A man walks past an electric screen during the South by Southwest (SXSW) Conference and Festivals in Austin, Texas, the United States, March 13, 2022. (Xinhua/Xu Jianmei)
AUSTIN, the United States, March 14 (Xinhua) -- The annual innovation awards of the South by Southwest Conferences and Festivals were announced at a ceremony held here on Monday, after more than 60 finalists from around the world had demonstrated their projects to vie for the honor.
The 10-day event, which opened Friday in Austin, the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, features numerous conferences, exhibitions, musical concerts, interactive displays, world film premieres and celebrity appearances.
The projects presented at the Innovation Awards Finalists Showcase on Monday span 13 categories, including innovation in connecting people, health, new economy, smart city, as well as virtual, augmented and mixed reality, or VR, AR and MR.
The awards "recognize the most exciting tech developments in the connected world," the organizers said.
Quicktome, a neurosurgery platform which backs each incision with detailed knowledge of the brain's networks built specifically for each patient, won this year's award in the field of artificial intelligence and machine learning.
According to the U.S. media company Business Wire, Quicktome is "the world's first and only software to non-invasively map human brain networks in astonishing detail."
In the field of robotics and hardware, a weeding machine called Vulcan, Bulletproof Precision Weeding was announced the winner. Automating the weeding process in vegetables like leafy greens, cauliflower, and broccoli, it allows farmers to streamline operations and increase food production efficiency.
UBQ Materials, an Israeli clean-tech company, beat other rivals in the category of "speculative design" with its new plastic alternative technologies, which allow waste to be 3D printed into valuable products at a fraction of their normal cost.
Osso VR, a leading VR surgical training and assessment platform headquartered in San Francisco, became this year's winner in the field of VR, AR and MR.
Strap Tech, a company based in Austin, won the innovation award in wearable technology by developing a smart device for those visually impaired to move faster and safer in their daily life.
Each year, the finalists are judged by a panel of industry experts and peers based on four criteria: form, function, creativity and overall experience, according to the event organizers.
Beyond the awards, NFT (non-fungible tokens) artworks, an unmanned electronic truck, several AR, VR or MR clinic training programs, and a three-bedroom house with a concrete structure built by a 3D printer within 10 days, were also shown at the ongoing event.
"I've been coming since 1994 ... There're always so many new, interesting, exciting things to do here and see, and it just blows your mind," Sheryl Leven, an attendee, told Xinhua during the Innovation Awards Finalist Showcase. ■
Photo taken on March 13, 2022 shows the scene of Creative Industries Expo at the South by Southwest (SXSW) Conference and Festivals in Austin, Texas, the United States. (Xinhua/Xu Jianmei)
Osso VR, a leading VR surgical training and assessment platform headquartered in San Francisco, and winner in the field of VR, AR and MR, is displayed at the SXSW Innovation Awards Finalist Showcase in Austin, Texas, the United States, March 12, 2022. (Xinhua/Xu Jianmei)
A structurally 3D printed house is displayed at the South by Southwest (SXSW) Conference and Festivals in Austin, Texas, the United States, March 13, 2022. (Xinhua/Xu Jianmei)
