact with the digital landscape in a completely new way thanks to the technologies being developed.
The AR Glasses
More than 10 years ago, Google attempted to market Google Glass. The 2013 project was the company’s first try with an AR device. Unfortunately, the product didn’t meet the quality standards or expectations, so it had to be discontinued.
Similarly, Microsoft tried to release its own AR technology success with HoloLens, but this also had to be canceled because it couldn’t gain any traction.
On the opposite, Apple managed to start selling its VR headset earlier in 2024 with a product called “Vision Pro.” The headset costs $3,500. Although Meta and Snap finally launched their AR prototypes, it will still take a while to see these on the market due to the costs involved with mass production. In the meantime, Zuckerberg claimed that they are “going to use it mostly internally” to make improvements to their software.
Snap also announced its 5th generation Spectacles. These can help mix physical world elements and digital graphics. However, developers are the only ones with access to this technology, and they will have to spend $99 per month for one year to create AR apps the device can use.
Bringing Back Stranded Astronauts
After astronauts Sunita Williams and Barry Wilmore had become stranded, a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule will try to bring them back home. The capsule has docked at the ISS, and the astronauts will return in February 2025.
Barry Wilmore and Sunita Williams traveled to space in June 2024. They took a trip inside a Boeing Starliner, planning to stay in space for 8 days. But this ended up in a disaster due to helium leaks and thruster failures. They couldn’t return to Earth, leading to NASA and Boeing spending months trying to find the problem and come up with solutions. They returned the empty capsule in the meantime.
Meanwhile, a SpaceX capsule was docked at the International Space Station. It is meant to transport four people, but it has two empty seats so it could bring back the stranded astronauts.
Unfortunate Events in the Tech World
Following Hurricane Helene, the largest known high-purity quartz deposit was eradicated. This was crucial for microchips. So, the global tech supply will no longer have access to this source.
But this is not the only less favorable event that took place recently in the tech market. About 97,000 cars from BYD had to be recalled after a manufacturing fault was discovered. This issue, related to a steering control unit, may represent a fire hazard.
