Technology

AR Optics: IDTechEx Explores Insights from IDTechEx at CES 2024

Published

2 years ago

February 13, 2024

BOSTON, Feb. 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Apple’s Vision Pro has recently grabbed all the headlines in the spatial computing world, following years of hype and rumors of Apple bringing a headset to market. The Vision Pro is thought to be merely the opening salvo of the tech giant’s strategy, with see-through augmented reality (AR) devices expected to be the endgame. Compared to the camera passthrough used in headsets like the Vision Pro and Meta’s Quest 3, this would vastly improve the view of the real world while helping to make devices much more like normal glasses – not to mention aiding social acceptability by making the wearer’s eyes visible to those around them.

As outlined in IDTechEx’s report, “Optics for Virtual, Augmented and Mixed Reality 2024-2034: Technologies, Players and Markets“, the development of optical combiners, specialized optical components which project virtual information on top of the real world, is a key hurdle holding back see-through AR from primetime. However, startling progress is being made to solve this, with CES 2024 giving a great overview of recent developments in AR optics and spatial computing overall.

Contrasting approaches to AR

The two biggest AR headset announcements at this year’s CES took very different approaches. TCL’s upcoming RayNeo X2 Lite headset fell under the banner of “lite AR”. These devices are lightweight with a glasses form factor, focusing on being minimally intrusive while displaying simple contextual information like directions or sports statistics to the wearer. In contrast, XReal’s Air 2 Ultra is more of a spiritual successor to the HoloLens, focusing on adding emphasis on mixed reality features like spatial localization and mapping, and hand tracking to XReal’s device lineup. While no heavyweight at 80g, it is not designed to be worn as an accessory in the same vein as “lite AR” devices.

Polymer waveguides showed impressive performance

Optics for lite AR were a fruitful space for innovation at this year’s CES. Chinese player Mojie, also known as Meta-Bounds, supplies Oppo its AR optics. It showed IDTechEx its newest resin surface relief diffractive waveguides at the event. Compared to the optical glass substrates more commonly used in AR waveguides, polymers can increase durability while reducing weight due to their lower density and potential elimination of the requirement for cover glass. They could also cut the cost of these specialized optical components. A major downside is that their lower refractive index limits the field of view of the waveguide, but this is not an issue for lite AR. Critically, Mojie’s waveguides can be bonded directly to ophthalmic lenses, meaning AR glasses can become viable prescription eyewear without clunky solutions like prescription inserts.

Shenzhen-based Optiark’s pre-production LHASA-5 resin waveguides could make lite AR even lighter: one waveguide, weighing only 4g, uses a single display to project images to both eyes. This could solve the comfort issues some face while wearing glasses with a monocular display without adding significant weight or cost. Optiark said it expects the image quality to surpass others already producing resin waveguides: this could be due to the multi-level diffraction gratings it employs, or it may be able to achieve higher new levels of surface flatness than are typical in polymer AR optics.

A new challenger to birdbath optics

Innovation was not limited to the lite AR space, with Korean player LetinAR’s latest optics looking like strong competitors to the birdbath optics used in lower-cost, wide field-of-view AR devices like those from XReal. This special class of reflective waveguide uses the proprietary PinTILT™ architecture, which allows a relatively affordable and high-resolution micro-OLED display to be used, just like with birdbath optics but unlike with most other waveguides. Although the design makes them thicker than other waveguides, it also allows these injection-molded plastic optics to have a wide FoV, making them suitable for immersive applications. Crucially, the wearer’s view of the real world and the view of the user’s eyes are vastly better than with birdbath optics. LetinAR’s optics are close to mass production readiness and were shown at CES in devices from Jorjin, Sharp, and Nimo.

Optics are taking AR headsets close to primetime readiness

Compared to previous years, AR felt significantly closer to mass-market viability at this year’s CES, with the contribution of optics being hard to understate here. Improved optical designs, in conjunction with the wider availability of emerging display technologies like micro-LED, are shrinking AR glasses down, with more efficient optical systems reducing demands on batteries and thermal management systems. Vuzix’s Z100 lite AR glasses, announced at CES, weigh less than many prescription glasses and quote a battery life of over 48 hours, with a Jade Bird Display micro-LED screen and advancement in waveguide design being key here. More immersive devices might not be quite so unobtrusive, but XReal’s Air 2 Ultra offers true MR features at $2,800 cheaper than the Vision Pro (although you will need to pair them with a high-end smartphone). Overall, the future for AR looks bright.

Further insight

The stories presented here provide only a small portion of IDTechEx’s insights from CES 2024, which are available to their subscribers, amongst much more timely information on emerging technologies on their portal. Events like CES help shape IDTechEx’s coverage of spatial computing with its recent reports, “Optics for Virtual, Augmented and Mixed Reality 2024-2034: Technologies, Players and Markets” and “Displays for Virtual, Augmented and Mixed Reality 2024-2034: Forecasts, Technologies, Markets“, giving comprehensive intelligence including 10 year granular adoption forecasts into these two critical technology markets.

