Tencent's $5 million lead investment in AI star÷tup ObEN, further expanding into social AI

In addition to conducting basic technology research, Tencent has stated th≠at it aims to promote artificial intelligence in÷ various application scenarios through business driven approac hes.

Combining Tencent's main businαess, it is not difficuγlt to guess that in the future, the company will focus on four m÷ajor application directions: gaming, social media, content, and platform ≥tools.

Especially in the social field, last year Zuckerberg± announced his intenti∞on to launch a VR version of Facebo'ok and showcased the virtual avatar ↓tool Oculus Avatars; In July of this y ear, Facebook announced that Facebook AR Studio would collabo€rate with Meitu to provide them with three AR camera special effects. Nσow, Tencent also needs to tak₹e action.

On the evening of July 18th, artificial intelligence startup Ob÷EN announced a strategic investmen t of $5 million. This round of λfinancing is led by Tencent, with C≤MC Chairman Li Ruigang and Fengshan¥g Capital joining in. According to data from i✔nvestment and financing informat✔ion platform Crunchbase, ObEN has completed four roun>ds of financing with a total amount of 13.7 million US dollar s. Previous investors also included S Rushan Capital, SoftBank Korea₽ Venture Capital, and HTC VIVE X.

According to public information, ObEN was founded in 2014 and caσn create user artificial intelliσgence virtual images by buildi÷ng personalized virtual sounds, images, and personaπlities, helping users store, manage, a✘nd operate their virtual images in the emerging digital world. That is to£ say, ObEN can use artificial intelligence tools to create virtual images baseδd on users' photos and sounds, allowing user‌s to have different AR and VR social experiences.

Previously, ObEN mainly helped game playe↑rs create virtual avatars, but now the company is shifting its foc<us to helping celebrities create virtual avatars. Through this virtual image, cβelebrities can interact with fans in real-time. One day in the future,λ perhaps fans can seek ad£vice from celebrities and re‌ceive corresponding feedback. →In addition, this virtual image not only♥ looks very similar to a celebrity, but also speaks in the same way. Ov♦erall, such a virtual image is better than a chatbot.

It is reported that Ob₽EN has also integrate€d voice, computational vision, and natural language processing tβechnologies for the first time, and developed the virtual sound, three-dimens÷ional image, and personalized technology required fo≤r a full stack virtual star. Now O™bEN is building a brand new δbusiness platform. Here,φ celebrities and fans can inte↑ract directly on platforms such as mobile devices, augmented reality, virγtual reality, smart device₹s, and the Internet of' Things through personaliz₹ed artificial intelligence. ObEN's personalized ar™tificial intelligence products are ∞expected to be released later this year.

The latest round of financδing will be used to accelerate ObEN's product development and help​ promote the widespread applicat€ion of its celebrity artificial intell>igence copyright platform on various d>igital platforms. For this collabor‌ation, Yao Leiwen, Executive Directoφr of Tencent Investment, said tha&t ObEN will bring a new entertainment method and con®tent driven by celebrity artificial intelligence.

Earlier, ObEN had expressed i¥ts intention to become an "artificial intelligence social platform for everyo ne.". In this regard, the company has made multiple ↓layouts.

At the HTC Vive ecosystem conference in March this year, ObEN announced a co llaboration with HTC Vive to develop a WeC hat mini program that allows users to play VR together and perform VR  karaoke. In this program, VR users can send invitations to friends; Invited fr™iends can upload selfies an£d audio, and ultimately use the constructe≈d image to stroll along the beach or visit attractions with the inviter≤.

At the end of April, ObEN launched a WeChat chat servic∏e short video that integrated VR social experience, of courseΩ, users need to wear HTC εVive headsets. In the short film, ✔users need to first take a selfie, upload ♥it to WeChat to creat÷e a virtual image, and then bring HTC Vive <to receive messages from WeCh≤at friends, and can reply directl←y through voice. In the future, WeChat with VR and AR functions may b₹e able to attract a large↔ number of Asian users.

At the end of June, ObEN announce>d the establishment of a joint ventur™e company, AI Stars, with South Korean SM Entertainment. It isΩ reported that ObEN will use artificial intelligence tech>nology to create AI virtual images​ for well-known artists under SM Enterδtainment, and Phantom Star Limited is the ∞agency that manages these "AI stars".

Can Tencent's lead investment in ObEN further promote →the artificial intelligence of the company's social business. ¥Nowadays, major companies are not only busy building artificial intelligence la boratories, but companies like Facebook have also established more cγoncrete Facebook AR laboratories. Additionally, it is sa©id that Apple will soon launch the ARKit platform. In the future, will TencentΩ establish a separate AR lab✘oratory to further exp§and its social AI business?