📔 Weekly Journal: Robot helpers 🦾🤖
[8 min read] Your guide to getting ahead on the digital frontier (& the weekend!). Today, the usual market news & treats as well has how robot technology will be critical to our future
Welcome to this week’s Weekly Journal 📔, your guide to the latest news & innovation in emerging technology, digital assets, and our exciting path to the Metaverse. This is week 40 of the 520 weeks of newsletters I have committed to, a decade of documenting our physical and digital lives converge.
New subscribers are encouraged to check out the history & purpose of this newsletter as well as the archive.
Enjoy your weekend! 😎
Ryan
Here’s what you’re getting today:
📈 Market update: Market takes a dive after liquidations cascade on (fake?) news.
🗞️ Interesting news: NZ digital assets trading platform 'Dasset' in liquidation, Coke & McD’s NFTs, and Meta AR glasses update.
👓 Read of the week: How Google aims to prepare for quantum-resistant cryptography migration, getting ahead of a "quantum apocalypse".
🎥 Video of the week: The 2023 World Robot Expo featuring a wide array of robot technology from different countries.
🤖 This week’s AI showcase: Real-world case studies showcasing the transformation of agriculture through AI and Machine Learning.
✅ Weekly poll: Help choose the emerging tech topic for Wednesday’s showcase.
🤑 DCA with me: Follow my regular $50 weekly investing in an emerging asset class.
Market Update
After a fairly boring week, lots of excitement yesterday as SpaceX's recent Bitcoin write-down report caused confusion within the crypto community. Elon Musk's revelation that SpaceX held Bitcoin on its balance sheet in 2021 led to questions about whether the company sold its $373 million BTC holdings or merely sold some. The lack of clarity stems from undisclosed BTC holdings. This news reportedly contributed to a $3k drop in BTC's price. This news, along with the news of Chinese real estate giant Evergrande filing for bankruptcy protection, caused a drop in the price of Bitcoin. This triggered a “liquidation cascade”, where traders who used leverage to bet on the price going up got liquidated, which sold off their Bitcoin, reducing its price (and the cycle continues).
🔥🗺️ The 7-day heatmap is after this cascade, and the price has stabilised:
🎭 Sentiment levels are reflective of all this Fear, Uncertainty & Doubt (aka FUD)
Personally, I think this tweet is a good assessment of the situation:
Interesting news 🗞️
Digital Assets News 🌐💱
New Zealand's 'Dasset,' a digital assets trading platform, has gone into liquidation due to declining asset values and trading activity. It seems like they were rejected from NZ banks, forcing them to seek alternative solutions which have higher costs, then a major offshore custodian partner of theirs went under and significant funds were lost. Liquidators David Ruscoe and Russell Moore aim to resolve issues involving various digital assets, and an initial report detailing the situation will be made available on the New Zealand Companies Office website within the next week. The move reflects challenges faced by cryptocurrency exchanges due to regulations and low trading volumes
🥤 Coca-Cola's NFT collection attracts $450,000+ investment on Coinbase's new L2 chain called “Base”, defying the current bear market for brand NFTs. The collection, blending classic and modern art with Coke bottles, gains traction with nearly 60,000 Masterpieces minted. In a separate move, McDonald's Singapore offers 2,000 free Grimace NFT collectibles through its app on Ethereum's Polygon network. These NFTs, while non-tradeable, serve as exclusive profile pictures. McDonald's continues its adoption and investment into digital assets and the Metaverse, leading the positive trend of corporate integration.
🏀 Coinbase awarded $120,000 worth of Bitcoin to WNBA players during the Commissioner's Cup Championship. Each player from New York Liberty and Las Vegas Aces received $5,000 in Bitcoin deposited into their Coinbase accounts. This sponsorship expands Coinbase's partnership with the WNBA, offering players crypto education and support for personal crypto accounts. Coinbase also provided NFT collectibles to fans and has individual deals with players Sue Bird and Jewell Loyd. Despite past criticisms, Coinbase's involvement showcases their ongoing commitment to both women's sports and cryptocurrency promotion.
