RE:Snapdragon 888 September/14th NR was when we first heard of a deeper relationship with Qualcomm, and ALIIS being integrated into cameras firmware.
https://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/richard-geruson-nexoptic-chairman-announces-134500611.html
"As a Qualcomm Advantage Network (“QAN”) ecosystem partner, the Company has begun a new phase of advanced build into Qualcomm’s camera firmware. This brand-new collaboration offers NexOptic a deeper integration into Qualcomm’s new Snapdragon chipsets"
November/23rd NR announcing the completion of the integration announced September/14th.
https://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/rich-geruson-nexoptic-chairman-announces-174500145.html
Nexoptic announces it has recently completed the optimization of ALIIS™ for use with the latest Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. Reference Devices with participation from Qualcomm Technologies’ engineers.
This deep optimization with Snapdragon® mobile platforms’ camera framework creates a new hybrid image signal processing pipeline, whereby NexOptic’s Aliis neural network technology provides advanced lighting improvement for real time video applications.
Richard Geruson, Chairman of NexOptic. “By no means are we limited to Smartphone applications; working alongside Qualcomm Technologies has created a tremendous opportunity to showcase Aliis’ capabilities and the value it adds to all Snapdragon platform applications like automotive, mobile computing, wearables, industrial and commercial, and AR/VR.”
AR/VR stand out to me as a major case use for the Metaverse, potentially data compression as well.
https://www.fool.com/investing/2021/11/26/did-qualcomm-just-reveal-meta-biggest-secret/
"The second-generation Quest used the new Snapdragon XR2 SoC, which was specifically designed with VR and AR devices in mind. The chipset can be tethered to seven concurrent cameras to track a user's motions and gestures, supports 8K 360-degree videos, provides 3D audio, and supports AI processing features for voice commands.
Qualcomm is selling more VR/AR chips to diversify its core business away from the smartphone market."