Taiwan Intelligent Robotics (TIRC) has disclosed it has developed customized humanoid baccarat dealer robots for casinos in Macau.As Macau requires baccarat dealers be citizens, it is quite difficult for casinos there to hire enough dealers because of the city small population, and therefore some casinos have commissioned TIRC to develop humanoid dealer robots, TIRC explained.With logics of design based on baccarat gaming rules, such robots are controlled in the entire gaming procedures to deal, hit, shuffle and collect cards, TIRC said. In order to imitate human arms' shapes and movements, TIRC adopts Switzerland-developed micro-motors to match 7-axis freedom of such robots to enable high-precision positioning, agility and smooth hand movements, TIRC noted.The seventh axis of the robot is equipped with an absorber instead of a claw for easy handling of cards, TIRC noted, adding customized image recognition technology based on machine learning is used to detect and recognize cards.A humanoid baccarat dealer robot developed by TIRCPhoto: Company

Widespread adoption of voice assistants such as Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa is spurring burgeoning growth of IoT devices, which were on exhibit throughout the show floors of CES 2019. Transitioning from developing products independently, firms are now introducing products that work in connection with surrounding devices. This is augmenting the synergy of IoT developments and enriching the use scenarios and functionalities of IoT devices.The startup-centric CES Eureka Park hosts exhibitions of innovative IoT products launched by startup teams. They strive for simple and lightweight hardware design or focus efforts on niche markets as a way to circumvent direct competition against industry giants with ample capital and strong marketing for their IoT products.Smart kitchen appliances, smart locks and smart pet care devices are the iconic IoT devices for 2019, representative of smart home IoT devices that achieve style, home security and healthcare purposes.IoT devices for home are expanding from the focus of improving user experiences in the living room to bringing innovations to the kitchen. Eyeing consumer passion for specialty beverages, a startup team adds IoT features to a drink mixer, making life easier and more enjoyable for people.In addition to being the first line of defense for home security, smart locks embrace growing opportunities in e-commerce logistics. With rising popularity of online shopping, one major problem that retailers and couriers face is failed delivery attempts as people cannot always be home to sign for their packages. To overcome this problem, smart lock solutions let couriers open people's front doors momentarily to drop off packages.Healthcare for family members has always been a main area of application for home IoT devices. This year, startup teams are taking it a step further to include pet care. By using IoT devices to keep track of pets' behavior and analyze pets' physiological data, pet owners can rest assured that their pets will stay healthy.Smart kitchen appliances make home living more enjoyableSmart home devices have always targeted use in the living room. In fact, the kitchen holds immense opportunities for potential applications of IoT devices. One prominent example is LG HomeBrew, a capsule-based craft beer making machine that grabbed the spotlight even though LG also unveiled an amazing rollable OLED TV.The beer brewing and drinking traditions came with European immigrants to America. After the repeal of the prohibition of alcoholic beverage sales, there has been a resurgence of microbreweries. Besides drinking beer produced by large-scale breweries, some Americans love the unique taste of home-made beer. This gives rise to the popularity of home-brewing equipment like LG HomeBrew in America.As opposed to LG, making a capsule-based beer machine like a boutique item, Taiwan-based startup Timc introduced a smart beer machine targeting the home brewing market. It has designed and developed a purpose-built solution allowing home brewers to create a brewing environment to reliably control beer flavors. Instead of using capsule-based materials for convenience like LG, Timc emphasizes the use of natural ingredients without artificial flavorings, in hope that users will discover the fun of home brewing.Timc's beer machine has a fermentation tank that can be removed after all the ingredients are added and the processes before fermentation are completed. All that remains is to wait for the beer to mature. That is, Timc's solution can produce beer in volume so in addition to home brewing, it can also be used for commercial beer production.LG HomeBrew only uses network connectivity for monitoring brewing progress while Timc plans to develop a smartphone app enabling precise and flexible control of the beer machine's parameters such that users can concentrate on experimenting and exploring more beer flavors, which is the essence of beer making.For the ideal wine taste, French startup Aveine presented a smart wine aerator. By a simple scan of the wine label using a smartphone, the aerator will get the ideal combination of parameters from cloud for that particular wine and accordingly control the aeration time to allow a perfect bonding between oxygen and tannins, giving a unique taste of the wine.Japan-based startup Teplo showcased a smart tea bottle that allows tea drinkers to brew the perfect cup of tea by tracking and controlling brewing temperature and time via a smartphone app. Tea leaves release different amounts of caffeine depending on the brewing temperature and time. With Teplo, users can make adjustments to suit the occasion.Smart locks resolve the headache of parcel deliveriesIt can be a headache when the courier company delivers a package to an address and there is no one there to receive it, resulting in a failed delivery attempt. Amazon, with