A new face-tracking extension lets Meta Quest Pro users poke their tongues out at you in a wordless statement of their feelings or even blow a raspberry.
How better to express a sweltering day or an exhausting workout? This could be the technology that revolutionizes VR in 2024. Am I being too tongue-in-cheek?
Honestly, it’s a nice option to add to the Quest Pro’s current hand-, eye-, and face-tracking. Meta’s most expensive VR headset allows quite a range of expression already. I can gesture with my hands, blink, wink, move my eyes, and open and close my mouth in various positions. You can’t do that with the new Quest 3.
Tongues were wagging when @0GUzzuqPjUVpY57 broke the news on X (formerly Twitter), along with providing a video demonstration showing two animated avatars alongside a Quest Pro user controlling the action.
Rleased new #VRCFT modules for new #QuestPro v2 facial tracking with support for tongue.
Supports (Air)Link and VD via VDX (when VD adds support) using the ALXR Local module and ALXR clients with the ALXR Remote module
You can download from here https://t.co/F37U2zA8is#VRChat pic.twitter.com/sUmfLaXVpN
— コレヂャン (@0GUzzuqPjUVpY57) December 14, 2023
Since the Quest Pro includes face-tracking, it seems like Meta should have included tongue-tracking, but perhaps felt it would be controversial. HTC makes a Face Tracker accessory to synchronize mouth and tongue movements with an avatar, and it’s compatible with many VR headsets.
Of course, you shouldn’t add more weight and extra expense if you can avoid it. With the new ALXR module from korejan on Github, you can emote with your tongue in compatible PC VR apps and games like VRChat.
The extension reportedly works with Meta’s AirLink and Virtual Desktop via an app called VDX. You can install a tongue-tracking extension as a local module for ALXR or as a remote module if you use ALVR streaming.
If you’re unfamiliar with VRChat and ALXR, you’ll need to do a bit of reading to understand how to use the tongue-tracking extension. In the tweet thread, there’s a link to Reddit for more details about how to get started.
Note that installing this extension won’t add tongues to your Meta avatar and can’t help with the Quest version of VRChat. Also, few games and apps support face-tracking. It’s probably only worth the effort if you are already enjoying face- or body-tracking in VRChat or another social VR app on your PC.
Google just dropped its latest AI model, Gemini 4 Carbon, designed to tackle complex coding jobs and cybersecurity threats. The company claims it can work through difficult engineering problems for days, finding hidden bugs and developing fixes across large codebases.
Gemini 4 Carbon also takes the top spot on Artificial Analysis' updated Intelligence Index, scoring 59 points, pushing out Claude Opus 5.5, OpenAI's GPT-6 Astra, and even its own predecessor Gemini 4 Argon.
Apple has just introduced a redesigned MacBook Pro with a few bells and whistles. The focus this time around is on a thinner and lighter build, and an upgrade to a touch-sensitive OLED screen without any ugly notch. And, in case you were wondering, there is definitely a price premium to pay for these niceties, which also include a glowing Apple logo at the back. What if you wanted to get the best that Apple has to offer? Well, the numbers are finally here.
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Apple has unveiled its first-ever touchscreen MacBook Pro. The company seems a bit confused about the naming, calling it the "MacBook Pro with PROLED XDR Display," which is tough to remember. If you look past that and review the full spec sheets, you might ask a genuine question: what are the differences between the touchscreen and non-touchscreen versions?
Given that Apple continues to sell both variants together, that's a genuine question. Luckily, you don't have to spend more time lining up the spec sheets side by side and hunting for differences hidden in the fine print. I took that bullet for you. Here's everything that's different between the PROLED XDR Display and the regular MacBook Pro.