Weekly News Digest 32

Debut of Metaverse Architecture and Design Awards

Interior Design hosted the first annual Metaverse Architecture and Design Awards in cooperation with digby. The event took place on the Spatial platform with entrants judged by a panel of esteemed designers within the Web3 space. There were a variety of categories from Digital Twinning to Workplace Extension and more, winners of each category can be seen here. “As Web3 is sweeping across the design and architecture community—including the next generation of designers—we are thrilled to announce our industry’s first awards program built around the metaverse,” says Cindy Allen, editor in chief of Interior Design.

TV Episode Entirely in the Metaverse

A recent episode of the German comedy series Doppelhaushälfte was recorded entirely in Somnium Space. The series is about two families living in a semi-detached house who find themselves in amusing situations, in this episode both families attend a virtual vernissage of one family member’s NFT gallery. A behind the scenes look at how the episode was made is here.

CUPRA Launches into the Metaverse

Automaker CUPRA, part of the SEAT brand has debuted the CUPRA District on the Metahype platform. In the experience users can design their own Dark Rebel, a concept car by CUPRA, race their friends, socialize, and much more! The district is divided into four parts, CUPRA Hub where visitors can take part in dance challenges made in collaboration with Primavera Sound, the CUPRA Garage for exploring different vehicle models, the CUPRA Plaza for socializing, and finally the racing tracks.

Czech Supermodel Becomes First MetaHuman Supermodel

Eva Herzigová, a Czech supermodel has been immortalized in the digital sphere with Unreal Engine technology. The digital likeness was crafted by the talent agency Unsigned and virtual production studio Dimension. The process was completed using a 70-camera rig to capture images of the model which a team then used to create the digital twin. In the future the MetaHuman will be able to be dressed, posed, and lit up on a virtual runway for fashion shows, streams, and user experiences. Watch a video on the creation here.

The Sandbox and Ledger Form Partnership for Asset Security

The popular metaverse platform The Sandbox has partnered with Ledger Enterprise to make it easier for partners to secure their digital assets. In an announcement on their blog, Animoca Brands, the parent company of The Sandbox stated the partnership will encompass several initiatives including: adding The Sandbox dApp to the Ledger Enterprise to secure LANDs, integrating a widget for the platform in Ledger Live, and streamlining the process to migrate Sandbox NFTs to the Ledger for added security. “The Sandbox was one of the first leaders in the space to say, ‘we care about security and making the process fun, to onboard millions into securing their digital value.’ We are so thrilled at the results of our School of Block education game in The Sandbox and can’t wait to see this partnership grow at every level,” said VP of Communications Ariel Wengroff.