 Encore, a live AR interactive music app co-founded by Kid Cudi, raised $9M in Seed funding led by Battery Ventures with participation from 468 Capital, Parade Ventures, Nomad Ventures, and more. The company also announced the official launch of the Encore Studio App that brings hip-hop artists and fans together for jam-packed musical performances in the metaverse. More: - The company was founded by technology entrepreneur Jonathan Gray, award-winning artist Kid-Cudi, and Hollywood producer and director Ian Edelman.
- Encore offers hip-hop artists the opportunity to tell their stories, release new music, and interact with their fans. The app allows artists to create live performances in front of thousands of fans with an option to customize their virtual stage with augmented reality overlays.
- While in private beta, the app had already successfully hosted live virtual events by artists such as SSGKobe, The Cool Kids, Too $hort, DC the Don, and more.
- Thousands of fans join each day to support their favorite artists through "virtual claps." Each clap costs 10 cents, and the app has already generated over a million claps in beta.
- There is no cost for fans or artists to utilize the app. Revenue comes from the claps that fans purchase to support the artist.
- When fans purchase claps, it also gives them exclusive access to interact, watch live shows, and engage with the artist.
Zoom out: - To watch live AR performances, download the Encore Studio App for free by visiting the Apple store or Play store.
- Users can choose from a library of digital images or upload their own content to explore and create their own unique experiences.
- Users can record directly using their smartphone cameras and build these AR experiences.
- The Inside.com/XR team recently interviewed CEO Jonathan Gray to learn more about Encore. You can find the recording of the full event here.
Billboard 
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 Walt Disney Company has appointed Mike White to lead its metaverse strategy. Disney believes that the metaverse is an evolution of its nearly 100-year-old storytelling tradition. White will lead the company's metaverse efforts as the Senior Vice President for Next Generation Storytelling and Consumer Experiences. More: - White has been involved with the company for over 10 years.
- The metaverse strategy will involve allocating resources, exploring partnerships, and knowledge sharing on the metaverse ecosystem.
- His team will focus on technology development, operations and business strategy, and storytelling in virtual reality.
- Disney's streaming services added 11.8 million subscribers in the last quarter of 2021.
- The company has a total of 130 million subscribers worldwide to date.
- CEO Bob Chapek described the metaverse as "the next great storytelling frontier" to be explored and a "perfect place to pursue our strategic pillars of storytelling excellence, innovation, and audience focus."
BBC
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 Mark Zuckerberg has unveiled Meta's new values: "Move fast," "build awesome things," and, most importantly, "live in the future." Zuckerberg even went on to call his employees "Metamates" as the firm looks forward to making a big shift toward the next iteration of the internet. More: - Zuckerberg explained that Meta is now a metaverse company that will focus on social connections rather than a social media company.
- In a blog post, Mark Zuckerberg explains that he wanted to recalibrate the company policies that have not been updated since 2007.
- After the company released its most recent earnings report, which showed slower growth and revenue hits due to the new focus, it lost more than $230B in market value as Meta's stock declined. However, Zuckerberg believes that the metaverse is a worthy venture that will pay off in the long term.
- The company wants to stay focused on long-term impact instead of immediate fallouts.
- Zuckerberg writes," 'Focus on long-term impact' emphasizes long-term thinking and encourages us to extend the timeline for the impact we have, rather than optimizing for near-term wins."
- Facebook is encouraging people to apply for jobs with the company in areas of metaverse development and artificial reality.
- The company has also acquired a customer service management platform for an undisclosed amount.
The Guardian
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 J.P. Morgan is entering the metaverse, making it the first bank to enter the ecosystem to create a virtual "Onyx lounge." The lounge is built in the Decentraland metaverse platform. J.P. Morgan released a metaverse report that suggests the bank may operate as a bank in the virtual world similar to the physical world. More - The metaverse will have its own community, GDP, and currency. Therefore, the bank is looking to facilitate crossborder payments, foreign exchange, financial assets creation, trading, and safekeeping.
- J.P. Morgan recognizes the vast opportunities in the virtual world and plans to "play a major role in the metaverse."
- The bank is making an early move to help facilitate transactions, account validation, and fraud prevention in the metaverse.
- The firm will also help content creators to commercialize their creations in the metaverse in areas of collecting commissions and financing their endeavors.
USA Today
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Roblox shares dropped 11% in after-hours trading Tuesday despite having 49.5 million daily active users and 33% YoY growth. The company missed its fourth-quarter expectations on both the top and bottom lines. More: - Roblox is a unique open gaming platform that lets players create their own virtual worlds and experiences.
- This was the first metaverse-centric company to go public.
- Here is a comparison of how the company did versus expectations:
- Revenue: $770M generated vs $772M expected
- Loss per share: 25 cents vs. 13 cents expected
- The company is growing with a reported 49.5 million daily active users, which is up by 33% year-over-year.
CNBC
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Niantic Inc. has partnered with Sony to combine AR technology with audio capabilities for upcoming headphones. The new collaboration will allow the companies to combine their technologies to enhance gaming experiences and develop headphones that have an auditory augmented reality experience. The new technology will allow users to enjoy the sound of the virtual world from headphones and at same time capture the sounds of the physical world. More: - Niantic is a provider of AR technology and is well known for the development of Pokémon GO.
- The partners will work together to integrate Niantic's AR capabilities with Sony's audio technology for auditory AR headsets and develop the required software.
- Niantic VP Setsuto Murai said, "Sony is a global brand with a wide range of audio products and excellent audio technology. By combining Sony's audio technology with Niantic's AR technology, we believe that we can offer a new level of AR experience, beyond just what you can see. We look forward to providing a more immersive AR experience in the real world."
- Sony also announced its new "LinkBuds" headphones yesterday.
Auganix
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- Here is a look at Apple's open-source code for the rumored upcoming AR/VR headsets.
- Augmented reality for online shopping is one of the biggest trends that we will see, and here is a look at how Shopify is using AR in its platform.
- An augmented lighting app is so realistic you have to see it to believe it.
- When it comes to AR or VR, what technology will lead the metaverse?
- An AI-generated deepfake version of South Korean presidential candidate Yoon Suk-yeol has attracted millions of views.
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 |  | Gia Mattu is based in Calgary, Alberta. She is an entrepreneur with experience in climate technology, drones, AI, machine learning, and blockchain technology. When she's not working, she loves to hike the Canadian Rockies, try new cuisine, and travel. | | | | Editor | Aaron Crutchfield is based in the high desert of California. Over the last two decades, he has spent time writing and editing at various local newspapers and defense contractors in California. When he's not working, he can often be found looking at the latest memes with his kids or working on his 1962 Ford. | |
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