At Metaverse Event, Meta’s Zuckerberg Unveils Work to Improve How Humans Chat to AI

Small toy figures are seen in front of displayed Facebook's new rebrand logo Meta in this illustration taken, October 28, 2021. (Reuters)
Small toy figures are seen in front of displayed Facebook's new rebrand logo Meta in this illustration taken, October 28, 2021. (Reuters)
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At Metaverse Event, Meta’s Zuckerberg Unveils Work to Improve How Humans Chat to AI

Small toy figures are seen in front of displayed Facebook's new rebrand logo Meta in this illustration taken, October 28, 2021. (Reuters)
Small toy figures are seen in front of displayed Facebook's new rebrand logo Meta in this illustration taken, October 28, 2021. (Reuters)

Facebook-owner Meta is working on AI research to allow people to have more natural conversations with voice assistants, CEO Mark Zuckerberg said on Wednesday, a step towards how people will communicate with AI in the metaverse.

The company's Project CAIRaoke is "a fully end-to-end neural model for building on-device assistants," said Zuckerberg, speaking at Meta's live-streamed artificial intelligence event.

Zuckerberg is betting that the metaverse, a futuristic idea of virtual environments where users can work, socialize and play, will be the successor to the mobile internet.

The social media company, which recently lost a third of its market value after a dismal earnings report, has invested heavily in its new focus on building the metaverse and changed its name to reflect this ambition. This month Meta reported a 2021 net loss of $10.2 billion from its Reality Labs, the company's augmented and virtual reality business.

Meta also recently announced its research team has built a new artificial intelligence supercomputer that it thinks will be the fastest in the world when completed in mid-2022.



Nintendo Switch 2 Smashes Record as Company’s Fastest-Selling Console 

A staff member holds a Nintendo Switch 2 game console as Nintendo starts selling the new consoles globally, at an electronics store in Tokyo, Japan June 5, 2025. (Reuters)
A staff member holds a Nintendo Switch 2 game console as Nintendo starts selling the new consoles globally, at an electronics store in Tokyo, Japan June 5, 2025. (Reuters)
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Nintendo Switch 2 Smashes Record as Company’s Fastest-Selling Console 

A staff member holds a Nintendo Switch 2 game console as Nintendo starts selling the new consoles globally, at an electronics store in Tokyo, Japan June 5, 2025. (Reuters)
A staff member holds a Nintendo Switch 2 game console as Nintendo starts selling the new consoles globally, at an electronics store in Tokyo, Japan June 5, 2025. (Reuters)

Japan's Nintendo said on Wednesday it had sold more than 3.5 million Switch 2 units in the first four days after its launch, making the console the company's fastest-selling gaming device to date.

Last month, the Kyoto-based company forecast Switch 2 sales would reach 15 million during the current financial year ending next March.

"Fans around the world are showing their enthusiasm for Nintendo Switch 2 as an upgraded way to play at home and on the go," Nintendo of America President and Chief Operating Officer Doug Bowser said in a statement.

Nintendo has sold 152 million Switch devices since it was first launched in 2017, creating a games juggernaut with titles including "The Legend of Zelda" and COVID-19 pandemic breakout hit "Animal Crossing: New Horizons".

The more powerful second-generation version, which went on sale on June 5, bears many similarities with its predecessor, but offers a larger screen and improved graphics. It is sold with titles including "Mario Kart World".