It’s been a busy week in the world of the metaverse, capped off by a fascinating display of the next generation of 3D avatars as Mark Zuckerberg and Lex Fridman recorded a podcast fully in their Codec Avatar form via a Meta Quest headset.  To break this and all the latest news down, Yon is once again joined by Priya David Clemens in this edition of Yon & Priya Talk All Things Metaverse. During their conversation, Yon & Priya cover what we saw and learned from Zuck’s podcast appearance, the recent layoffs at Epic Games, where Roblox is headed coming out of their developer conference, and much more. Chapters: Zuckerberg Brings Podcasting into the Metaverse (00:35) Human Expression Brought to Life (04:40) Layoffs at Epic Games (07:35) Roblox Thoughts Coming Out of RDC23 (10:48) Expectations and Excitement for Meta Quest 3 Release (13:50) Learn more about Into the Metaverse and Yon by visiting the website. Follow Yon: LinkedIn | Twitter Learn more about Supersocial by visiting the website. Priya is the host of the Emmy-award winning news discussion program, KQED Newsroom, and a longtime network news anchor and reporter who has most recently begun to focus her journalistic eye on emerging technology. Learn more about Priya David Clemens by visiting her website. Follow Priya: LinkedIn | TikTok | | Twitter

This week Yon welcomes Dan Sturman into the metaverse. Dan is a world class technologist, having spent time leading software and engineering teams and departments at IBM, Google, and Cloudera, before taking on his current role as CTO of Roblox nearly four years ago.  Coming off of all of the news and announcements made at last weekend’s Roblox Developers Conference 2023 (RDC23) it’s an incredible time to get to chat with Dan about all things Roblox and metaverse. During their conversation Yon and Dan discuss the importance of Roblox remaining a turnkey platform, how to enable efficiency in the creator marketplace, the new Roblox Connect feature and what that experience will be like, evolving a platform to match a maturing audience, getting to one billion daily active users, and much more. Chapters: Defining the Metaverse (01:15) What Attracted Dan to the Challenge of Building Roblox (04:32) Differentiating Roblox as a Turnkey Platform (08:15) Creation and the Building of Business On Top of Roblox (13:12) Enabling Efficiency in the Creator Marketplace (19:10) The Importance of Communication and Roblox Connect (22:28) Expansion onto MetaQuest and Playstation (30:10) Evolving the Games and Experiences for a Maturing Audience (33:28) What Needs to be True for Roblox to Get to a Billion DAU (37:35) Supporting Different Needs for Different Creator Types to Monetize (42:08) Blockchain and the Future of Interoperability (45:54) What is Dan Most Excited About for Next Twelve Months (48:22) To learn more about the Roblox platform, visit their website. Follow Roblox: YouTube | Instagram | Twitter Follow Dan: LinkedIn | Twitter  Learn more about Into the Metaverse and Yon by visiting the website. Follow Yon: LinkedIn | Twitter Learn more about Supersocial by visiting the website.

This week Yon welcomes Sam Peurifoy into the metaverse. Sam brings a wealth of knowledge and an investment lens to the podcast, as he is a partner and the head of interactive at Hivemind Capital, a Web3 and blockchain technology focused investment firm. During their conversation Yon and Sam discuss if the fictionalized nightmare of corporate overlords running the metaverse is realistic, talk about what actually took place during the first wave of Web3, break down how open source software can work inside of a corporate model, and much more. Chapters: Defining the Metaverse (01:00) Avoiding the Corporate Overlord Scenarios of Fiction (03:10) Relationship Between Simplified Use and Platform Control (07:55) What Really Happened in the First Wave of Web3 (10:50) How Open Source Software Inside of a Corporate Model Can Work (16:25) How Does Hivemind Approach the Web3 Investment Landscape (19:15) Sector Sam is Most Excited About in the Next Year (23:00) Learn more about Hivemind by visiting their website. Get in touch with Sam via his website. Follow Sam: LinkedIn | Twitter | Medium Watch Sam’s podcast, Web3 Wednesdays, on YouTube. You can also check out Yon’s interview on Web3 Wednesday’s with Sam by visiting here. Learn more about Into the Metaverse and Yon by visiting the website. Follow Yon: LinkedIn | Twitter Learn more about Supersocial by visiting the website.

