MetaCity is a Metaverse hub that uses both augmented reality and blockchain technology. MetaCity considers itself to be the capital city of the metaverse. We interviewed MetaCity CEO Michael Zoelzer about the project.
Hi, Michael. Can you tell our audience about you, your background, and how you got into the web3 space?
“My name is Michael Zoelzer. I have roots in Germany and frequently appear in the Crypto Valley (Switzerland) and Silicon Valley (USA). And just recently, I relocated to MetaCity. I got my first PC when I was a kid and had the pleasure of experiencing the internet from the early days. I studied business and computer science, hold an MBA from the power Business School and would claim to be a serial entrepreneur, having founded six companies so far.”
“I got in touch with blockchain in 2013 with my first account on Coinbase. In addition to that, I am a fan of VR, especially AR. So Web3, as a combination of both, is a perfect playground for me to innovate and create outstanding experiences.”
You are the CEO and founder of MetaCity. What is MetaCity?
“The name might already give some glimpse of what MetaCity is all about. We frame it in short as the AR-focused and Blockchain-based Metaverse Capital City. That being said, we are creating a cross-Metaverse hub where the Metacitizens enjoy great experiences independent of what Metaverse they are from.”
“And it’s not only about virtual worlds, like Decentraland or The Sandbox; it’s more about connecting and merging the digital with the physical world. Let me give an example; as Metacitizen; you can go to work within MetaCity and spend your earnings on transportation in the real world. To do that, we’ve introduced $TOQN (derived from the word Token) as the cryptocurrency used within MetaCity.”
Why did you start MetaCity? What were your inspirations for creating the platform?
“If you look at the world in the current stage, the people are bound physically and locally in terms of resources, opportunities, and time. Within the Metaverse, these boundaries disappear, and people are automatically linked to a real-time, global, decentralized community and economy with respective resources and chances. And as we are talking about the Metaverse, we must keep in mind that decentralization is quite an important part. So, we are using the word hub rather than a platform for MetaCity as we are providing access to a parallel but connected experience.”
“And I would like to add that it’s not only me behind the idea. Jens, my co-founder, and famous media artist, aka Elorx, and Metalorx, the game designer, bring outstanding and immersive experiences to our community. And the entire team behind MetaCity is thrilled about the possibilities of Web3 and the convergence of several technologies.”
You want to build a sustainable crypto economy; what do you mean by this?
“As we are leveraging blockchain technology to provide our community with a real economy, like play-to-earn, we view sustainability from two perspectives. One is that the blockchain itself should be energy efficient as it is about a real-time and always-on computer system and network. So, we try to be sustainable in our services, as I will elaborate on a bit more when it comes to the question about the MetaCity Foundation.”
“The second view on sustainability is from our users’ perspective. That means we don’t want to have them engaged just for a moment. We are building an environment where they can consume, contribute, own, and trade within the community. So, everybody will benefit from adding long-lasting value and being part of a thriving community.”
How does MetaCity differ from other Meta-style worlds?
“In short, we are building less than a single world. It’s more about a community, hub, and economy. And it’s about bridging and merging the digital and physical world, especially using Augmented Reality. What happens in MetaCity will have an impact in the real world and the other way around. Imagine growing trees in MetaCity and having them also growing in your City’s park, connected with IoT sensors to influence their virtual behavior.”
Your platform uses VR/AR and blockchain to create MetaCity. How did you use these technologies to build your world?
“When it comes to technologies, we are using them to add layers to the real world and make our community’s life better and more fun. We are talking about three steps to build and create MetaCity. First, the infrastructure will be implemented, like residence and land. This is especially about leveraging and applying blockchain.”
“The second one is about applications around the infrastructure where AR/VR comes into play. And the third one is the full potential for the Metacitizens to use the applications and infrastructure. So, for example, accessing MetaCity based on their residence, owning and nurturing land to build up virtual accommodation, and then renting it out to other Metacitizens.”
Was it challenging to use this technology in conjunction with one another?
“For us, the biggest challenge is making things available, especially to non-tech-savvy users, so they are as accessible and user-friendly as possible. Thus, we focus on blockchain first and bring in AR and VR step by step, initially without any additional gear other than a smartphone.”
One percent of MetaCity revenue goes to the MetaCity Foundation. What is the foundation? What does it do?
“Besides what we are building and providing with MetaCity itself, like engagement, play-to-earn, and especially a thriving community, the MetaCity Foundation focuses additionally on the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), in short, environmental and social issues. So, the funds of the foundation are solely used for donations to charity.”
“And as we are based on blockchain, 1% of the revenue is directly split from the earnings and transferred onto the foundation’s wallet. So, it’s quite transparent and reaches the right recipients without any third-party involvement.”
What are the future goals of MetaCity? What do you want to achieve with your platform in the near and distant future?
“As I mentioned, there are three steps to work on, infrastructure, applications, and nurturing. We want to deliver the best experience to our community in each of these steps. We will start with the minting of the residence soon, as it is the central element of MetaCity. Based on that, we will add feature by feature and experience by experience. For details, we will publish and update the roadmap on our website.”
How can our readers find out more about MetaCity? How can they get involved with your platform?
“A good starting point is our website www.metacity.com and to join the community, you can easily join our Discord www.discord.gg/joinMetaCity. And last but not least, you can follow and interact with us on Twitter www.twitter.com/joinMetaCity. Let’s create a thriving community together!”
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