a global logistics operation, came up with the Amazon Key solution allowing the courier to enter the receiver's home momentarily, drop off the package at the foyer and leave.Amazon Key uses Yale smart locks from Assa Abloy, a renowned Swedish door lock solution supplier. Securing a dominant market position, Assa Abloy manufactures a wide range of door opening solutions including mechanical and electronic locks that can be unlocked via physical keypads, touch screen or mobile communication. Its solutions are not only used for home security but also for commercial and retail environments.To set themselves apart from the slew of smart lock solutions already on the market, startup companies have to come up with unique technologies or implementations. At CES Eureka Park, French startup Havr presented an innovative solution that enables users to send encodings to the door lock through their smartphones. The door can be unlocked with light patterns flashed by the cameras on their smartphones and scanned by the optical sensor placed under the lock. Havr's smart lock offers virtually the easiest and most convenient way to encode and decode a lock on the market.Targeting courier services, Dutch startup Den Smart Home took the lead in integrating delivery services with door unlocking process. The courier can use a smartphone to obtain delivery information from a parcel and request access by scanning the QR code on the smart lock or using NFC communication through Den Smart Home's app. The integrated service enables more convenient parcel deliveries. Moreover, the solution can also be used to allow caregivers temporary access to user's home, which is also an important application that Den Smart Home is working on as the Netherlands has a well-developed long-term care system.In general, smart locks are fitted to doors permanently so they are more suitable for access control to individual buildings. Taiwan-based startup Lubn came up with a smart key lock box, wherein a key is placed and can be retrieved if a correct code is entered. The Lubn smart key lock box has a shackle and can be fastened to a door to quickly and portably control access to different buildings. It can be repeatedly used and thus is ideal for property management.Burgeoning per care innovations in AsiaIoT pet devices are a new area of home IoT applications. There are two major application scenarios - care and tracking. Pet care devices were particularly catching attention at this year's event. Consumers are generally more concerned over how easy it is to use a home IoT device. If the device is not intuitive and user-friendly, people are likely to give up on it. However, for IoT pet devices, pet owners are willing to spend more time understanding how a product work and to try it out for the creative experiences it can bring to their beloved pets.Pet electronics have been on exhibit at CES and in the past few years, they were mostly in the form of wearable devices for positioning and tracking purposes to prevent them from getting lost. Pet wearable devices then evolved to include physiological data monitoring. However, as their accuracy could not compare to microchip implants, the development of such application was curtailed. At CES Eureka Park this year, there were pet IoT devices implementing non-intrusive approaches to monitoring pet waste while helping pet owners clean up with ease.Asian countries devote a great deal of attention to pet care. Three startups from Korea presented pet care products with intricate designs, including a smart litter box from Purrsong, a pet skin care device from Avec and a pet hair care solution from Pepe.Japan-based firm Hachi Tama has added a new device to its smart litter box to keep track of physiological data for households with multiple pets. It uses AI-enabled cameras to identify pets so that pet owners do not need to buy a smart litter box for each pet and limit their living areas just for the purpose of monitoring their conditions.Also working on pet waste solutions, Taiwan-based startup iPetoi not only brings convenience to pet owners but also looks to build up a pet physiological database on cloud, which can serve as basis for preventive pet healthcare. Beginning with small dogs, it will expand its product offerings to include different sizes and features.In general, the home IoT device market has changed from competitions among large-scale network service operators to competitions among home appliance manufacturers, IT equipment suppliers and solution providers. Large exhibits delivering smart IoT home experiences were seen throughout the show floors at CES, giving live demonstrations of product features. Amid such strong competition, startup teams with limited budget are shifting focus to niche products in order to tap unexplored markets.Taiwan-based startups endeavoring on home IoT devices have outperformed themselves by presenting superior product marketing and design compared to the past few years. They were able to bring forth live product demonstrations at the CES this year, enabling clear presentations of the design concepts and appeals. The only part that needs a little improvement is the mobile app functionalities as these apps were developed by third-party teams. If startups can have access to mobile app development resources, it will help them build an industry ecosystem, on top of which they can create next generation products or promote new service models.(This is part of a series of articles about Eureka Park startups and innovations at CES 2019.)Targeting the property management segment, Lubn smart lock solution works with existing door locks and enables repeated use.Teplo smart tea bottle allows users to set tea brewing parameters using smartphones.iPetoi smart pet toilet keeps track of pet physiological data on cloud and provides individualized per care recommendations. Photos: Carlos Chen, Digitimes Research, January 2019