About IDTechEx

IDTechEx guides your strategic business decisions through its Research, Subscription and Consultancy products, helping you profit from emerging technologies. For more information, contact research@IDTechEx.com or visit www.IDTechEx.com.

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Technology

Air and Fathom5 Partner to Modernize Naval Fleet Readiness

Published

50 minutes ago

July 20, 2026

ARLINGTON, Va. and AUSTIN, Texas, July 20, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Air, the leader in Enterprise Readiness, and Fathom5, a technology company dedicated to secure infrastructure for AI-powered machines, today announced a strategic partnership to transform the U.S. Navy’s maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) capabilities.

The collaboration follows Fathom5’s selection as a winner in the Defense Innovation Unit’s NextMRO Prize Challenge Phase III, which aims to replace antiquated, siloed logistics frameworks with integrated, data-driven software. Fathom5 won based on its ability to transform real-world Navy data into intuitive, sailor-facing applications at the tactical edge.

To scale this solution for enterprise-wide Navy procurement, Fathom5 and Air are uniting Fathom5’s industry-leading, warship-deployed Condition-Based Maintenance AI with Air’s Enterprise Readiness platform. Air’s platform is purpose-built to close the “Readiness Gap”—the dangerous chasm between what the front line needs and what the enterprise delivers. It fuses predictive analytics, supply chain visibility, and repair cycle forecasting into a unified system that operates across Organizational, Intermediate, and Depot maintenance.

Together, the companies will address the Navy’s most critical sustainment vulnerabilities with the ability to:

Eliminate data silos and provide a single, authoritative source of truth.Use natural language to query technical manuals, analyze parts availability, proactively forecast issues, and identify alternative vendors in seconds, andAllow forward-deployed Sailors to execute work orders offline in Degraded, Denied, Intermittent, and Limited (DDIL) environments.

Proven Defense Impact

Air brings a successful track record of optimization across the Department of War. In recent sustainment operations, Air delivered a 99.6% reduction in part identification time, identifying replacement parts and suitable substitutes in minutes instead of days. By accelerating part allocation and replacing manual processes, the platform has saved commands hundreds of down days annually while sustaining 90% equipment readiness across echelons.

“This partnership will be pivotal as we work to close the Readiness Gap,” said Tara Murphy Dougherty, CEO of Air. “Together, Fathom5 and Air are uniquely positioned to accelerate Naval logistics by drastically shortening turnaround times, maximizing asset availability, and executing modern digital workflows at the speed of operational demand.”

“The future of naval readiness depends on giving Sailors the right information at the right time, wherever the mission takes them,” said Zac Staples, Founder and CEO of Fathom5. “By combining Fathom5’s AI-powered Condition-Based Maintenance capabilities with Air’s Enterprise Readiness platform, we’re helping transform maintenance from a reactive process into a predictive, data-driven advantage. Together, we’re enabling a more resilient fleet that can sustain operations in contested environments while keeping more ships mission-ready.”

About Fathom5

Fathom5, headquartered in Austin, Texas, develops secure digital infrastructure and advanced actuator technologies that strengthen the resilience and readiness of complex industrial systems. The company has achieved significant milestones, including delivering the first program-of-record artificial intelligence system deployed aboard a U.S. Navy warship and securing 17 patents across actuator technology and cybersecurity. Through its flagship Nsyte platform, Fathom5 provides secure edge infrastructure for maintenance and readiness applications, enabling advanced analytics and actionable insights at the point of need. For more information, please visit www.fathom5.com.

About Air

Air, formerly Govini, created Enterprise Readiness, a new category of AI-native systems that close the Readiness Gap, the dangerous chasm between what the front line needs and what the national security enterprise can deliver. Air Enterprise Readiness platform aligns development, production, delivery, and sustainment into one coordinated execution system, revealing true capacity, exposing real constraints, coordinating critical resources, and executing at the speed of operational demands.The result: the national security enterprise has what it needs to succeed. For more information on Air and the Enterprise Readiness platform, visit www.air.ai.

Media Contacts

Fathom5: coleman@zilkermedia.com

Air: media@air.ai and air@weareinvariant.com

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SOURCE Air

Technology

DoubleLine Paper: Honebuto Shock: Japan Courts a Truss-Like Redux

Published

51 minutes ago

July 20, 2026

TAMPA, Fla., July 20, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Sell-offs in Japanese Government Bonds (JGBs) and the yen have put Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on notice, a DoubleLine paper argues, that Japan’s creditors have little tolerance for her government’s unorthodox proposal for a mixture of unfunded fiscal expansion with docile central-banking.

Surveying the “Honebuto shock,” so-named after debt-and-yen sell-off following Tokyo’s annual fiscal policy statement, Bill Campbell, head of the DoubleLine’s Global Sovereign & Emerging Markets team, sees parallels to the gilts and British pound revolt over a 2022 proposal for unfunded fiscal expansion by U.K. Prime Minister Liz Truss that swiftly brought down her government.

