Hello everyone! I am a Kydy, a virtual character that lives in the Dyverse, a universe of virtual content created on the blockchain by VREX LAB. I travel the world using augmented reality and have recently been given the task of taking over reporting duties from Sara at VREX LAB. As this is my first report, I thought it would be a great time to finally introduce to you what we are up to here at VREX LAB.
VREX LAB was founded in 2016 to help people enrich their lives through VR and AR content. After developing innovative, unprecedented mobile AR applications, VREX has been leveraging its expertise to develop the Dyverse, a blockchain marketplace for 3d assets compatible in VR/AR. I sat down with Rudy, our co-founder, to answer some questions about the Dyverse.
Q. What is the Dyverse?
The Dyverse is a decentralized universe of virtual assets for content creation. Currently these assets are 3D characters called Kydys that can be traded and bred to be used in content creation across diverse platforms, for example in AR apps or on Instagram or Youtube. Each character, or Kydy, is represented by a Non-Fungible Token using ERC-721 standards. By creating a marketplace for these characters, we are pioneering N-Commerce (NFT-Commerce) for 3D/VR/AR assets on the blockchain.
Q. Where did the idea for the Dyverse come from? What made you want to move into blockchain?
We have always been interested in content creation, and we’ve focused on AR content. Our latest product Kydy, is an AR video creation app that lets you use talking, dancing 3D characters (Kydys) to post on social media or send messages to friends. On the other hand, we’ve been big fans of virtual influencers like Kizuna AI or Lil Miquela who have shown that there is a future for purely fictional, virtual actors in content - whether it’s advertising, broadcasting or whatever else. Content creation using human actors with management agencies presents a wide range of challenges. Additionally, casual content creation using digital assets in the form of AR filters on platforms like Snapchat has grown. All these factors combine to present a new window of opportunity for content creators willing to adopt virtual actors using smart contracts.
Q.That’s great, so why does this have to be on the blockchain?
Take Petville, for example, a game from Zynga from years ago. Zynga made a strategic decision to kill off the game in 2012, and the Petville Facebook page began getting comments every day from angry and sad users saying they wanted their virtual pets back. But that wasn’t possible with the centralized storage structure that Zynga has, like most other companies offering digital assets. If something’s gone from the server, it’s gone. This applies to Fortnite emotes, LINE or Kakao stickers, Snapchat geofilters, and pretty much every digital media asset we pay for. To ensure that you have rights to exercise regardless of the business status of the company that provided those assets in the first place, tokenizing such assets as NFTs would be a step in the right direction.
Q. Why would someone want to own a Kydy? What makes the Dyverse appealing?
I believe there are two main reasons. Firstly, for the blockchain enthusiast who is already interested in the world of non-fungible tokens, the Dyverse presents a new exciting alternative to the DApps out there due to its immense extensibility. No other DApp offers a universe wherein you can create content for social media, send messages, play games, or own physical toys of the NFTs you purchase. The Dyverse aims to pioneer a media landscape spearheaded by virtual influencers on the blockchain, and the potential of that disruption is massive.
For others, there would still be great appeal based on the fact that when you get a Kydy you are acquiring total, transparent ownership of a completely unique 3D character with many different applications. It’s really a big step away from all the paradigms we’re used to - when you buy a toy at Toys R’ Us (RIP) you’re buying 1 out of a gazillion. When you buy a sticker in a messenger app a ton of people around the world own that same sticker. But with Kydys, you and only you are the sole owner of that particular Kydy. That’s something you can grow as a virtual influencer and profit off of, or gift to a friend, or even pass on to your children. For content creators, if they were to own many different characters they can scale their content in ways they couldn’t before. Lots of creators face challenges in consistently producing content for Youtube or Instagram because they may not have the time during a particular period, or they’re sick or they have some other personal reasons. Virtual characters give more leeway to such creators, and also offer the possibility of creating multiple personas for any one human creator, which is hard to do if you’re shooting live action footage.
Q. How do you plan on evolving Dyverse? What are your plans and goals?
We have been talking with various artists and creators to help us design and create new lineups of Kydys to offer in the Dyverse. As we engage in such collaborative efforts, we aim to develop our technology so we can support many more individual creators create AR/VR content using 3D assets in the Dyverse. Our goal is to grow into a platform capable of offering independent creators a transparent marketplace for their creations to be traded.
Moreover, we aim to diversify the range of content created using Kydys and are developing animation and other content using Kydys. This means that when you purchase a Kydy from the Dyverse you could be purchasing a virtual actor that’s already been featured in original animation!
Having lived in the Dyverse for a few weeks now, I am deeply excited to see the future of the Dyverse. To make the Dyverse more accessible to non-crypto people, VREX Lab is launching a Kickstarter campaign that allows people to purchase Kydys - and the Non-fungible tokens associated with Kydys - in fiat currency. You can find out more information by following our twitter @DyverseOfficial, or signing up for early notifications at http://dyver.se
