Welcome to episode 15 of This Week in the Metaverse, a weekly show in which I provide commentary on three news items with fantastic guest co-hosts. Joining me today as guest co-host is Jonathan Stringfield , whom we recently hosted on our podcast! Jonathan is currently the VP of global business research and marketing at Activision Blizzard and recently published a new book - Get In The Game . Our three topics for the past week: First, we talk about investments into avatar-focused ventures and th...
Aug 28, 2022•42 min
Building an open, decentralized, democratic Internet is the aim of many web3 metaverse platforms, seeking to create a better future for our digital lives than the one controlled by walled gardens fueled by personal data. Marja Konttinen, the marketing director of Decentraland, joins us to break down the ethos of their platform, how they view the metaverse as a public good, just how nascent the development cycle of web3 metaverse platforms is and the challenges on educating new entrants into the ...
Aug 23, 2022•44 min•Season 2Ep. 18
On episode 14 of This Week in the Metaverse, Yon talks about the new partnership between the virtual influencer, Miquela, and teen retailer brand, Pacsun, and why it’s an interesting experiment. Then he closes the loop on the unsolicited acquisition proposal from AppLovin to acquire Unity which resulted in Unity’s board rejecting it and staying committed to the merger with ironSource. He finishes the episode yet another disappointing way in which Meta shares with the public the evolution of its ...
Aug 19, 2022•15 min
Second Life was one of the first examples of a proto-metaverse gaming platform, a persistent, shared, virtual world where individuals could socialize, play and learn together. We were delighted to have a wide-reaching conversation with Philip Rosedale, the the founder and creator of Second Life, where we dive into Second Life’s renaissance in the last few years, the push of large technology companies into the metaverse and what that means for its development, the prospects for more live entertai...
Aug 16, 2022•38 min•Season 2Ep. 17
On the 13th episode of This Week In the Metaverse, Yon and Matthew dive into a few key topics and circle back to ones from recent weeks with additional color and updates. First, we look at Roblox’s financial results for the second quarter of 2022, look at some of the key numbers for a strong July and look ahead to the platform’s future prospects. Yon also gives a good overview of what, as someone building a business on Roblox, he is most keen to track . Then, we circle back to Unity to discuss t...
Aug 12, 2022•30 min•Season 1Ep. 13
Wildcard is an ambitious blockchain-powered game from Playful Studios, looking to leverage blockchain in a unique and novel way to create new social connections within a AAA-quality experience. Paul Bettner, the CEO of Playful Studios, joins us to break down the ambitious Wildcard projec,t how social interactions are key in the metaverse, building great web3 games to attract the billions of global gamers and how Roblox and other UGC platforms are changing the game of game development as we enter...
Aug 09, 2022•39 min•Season 2Ep. 16
On the 12th episode of This Week in the Metaverse, we dive into three topics that are relevant to the development of the metaverse and on which we believe we can provide unique expertise and insight given our experiences and backgrounds. First, we look at a Reuters report that Unity is considering spinning off its China business. Then, we discuss another Reuters article that suggests Tencent is interested in increasing its stake in Ubisoft . And lastly, we discuss earnings reports from Activisio...
Aug 05, 2022•35 min
A common thread in our conversations on Into the Metaverse around all things crypto, blockchain and web3 is making the user experience of these applications easier to use for those that don’t fall into the category of crypto-natives. Christine Renee Perry of Skale Labs joined us to discuss how developers are trying to ease the on-ramp to web3, how Skale is positioning itself in a fast-growing web3 ecosystem and what it’s like building web3 infrastructure in crypto winter....
Aug 02, 2022•33 min•Season 2Ep. 15
On this 11th episode of This Week in the Metaverse, Yon and Matthew once again break down three key items that we deem influential to the development of the metaverse and on which we believe we can provide a unique perspective. First, we dive into Meta’s earnings and new product announcements, including news that a web-based version of Horizon and the mixed reality Cambria headset are coming out this year. Second, we discuss developer economics of Roblox after Naavik published a great article on...
Jul 29, 2022•30 min•Season 1Ep. 11
A lot of the discussion around the metaverse is just about what already exists today in online games and elevating those experiences to the next level. J onathan Stringfield, PhD , the VP of global business research and marketing at Activision Blizzard, joins us to breakdown why gaming is at the forefront of the metaverse development cycle, the influx of capital into the sector and what esports looks like in the metaverse era. And make sure to check out his new book , “Get in the Game: How to Le...
