Warning all parents: Roblox has added 3D virtual goods to their store. In an effort to boost revenue after a 72% drop in stock last year, Roblox, a popular gaming platform for kids, is giving subscribers to its upper-tier premium plans to create and sell 3D goods. Previously, premium users could only create and sell 2D goods like custom virtual clothing, and could only do so after applying to the company’s user-generated content (UGC) program and being approved. The process will be carried over to the creation and selling of 3D assets as well.

Show me the money: The company, which went public in 2021 with a market cap of USD 38 bn, primarily generates revenue from the sales of Robux, the in-game currency. Customers can use Robux to buy virtual items within the games, the revenues of which are shared with the game developer. After last year’s stock plunge, which left the company valued at USD 18 bn, they started offering online ads on the platform. Allowing 3D UGC could see a rise in paid subscribers willing to spend money (both real and virtual) for the feature. Users looking to contribute to UGC must provide photo identification.

The future of Roblox may rely on a suite of communication services. Roblox Connect will let users make phone calls to other users on the platform, opening up a whole new category of concerns regarding user safety, as more that 50% of users are under 13 and 25% are over 18. Popular Roblox streamers will be able to offer subscription-based services, giving content creators a way to generate recurring revenue from fans. The company is also working on a digital assistant to help users create content using conversational dialogue with the AI tool instead of needing to use code. Roblox is slated to be launched on the PlayStation store in October, and will be available to Meta Quest VR headset users this month.

Virtual reality (VR) is being incorporated into medical curricula to train surgeons in the US, with some teaching hospitals even making the technology mandatory, CNBC reports. Medical professionals have used VR to simulate procedures such as anterior hip replacement and shoulder replacement, among other operations. And while VR does not replace real-life medical experience, softwares such as PrecisionOS have been described as “very realistic” and “sophisticated,” helping medical residents expedite their training and hone their skills without causing any risk to patients.

VR has health applications for patients, too. Headsets — although still a little “clunky” — have other functions beyond the worlds of entertainment and education. The US Department of Veteran Affairs (VA), for instance, has been using VR in several facilities to assist with pain management and rehabilitation. Short sessions have successfully helped some patients go from “excruciating pain [...] to actually get up and move and get ready to go home,” the immersive program manager at the VA was quoted as saying.

But cost remains an issue: Aside from physical headsets like Meta’s Quest 2 or Apple’s anticipated Vision Pro, the price of softwares is quite hefty, particularly as the latter require constant updating to provide best practices and ensure quality care. Companies like Meta are also bearing the financial brunt of the technology: Since early 2022, the former Facebook’s Reality Labs unit has lost upwards of USD 21 bn.

First Arm. Now Instacart tests the waters of the US IPO market — at a cut price: Instacart is expected to have its valuation slashed as it kicks off its IPO this week. The US grocery delivery company is looking for a valuation of USD 8.6 bn to USD 9.3 bn, as little as a quarter of the USD 39 bn price tag it fetched in a fundraising round in 2021, according to the Wall Street Journal. The San Francisco-headquartered company will begin marketing to institutional investors this week and is being seen as a litmus test for listings of other VC-backed tech startups, which have shied away from public offerings over the past two years due to challenging market conditions. The Financial Times also has coverage.

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