This week Yon welcomes Tian Lim into the metaverse. Tian currently serves as the VP of Product at Roblox, with a specific focus on creators. Prior to Roblox, Tian’s career path featured high level roles at companies like Google, Hulu, Sony, Microsoft, and more, giving him a deep knowledge of where the world of gaming and virtual communities has been, where it stands today, and where it may be headed in the future. During their conversation Yon and Tian discuss the democratization of creation tools, why creators will drive the future of Roblox, how to remain an egalitarian platform at scale, opportunities for brands within the Roblox ecosystem, and much more. Chapters: Defining the Metaverse (01:10) The Potential in Roblox that Attracted Tian to Work There (02:50) Democratizing the Tools of Creation (07:30) Evolution of Creator Enablement (11:55) Power of Creation and the Ability to Earn on Roblox (15:20) Remaining an Egalitarian Platform at Scale (20:50) Visibility and Transparency Into Roblox’s Tech Roadmap (23:26) Opportunities for Brands and Their Place in the Roblox Ecosystem (25:47) Role of AI, Interoperability, and Blockchain (31:25) Ecosystem vs Platform and Building for the Future (37:53) To learn more about the Roblox platform, visit their website. Follow Roblox: YouTube | Instagram | Twitter Follow Tian: LinkedIn Learn more about Into the Metaverse and Yon by visiting the website. Follow Yon: LinkedIn | Twitter Learn more about Supersocial by visiting the website.

This week Yon welcomes John Linden into the metaverse. Currently the CEO of Mythical Games, John has formerly been President at Seismic Games overseeing such games as Marvel’s Strike Force, and Studio Head at Activision overseeing multiple iterations of the Call of Duty franchise. With this extensive background in the gaming world, John is one of the best people to speak with about what has and has not worked in this industry and where things may be headed. During their conversation Yon and John discuss the role of blockchain in enabling a true user owned internet, how to bring interoperability into gaming and the metaverse, empowering players to create their own content, the financial aspects of the industry past and present, the futures of Mythical Games’ different gaming properties, and much more. Chapters: How Does John Define the Metaverse (01:15) Role of Blockchain Enabling a True User Owned Internet (04:25) How Interoperability Can Work (06:45) Building the Next Generation of Gaming (12:50) Empowering the Player to Create Content (19:25) Monetization and Building a Digital Supply Chain (22:45) Mythos Foundation and Building a Marketplace Currency (29:50) The Financialization of Web3 (35:40) What’s Next for Blankos, NFL Rivals, and Nitro Nation (42:45) Potential Order of Magnitude Progress in the Next Year (47:54) To view all Mythical Games has to offer, visit their website. Learn more about the Mythos Foundation and token by visiting their website. Follow John: LinkedIn | Instagram | Twitter Learn more about Into the Metaverse and Yon by visiting the website. Follow Yon: LinkedIn | Twitter Learn more about Supersocial by visiting the website.

In this episode Yon welcomes Aiden Slavin into the metaverse. Aiden leads the Metaverse Governance team at the World Economic Forum, where he and all of the metaverse related teams at WEF have been hard at work researching and writing a five part series of reports on building a responsible metaverse that have just begun to be released.    During their conversation Yon and Aiden delve into data privacy in the metaverse, the need for metaverse literacy, how different generations will adopt and interact with the metaverse, the role AI will play in the expansion of the metaverse, and much more. Chapters: What is the Metaverse to Aiden (01:10) Data Privacy in the Metaverse (03:05) Privacy and Safety by Design (07:25) The Need for Metaverse Literacy (08:50) Adoption and Use by Different Generations of Users (13:08) Role AI Will Play in Expansion and Popularization of the Metaverse (16:50) Relationship Between Thought Leaders, Regulators, Business Leaders (21:30) Translating “Don’t Be Evil” Into Software Development Principle (23:25) One Thing Aiden is Most Excited for in Next 12 Months (25:40) To learn more about the World Economic Forum’s Defining and Building the Metaverse Initiative, visit here. To read the Social Implications of the Metaverse report from the Value Creation track, visit here. To read the Metaverse Privacy and Safety report from the Governance track, visit here. Follow Aiden: LinkedIn  Learn more about Into the Metaverse and Yon by visiting the website. Follow Yon: LinkedIn | Twitter Learn more about Supersocial by visiting the website.

In this episode Yon welcomes Connie Kuang into the metaverse. Connie leads the Metaverse & Generative AI Value Creation team at the World Economic Forum, where she and her team have been hard at work researching and writing a five part series of reports on building a responsible metaverse that have just begun to be released.    During their conversation Yon and Connie discuss what value creation in the metaverse looks like, key challenges in bridging technological gaps, why access to new technologies is paramount, aspects of the World Economic Forum’s upcoming metaverse reports, and much more. Chapters: Introducing Connie (00:20) What is the Metaverse (01:15) Value Creation in the Metaverse (04:00) Key Challenges in Bridging the Technological Gap (06:30) Moderating Involvement in the Evolution of the Metaverse (11:40) Need for Access and Its Relation to Adoption (17:15) Five Dimensions Outlined in Upcoming WEF Metaverse Report (21:20) One Key Insight from the Report that has Connie Excited (24:40) Being an Extension of the Human Experience Not a Replacement (28:15) To learn more about the World Economic Forum’s Defining and Building the Metaverse Initiative, visit here. To read the Social Implications of the Metaverse report from the Value Creation track, visit here. To read the Metaverse Privacy and Safety report from the Governance track, visit here. Follow Connie: LinkedIn  Learn more about Into the Metaverse and Yon by visiting the website. Follow Yon: LinkedIn | Twitter Learn more about Supersocial by visiting the website.

