The Latest VR Experiences: E.l.f’s 3D Shopping Spree Inside a Speakeasy

Dec 13

Emerging Tech Roundup — December 13

The Quantious team’s top picks for timely trending news in the tech world.

This week in tech: E.l.f. brings shopping to the speakeasy with Virtual Luxe Lounge, Duolingo teams up with Netflix to help ‘Squid Game’ fans learn Korean, AI’s impact on publishing increases, AI agents to use the web for you, iOS 18.2 is rolling out, YouTube's AI-powered auto dubbing tool has finally arrived, and Google's Gemini Deep Research tool arrives.

E.l.f. Brings Shopping to the Speakeasy with Virtual Luxe Lounge

(Marketing Dive, December 5)

E.l.f. Cosmetics has launched the Virtual Luxe Lounge — a 3D speakeasy-themed digital shopping experience for its loyalty members — following their earlier Vision Pro beauty app partnership. The virtual lounge integrates exclusive product drops, coupons, and immersive sections to attract new loyalty members and boost first-party data collection. This innovation builds on E.l.f.’s digital-forward marketing strategy, which includes Roblox activations, real-world commerce testing, and purpose-driven campaigns like “Change The Board Game,” — solidifying its reputation for creative, tech-savvy brand engagement.

Duolingo Teams Up With Netflix to Help ‘Squid Game’ Fans Learn Korean

(Tech Crunch, December 10)

Ahead of Squid Game Season Two's premiere, Netflix has partnered with Duolingo to offer Korean lessons featuring over 40 keywords and phrases from the series, like "dolgana" and “Trust no one.” These phrases are integrated into Duolingo's standard Korean course to immerse fans in the show’s themes while learning the language. Additionally, the collaboration includes a Squid Game-inspired TikTok filter based on the Red Light, Green Light game.

HarperCollins CEO Touts Spotify’s Audiobooks Entry, AI’s Impact on Publishing

(Tech Crunch, December 10)

At the UBS Global Media and Communications Conference, HarperCollins CEO Brian Murray praised Spotify's successful entry into the audiobook market, highlighting its appeal to occasional listeners through 15 free hours for Premium subscribers. He noted that audiobooks now outperform e-books in revenue, and explained that HarperCollins’ wholesale distribution model with Spotify ensures clear royalty payments for authors. While Murray acknowledged AI's potential to both help and challenge publishers, he described the industry’s engagement with AI licensing — such as HarperCollins’ deal with Microsoft — to still be in its early stages.

Google Unveils Project Mariner: AI Agents to Use the Web For You

(The Verge, December 11)

Google unveiled Project Mariner, a suite of AI agents powered by Gemini 2.0 that can understand video game rules and provide real-time coaching based on on-screen actions. These agents can also tap into Google Search to offer additional gaming knowledge, with early tests in titles like Clash of Clans and Hay Day. Google is also advancing AI-generated virtual worlds with Genie 2, a "foundation world model" that creates playable environments from prompts, though current consistency is limited to about one minute.

iOS 18.2 is Rolling Out Today, Adding ChatGPT Integration and More Apple Intelligence Tools

(The Verge, December 11)

Apple has released iOS 18.2, iPadOS 18.2, and macOS Sequoia 15.2, introducing Apple Intelligence features like Image Playground for AI-generated images, Genmoji for custom emoji-like stickers, and ChatGPT integration for Siri and Writing Tools. Image Playground focuses on stylistic, non-photorealistic visuals, while ChatGPT can generate text and images without requiring a user account. Additional updates include Visual Intelligence, AirTag sharing via links, daily Sudoku puzzles in Apple News Plus, and extended language support.

YouTube's AI-Powered Auto Dubbing Tool Has Finally Arrived

(Engadget, December 11)

YouTube has launched its AI-powered dubbing service for select YouTube Partner Program channels, enabling automatic dubbing of English videos into eight languages — including French, German, and Hindi, and more. The tool allows creators to preview dubbed versions, which are labeled as auto-dubbed and accessible via YouTube Studio's "languages" section. While the translations are accurate, early examples show a robotic delivery, with YouTube acknowledging the technology is still evolving and may struggle with fast speech or conversational crosstalk.

Google's Gemini Deep Research Tool is Here to Answer Your Most Complicated Questions

(Engadget, December 11)

Google has launched Deep Research for Gemini Advanced users, allowing them to generate detailed, customizable reports on complex topics by leveraging Gemini 1.5 Pro’s long context reasoning. Users approve multi-step research plans, then the tool scours the web for authoritative information, producing comprehensive, citation-backed reports with charts that can be exported to Google Docs. Available in English for $20/month under Google’s One AI Premium Plan, Deep Research is designed to prioritize accuracy and relevance, offering a practical way to harness AI for in-depth research.