XR & Virtual Worlds News
👓 Meta's upcoming AR glasses, named Orion, will have a high production cost due to advanced lenses made in the USA (driven in part by silicon carbide export restrictions to China). Originally planning to release 50,000 units, Meta will now launch only 1,000, and just for internal use. A second-generation model, Artemis, will later offer 50,000 units with cheaper technology. The third-gen, Odyssey, will also use glass which is cheaper again. Though an expensive and risky venture, Meta invests significantly in AR, with profitability potentially years away. Challenges include AR chips and operating systems, while competition from Apple looms. Hardware is hard!
👓Read of the Week
Many large companies are taking measures to address the potential security risks posed by future quantum computers, which could undermine current encryption methods, impacting data security. While quantum computers could offer performance benefits, they could break current encryption in seconds. This "quantum apocalypse" concern has spurred research into post-quantum cryptography.
This week’s read is about how Google aims to prepare for quantum-resistant cryptography migration, acknowledging quantum computers' potential arrival in the next few decades. Enjoy!
Video of the week
Due to ageing populations and technological advances, robots of different shapes and sizes are going to become a bigger part of our future.
The 2023 World Robot Expo began on August 16th in Beijing, China, featuring a wide array of robot technology from different countries. The event showcased diverse robots, including human-like ones resembling historical poets and contemporary bartenders. The focus was on advancing robots to better aid humans in various daily tasks. Let me know what you think in the comments below.
This week’s AI showcase🎨🤖🎵✍🏼
AI is disruptive, challenging industries and driving innovation. Each week I showcase something amazing generated by AI-based tools. My vision of the emerging Metaverse predicts the use of many AI tools to enhance how we work, learn, play and socialise.
This week we explore how AI and Machine Learning are revolutionizing agriculture. From precision farming to disease prediction, these technologies optimize resource use, increase yields, and support sustainable practices. Discover real-life success stories of farmers integrating tech for enhanced productivity. Here are a few real-world case studies showcasing the transformation of agriculture through AI and Machine Learning, contributing to a greener and food-secure future:
IBM's Watson Decision Platform for Agriculture: IBM's AI platform, Watson, has been used to predict crop disease and pest risks. In Uganda, for instance, IBM worked with a local startup to develop an AI-powered mobile app that assists farmers in diagnosing cassava diseases. This has helped farmers take timely actions to protect their crops and improve yields.
Blue River Technology's Weed-Sensing AI: Blue River Technology, now a part of John Deere, developed a weed-sensing AI system. It uses computer vision and machine learning to identify and precisely spray herbicides only on the weeds, reducing the need for broad spraying. This has led to significant reductions in herbicide usage and more sustainable farming practices.
Climate Corporation's Climate FieldView: Climate Corporation's FieldView platform combines AI and data analytics to provide farmers with insights into their fields' performance. It collects data from sensors, satellites, and equipment to offer recommendations for planting, irrigation, and harvesting. This helps farmers optimize their operations and increase yields.
Taranis' Precision Agriculture Solutions: Taranis utilizes AI-powered imagery analysis to monitor crop health and detect issues such as pests, diseases, and nutrient deficiencies. Their system uses drones and satellites to capture high-resolution images of fields, which are then analyzed by AI algorithms. This helps farmers make informed decisions about where and when to take action.
Weekly Poll ✅
Help choose what you would like to learn about on Wednesday for my weekly emerging tech showcase:
That’s all for the free version this week! If you have any organisations in mind that could benefit from learning about emerging technology, be sure to reach out. Educational workshops are one of many consulting services I offer.
DCA With Me 🤑
Dollar Cost Averaging is an investment strategy in which an investor regularly invests a fixed amount of money into a particular asset/asset class at regular intervals, regardless of its current market price. By doing so, the investor can reduce the impact of market volatility and potentially earn a better return over time. Motto = time IN the market beats trying to time the market
To experiment with this, I invest $50 NZD into a Digital Asset every week. Each week I will choose an asset that seems underpriced in the short term and has positive long-term potential. My timeframe is 3-5 years. I don’t give financial advice but if you want to follow along with me you can use my easycrypto.co.nz referral link to support this newsletter. Let’s dive into this week’s pick:
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