Interoperability has long been a key guiding principle of the Metaverse—a vision that we can bring our digital identity and assets with us as we travel between virtual worlds.
Today, however, most games and virtual worlds are closed economies that are not interoperable with each other. From Fortnite to Minecraft to League of Legends, most games don’t allow players to trade or hold their digital assets outside of a centrally defined space.
We believe that the next generation of games and virtual worlds will be built with interoperability as a core principle. Instead of keeping players inside walled gardens, the virtual worlds that make up the open Metaverse will empower players to own their own identities and take their digital assets wherever they go. These open economies will be bigger and more sustainable than any closed economy game we’ve seen yet, with players deeply invested in their assets and drivers of innovation as co-creators/co-owners of the world around them.
That’s why I’m excited to announce that Andreessen Horowitz is leading the Series B for Ready Player Me, a leading platform for avatars in various games, and that I’m joining the board. Ready Player Me (RPM) provides developers with a customizable plug-and-play system for 3D avatars. Instead of spending time rebuilding complex avatar creators, developers can focus on what matters most – the gameplay experience – and get to market faster.
Developers love Ready Player Me. Over 3,000 apps on both web2 and web3 already integrate RPM, including VRChat, Spatial, Somnium Space, IGG, Pixelynx, RTFKT and many more. RPM offers developers a distribution advantage by introducing them to a cross-game network of over 5 million avatars. Developers can also find new revenue opportunities by selling schematics and interoperable assets for RPM avatars – these assets can be traded across the network with creators receiving a royalty for each transaction.
For gamers, RPM makes it quick and easy to create great looking 3D avatars. Players can create a custom avatar by simply uploading a selfie (try it on their website) and export their avatar instantly to any partner experience. Avatars are fully customizable and players love to share their unique creations across TikTok, Twitter and Discord. Almost all RPM partners discovered the platform through content sharing or word of mouth.
Create 3D avatar through a selfie
Longer term, RPM is building the interoperable identity protocol for the open Metaverse – enabling players and developers alike to take their identity and assets with them into any 3D experience.
The RPM avatar system is the cumulative product of over 8 years of R&D. Early on, the company built custom avatar systems and technology for enterprise clients such as Tencent, Verizon, HTC and Wargaming. Over the years, they amassed a proprietary database of 20,000+ face scans captured with the company’s own hardware-based 3D scanners. These scans enable RPM to build a deep learning solution that can accurately predict and render realistic faces from a single 2D photo. This system works on desktop, web and mobile and is available to developers through a powerful SDK and API.
Over the past year, we’ve been privileged to get to know CEO Timmu Tõke and co-founders Kaspar Tiri, Rainer Selvet and Haver Järveoja. We have been deeply impressed by the team’s blend of developer sensitivity, technical acumen and business pragmatism. The founders have assembled a talented team with experience in gaming, virtual worlds, social selling and enterprise. And best yet, they’re looking for more superstars to join the team!
We couldn’t be more excited to partner with Timmu and the entire Ready Player Me team as they build the identity protocol for the open Metaverse!
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