Taiwan's electronic payment market is entering a new development stage, with crypto coins emerging as a new payment tool for B2B and B2C transactions, according to Paul Wei, sales director at Rapidz Technologies Taiwan, a branch of Switzerland-based provider of decentralized payment solutions.Wei said that his company is seeking to develop multiple payment application scenarios in Taiwan for RapidzPay, a decentralized payment gateway to make payments simple, fast and hassle-free, so as to provide holders of cryptocurrency assets with more agile outlets.Wei said that users can first download RapidzPay mobile wallet app and then register and clear the verification process to access the decentralized payment platform, which can support many cryptocurrencies including Biotcoin, Bitcoin cash, Litecoin and Rapidz, with Xem coins soon to be included.Users can remit their digital coins traded on exchanges to Rapidz Pay wallet, and can also open new trading accounts by buying digital currencies with regular banknotes, Wei said, adding that his company has managed to build connections with many e-commerce platforms such as major online shopping platforms through application programming interfaces (APIs).At the moment, many Taiwan-bound tourists from Southeast Asia, Japan, Korea, the US and Europe own cryptocurrencies, and therefore local merchandizers can better attract patronages from the visitors if they can accept digital coins as payment tool, thereby building diverse B2C trading ecosystems, according to Wei.Usually, Wei disclosed, RapidzPay will collect only 1.5-2.0% of the trading value as handling fees, compared to 4% for transactions settled with credit cards.Wei said that his company will move to cooperate with large-size channel distribution chains in Taiwan in 2019 to gradually build a sound decentralized payment ecosystem in the country.

Networking/communication device maker Askey Computer, a wholly-own subsidiary of Asustek Computer, has disclosed it has developed an app providing navigation services for visitors to the Taipei Railway Station.The app, whose development was commissioned by the Taipei City government, can real-time locate users and indicate paths toward their points of interest inside the station and in surrounding zones, Askey said, adding it features an architecture of integrating electronic maps, hardware and software.The app adopts AR technology that directly guides users and makes the app's interface seamless, user-friendly and personalized as well as enables retail stores to display marketing information on users' smartphones, Askey said.The train station area is notorious for its labyrinthic network connecting various other transport services and underground shopping arcades.

Taiwan's Cross-Border Innovation and Entrepreneur Association (CIEA) will leverage its cross-border resources integration to help member tech startups explore business opportunities in Southeast Asia in 2019, according to CIEA.CIEA said that Taiwan ranked 13th among 140 economies in the Global Competitiveness Report published in October 2018 by Geneva-based World Economic Forum, and was also described as a "super innovator" alongside Germany, Switzerland and the US.To help Taiwan startups build international connections and explore business opportunities in China, CIEA in 2018 signed strategic cooperation pacts with Beijing Zhongguancun Angel Capital Association and China Association for the Promotion of Development Financing to provide member firms with integrated resources in financing, market information, and legal assistance.CIEA also led members to conduct face-to-face talks with China enterprises including Xiaomi, iQIYI and Sunning.com for business cooperation.In 2019, CIEA will extend its resources integration efforts to Southeast Asia to help member tech startups in Taiwan build business ties with more overseas partners and attract more angel investments and strategic resources from abroad.CIEA just hosted its annual plenary conference in Kaohsiung on January 11, seeking to help more startups in southern Taiwan get onto international startup stages.CIEA annual conference in KaohsiungPhoto: CIEA, January 2019

