In the futuristic movie “Minority Report” from 2002, Tom Cruise runs through a mall as the advertisements around him change to tailor exactly to his tastes, encouraging him to stop for his favorite beer as he runs from the Big Brother-like voice that knows everything about him.

Today, Immersive Labs announced that the future is, in fact, now. The start-up tech company will roll out its first camera-enhanced “smart signs” this fall, equipping billboards and retail signage with the ability to tailor advertisements to the person looking at them at any given moment.

Published on Sep 21, 2011 by Bloomberg

Sept. 21 (Bloomberg) — Jason Sosa, founder of Immersive Labs, discusses his company’s business plan to target advertising to consumers and his appearance on Bloomberg Television’s reality show, “TechStars.” Sosa speaks with Erik Schatzker and Deirdre Bolton on Bloomberg Television’s “InsideTrack.” (Source: Bloomberg)

Techstars TV Show premieres tonight at 9pm on Bloomberg!

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TROY RESEARCHINC. has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire MIND SPIN RESEARCH LLC, a GRAND RAPIDS MI-based internet music research company. 

World’s Most Advanced Intelligence Software for Digital Signage

Jason Sosa is the founder and CEO at Immersive Labs, which has been featured by CNNMoney, The New York Times, The Huffington Post, Fortune, Mashable, and Business Insider. For the last few years, he has been researching digital signage and HCI (human computer interaction) with a focus on bridging the gap between the virtual (online) world and physical world through intelligent content.

Immersive Labs builds the world’s most advanced intelligence software for digital signage. Our backgrounds include advertising, artificial intelligence, media research, digital signage and human computer interaction.

Scroll Down to listen to the audio version of this interview.

Read More: http://nttcom.tv/upfront/articles/2011/worlds-most-advanced-intelligence-software-for-digital-signage/

Jason Sosa by Amy Freeland

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Immersive Labs makes ads relevant through facial-recognition technology

Date Founded: December 2010

Concept: Brings Minority Report to life by using facial recognition technology to make OOH ads relevant to passerbys. The smart ads will be able to estimate a user’s age and sex to display a relevant message (like beer or tampons).

Location: New York, NY and Boulder, CO

Funding: Raising $740,000. Techstars is an investor.

Why You Should Care: Immersive Labs garnered a lot of attention as a TechStars NYC startup that’s tapping into a big market.

“Digital signs and OOH is a $3.5 billion business,” Sosa says. It’s the fastest growing advertising opportunity next to internet advertising. By 2016, OOH advertising spending is expected to reach $6 billion. 

A company that can minimize waste has the potential to own the industry.  Also, Immersive seems to work. Sosa says the technology has been store tested, and it increases the time viewers spend looking at digital signs by 60%.



Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/the-best-25-hidden-gems-of-nyc-startups-2011-5#immersive-labs-makes-ads-relevant-through-facial-recognition-technology-21#ixzz1OcxfY8xI

Touchscreen Prototype Provides Electric Feedback

The Next Generation Of Touchscreens Will Shock You (Literally)


Some Japanese manufacturers have come up with a new touchscreen prototype that provides feedback for every touch gesture.

When you touch the panel, it provides a slight electric jolt, mimicking the feel of tapping an actual button.

If it’s as good as it sounds, this could be a big help when it comes to typos on your touchscreen device.

Check out the video of the panel in action:

Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/touchscreen-panel-prototype-2011-5#ixzz1M4IyZpVZ

Boulder Startup Week - 1 year later

Intrigued by the idea of meeting entrepreneurs and seeing Boulder — a city quickly accumulating accolades for being a startup haven — Jason Sosa last May departed his home and a rough economy in Grand Rapids, Mich., and unknowingly embarked on a life-altering adventure.

Sosa came to Boulder to attend the first-ever Boulder Startup Week, an event designed to build community among startups, entrepreneurs and software engineers. Between the couch-surfing, the meetups with local entrepreneurs and the climbing of Mount Sanitas, Sosa phoned his wife to tell her to sell most of their items, pack up the house and the kids and move to Boulder.

“I came out here and, man, I just fell in love with the scene, the culture, the town,” said Sosa, who since co-founded Immersive Labs, a digital advertising company that recently captured the interest of investors and multibillion-dollar clients.

Read more: Boulder Startup Week organizers to fly five people to Boulder for free - Boulder Daily Camera
http://www.dailycamera.com/news/ci_17993592#ixzz1LQxrPC52
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