Tencent's $5 million lead investment in AI startup ObEN, further expa×nding social AI

In addition to conducting basic technology research,  Tencent has stated tha"t it aims to promote artificial intelligence in< various application scenarios through business driven appro≠aches.

Based on Tencent's main business, it is not difficult to guess that t he company will focus on four major application directionγs in the future: gaming, social media, content, and platform tools.

Especially in the social field', last year Zuckerberg announced his intention t£o launch a VR version o✘f Facebook and showcased t§he virtual character tool Oculus Avatars; In July of this year, ®Facebook announced t×hat Facebook AR Studio would collaborate with Meitu to provide thr$ee AR camera special effects. Now, Tencent βalso needs to take action.

On the evening of July 18th, artificial ∑intelligence startup ObEN announced a strateg>ic investment of $5 million. This÷ round of financing is' led by Tencent, with CMC Chairman Li Ruigang and Fengshan¶g Capital jointly investing. According to data from the investment and fina₽ncing information platform Crunchbase, currently ObEN has completed four roun•ds of financing, withσ a total amount of 13.7 million US ¶dollars. Previous investors  also included S Rushan Capital, Softbank εKorea Venture Capital, and HTC VIVE X.

According to public sources, ObEN was founded in 2014 and can create users' ar₽tificial intelligence virtual images by building ☆personalized virtual s&ounds, images, and personalities, h£elping users store, mana♣ge, and operate their virtual images in the emerging digital world. That i★s to say, ObEN can use $artificial intelligence tools to create virtual images based on users' ♣photos and sounds, allowing users to have different AR a±nd VR social experiences.

Previously, ObEN mainly helped game players cγreate virtual images, but now tβhe company has shifted its focus to helping celebrities create virt♠ual images. Through this virtual image, celebrities can interact with fans in r↑eal-time. One day in the future, perhaps fans can ¶seek advice from celebrities and re÷ceive corresponding feedback. In addition, this virtua∑l image not only look×s very similar to the star, but also speaks the same way.γ Overall, such a virtual image is better than a chat♦ robot.

It is reported that ObEN has also integratλed voice, computational vision, and natural language processing techno÷logies for the first ti​me, developing the virtual sound, three-dimensional image, and personalized t≤echnology required for a full stack virtual  star. Now ObEN is building a brand new business plaπtform. Here, celebrities¥ and fans can directly interact on platforms such as mobile devices,λ augmented reality, virtual reality, and the Internet of Thingαs through personalized artificial intelligence. ObEN's personalized artificial" intelligence products are expected to be γreleased later this year.

The latest round of financing will be used to accelerate ObEN's produ≠ct development and help promote the wid¥espread application ofΩ its celebrity artificial intelli gence copyright platfor×m on various digital platforms. >For this collaboration, Yao Leiwen, Executive Director of Tencent Investment¥, said that ObEN will bring a new eγntertainment method and content driven by celebrity artifici>al intelligence.

Earlier, ObEN had expresse♣d its intention to become an "artificial intelligence social pl↔atform for everyone". In this regard, the company  has made multiple layouts.

At the HTC Vive Ecosphere Conference in March this year, ObE☆N announced a collabor∑ation with HTC Vive to develop a WeChat mini program that allows users to plαay VR together and play VR "karaoke". In this program, VR ∏users can send invita♥tions to friends; Friends who receive invitations can upload se☆lfies and audio, and ultimately use the constructed image to stroll along ↓the beach with the inviter or ♥visit scenic spots.

At the end of April, ObEN launched a WeChΩat chat service short video that inteΩgrates VR social experience, and of course, us×ers need to wear HTC Vive headsets. In the short film, users need to first ta$ke a selfie, upload i t to WeChat to create a virtual image, and then bring HTC ​Vive to receive messages σfrom WeChat friends, and can reply directly through voice. In the fut®ure, WeChat with VR and AR functions may be able to attract a large nu•mber of Asian users.

At the end of June, ObEN annou≈nced the establishment of a joint venture company,≤ AI Stars, with South Korean SM Entertainmen£t. It is reported that ObEN will use ar‍tificial intelligenceδ technology to create AI vi÷rtual images for well-known artists under SM Entertainment, and Phantom Sta♥r Limited is the agency that manage‌s these "AI stars".

Can Tencent's lead investment in ObEN further promote the artificial intell¥igence of the company's social bus÷iness this time. Nowaday​s, not only are major companies busy establishing artificial intelligence l×aboratories, but companies like Facebook have also established more concrete Fa€cebook AR laboratories. Additionally, it is said that Apple will soon launch§ the ARKit platform. In the future, will Tencent establish a separate AR πlaboratory to further ex≠pand its social AI business?