Taiwan AI startup Yoctol Information is dedicated to offering conversational AI systems as a new channel for enterprises to better communicate with potential customers to boost their marketing effects, and such systems can help build a brand-new social network ecosystem, according to company adviser CY Huang, a mechanical engineering professor at National Taiwan University.Huang said that many enterprises in the world rely on their official websites and ads to approach customers, but they have to think more about how to better use network communication software and social networks to reach target customers and achieve precision marketing and interaction effects, amid the growing applications of AI, big data and behavior analysis technologies.Yoctol's conversational AI system can help enterprises build their own chatbots to provide multiple smart services, Huang said, adding that chatbot can analyze what any enterprise user has talked about and leverage the active push model to enhance interactions between the enterprise and its clients to enable precision marketing.Huang stressed that enterprise users must first be able to build their own chatbots, make them smarter and smarter, and keep upgrading their functions.Yoctol Information adviser CY HuangPhoto: Mark Tsai, Digitimes, January 2019

Taiwan government-sponsored Automotive Research & Testing Center (ARTC) will provide a third-party platform for testing locally-produced components/devices for autonomous driving.ARTC said that in November 2018 it partnered with 18 companies to form Autonomous Driving Vehicle Industry Alliance, aiming to establish Taiwan's technological capability for developing autonomous driving vehicles and a corresponding supply chain. Taiwan's parliament has also passed the Statute for Innovative Experiments of Unmanned Vehicle Technology, ARTC noted.The architecture of autonomous driving vehicles consists of three layers: sensing, decision-making and control, ARTC indicated.The sensing layer includes LiDARs, radars, automotive cameras while the decision-making layer focuses on computing and application of AI technology, ARTC said. As the hardware and software used in autonomous driving involves various industries, there should be a third-party platform for testing all hardware/software items to make sure that they can be integrated for smooth operation in the entire autonomous driving system, ARTC indicated.The platform will begin to provide hardware testing services for ICT makers in first-quarter 2019, testing services for deep learning used in the control layer in the second quarter and cooperate with makers to apply for regulatory sandbox in the third quarter, ARTC noted. Besides, the platform will seek to build up business models for autonomous driving vehicles in 2-4 years.ARTC is in talks with governments of the six metropolitan areas in Taiwan for each government to designate road sections for field testing of autonomous driving vehicles and for ARTC to propose transportation solutions using autonomous driving vehicles based on governments' needs, ARTC indicated.

Frankly speaking, ever since my first encounter with blockchain, I kept playing the old 1997 movie The Matrix in my mind (since when a 1997 film has become an old movie). Every time I hear someone advocating decentralization, painting a future with no governments and enterprises, I get a feeling there is something wrong about the decentralized utopia.So what exactly is wrong? Then, I have come to realize those who advocate decentralization may have ulterior motives and business services they are trying to market. Isn't that the opposite of decentralization? The advocates themselves are a center. Some people then came up with the modified concepts of multi-centralization and disintermediation. However, can people make decentralization a reality if they are all talk and no action?As opposed to constantly advocating decentralization, I wish to realistically explore on how the world can come closer to decentralization, what a decentralized world will be like and what impact it will bring. At this point of the discussion, let's talk about the classic sci-fi film The Matrix.The film is set in a "real world" that seems not so different from the one you and I are familiar with while actually people live in a digital world simulated by Matrix.In such a simulated world, human physical existence is no longer so meaningful. Humans are even used as power sources for Matrix, running a digitally recreated world where people are born, grow up, fall in love and interact with each other every day. With the exception of Matrix, the world is decentralized from human governance.Isn't that a perfect picture of so-called decentralization?Another more recent film, Ready Player One, directed by Steven Spielberg, depicts a similar world to the one in The Matrix. Though without a centralized control like Matrix, in this film, there is a large company trying to take ownership of the Oasis and people engage in activities (mainly economic activities) in a digital world.If we look into it in more detail, the world presented in The Matrix or Ready Player One is not far-fetched at all. The movie scenes can be thought of as a user interface or user experience (UI/UX). Technologies such as blockchain, IoT, Industry 4.0, AI and digital ID can be the infrastructure that allows the digital world to work while data economy is the enabler that makes the movie scenes a reality.In the digital world of The Matrix or Ready Player One, if you want a house or all kinds of gadgets, you need infrastructure enabling ownership of digital asset so that the devices you have in the real world can be owned by you in the digital world. This is accomplished through blockchain and digital ID. Not only people but also devices need to have ID and this can be achieved after Internet of Everything (IoE) clicks into place.You also need to do business with other people, paying them in digital currency which is also a form of digital asset you own, rather than data kept in some centralized services. People should be able to transfer and exchange the currency of their own free will like in the real world (money can go from my wallet directly to yours with my permission). Cryptocurrency can fulfill this purpose.Data economy encompasses everything generated in the digital world, ranging from different types of original data to transaction data created by all kinds of deals including exchanges of money and data across objects and people. In essence, as long as there is some type of exchange (exchange of valuables), there is data economy (this could very well be the real future).The above-mentioned two scenarios illustrate virtually what everyday life in a digital world would be like (don't bother asking me what about people's entertainment needs). Centralized services may be able to provide the kind of user experience or not so centralized but instead managed services (I won't use the word "controlled" here) can do so as well. You will find a valid reason no matter from which perspective you look at it. The future holds endless possibilities.We can be certain about one thing - infrastructure should enable a lot more than user experience, whether the future may turn out to be wonderful or terrifying. Sometimes people simply say that blockchain has resolved the xxx problem. As a matter of fact, it is likely that the problem can be resolved with certain characteristics of blockchain but the solution to the problem does not necessarily require the use of blockchain. The fundamental consideration should be whether blockchain can deliver a better solution to the problem or whether blockchain can be the answer as the problem has grown in scale and entails a new solution.Infrastructure that brings wonderful user experience requires deep devotion to research and development. As the world moves forward and the future quickly becomes now, innovators endeavoring toward research and creation of new technologies all wish they are on the right track and live to see the results of their work come to life.Lman Chu, co-founder and CEO of BiiLabs