Jul 26, 2022•45 min•Season 2Ep. 14
On the latest episode of This Week in the Metaverse, Yon and Matthew once again break down three key items that are influential in shaping the development of the metaverse and on which we believe we can provide unique insight and expertise. First, we look at the announcement from Mojang that they are banning all NFT’s in Minecraft. Then, we discuss Dubai’s goal to create 40,000 blockchain and metaverse jobs over the next five years. Lastly, we look at Yuga Labs’ new tech demo for its Otherside m...
Jul 22, 2022•27 min•Season 1Ep. 10
The metaverse is emerging from interactive entertainment, most notably the gaming sector, and there’s no better authority on everything happening in gaming than VentureBeat and GamesBeat’s Dean Takahashi. We discussed a range of topics about all things gaming and the metaverse including the evolution of gaming in the metaverse era, how that compare and contrasts with Meta Platforms’ view of the metaverse, the impact of gaming consolidation and the role crypto may play in all of this.
Jul 19, 2022•44 min•Season 2Ep. 13
On the ninth episode of This Week in the Metaverse (not the eighth as mistakingly said on the recording), Yon and Matthew break down Unity’s $4.4 billion announced acquisition of ironSource and what it means for Unity’s near-term and longer-term prospects as a metaverse infrastructure company. We also look at the impact of Disney accepting Polygon into its Accelerator program to develop AR, NFT and AI experiences and supermodel Karlie Kloss’ pop-up fashion boutiques in Roblox.
Jul 15, 2022•20 min•Season 1Ep. 9
As the metaverse emerges, some applications and experiences today are already giving us a taste of what the ultimate end state of the metaverse may look like. Tim O’Reilly, CEO and Chairman of O’Reilly Media, a partner at early stage venture firm O’Reilly AlphaTech Ventures and the man who helped popularize the term Web 2.0 in the aftermath of dotcom crash, joins us to discuss the future of interactive, social, web-based experiences, where we are in the development cycle towards building the tru...
Jul 12, 2022•55 min•Season 2Ep. 12
On the eighth episode of This Week in the Metaverse, Yon is still on vacation so Matthew is joined by Aaron Bush, the co-founder of Naavik. We broke down three news items that we thought were influential to the development of the metaverse and on which we believe we can provide unique expertise and analysis. First, we debate the need for blockchain in the metaverse and what role the technology can and will play over time. Then, we dive into reports that Meta is slowing its hiring pace substantia...
Jul 08, 2022•34 min•Season 1Ep. 8
The man who coined the term “Metaverse” over 30 years ago, esteemed author and technology advisor, Neal Stephenson and his new business partner Peter Vessenes , the CEO, Chairman and Exec Founder of CoinLab and co-founder of the Bitcoin Foundation, join Yon and Matthew to have a wide-ranging discussion about all things metaverse and their new venture Lamina1 . We dove into many amazing topics including how Neal’s definition of the metaverse has evolved over the years, how blockchain technology w...
Jul 05, 2022•45 min•Season 2Ep. 11
On the seventh episode of This Week in the Metaverse, Yon is on vacation so Matthew is joined by Mario Stefanidis, the Vice President of Research at Roundhill Investments and one of our esteemed season 1 guests . We broke down three news items that we thought were influential to the development of the metaverse and on which we believe we can provide unique expertise and analysis. First, we look at TF Securities’ analyst Ming-Chi Kuo cutting his shipment forecast for Meta’s VR headsets . Second, ...
Jul 01, 2022•26 min•Season 1Ep. 7
China’s metaverse is set to evolve on a separate, parallel path to the rest of the world given consumption, regulatory and geopolitical differences. Alex Xu , the CEO of MultiMetaverse Inc, a leading animation company in China and formerly the CEO of games company Leyou Technologies, and Nina Xiang , a renowned author , award-winning journalist, and an expert on the Chinese venture capital and technology sector, join us to discuss China’s burgeoning metaverse, its parallel path to the rest of th...
Jun 28, 2022•53 min•Season 2Ep. 10
On the sixth episode of This Week in the Metaverse, Matthew and Yon break down three news items that are influential to the development of the metaverse and on which we can provide unique perspective and expertise. First, we dive into Tencent’s creation of a new XR unit to focus on building hardware and software for the metaverse. Next, we look at the creation of a new open standards setting body led by the Khronos Group for the metaverse. And lastly, we discuss the implications of Manticore ena...
Jun 24, 2022•20 min
As large technology companies invest heavily to emerge as leaders in the metaverse, the risk remains that walled gardens extend from the social-mobile era of the Internet into the metaverse era. On this episode, we chat with Professor Udi Shapiro, an interdisciplinary scientist, Internet pioneer, artist, and proponent of e-democracy. He has been with the Weizmann Institute of Science since completing his PhD at Yale University in 1982. Udi provides great insight into his work on e-democracy and ...
