Actor Robert Downey Jr. played a tech billionaire for years who could summon digital displays with a wave of his hand. Now his new position brings the world of Tony Stark slightly to life. UNN reports, citing Mashable.
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The actor has joined Specs, Snap's augmented reality glasses division, as honorary chief client officer. The partnership, announced on October 20, will include original content, user-generated AR apps, hardware collaboration, and events featuring him.
In his statement, Downey said the glasses embody the promise of augmented reality technology associated with "a certain techno-optimist superhero I played."
"Life imitates art—and imitates life!" he added.
According to a press release provided to Mashable, the collaboration will explore how augmented reality can be used in the entertainment and education industries, as well as in medicine, engineering, and manufacturing.
Downey's first project is an original content series that debuted during the first game of the World Series (the first game of the championship series in Major League Baseball (MLB)), demonstrating the glasses in action, "from work and entertainment to golf and creativity." The series launched on October 20, and a 30-second spot was shown during the Knicks vs. 76ers game. More episodes are planned for release on the Specs website or YouTube.
Downey says the product quickly won him over.
"Try it—and believe it. Having tested virtually every wearable technology on the market over the past 20 years and being largely unimpressed, I was completely convinced of the advantages of SPECS in 40 seconds," he said in his statement.
"The potential applications are limitless. Families can share experiences instead of hunching over gadgets, skills can be honed, and big business can optimize development," Downey continued.
The Oscar-winning actor also officially confirmed his position on LinkedIn by updating his profile and posting the message "Day 1. New job" along with a short video of him entering the SPECS headquarters in Santa Monica, California.
Snap Inc. co-founder and CEO Evan Spiegel welcomed him in the comments ("Glad to be working together"), while other commenters added inevitable references to Marvel. "Be careful—don't work with Obadiah Stane," one of them advised.
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