Tech

Big Tech Discoveries of 2019: Black Hole, Gaming Headset Evolution, and More

Published

6 years ago

August 20, 2019

How fast are science and technology developing right now? 2019 has just reached its first half, and significant advancements in these areas have been presented to us without any signs of being stopped. Let’s review what those significant developments are, and how the future can be structured within these signs of progress made in the first part of 2019.

The first image of a black hole

This image is likely to be the most crucial discovery of 2019 for astrophysics globally. Since Mr Steven Hawking theoretically proved the existence of black holes, scientists have been devoting themselves to explaining and researching this universe magnificence. Some sceptics believed the black hole was just a lie, until now.

The image of this supermassive was captured by the telescope network called Event Horizon Telescope. The black hold lies in a galaxy call M87 that is 54 million lightyears away from the Earth, and it is about 6.5 billion times the mass of the sun.

The milestone opens up an entirely new era for astrophysics and physics, such as the further exploration of general relativity and quantum mechanics. More observations are set to be conducted with increasing numbers of observatories joining the network. This huge step in astronomy is also expected to start a major progression in human and societal development.

SOMiC offers new gaming headset that may disrupt traditional markets

Discussing the discovery of an astronomic object may be reaching too far for most of us, let’s take a look at other new products that are closer to our life instead.

The gaming headsets market competition has been fierce enough in recent years due to the massive development of 3A gaming titles. The demand for such a product has also been increased as a complementary accessory in the gaming industry. Recently one Chinese company called SOMiC showed its potential in disrupting the traditional headphone market.

SOMiC’s newly introduced G951s contains an industry leading built-in speaker with virtual surround sound systems, paring with a quality detachable mic and universal compatible wire design. The specifications are comparable to traditional brands like Razer and Logitech, priced at only a portion of its competitors’ product that hit the current market hard.

By taking advantage of the further increased sales in games and its superb affordability and comfortability, it will be interesting to see how this new contender will progress to compete with other market leaders.

Huawei and Samsung began a war in the new mobile phone era

Every few years we see an evolution in mobile phones, from the applications of touch screens to infinity screens. This year we are going to see a foldable screen phone.

Earlier this year, Huawei and Samsung introduced their newly developed phones with foldable screens. When the rest of the competition was still introducing more bezel-less screens, these two industry super forces already took their steps ahead and entered the new mobile device era.

The future of foldable screens seems quite promising, where the forms of monitor, tablet and laptops can all be altered and innovated with this technology. Although mass production is not yet achievable, we can expect to see multiple new inventions based on a foldable screen shortly.

Multiple companies started their global 5G infrastructure development

Another crucial development in the mobile device field is the 5G network. It is the next generation standard for wireless communication, which offers vastly increased capacity, faster speed, and lower latency.

Again, Huawei took strong actions regardless of the obstruction from the U.S. They sent out 5G network special teams to their partnered countries, started building up the infrastructure and preparing for launching the network later this year. Though LTE remains the most significant part of the global wireless network, 5G is ready to take over the market like what 4G did just a decade ago.

Duelling AI could become the future

AI is approaching our lives much faster than we expected. Alpha Go has been defeating humans in Chinese Chess and showed its learning ability is beyond our imagination. One seems to be powerful already, but what about two AI competing with each other? That can potentially boost the learning progress to an entirely new level.

Duelling AI can be firstly aimed at creating an ultra-realist image and sound that previous computers can never achieve and ‘sense’ whether it is true. The identification of images can help prevent digital fakery. Projects and firms such as Google Brain, DeepMind and Nvidia are critical players in pushing duelling AI to perform in other matters.

Artificial Intelligence has been playing a vital role in science since the last decade, and it has always been one of the hottest topics both positively and negatively. Keep an eye on this subject, and I am sure we will be seeing more surprises regarding AI.

Many more to expect

In addition to those 5 big releases and discoveries in the science and the technology fields happened in the first quarter of 2019, other huge developments also deserve more attention, such as the Boston Dynamic’s first running robot and the 3D metal printer.

There are infinite ideas and possibilities for constructing humans’ future. We should be excited to see how these inventions can progress further and positively impact our future.

