Electronic artist deadmau5, who also describes himself as a technologist, has fully embraced digital engagement opportunities and is bullish on the future of the metaverse. He has established a permanent residency in the metaverse through his Oberhalsi virtual world on Core, and he also recently joined Outlier Ventures, where he will invest in and advise metaverse-related startups.
For his latest project, a new metaverse venture called PIXELYNX, deadmau5 has teamed up with fellow DJ Richie Hawtin, as well as music and gaming industry veterans Ben Turner, Dean Wilson and Inder Phull. PIXELYNX recently announced a partnership with Niantic, creator of mobile AR game Pokémon GO, which will allow it to utilize Niantic’s new Lightship Augmented Reality Developer Kit (ARDK) to develop a mobile app version of its platform.
PIXELYNX is working to build what it refers to as the “Musicverse,” a virtual world platform that will allow artists to blend the physical and digital worlds to create interactive environments and experiences for their fans, and monetize them through NFTs.
Niantic announced the launch of Lightship a few weeks ago, ahead of this year’s Augmented Reality World conference — the ARDK will allow external developers to leverage and build on Niantic’s existing AR technology. PIXELYNX’s partnership with Niantic will enable new AR experiences for fans, who will be able to attend in-person concerts and explore other physical locations to collect NFTs created by their favorite artists and unlock in-game music and prizes.
“As we look towards launching our platform in 2022, the development of a mobile app that allows fans to collect new songs and NFTs in the real world was always part of our vision to create the music metaverse,” said Inder Phull, CEO and co-founder of PIXELYNX, in a statement.
“Teaming with Niantic on their Lightship ARDK to develop our mobile gaming app, will ensure that fans are able to take our game with them wherever they go, blending digital and real-world experiences and enriching the fan experience in completely unique ways.”