“Having committed to more than 370 trillion yen of public-private investment through fiscal 2040, the government is calling for monetary policy “in coordination with” that growth agenda,” Mr. Campbell writes. “In the eyes of the financial markets, this demand for the subordination of monetary policy to a political platform only adds fuel to the fire beneath a central bank already under criticism for what critics deem an overly cautious rate-hiking path.”

Mr. Campbell warns, “The Takaichi government should not assume the JGB market, having found its voice, will prove more patient than the gilts market that laid low the Truss government in 2022. In today’s inflationary climate, fiscal credibility is earned, not presumed – even in the G-7 countries. And a G-7 sovereign who embarks on unfunded fiscal expansion risks courting a buyers’ strike.”

The paper, titled “Honebuto Shock: Japan Courts a Truss-Like Redux,” is available here: https://doubleline.com/wp-content/uploads/DoubleLine_Honebuto-Truss-Redux_Campbell_071526.pdf

Mr. Campbell heads the Global Sovereign & Emerging Markets team at DoubleLine and serves as the lead Portfolio Manager for emerging markets and international fixed-income strategies. He is a permanent member of the firm’s Fixed Income Asset Allocation Committee. Mr. Campbell has written extensively in research papers and client briefings on evolving trends and episodic developments in global fixed income and currency markets. He holds a B.S. in Business Economics and International Business, as well as a B.A. in English, from Pennsylvania State University and an M.A. in Mathematics, with a focus on Mathematical Finance, from Boston University.

About the Global Sovereign & Emerging Markets Team

The Global Sovereign & Emerging Markets team at DoubleLine manages $XX billion in assets in sovereign debt, including U.S. Treasuries and non-U.S. sovereign issues, and corporate fixed income securities by issuers domiciled in ex-U.S. developed and emerging markets. The team comprises 14 investment professionals, including portfolio managers, analysts and traders.

About DoubleLine

DoubleLine Capital LP is an investment adviser registered under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940. DoubleLine’s offices can be reached by telephone at (813) 791-7333 or by email at info@doubleline.com. In addition to its headquarters in Tampa, Fla., and an office in Los Angeles, DoubleLine has offices in Dubai, London and Tokyo. Media can reach DoubleLine by email at media@doubleline.com.

DoubleLine® is a registered trademark of DoubleLine Capital LP.

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SOURCE DoubleLine

Technology

Signeasy expands beyond eSignatures with Intelligent Contract Management for growing businesses

Published

51 minutes ago

July 20, 2026

The platform combines eSignatures, AI-powered contract insights, renewal tracking, and a centralized contract repository to help businesses manage contracts from signature to renewal.

DALLAS, July 20, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Signeasy today announced its Intelligent Contract Management platform, extending its product capabilities into every stage of the contract lifecycle. The platform gives Finance, Legal, Sales, HR, Procurement, and Operations teams one place to sign, manage, and get insights from every contract.

For most growing businesses, the real work starts after a contract is signed. Renewal dates, payment terms, obligations, and key clauses end up scattered across inboxes, shared drives, and spreadsheets. Without a large legal operations team, keeping track of them is manual, reactive work.

Signeasy’s Intelligent Contract Management platform closes this gap. It brings eSignatures, a contract repository, and contract intelligence into one platform.

“Contracts touch every part of a business — Finance, Legal, Sales, HR, Procurement, Operations — but the tools to effectively manage them have always been built for enterprise legal teams. We built Intelligent Contract Management so lean teams get the same contract visibility and intelligence as companies five times their size.”

— Sunil Patro, Founder & CEO, Signeasy

Signeasy’s Intelligent Contract Management platform includes:

Centralized Contract Repository: Store every executed contract in one searchable place — no digging through inboxes or shared drives.Conversational AI search: Ask questions about any contract in plain language, follow-up, and get answers with context instead of reviewing documents manually. Customer data is never used to train AI models.Key Term Extraction: Surface payment terms, renewal dates, obligations, and termination clauses instantly.Renewal Tracking and Alerts: Get automated reminders before contracts expire or auto-renew, so commitments never catch teams by surprise.Team Workspaces: Share visibility into contract status, with confidentiality controls for every team that touches contracts.eSignatures: Collect legally binding signatures from anywhere, on any device, and automate approval workflows to get contracts signed faster.

There’s no six-month implementation cycle. Businesses can bulk import existing contracts and onboard teams within hours with hands-on support from Signeasy.

Signeasy’s Intelligent Contract Management platform is available now. Visit www.signeasy.com to request a demo.

About Signeasy

Signeasy is an Intelligent Contract Management (ICM) platform built for growing businesses managing contracts across Finance, Legal, Sales, HR, Procurement, and Operations. Teams can prepare, sign, track, and manage contracts from one platform, with AI-powered workflows, integrations for Microsoft, Google, and HubSpot, and enterprise-grade security and compliance. Over 48,000 businesses globally use Signeasy to cut contract cycle times, reduce risk, accelerate revenue, and drive better business outcomes.

Media contact
Dhivya Venkatesan
Signeasy
Email: dhivyav@signeasy.com

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SOURCE Signeasy