Taiwan startup Ganzin Technology is showcasing at CES 2019 its newly developed Aurora eye tracking modules that can be paired with VR and AR for diverse applications, according to the firm's chief operating officer JY Chueh.Ganzin is among 40 tech startups coming from Taiwan to demonstrate their new tech prowess in the Taiwan Tech Arena at Eureka Park CES 2019.Chueh said that the firm's eye tracking solution can be well applied to help sales staff at shopping malls locate product racks most attracting consumers, as long as they wear VR or AR glasses. This way, they can adjust rack rentals quarter by quarter and arrange creative product portfolios to better attract customers.Chueh continued that through integration of hardware and software, Ganzin's cost-effective eye tracking modules boasts long battery duration, light weight and slim size, and can fast integrate with AR and VR devices now available on the market.Ganzin is slated to volume produce Aurora eye tracking solutions in August 2019, including SoCs and application programming interfaces (API).

Taiwan-based K-Best Technology, a supplier of RF/microwave equipment, has newly developed an independent low-power wide-area network (LPWAN) wireless communication technology, dubbed Super TaiRa (Taiwan Radio), and also initiated the formation of an alliance with government, academic and industrial sectors seeking to tap robust business opportunities associated with Industry 4.0, IoT, smart city, transportation and disaster relief applications, according to company president YW Tung.Members of the Super TaiRa Alliance include US-based Lora chip supplier Semtech, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications, Intelligent Transportation Scoiety of Taiwan, the Institute for Information Industry (III), Acer Group, Taiwan Optical Platform, and government-funded Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology (CSIST).Tung said that with technological support from CSIST and based on Lora chips provided by Semtech, K-Best has successfully developed the sub-1GHz LPWAN technology that boasts low packet error rate (PER), high coverage rate, and high information security, as well as strong anti-jamming and anti-disaster traits.Through its independent area network, Tung continued, Super TaiRa can be applied to offer strong information security protection and stable communication conditions for high-tech plants, preventing the leakage of secret process technologies and production data. Some Taiwan semiconductor firms have utilized Super TaiRa technology for message transmissions within their production complexes.In addition, the firm's vice president HH Lin said in the smart city application, Super TaiRa can perform well in helping cities collect complete big data in various aspects including soil liquefaction, flooding monitoring, smart parking and smart power grids. He continued the technology can also be utilized to enhance efforts preventing illegal logging.Super TaiRa Alliance inauguratedPhoto: K-Best Technology, January 2019