Jun 21, 2022•44 min•Season 2Ep. 9
On the fifth episode of This Week in the Metaverse, Matthew and Yon break down three news items that are influential to the development of the metaverse and on which we can provide unique perspective and expertise. First, we discuss the departure of COO Sheryl Sandberg from her role at Meta Platforms (nee Facebook) and what it means for the company’s growth in the metaverse. Next, we dive into the announcement that Neal Stephenson , the father of the metaverse and author of Snow Crash in which h...
Jun 17, 2022•18 min•Season 1Ep. 5
Creators are flourishing with the proliferation of non-fungible tokens and web3 technologies, empowering them with new tools to better connect with fans and collectors. We were happy to be joined by Sutu who uses art and technology in new ways to tell stories including his latest project, Neonz , which explores the full potential of an AR Metaverse. We had a wide-ranging conversation with Sutu about many topics including the empowerment of creators in the metaverse era, how intellectual property...
Jun 14, 2022•46 min•Season 2Ep. 8
On the fourth episode of This Week in the Metaverse, Matthew and Yon break down three news items that are influential to the development of the metaverse and on which we can provide unique perspective and expertise. First, we look at the announcement of new UGC games from Sky Mavis from its Builders Program . Then, we dive into the financial results of Animoca Brands , the parent company of the Sandbox. And lastly, we discuss the announcement that Gala Games’ Grit will be available on the Epic G...
Jun 10, 2022•27 min•Season 1Ep. 4
Venture investing in the metaverse is continuing at a rapid pace as investors seek to spot the next generation of multi-billion dollar tech leaders. Angela Dalton, the CEO at Signum Growth Capital and a venture partner at Griffin Gaming Partners, breaks down the outlook for VC investing in companies at the forefront of technologies and digital economies in the metaverse, what parts of the market are most exciting, the impact of recent financial market turbulence on investments and how gaming com...
Jun 07, 2022•47 min•Season 2Ep. 7
On the third episode of This Week in the Metaverse, Yon is back and he and Matthew break down three news items from the last week that are influential to the development of the metaverse. First, we look at Roblox’s hire of former Zynga CTO Nick Tornow as VP of Engineering for its Developer Team. Then, we dive into the rumors swirling about Apple’s upcoming RealityOS for a potential mixed reality headset and what this means for its metaverse aspirations. And lastly, we discuss the seed funding en...
Jun 03, 2022•28 min•Season 1Ep. 3
Unity is one of the few companies with advanced real-time 3d capabilities that is positioned to help usher in the metaverse era. Marc Whitten, the Senior Vice President of Create at Unity, joins the podcast to breakdown Unity’s growth in the metaverse, how Unity plans to unleash the creator economy by democratizing real-time 3d development tools, platform interoperability and the potential of web3 technologies as we build towards a collective vision of the metaverse.
May 31, 2022•39 min•Season 2Ep. 6
On the second episode of This Week in the Metaverse, Matthew is joined by Brian Peganoff, an advisor to several games companies and previously the Senior Director of Corporate Development & Strategy at Glu Mobile, to break down three news items and how they impacting the development of the metaverse. They look at a16z’s new $600 million Games Fund One and $4.5 billion Crypto Fund Four, the M&A rumors swirling around Electronic Arts and the games industry as a whole and earnings takeaways...
May 27, 2022•25 min•Season 1Ep. 2
On this new sub-series of Into the Metaverse called This Week In the Metaverse, Matthew and Yon give a brief rundown of some of the biggest news and events in the broader metaverse space. This week, we discuss the turbulence in financial and crypto markets and their impact on the metaverse; Epic Games announcing their competitor to Roblox and how that fits into their strategy to conquer the metaverse; and Roblox’s first quarter 2022 financial results.
May 20, 2022•31 min•Season 1Ep. 1
Decentralization is a key trend in the metaverse, empowering users and creators and seeking to break down the walled gardens of current Internet platforms. Saro McKenna, the CEO of Dacoco, the creator of the largest NFT metaverse Alien Worlds, joins us to discuss the power of decentralized organizations, making web3 technologies more accessible to more users, building through the crypto market turmoil and building a diverse metaverse for people of all walks of life.
May 17, 2022•47 min•Season 2Ep. 5
What’s it like starting a gaming company in the metaverse and web3 era? We chat with Joseph Kim, the CEO of LILA Games, about his outlook on the metaverse and web3 in gaming and how these megatrends influence product and team decisions in starting a new mobile game company. We also discuss why now may be the right time to start a gaming company based in India amid a flurry of tech growth and venture investment in the country.
May 03, 2022•31 min•Season 2Ep. 4
