Genies Secures $150M Series C to Expand Development on Metaverse Avatars

vrcoin on April 14, 2022

Genies, a 3D avatar company, announced it’s raised a $150 million Series C investment, something it says will be used to hire more engineering talent and continue development on its non-fungible token (NFT) based “avatar universe.”

The round was led by private equity firm Silver Lake, and includes participation from existing investors BOND, NEA, and Tamarack Global. This brings the company’s total outside investment to $202 million, with the company now valued at $1 billion.

The company’s main focus for now is on avatar creator tools and digital fashion collections which it hopes will be used across the metaverse—and not just sit in a crypto wallet. The company envisions creating avatar homes and social experiences in the future—presumably also minted as tradable NFTs.

In late 2021, Genies notably inked a partnership with Universal Music Group and Warner Music Group to launch its own NFT marketplace, called ‘The Warehouse’. Users and creators on the platform can buy, sell, and trade avatars and accessories, which are minted on Dapper Labs’ blockchain network, Flow. The deal also saw NFT partnerships with a number of musicians, including Justin Bieber, Migos, Cardi B, and J Balvin.

“We believe avatar ecosystems are going to shape Web3 the same way that mobile apps defined Web2,” said Akash Nigam, CEO of Genies. “With every advancement of the internet, an expansive new region of entrepreneurial skill sets is born. In Web3, Gen Z avatar ecosystem builders are going to be the leaders of innovation and, through our creator tools, we strive to empower their wildest imaginations, ideas, and experiences as avatar creations.”

It’s not clear whether this particular blockchain tech will become the standard for digital ownership in the Web3 future, where digital property ownership is set to go well beyond pictures of cartoon apes. Just the same, many household names in the XR industry are also jumping into the NFT craze. HTC opened its own NFT marketplace in December, albeit solely dedicated to ‘flat’ NFT art for now. Meta is planning to do the same on its social network Facebook, although there’s still no clear launch date.

This article was originally published on roadtovr.com

Mastercard Could Be Preparing To Enter The Metaverse

vrcoin on April 11, 2022

One of the biggest banking institutions in America predicts that the metaverse will be a $13 trillion industry by 2030.The global financial institution Mastercard is preparing for the metaverse economy through 15 trademarks applications that would position them as the biggest payment facilitator for a virtual world powered by crypto, fintech (financial technology), and all metaverse eCommerce technologies. The news was discovered this past week when USPTO licensed trademark attorney and specialist in intellectual property Mike Kondoudis tweeted out the details of several trademark filings that included the Mastercard name, the company’s “Circles” logo, and “Priceless” slogan. The tweet also included details such as NFT backed media, payment processing in the metaverse, marketplaces for digital goods + NFTs, and eCommerce transactions in the metaverse.🚩BREAKING🚩The number of U.S. NFT trademark applications filed in 2022 has already surpassed the number filed all of last year!Here are the numbers:▶️ 2022 1967 apps filed (so far)▶️

Another Peak at VR-Enabled Cars, This Time From Holoride and Porsche

vrcoin on April 6, 2022

We’ve been keeping our eyes on holoride for a while now. The company promises VR-enabled in-vehicle entertainment and productivity applications – and they’ve delivered. However, those experiences have been demos and attractions at events, not something that an individual could actually use in their personal vehicle. holoride recently announced their first commercial installment with Porsche, featuring Cosmic Chase, holoride’s first original title, developed by Schell Games. While this is still a location-based experience currently only available at LA’s Porsche Experience Center, it does give us an exciting look at one of the experiences coming to consumer vehicles as early as this year. What Is the Experience? Schell Games is the studio behind well-known VR titles including Until You Fall, Among Us VR, and the I Expect You to Die series. If some of this is ringing a bell, Schell Games was one of the leaders in a $12M funding round

Snoop Dogg’s New Music Video Was Shot In The Metaverse

vrcoin on April 4, 2022

“Walkin’ though The Sandbox with flip-flops on…”Very few celebrities have embraced the growing Web3 industry (NFTs, crypto, the metaverse) quite like Snoop Dogg. Since his music debut back in 1992, the prolific rapper, media personality, and entrepreneur has managed to remain in the public eye thanks in large part to his fearless embrace of new technologies and mediums. So it makes sense that the West Coast native would eventually gravitate towards the metaverse.Last September it was announced that Snoop was developing his own virtual world inside The Sandbox, one of several rapidly-growing social metaverse platforms. Referred to as the “Snoopverse,” users can explore a custom virtual world featuring all things Snoop Dogg, collect valuable NFT drops, and watch exclusive in-world concerts. Snoop’s virtual world is so popular that one superfan recently spent a jaw-dropping $500,000 to be the rapper’s virtual neighbor.Earlier this month, Snoop sent shockwaves through the music industry

