By Madelaine Braggs | Rose Law Group Reporter
The full potential of the metaverse is still widely unexplored, and that’s what makes this phase of lucrative tech development most exciting. Sure, there’s high risk in investing in a new market, but for those who have set the ground work early… big name brands like Nike, Samsung and Gucci… setting up a strong footing in the metaverse is starting to pay off.
Eduardo Dávalos, Director of Metaverse Planning and Design at Rose Law Group, hosted a joint webinar with the Consejo Nacional de Estudiantes de Arquitectura and Federacion de Colegios de Arquitectos de la Republica Mexicana, broadcasting from Mexico City, to give an informative session covering the basic vocabulary, suggested programs and skills, and real-world business applications for the future.
How it all began…
Dávalos says it’s been a whirlwind experience shifting from traditional architecture to designing interactive structures in the digital space. “I saw this and thought wait… I have to get in to this space I want to stop being a regular architect I want to be a metaverse architect,” he said.
First, he learned how to code. Then he posted his interest for work on Reddit.
“I started getting hits boom boom boom.. my first project was like a tavern, then a gallery of NFTs, and then I met the Rose Law Group, who I work with now.”
Omar Abdallah, Web3 Attorney at the firm recalls, “I had seen a few listings on Reddit, but Eduardo’s work really stood out. I knew right away he was the one we wanted to work with.”
Arizona’s largest woman-founded lawfirm contracted Dávalos to build their metaverse office on the Decentraland platform, which can be accessed with any web browser and a meta wallet, which is an extension application that is necessary for linking cryptocurrency funds to the metaverse platform of your choosing.
“The firm contracted me to build their office, we did it, and to my surprise they offer me a job. They wanted me to be their in-house architect. Rose Law Group is a law firm in Arizona, that detected there’d be a market for lawyers in metaverse. So, we got in.” They built a team of lawyers, a blockchain developer and a digital architect… a strategic team to be able to help other business also get in the metaverse.
Dávalos points out that unlike in traditional brick-and-mortar development, you can build and ‘tear down’ anything on your metaverse lot with a click, or in this case a code. Now the Rose Law Group office space also doubles as an event space, where clients can commission any structure of venue to fit their needs.
Open for business!
Big brand names are investing especially in the marketing value of offering immersive virtual engagement to add on to the consumer experience.
Gucci, for example, recently launched a floral immersive experience in Roblox to promote a new perfume campaign. The celebrity face in the ads is Miley Cyrus, and their virtual space even features a Miley Cyrus interactive avatar. Gucci also designed a ‘wearable’ purse that sold for upwards of six million dollars. Wearables are customized clothes and accessories people purchase for their avatars.
The metaverse is going couture. Paris Fashion Week built a structure that could have never passed zoning and construction regulations in real life, but served as a virtual reality extension to their exclusive VIP runways. At that event, Paris Hilton’s avatar hosted a concert. Samsung is also promoting their new products with an immersive experience filled with games and quests.
“My first event with RLG was phenomenal…” Dávalos said. “The meta-marriage! We made a party in the metaverse packed with people from around the world. I was practically a wedding planner… I interviewed the couple, Ryan and Candice, asked them what would their dream wedding be like and we coded it. Instead of wedding gift baskets we had gave away an NFT collection called Pepper Pups, after their dog Pepper.”
Dávalos says promotional and social events will keep taking off, but what he’s excited to see is the next big social media hub to launch in VR. Whoever successfully does it first, is likely to give companies like Meta (formerly known as Facebook,) and TikTok competition in dominating those arenas. The competition between the social media giants is already intense.
Proceed with caution
What makes the metaverse’s crypto-economy exciting and interesting, is also what makes it risky. With such a new technology, comes scammers taking advantage of those who are too unfamiliar with blockchain to fully investigate smart contracts and NFT transactions. That’s why Dávalos says it helps to have a legal team who can scrutinize the deal.
“With projects… examine, examine, examine. Make sure you have a professional and experienced team that’s able to audit those smart contracts and can look through the blockchain’s transaction history.”
One of the most commons questions people have about metaverse pertains to which platform someone should choose to buy in, and if anyone can make a metaverse platform, what gives my metaverse lot any value?
It’s first important to understand that the two most popular metaverse platforms, Decentraland and Sandbox do not have infinite lot space. They created a limited supply of lots, which are also considered NFTs. Their value is based on cryptocurrencies, which flux just like the regular stock market.
Dávalos answered, “A lot of people are going to want to build metaverse platforms… so many, that many won’t actually launch and if they do, they’ll just flop. So, you want to invest in one that has been established since earlier stages and has history in the industry. Otherwise, you’ll have a digital asset that holds no value on a platform that’s no longer running.”
How do I get started?
Is the first step to entering the metaverse buying those huge and heavy VR goggles? Dávalos says no. “You don’t need to buy VR glasses, you need to take coding classes. Take a TypeScript or a Blender class.” Popular metaverse platforms like Decentraland, Sandbox, and Roblox do not require any additional hardware, just a smart device with wifi.
Opportunities to profit off digital assets are rapidly growing and lucratively enticing, whether you’re looking to design metaverse architecture, develop smart contracts or customize digital outfits. But it’s not as easy as playing video games.
You need the time and the “ganas para rascarlo,” as Dávalos put it, which from Spanish literally translates to “the urge to itch it,” but what it truly means is… you have to have the insatiable dedication to master these skills to truly get started.
Whether you’re looking to become a metaverse architect like Eduardo, a blockchain developer, an NFT artist, or have a digital assets smart contract that needs auditing, Rose Law Group can help you get started. Reach out and tell us a little about what projects you’re interested in getting off the ground. The Digital Assets team at the firm was created by a non-stop shop to help businesses and entrepreneurs tap into the metaverse with full confidence.
Follow @roselawgroupmeta and @metaversearchitect_ on Instagram to learn more.
Tune in to the full webinar (in Spanish) on Facebook or Spotify
