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Store No 8 Hosts Innov8: V-Commerce Gala, Previewing the Future of Retail in Virtual RealityLOS ANGELES, Oct. 19, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Store No 8, Walmart's technology incubator for investing in ideas that will transform the future of commerce, held its first innovation gala on Wednesday, October 18 bringing together today's brightest companies driving the next generation of virtual commerce. The exhibition curated interactive and immersive experiences from five selected Virtual Reality (VR) developers solving vastly different problems in the v-commerce space, including scan and capture, rendering, social interaction and product education. The event was presented in collaboration with Arianna Huffington's Thrive Global as co-host and Accenture as a strategic innovation advisor. The gala took place at a private residence in Hollywood Hills where top brands, technology companies and venture capitalists gathered to experience how millions of customers will shop in the future in virtual reality. Each exhibit encompassed Store No 8, Thrive Global and Accenture's vision for the future of VR.
This summer, Store No 8 held an open call to growth and innovative early-stage VR developers to submit ideas, receiving nearly 200 submissions from around the world for the chance to present at the gala, with 30% of submissions received from international companies. Selected winners of the open call received capital to fund development costs and strategic advice during incubation of concept. At the gala, companies were provided an exclusive chance to showcase their ideas and connect with some of the biggest brands and technology players, influencers, and venture capital investors in the world, including Chanel, Westfield, Parsons School of Design, Google Ventures, NEA, General Catalyst and Norwest Venture Partners. "Right now, we're in the middle of a cultural shift away from burnout and based on the connection between well-being and performance," said Arianna Huffington, Founder and CEO of Thrive Global. "The companies that will win the hearts and minds of consumers are those that shape our daily lives by making everyday experiences, like shopping, easier and less stressful. Innov8 will focus the industry's brightest minds and talent toward the development of virtual experiences that change the way we live for the better." "Virtual reality is rapidly transforming the way companies connect and engage with their customers and employees," said Marc Carrel-Billiard, senior managing director of Accenture Labs and head of Accenture Extended Reality. "Accenture is committed to investing in and developing this powerful technology given the tremendous potential we believe it has to drive new innovations and deliver real business value." As a strategic initiative of Accenture, the Accenture Extended Reality group helps companies envision, create and deliver impactful new immersive experiences that fuel new business growth by improving connections with customers, optimizing productivity and performance of employees and creating and monetizing new digital products and services. The evening was sponsored by key brands and organizations in the technology and retail industries, including HP and Silicon Valley Bank, as well as Microsoft, who showed off the latest in mixed reality with Microsoft HoloLens and immersive VR experiences with Windows Mixed Reality headsets. Innov8's Board of judges included Arianna Huffington, Founder and CEO of Thrive Global, Marc Carrel-Billiard, Senior Managing Director of Accenture Labs, Jason Welsh, Managing Director, Accenture Interactive, Kirsten Green, General Partner of Forerunner Ventures, Tipatat Chennavasin, General Partner of the Virtual Reality Fund, Jeremy Welt, President, Invisible Robot Corp., Katie Finnegan, Principal of Store No 8, and Marc Lore, President and CEO, Walmart U.S. eCommerce and Founder, Jet.com. For more information on the ideas presented at the gala please visit www.storeno8.com/innov8 For imagery and additional materials from Innov8: V-Commerce, please see here. About Store No 8 About Thrive Global About Accenture 8i provides the easiest way to create, mix and experience human holograms that look real and feel as if they were in the same room. Fyusion applies 3D computer vision and machine learning expertise to make images as intelligent as they are beautiful. Immersive, interactive photorealistic 3D images viewable on any mobile, desktop, VR or AR device are captured using only a smartphone. Obsess is a VR/AR platform for Experiential Shopping. It enables brands and retailers to create beautiful, discovery-driven, immersive shopping experiences that work on the web and in mobile VR headsets. Nurulize is pushing the envelope for creative realism in VR, while also building software tools that democratize the VR process. Specular Theory is an award-winning immersive content and technology company that creates and distributes cutting-edge, premium, and authentic experiences for VR/AR/MR. Contact: Sarah Maguire, [email protected] View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/store-no-8-hosts-innov8-v-commerce-gala-previewing-the-future-of-retail-in-virtual-reality-300539243.html SOURCE Store No 8 |