The 10 Coolest VR/AR Experiences From SXSW 2022

vrcoin on March 26, 2022

A SXSW to remember with who’s-who in XR creative technology showing face at the fest for the first time in two years.SXSW was back in full force last week. Masked or otherwise (Texas is pretty lax), a frenzy of wild-eyed art, music, film, and XR-hungry visitors flooded into Austin for a week of back-to-back programming. From discussions around virtual land ownership to cloth made from washable circuit boards to NFT galleries and off-site multi-player audio adventures, SXSW delighted and demanded full attention this year.In this best-of-round-up, we’ll try to capture the essence of the festival by highlighting groundbreaking XR experiences that were too novel, important, or strange to miss.RADIO GHOST (INTERACTIVE – AUDIO)Darragh: I was not sure what to expect from this experience. Mystified, I signed up for what turned out to be a whirlwind of being whisked off the premises of SXSW’s main block downtown to a mall several

Nike’s “Just Do It” Attitude Pays Off In The Metaverse

vrcoin on March 24, 2022

The company’s Nikeland metaverse proves a hit among Roblox players. Since the launch of Nikeland, a virtual world built by Nike inside the hit video game Roblox, the company has been visited by almost 7 million people from 224 countries. Here they could browse a digital store filled with Nike products and hang out with popular NBA players.During the NBA All-Star Week back in February, NBA superstar LeBron James stepped into Nikeland to talk directly with fans about basketball, give a few virtual high fives, and help motivate people to get active, either on a basketball court or in their favorite physically-active VR games. [embed]https://youtube.com/watch?v=U1yX7awE5P0&version=3&rel=1&showsearch=0&showinfo=1&iv_load_policy=1&fs=1&hl=en-US&autohide=2&wmode=transparent[/embed] “On the Nikeland court, LeBron coached and engaged with players, and participants were rewarded for physical gameplay with the ability to unlock virtual products,” said Nike’s Chief Executive and President Jack Donahoe during a Q3 earnings call.For Nike, the metaverse holds a lot of

Holoride In-Car VR Entertainment Heading To Audi Vehicles

vrcoin on March 13, 2022

Backseat VR technology will arrive on select Audi sedans and SUVs as soon as this Summer.Last month HTC Vive announced that it was partnering with in-car VR entertainment company Holoride to bring its new HTC Vive Flow to backseats everywhere.During SXSW this week it was announced that Holoride technology will be launching on select Audi sedans and SUVs with the new MIB 3 technology this Summer, offering consumers their first taste of backseat VR entertainment.Powered by a blockchain ecosystem, the platform features one-of-a-kind “Elastic Content” that takes into account everything from the speed and movement of the vehicle to the length of the trip itself. This means no two in-car VR experiences will ever be exactly the same.So, how exactly does this system work? Holoride partnered with a company called Terranet to utilize VoxelFlow, a system of sensors that captures movement data and transates it into gameplay in real-time. As

Gundam Metaverse In Development By Bandai Namco

vrcoin on March 9, 2022

The shared virtual world will feature characters from popular games like Pac-Man, Dark Souls, and Gundam.Bandia Namco, the Japanese video game and toy company with massive global appeal, recently announced plans to commit a whopping 13 billion yen ($130M USD) towards the development of a new “metaverse” experience dedicated to its most popular gaming and anime franchises.The “Gundam Metaverse,” as they are calling it, will feature a number of popular IPs, such as Pac-Man, Soul Calibur, Dark Souls, and of course plenty of giant robots from the critically-acclaimed Gundam universe. The primary goal, according to BNE (Bandai Namco Entertainment), is to help fans of the brand connect with each other through virtual concerts, movies, live events, and other social VR experiences.BNE made the announcement when the company shared its mid-term plans (April 2022 to March 2025) with shareholders detailing the three core goals of its “IP Axis Strategy.”Connecting fans through its

Spatial Hosts “First-Ever Metaverse Film Screening”

vrcoin on March 7, 2022

Late last year, enterprise remote collaboration platform Spatial announced a major pivot “to become the metaverse for cultural events such as NFT exhibitions, brand experiences, and conferences.” The platform recently made good on that endeavor in a major way, hosting the “first-ever metaverse film screening.” The premiere of the documentary film GameStop: Rise of the Players took place in a custom Spatial room on March 1 and included a screening of the film, a director Q&A, selfie opportunities and, of course, an NFT giveaway. Remembering Recent History In January of 2021, GameStop stock was struggling. Around a year earlier, the company had announced that it would be closing many locations, and many expected that the entire chain would soon follow. Members of the Reddit group r/wallstreetbets made a run on the stock. Stock value jumped from under $20 on January 8 to $325 on January 29. Some stock-trading apps

HTC Vive Shows Off Portable 5G Device With RC Cars

vrcoin on March 3, 2022

Set up a private 5G network for multiple VR headsets in under 30 minutes using the Reign Core.Today marks the final day of MWC 2022 in Barcelona and so far we’ve been treated to a variety of incredible announcements showcasing the future of connectivity. Day four of the event included informative talks featuring speakers from companies such as Amazon Web Services, Weta Digital, and Nolia as well as a plethora of incredible demos from a large list of exhibitors. One demo from HTC had attendees driving a small remote-controlled car fitted with cameras and 5G connections around a tiny racetrack using a portable 5G base station called a Reign Core.Vive Flow / Credit: HTCThose lucky enough to experience the demo had two different views of their carthanks to a couple of hi-res video feeds (POV and top-down) that were delivered using a 5G network from the Reign Core. As the drivers