The last few weeks have been incredibly exciting as Yon and the Supersocial team saw the launch of Piñata Smashlings, their collaboration effort with toy company Toikido to build a new brand that combines a gaming experience and community with the physical world of toys, trading cards, and more.  With this launch happening, it felt like the perfect time for Yon to welcome Darran Garnham, Founder and CEO of Toikido, into the metaverse. During their conversation Yon and Darran first discuss the overall power of the metaverse in helping you find your people, how industries that serve kids need to adapt to new technologies, and the fundamentals that make Roblox so unique and relevant, before diving into what Piñata Smashlings and the Piñataverse are, how it came about, the depth of story they hope to provide, and much more about this exciting new world.  Chapters: The Power of the Metaverse to Help You Find Your People (01:10) Bringing Toys and Characters to the Intersection of Digital and Physical (04:40) How Industries that Serve Kids Need to Adapt (08:00) Fundamentals that Make Roblox so Relevant and Unique (12:55) The Piñata Smashlings Universe and the Depth of Story It Provides (21:30) The Launch of Piñata Smashlings and Attempting to Build Generational Relevance (29:15) Learn more about Piñata Smashlings by visiting here. Learn more about Toikido by visiting their website. Follow Toikido: LinkedIn | Instagram  Follow Darran: LinkedIn Learn more about Into the Metaverse and Yon by visiting the website. Follow Yon: LinkedIn | Twitter Learn more about Supersocial by visiting the website.

This week Yon welcomes Itamar Benedy into the metaverse. Itamar is the co-founder and CEO of Anzu, the world’s most advanced intrinsic in-game ad solution for mobile, PC, console, and the metaverse.  Anzu’s goal is to put players first and help advertisers reach audiences in a non-disruptive and highly engaging way. As Itamar states, “the metaverse is the digital twin of the physical world,” and he and his company are on the forefront of bringing an ad and marketing experience to the metaverse that matches its physical world counterparts. During their conversation, Yon and Itamar discuss how to build a positive ad experience within the metaverse, the opportunities the new scale of gaming brings, how advertising can operate and scale differently in an open platform vs a closed platform, and much more. Chapters: Defining the Metaverse and How New Technologies Will Shape It (01:32) Building a Positive Ad Experience Within the Metaverse (04:05) New Scale Post-Pandemic Brings New Opportunities in Gaming (10:15) What Marketers and Brands Think About the Metaverse and Gaming (14:45) The Line Between an Ad and a Branded Video Game (19:15) How Advertising Can Scale in Open vs Closed Platform Virtual Environments (23:00) Why the Next Twelve Months May Be the Tipping Point (28:20) Learn more about Anzu by visiting their website. Follow Anzu: LinkedIn | YouTube | Discord | Twitter  Follow Itamar: LinkedIn | Twitter  Learn more about Into the Metaverse and Yon by visiting the website. Follow Yon: LinkedIn | Twitter Learn more about Supersocial by visiting the website.

Yon is once again joined by Priya David Clemens to discuss the most important and interesting news stories related to the Metaverse in this week’s edition of Yon & Priya Talk All Things Metaverse. In this episode, Yon & Priya react to the latest hyperbolic article claiming the metaverse is dead, discuss the opportunity Roblox affords its young developers, reflect on the Niantic layoffs, and much more. Chapters: Reacting to The Nation article, Lessons from the Catastrophic Failure of the Metaverse (01:20) The First Generation Leaving a 3D Record of Themselves (05:35) Opportunity Roblox Affords to Young Developers (08:00) Niantic Layoffs and Why They Can’t Repeat the Pokemon Go Success (11:25) Apple Scales Back Units and Ship Date for Vision Pro (14:45) Learn more about Into the Metaverse and Yon by visiting the website. Follow Yon: LinkedIn | Twitter Learn more about Supersocial by visiting the website. Priya is the host of the Emmy-award winning news discussion program, KQED Newsroom, and a longtime network news anchor and reporter who has most recently begun to focus her journalistic eye on emerging technology. Learn more about Priya David Clemens by visiting her website. Follow Priya: LinkedIn | TikTok | | Twitter