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Today’s Slate

• Meta’s CEO says not wearing AI-powered glasses in the future will put people at a cognitive disadvantage

• DeepMind’s Genie 3 creates real-time 3D environments from text prompts, helping train AI agents to learn like humans

• ElevenLabs now offers AI-generated music cleared for commercial use, with licensed training data

• Emory scientists built a neural network that uncovered hidden rules in dusty plasma, correcting decades of theory

• Someone tried replacing all their screens with XReal One Pro smart glasses, see how it went

• Orbx’s new add-on brings detailed islands, dinosaurs, and a Jurassic Park terminal to Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024

• The CudaJet underwater jetpack makes you Iron Man of the seas

The. Future. Is. Here.

Artificial Intelligence

At a glance

• Zuckerberg’s bold claim: In the near future, people without AI-powered smart glasses may be at a "significant cognitive disadvantage."

• Meta’s vision: Smart glasses will become the ideal interface for AI. Offering vision, hearing, and interaction through real-world context, and eventually blending physical and digital worlds.

• Product momentum: Ray-Ban Meta glasses have tripled in sales year-over-year, with new models like Oakley Meta and Meta Celeste (with HUD) on the way.

Our vision

Mark Zuckerberg is doubling down on smart glasses as the next dominant computing platform. His comparison of corrective vision to AI-enhanced glasses reframes these wearables as cognitive extensions. While Meta’s long-term AR vision is still facing hardware constraints (like Orion’s unscalable materials), the short-term HUD-based devices like Celeste are already inching into everyday utility. Meta is playing the long game, and Zuckerberg is betting that in a few years, not having AI in your glasses will feel like not having internet in your phone.

At a glance

• DeepMind unveils Genie 3: A real-time, general-purpose world model that generates interactive 3D environments from text prompts which is a leap forward in training AI agents.

• Physics-aware and memory-driven: Unlike earlier models, Genie 3 self-learns how the world works by remembering what it generates, resulting in consistent, physics-informed simulations.

• Path to AGI: Researchers say Genie 3 is essential for training general-purpose AI agents, making it a critical building block on the way to artificial general intelligence.

Our vision

Genie 3 is DeepMind’s most ambitious step yet toward AGI. By blending video generation with interactive 3D world modeling, Genie 3 simulates logic, memory, and causality. This allows AI agents to learn the way humans do: by exploring, making decisions, and adapting based on feedback. While current limitations include short interaction times and simplified multi-agent dynamics, the potential is massive. Genie 3 could lay the groundwork for agents that operate fluently in virtual and real-world settings.

At a glance

• ElevenLabs launches AI music model: The new tool can generate music including vocals and is claimed to be cleared for commercial use.

• Commercial rights strategy: ElevenLabs has partnered with Merlin and Kobalt, whose artists (like Adele and Childish Gambino) can voluntarily opt in, ensuring licensed training material and shared revenue.

• Industry controversy: The launch comes amid lawsuits against AI music startups like Suno and Udio, who are accused of using copyrighted material without permission.

Our vision

ElevenLabs is stepping into the AI music race with a key differentiator: pre-cleared, opt-in licensing from major indie rights holders. This gives it a commercial edge over competitors entangled in copyright battles. However, its AI-generated tracks may fuel further debate over authenticity and cultural appropriation. The real question now: Can tech-driven music creation coexist with the soul of artistry, or will legal lines and listener sentiment redraw the industry map?

At a glance

• AI discovers new physics: Scientists at Emory University built a custom neural network that uncovered new physical laws in dusty plasma which is a complex state of matter found across the universe.

• Corrects decades of assumptions: The AI revealed that long-held plasma physics beliefs were flawed, offering more accurate models for particle interactions.

• Universal potential: This explainable AI approach, trained on small datasets with built-in physical rules, could unlock discoveries across other many-body systems like paint, smoke, and even cell movement.