Tech

AI in Placemaking: How ERA-co is Using Smarter Data to Build Better Cities

Published

3 weeks ago

September 23, 2025

Jonathan Grilli

ERA-co is exploring new ways to apply AI in urban design, utilizing data-driven tools to support more thoughtful and responsive placemaking. Rather than replacing human insight, the firm sees artificial intelligence as a partner — one that can enhance how designers understand and shape the spaces where people live, move, and connect.

This approach isn’t about flashy tech or fully automated cities. It’s about asking better questions, revealing patterns we might otherwise miss, and using that knowledge to make decisions rooted in real-world behavior. For ERA-co, AI becomes most valuable when it helps clarify how a city works, layer by layer, so design teams can create places that are not only efficient but also livable and meaningful.

Understanding complexity before optimization

Before talking about smart tools or predictions, ERA-co begins with a foundational question: “What kind of problem is a city?” Nicolas Palominos, Head of Urban Design and Strategy R&D at ERA-co, references the work of Jane Jacobs to frame this.

“As Jacobs reminds us, cities exhibit complex system behavior, where multiple elements vary simultaneously, in subtle interconnected ways,” Palominos explains. “AI can augment our understanding of these parameters to design better places with optimized social benefit.”

According to Palominos, that kind of social benefit can take many forms. It might involve modeling a housing system that supports proximity-based living, such as the concept of the “15-minute city,” or applying predictive analytics to anticipate and respond to events like floods, heatwaves, or infrastructure failures.

ERA-co doesn’t use AI to chase efficiency for its own sake. Instead, the firm uses it to gain a more comprehensive understanding and a clearer picture of a place’s behavior.

Data that matches people, not just places

Not all data is created equal. When it comes to placemaking, ERA-co prioritizes what Palominos calls “spatial and temporal granularity,” which entails not only examining how a space functions on a map but also understanding how people interact with it over time — from hour to hour, and season to season.

“The most valuable data are those with the greatest spatial and temporal granularity for observing people and urban environments,” Palominos says. “Video footage, mobile data, street view imagery, and satellite imagery enable a deeper understanding of how different groups of people perceive and use public space.”

One recent ERA-co proof-of-concept used AI to assess how people visually perceive streetscapes, analyzing elements like enclosure, complexity, and human scale. These insights informed more nuanced design strategies that align with local behaviors, not just abstract zoning plans.

This level of detail matters because even small design shifts can have ripple effects on how people move, feel, and gather. With AI, ERA-co isn’t just tracking patterns but learning from them.

ERA-co’s AI mobility work: Subtle shifts, broader benefits

Some of the clearest applications of AI can be seen in mobility — how people and goods move through cities. It’s here that ERA-co sees measurable gains in both function and experience.

“AI-driven fleet optimization balances supply and demand in bus services and bike-share systems,” Palominos says. “On the consumer side, it streamlines courier and delivery services through route optimization.”

These systems don’t operate in isolation. When they’re better coordinated, they can relieve pressure on road networks, reduce congestion, and lower energy use. But what makes ERA-co’s approach different is that it doesn’t stop at logistics. It examines how those systems impact the daily lives of people who live in and move through a place.

The limits of AI and the role of design judgment

As much as AI can help us see more, ERA-co is careful not to let it make the final call. Cities are more than just systems — they’re layered with memory, identity, and human connection. And not everything meaningful can be measured.

“There have been cases where AI insights pointed us in one direction, but human judgment and cultural understanding led us another way,” Palominos notes.

Sometimes a place functions well on paper, but feels hollow in practice. Other times, a community gathering space might disrupt traffic flow, yet provide invaluable support for social well-being.

This is where design intuition becomes critical. ERA-co uses AI to inform, not dictate, the design process.

Planning for a future in flux

Looking ahead, ERA-co sees AI playing a growing role in helping cities adapt — not just to top physical threats like climate change, but also to slower, less visible shifts in how people live and connect.

“AI will amplify our understanding of how cities function through enhanced spatial representation and analysis, informing better human decision-making,” Palominos says. He references recent findings (like an MIT study showing people walk faster and linger less in public spaces) as examples of trends that would have been hard to anticipate without AI.

Still, the goal isn’t to automate responses to those behaviors. It’s using those insights to reimagine what kinds of public spaces people may need in the future, especially as patterns of connection and isolation shift.