Pay crypto at Ralph Lauren

Epic Games’ metaverse vision via Creator Economy 2.0, BRICS Group toppling the US dollar, plus more metaverse stories today

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Ralph Lauren opens a new “Luxury Concept” store in downtown Miami, the first to accept crypto payments via its BitPay partnership and offers NFT gifts through a collaboration with internet leisure company Poolsuite.

The storied American fashion label is no stranger to web3-facing integrations, including a metaverse experience series with VR retail platform Emperia. However, integrating crypto payments is a first for Ralph Lauren, piloted at its Miami Luxury Concept location.

Here’s what’s in store with its newest move in web3:

  • Visitors can redeem up to 13 varying digital currencies, such as Bitcoin, Ether, Polygon, Dogecoin, and Shiba Inu.

  • Considering the crypto markets’ current volatility, eligible returns or refunds will be provided in the crypto that was originally used. It will be equal to the total dollar amount of the item being returned.

  • It will gift co-designed NFTs to all existing Poolsuite community members, with each token acting as an access pass to attend an exclusive event. Holders of Poolsuite’s Grand Leisure collection will get added perks, such as updating their avatars with a digital Ralph Lauren look.

Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney is convinced the metaverse is finally happening, and if the Fortnite creator’s monumental recent moves are any indication, it will play an instrumental role in making this belief a reality.

Epic recently unveiled its long awaited Unreal Editor for Fortnite, its user-generated content monetization plans, a unified marketplace, Metahuman Animator, and more, at State of Unreal just last week.

Its Creator Economy 2.0 is touted as a massive game changer, seeing Epic share 40% of Fortnite's net revenues with "publishers of all eligible islands, including independent creators' islands" as well as Epic's "own islands like Battle Royale."

To the metaverse frontrunner, the logic is simple: "The more we pay our creators, the more they're going to invest in their next island, the more they're going to raise the quality of the next creation. It's in our interests to give as much back as we can because you're going to make much better content."

Last week, the BRICS Group - Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa - disclosed plans toward creating a brand-new currency.

The group is mulling over the introduction of a fundamentally new currency, digital or otherwise, and it could even be backed by gold and other precious elements.

For context, the BRICS Group is positioning itself as the Global South's "alternative" to the G7 group of nations.

As perhaps even bigger context, news of this potentially new BRICS currency comes on the heels of Washington’s economic policies around crypto and the US dollar, just as a growing number of nations worldwide are also beginning to express interest in joining BRICS.

More and more firms are jumping on the bandwagon, using this shiny new technology - metaverse - to reboot their customer relationships.

3 ways the metaverse is overhauling the customer experience:

  • Creating new ways to discover and explore products. With its 3D virtual worlds, customers can get up close and personal with products like never before. It's like a virtual showroom, but cooler.

  • Fusing physical and virtual product experiences in more meaningful ways. Want to see how that couch will look in your living room? The metaverse has got you covered. It's like online shopping but with even more gains.

  • Reestablishing connections between people and brands through AI-powered bots called "digital humans." Bots can interact with users in virtual environments, giving customers a whole new level of personalization and adventure.

🏃‍♂️ Quick Hits

🎮 Gaming

  • Amid fizzling metaverse hype, Animoca’s Sandbox expands in Hong Kong with educational partnerships. (Link)

  • After months in beta mode, the PuffGo game’s official version rolls out. (Link)

  • What’s there to explore on the web3 gaming platform Meta Masters Guild? (Link)

  • ChatGPT game Electric Sheep recreates your dreams in 3D. (Link)

  • STARL launches its on and off-chain gaming metaverse. (Link)

  • Which games are best enjoyed in the metaverse? (Link)

🕶 Fashion

  • Ralph Lauren’s Miami store will begin to accept crypto payments, the retailer’s first location to do so. (Link)

  • Why did Walmart’s Universe of Play leave Roblox metaverse just 6 months after its high-profile launch? (Link)

  • Fashion brands must catch up to AI, not halt progress. (Link)

  • Filing Walmart Sam's Club trademark = retail giant’s entry into the metaverse. (Link)

  • Which luxury fashion brands are harnessing phygital NFTs? (Link)

🏀 Sports

  • Fifa launches an open beta for mobile game AI League, its first since splitting from publisher EA Sports in 2022. (Link)

  • Long-running web3 gaming startup Ultra launches its Ultra Games marketplace with a twist: letting users resell digital games. (Link)

  • From LootMogul to OKX, these companies are building the sports metaverse. (Link)

  • Stagwell’s AR platform signs Kansas City Royals to boost engagement for fans at games. (Link)

  • Gaming NFT player Jump.trade made headlines in 2022 after releasing its P2E cricket game NFTs: 55,000 NFTs selling out in 9 minutes. (Link)

🎥 Media & Entertainment

  • Woof, woof! Is Dogecoin barking up the right tree by coming to Twitter? (Link)

  • The role of the avatar in the metaverse explained. (Link)

  • WIRED staff throws a holiday party in Horizon Worlds, giving social VR a whirl - and it was surprisingly fun. (Link)

  • Video-sharing platform Bilibili launches its app to partner with blockchain network Upowerchain, stepping into the metaverse. (Link)

  • Italy probes Meta for “abusing” Society of Authors and Publishers (SIAE)'s copyright protection. (Link)

  • Music, tech, art collide in From the Canyon to the Starry Sky concert, complete with AI-composed tunes tickling the imagination. (Link

🖼 Art

  • NFT sales near $2B in March as Blur dominates the space. (Link)

  • Frida Kahlo Museum condemns unauthorized NFT creation as "destruction of cultural heritage." (Link)

  • Really, Sotheby’s all-male auction shouldn’t surprise web3 anymore. (Link)

  • OpenSea launches fee-free Pro marketplace and NFT rewards in a bid to counter Blur's NFT dominance. (Link)

  • Certhis debuts web3 NFT platform for brands and biz. (Link)

  • From virtual dates to VR cuddles, Jasper and Aidan find love in VR. (Link)

🤖 AI

  • Martha Lane Fox: “Rational AI discourse vital, not hysteria or hype.” (Link)

  • Midjourney's AI platform blocks images of Chinese president Xi Jinping, sparking ethics debate. (Link)

  • Can't find a date? AI boyfriend saves the day. (Link)

  • China’s tech old guard makes way for young blood in the AI, crypto era. (Link)

  • Here's how many US workers ChatGPT says it could replace. (Link)

  • Google claims an AI supercomputer beats the Nvidia A100 on speed and eco-friendliness. (Link)

  • Turnitin, touting itself as academic plagiarism-detecting software, demos an AI-writing detection tool. (Link)

💸 Funding & Partnerships

  • Celo Foundation and Google Cloud jointly promote Celo blockchain and Google Cloud services. (Link)

  • Polyhedra Network, a web3-infrastructure provider utilizing ZK proofs, raises $15M in a pre-Series A funding round. (Link)

  • DeFi Hub Nibiru Chain raises $8.5M in seed funding, valuing the company at $100M. (Link)

  • French investment bank Credit Agricole CIB and Swedish bank SEB collaborate to create a blockchain-based platform for digital bonds. (Link)

  • VR fitness app FitXR partners with VR company Pico and exercise tracking firm Strava toward a comprehensive fitness experience. (Link)

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All content on this newsletter is for informational purposes only and does not aim to serve as or replace expert investment advice.

📈 If you are a startup building in the metaverse / web3 ecosystem and are raising capital, please reach out to Sfermion. Sfermion is an investment firm focused on accelerating the emergence of the metaverse 📈

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