Our vision

This marks one of the rare moments where AI legitimately delivered new science breakthroughs. The Emory team’s neural network helped decode real-world particle behavior that had stumped physicists for decades. Instead of being a black box, this model offers transparency and extensibility, proving that AI can evolve from a tool into a co-pilot for scientific discovery. The implications go far beyond plasma and it could reshape how we model everything from weather systems to how crowds move.

Spatial Computing

At a glance

• Smart glasses trial: Writer Stephen Johnson replaced all screens for a day using XReal One Pro smart glasses, testing their ability to serve as a monitor, phone, and TV.

• Work use is promising: They handled email, Zoom calls, and writing well enough, but issues like eye strain, heat, and visual distortion surfaced over long periods.

• Immersive entertainment: Gaming and movie-watching shined, with large floating screens and solid audio, especially in dark or private settings.

• Real-world limitations: Wearing the glasses like normal eyewear was impractical due to limited visibility and odd aesthetics. Eye strain and comfort remain major hurdles.

• Not quite ready: While not a true replacement for all screens yet, the experience revealed how close smart glasses are to transforming daily digital life.

Our vision

This hands-on review highlights the growing power and limitations of wearable displays. The XReal One Pro hints at a future where smart glasses can reshape how we work, play, and relax, but they aren’t quite there yet. As the tech improves and comfort issues are solved, expect these devices to quietly overtake phones and laptops in specific use cases first, before redefining screen-based interaction altogether.

Gaming

At a glance

• Orbx announces Jurassic World DLC: Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 is getting a cinematic upgrade with the new Jurassic World: Archipelago expansion.

• Explore iconic islands: The DLC includes Isla Nublar, Isla Sorna, and other locations from the film series complete with detailed landmarks and animated dinosaurs.

• Take to the skies (with dinos): Expect to share airspace with flying reptiles and land among attractions like Site B labs and the Jurassic Park terminal at Juan Santamaría Airport.

Our vision

This crossover between Microsoft Flight Simulator and Jurassic World is a thrilling blend of realism and fantasy. It signals a new era of immersive DLC experiences that cater to pop culture fans as much as aviation geeks. If successful, it could open the runway to more cinematic universes entering flight sim territory, just make sure that bogey on your six isn’t a Pteranodon.

Consumer Technology

At a glance

• Superyacht toy of the moment: The $30,000 CudaJet underwater jetpack lets users glide underwater at nearly 10 feet per second using a compact, hand-controlled harness system.

• No oxygen tank required: With a 90-minute battery life, the device allows free movement that’s limited only by how long users can hold their breath.

• From vacation idea to reality: Inventor Archie O’Brien began developing it after a 2017 trip to Thailand. The final version took over 30,000 hours to perfect.

• Exclusive appeal: About 100 units have been sold since 2023, many to superyacht owners looking for the latest thrill.

• Superhuman sensation: Users describe the experience as the closest thing to underwater flight, though diving skills and breath control are essential.

Our vision

CudaJet represents a luxury-first leap into consumer-grade personal propulsion. While not built for everyday use, it taps into the rising demand for elite, immersive experiences. As underwater tech moves beyond industrial and military uses, we expect more innovation like this to ripple into mainstream recreation and sports. With time and refinement, the line between human and aquatic machine will blur even further.

Big investors are buying this “unlisted” stock

When the founder who sold his last company to Zillow for $120M starts a new venture, people notice. That’s why the same VCs who backed Uber, Venmo, and eBay also invested in Pacaso.

Disrupting the real estate industry once again, Pacaso’s streamlined platform offers co-ownership of premier properties, revamping the $1.3T vacation home market.

And it works. By handing keys to 2,000+ happy homeowners, Pacaso has already made $110M+ in gross profits in their operating history.

Now, after 41% YoY gross profit growth last year alone, they recently reserved the Nasdaq ticker PCSO.

Invest for $2.90/Share

_{Paid advertisement for Pacaso’s Regulation A offering. Read the offering circular at invest.pacaso.com. Reserving a ticker symbol is not a guarantee that the company will go public. Listing on the NASDAQ is subject to approvals.}