Welcome back to V3RSD and thank you for being here! This is Subnation’s weekly roundup of relevant, interesting, and hard-hitting stories from the web3, gaming, and tech spaces. The following five articles cover the topics from our 5Cs: Culture, Content, Community, Conversation, and Commerce. Enjoy, and let us know what you think by leaving a comment!
Starting us off in Culture is a riff on a familiar face. Mouse is a first-person shooter with a film noir style clearly inspired by Steamboat Willy era Disney. The protagonist has to unravel a conspiracy with a bevy of weapons and abilities to choose from.
Adobe is beginning to implement new AI tools into Photoshop. One that blew up the Internet this past week is Generative Fill, which uses Adobe’s AI image generator Firefly. The tool allows users to swap image elements for whatever they choose, and they can even expand image borders with AI-generated objects.
Meta seems to be swapping their namesake for AI these days. Soon one of their chat platforms, WhatsApp, will be getting AI integrations. Of similar interest is the addition of the ability to edit messages.
Wendy’s is one of the newest corporations to dive into the AI scene. A newly announced partnership with Google aims to create a chatbot capable of taking drive-thru orders. One challenge is making sure the bot understands slang like “JBC” instead of “junior back cheeseburger.”
The Bitcoin blockchain is vying for the top spot in NFT sales as of this past week. NFTs based on Ethereum are still the top dog, with $111.26 million in sales. But it will be interesting to see if Bitcoin can compete.
If you’re interested in learning more on any of these topics, you can read the full articles below.
CULTURE
Mouse: An FPS with Disney’s classic art style
Hitmarker — Indie game studio FUMI GAMES is developing Mouse, an upcoming first-person shooter (FPS) that combines cutting-edge gameplay with a charming old-school Disney art style.
While the art style of Mouse harks back to traditional animation, the gameplay mechanics are anything but outdated. Developed by a talented team, the game promises fast-paced, action-packed gameplay, incorporating elements such as fluid movement, intense gunfights, and strategic maneuvering. Players can expect a variety of weapons and abilities to choose from, allowing for diverse playstyles and dynamic combat encounters.
Beyond its unique visuals and gameplay, Mouse aims to captivate players with a compelling storyline. Set in a world inspired by classic noir films, the game follows the adventures of a fearless mouse protagonist who must navigate through a sprawling metropolis to uncover a dark conspiracy. The narrative promises twists, turns, and memorable characters, ensuring that players are immersed in an engaging and immersive gaming experience…[cont]
CONTENT
Adobe is adding AI image generator Firefly to Photoshop
The Verge — Adobe Photoshop is getting a new generative AI tool that allows users to quickly extend images and add or remove objects using text prompts. The feature is called Generative Fill, and is one of the first Creative Cloud applications to use Adobe’s AI image generator Firefly, which was released as a web-only beta in March. Generative Fill is launching today in beta, but Adobe says it will see a full release in Photoshop later this year.
As a regular Photoshop tool, Generative Fill works within individual layers in a Photoshop image file. If you use it to expand the borders of an image (also known as outpainting) or generate new objects, it’ll provide you with three options to choose from. When used for outpainting, users can leave the prompt blank and the system will try to expand the image on its own, but it works better if you give it some direction. Think of it as similar to Photoshop’s existing Content-Aware Fill feature, but offering more control to the user…[cont]
COMMUNITY
WhatsApp Rolls Out New “Message Editing” Feature As Meta Continues Testing Text-Based AI Tools
Hypemoon — When Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced in February that the company would be building a “new top-level product group” to integrate generative AI into its services, consumers weren’t oblivious to the fact that Meta still has a lot of groundwork to cover before it starts building out more immersive, futuristic experiences for users.
The tech conglomerate’s initial focus has been centered around testing text-based AI tools for WhatsApp and Messenger, both Meta-owned platforms.
During this month’s earnings call, Zuckerberg shared that Meta saw the word “AI” used approximately 57 times, hinting that artificial intelligence would be a “key theme” for the company moving forward as it looks to integrate it into all of its applications…[cont]
CONVERSATION
Wendy’s tests an AI chatbot that takes your drive-thru order
The Verge — Wendy’s is partnering with Google to create an AI chatbot that can take orders at its drive-thrus, as reported earlier by The Wall Street Journal. The fast-food chain has plans to bring its first “Wendy’s FreshAI” enabled drive-thru to a Columbus, Ohio, restaurant in June.
The chatbot will be able to take verbal orders from customers who line up at Wendy’s drive-thru kiosks, all with the hope that it will help reduce long wait times. Wendy’s worked with Google to build a tailored chatbot on top of the company’s existing large language model (LLM), which it’s bound to reveal updates about at its Google I/O event on Wednesday. This all goes along with Google’s push into AI, as its Cloud unit sells the idea of companies commissioning their own models for different purposes, built on their own data.
Part of Google’s work with Wendy’s means ensuring the AI is brushed up on some of Wendy’s lingo, such as knowing that a “milkshake” translates to a “Frosty” and that a “JBC” is short for a “junior bacon cheeseburger.” As soon as a chatbot takes a customer’s order, it will appear on a screen for line cooks. A worker will then hand the completed meals to customers at the pickup window, just like any other order…[cont]
COMMERCE
NFT Sales Surge 31% This Week as Bitcoin NFTs Secure Second Place in Blockchain Sales
Bitcoin.com — Non-fungible token (NFT) sales witnessed a minor rise last week, registering a humble increase of around 1.46% compared to the preceding week. The cumulative value of NFT sales amounted to $149.31 million from April 29 to May 6, 2023. Nevertheless, the most recent week exceeded anticipations, as sales skyrocketed by 31.22%. Throughout the seven-day interval, NFT sales attained $208.17 million. The substantial rise in this week’s NFT sales can be credited to the appearance of NFTs originating from the Bitcoin blockchain.
Bitcoin-Based NFT Sales Gain Significant Momentum
Bitcoin NFT sales have emerged as a key contributor in the digital collectible sales landscape, among 21 distinct blockchains as per cryptoslam.io data documented on May 14, 2023. Ethereum NFT sales continued to reign supreme with $111.26 million in NFT sales; however, the runner-up position was held by Bitcoin-based NFTs, also known as Ordinal inscriptions…[cont]
That’s all from us here at Subnation this week. Thank you for joining us for V3RSD! If you’d like this directly in your inbox every Monday, you can sign up HERE.
