Photo courtesy of Meta
Meta Develops Wristband To Control Computers Using Hand Gestures
- Written by Andrea Miliani Former Tech News Expert
- Fact-Checked by Sarah Frazier Former Content Manager
Meta released a paper in the scientific journal Nature with its latest breakthrough: a wristband that enables users to control computers using hand gestures.
In a rush? Here are the quick facts:
- Meta announced its latest breakthrough: a wristband that enables users to control computers using hand gestures.
- The technology allows users to type without a keyboard or navigate without a mouse.
- Researchers implemented surface electromyography (sEMG) to expand human-computer interaction (HCI).
According to the official announcement published on Wednesday, Meta has been working for years on new ways to interact with computers, leveraging machine learning and AI in a non-invasive technique that collects data through sensitive sensors placed on the skin.
“Based on our findings, we believe that surface electromyography (sEMG) at the wrist is the key to unlocking the next paradigm shift in human-computer interaction (HCI),” wrote Meta.
Meta explained that sEMG allows interaction with the company’s devices and works for people with different abilities and physical characteristics. The researchers also tested the wristband with other hardware.
“We successfully prototyped an sEMG wristband with Orion, our first pair of true augmented reality (AR) glasses, but that was just the beginning,” said Meta. “Our teams have developed advanced machine learning models that are able to transform neural signals controlling muscles at the wrist into commands that drive people’s interactions with the glasses, eliminating the need for traditional—and more cumbersome—forms of input.”
The new technology allows people to engage with digital content without the hardware. For example, to type without a keyboard or navigate without a mouse.
Meta’s sEMG recognizes gestures such as tapping, pinching, and swiping, and includes a handwriting recognition technology that allows users to use any hard surface to write a message that can be registered by the device.
“We believe this technology is the best that’s been developed by anyone to let you control your devices in a seamless, intuitive, and adaptable way that can be used by most people,” wrote Meta.
The company believes that the new device could revolutionize the way we interact with devices in the near future.
In addition to this innovation, Meta has been working on developing multiple tech devices, including its own graphics processing units (GPUs) and smartglasses.
Photo by David Montero on Unsplash
Walmart To Launch Four Advanced AI Agents For Customers And Employees
- Written by Andrea Miliani Former Tech News Expert
- Fact-Checked by Sarah Frazier Former Content Manager
Walmart is set to launch four “super agents,” advanced AI systems with agentic capabilities, designed to serve different purposes and target audiences within its business network.
In a rush? Here are the quick facts:
- Walmart will launch four advanced AI systems with agentic capabilities called “super agents.”
- The four models have been designed for customers, employees, and suppliers.
- One of the AI agents, Sparky, is already live, but the company will enhance it soon, and the other super agents will be launched in the following months.
According to an exclusive report from the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) , Walmart will announce this week its plan for its four specialized AI agents: one for customers, one for employees, one for engineers, and another one for suppliers and sellers.
Walmart had been developing dozens of AI agents over the past several months, but ultimately decided to focus on the four most relevant and useful for its operations.
“It became very clear that we could dramatically simplify,” said Suresh Kumar, Walmart’s chief technology officer and chief development officer, to WSJ. “If I have an agent that helps you with your payroll and I have a different agent that helps you with identifying merchandising trends, you shouldn’t have to remember that and switch between those two.”
Kumar explained that AI is already transforming the way Walmart operates and that building specialized tools presents a major opportunity to enhance experiences across its business network.
Each agent is at a different stage of development and will be released at different times. Sparky, customer-facing advanced AI agent, is already live, but the company plans to share updates and improvements soon. The supplier-focused agent, Marty, is expected to launch in the coming months and will include analytics on purchases and advertising campaign suggestions. The other two super agents—for employees and engineers—are slated for release next year.
Walmart will integrate these super agents with Anthropic’s Model Context Protocol (MCP) program so that they can interact with other smaller agents, apps, and data sources.
According to Reuters , Walmart is betting on AI, aiming to support growth and manage up to 50% of its sales within the next five years.
Some of Walmart’s AI plans were previously accidentally revealed by Microsoft during a presentation at its Build conference, when AI security chief Neta Haiby unintentionally displayed internal Teams messages on the screen.
