Metaverse Matters Michael DeNunzio

On this episode, Michael DeNunzio, founder of Pebble Ventures, speaks with Olga Chernysheva, Chief Sustainability Officer of DressX, one of the leading digital fashion platforms worldwide. Olga is a distinguished business leader with 10+ years of progressive experience in Project Management and Sustainable Development. Prior to DRESSX, Olga spent 3 years in Central Africa where she founded a non-profit organisation to bring awareness to local communities about plastic pollution. She raised money to put in place a waste collection and management system. Olga is passionate about helping companies that create innovative solutions to restore our planet and supporting purpose-driven entrepreneurs.Olga joined the DRESSX, a company which is disrupting the fashion industry and transforming it into digital, bridging with the metaverse, web3, AR and tech, team as the first team member in Augury 2020. As a Chief Sustainability Officer, Olga advocates for the thinking beyond physicality and is absolutely sure that ownership of digital items can fulfill the need of ownership of physical goods. Olga is a contributor to the report “Sustainability & Metaverse in Fashion: Opportunity or Threat'' and Farfetch Conscious Luxury Trends Report 2022.She has spoken at the United Nations, Vogue, Fashion Asia and other conferences as an expert on the metaverse, digital fashion, fashion tech and digital fashion sustainability.This was a great conversation. We’re grateful to Olga for sharing her ambitious goals with our community. Congrats to DressX who continue to lead the way in digital fashion.

In this episode of the Metaverse Matters Podcast, hosts Mike and Lauren are joined by master storyteller and innovator, Liz Suman, the Executive Editor and VP of Art, Editorial, and Web3 Projects at Playboy.
Liz shares the evolution of Playboy as an iconic, global brand transitioning from print to digital alongside the explosive growth of Web3, creating an opportunity for Playboy to translate their fine art legacy and brand pillars into a new dimension. The move away from print opened a door to drive culture and reach new audiences in fresh ways, inspiring a series of successful Web3 projects via NFTs, the Rabbitar PFP project, and this year, a move toward the a “meta mansion” in Sandbox.
Throughout this conversation, we touch on how to approach and launch successful projects, create value for legacy fandoms through NFTs, build communities, and map brand pillars to new experiences in the Metaverse. Liz shares how these projects create opportunities to collaborate with artists like slimesunday, whIsbe, blondish, and more.
This was a great conversation with valuable tips and insights showcasing how Web3 can be used as innovative brand marketing. We’re grateful to Liz for sharing so many earned lessons with our community. Congrats to Playboy on their 70th year, we’re excited to see what you do next.
Listening Notes
0:00- 3:00 - Introduction and summary of the episode
3:00- 7:30- Meet Liz! Her evolving role at Playboy and the transition from print to digital leading to inspiration to move into Web3.
7:30- 11:10 - How Playboy approached Web3 and NFTs leading to their first project, launching through a fine art lens in collaboration with #slimesunday, results from the launch as their first big moment.
11:10- 18:15 - The Rabbitar PFP and derivative project, extending brand IP via NFTs, how the project was received by Playboy fans, insights on community and the “Rabbitat”, extending community into virtual spaces like Sandbox
18:15- 24:40- How to engage community via discord and other channels
24:40- 30:40- The future roadmap for the Rabbitar project, “North Star” of building a Playboy mansion in the metaverse, mapping brand pillars to virtual worlds, and the upcoming launch in Sandbox
30:40- 33:25- How Playboy thinks about collaborations
33:25- 37:15- NFT Paris and upcoming events
37:15-40:18- Liz shares tips for brands just getting started in the Metaverse
Links
Pebble Ventures: https://www.pebbleventures.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/MikeDeNunzioSF
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaeldenunzio/
Email: mike@pebbleventures.com
Lauren Fennema https://www.linkedin.com/in/lauren-fennema-0273994/
Guest Links: Liz Suman, https://www.linkedin.com/in/elizabethsuman/

In this episode of the Metaverse Matters Podcast, hosts Mike and Lauren are joined by Chris Ebeling, Creative Director and Co-Founder of Virtually Human, the creators of headline-making ZedRun.
Chris has amassed over a decade of experience in animation, AR/VR, VFX including work on several Hollywood blockbusters such as The Lego Movies, The Great Gatsby, Gods of Egypt, and Happy Feet 2. He channels this experience to pioneer the next chapter of digital entertainment, co-founding Virtual Human and leading a team of artists creating ZED RUN, a breakthrough success in the play-and-earn gaming world.
ZedRun is a digital horse racing ecosystem built on blockchain technology, but besides the noteworthy technology, the world of ZedRun is a visually thrilling experience. As a result, ZedRun found success partnering with global brands like Budweiser and Stella Artois to bring fans to a new dimension of entertainment, brand storytelling, gaming, and most importantly, fun.
We covered a lot in this episode! Listen as Chris provides deep insights on his journey into Web3, behind-the-scenes at Zed Run, the fundamentals of designing for entertainment, emerging technology like AI, and the future of entertainment and its impact on humanity.
Listening Notes
0 - 9:15 Meet Chris and his experience in animation, XR, VR that led to co-founding Virtually Human/ Zed Run
9:15- 12:15 - What is Zed Run, how Web3 is changing ownership and incentives in gaming
12:15- 23:00 - Zed Run bringing people into Web3, how education, entertainment, and user experience are key, building on web2 and IRL experiences to on-board people into web3
23:00- 32:45- Brand storytelling in digital entertainment, working with big brands like Budweiser & Stella Artois, reimagining and translating brands in the Metaverse
32:45 - 37:00- Growth and attracting more people into ZedRun, partnerships & cross-pollinating communities
37:00 - 45:00 - New tools and competencies for game developers & creatives, how emerging tools like AI are making an impact
45:00 - 55:00- How brands can get started with Metaverse and digital entertainment, key pillars of web3 strategy, fundamentals of designing for entertainment

In this episode of the Metaverse Matters Podcast, hosts Mike and Lauren are joined by Maura Welch, VP of Marketing at Together Labs, a veteran marketer in social media, virtual worlds, and now the metaverse.
In our conversation, we focus on IMVU, the world’s largest friendship discovery and social metaverse platform with over 1 million daily active users. Maura shares more on how IMVU works, including why fans show up to connect, self-express, build communities, and create. Even more valuable, Maura shares insights on how brands can approach communities in virtual worlds to co-create, grow their brand, and drive revenue.
Together Labs was recently named to TIME’s list of the 100 Most Influential Companies of 2022 and The Future 100 Trends to Watch in 2022.
It was a great conversation, we hope you enjoy it.
Please support the show by subscribing and feel free to reach out and share feedback and leave a review!
Nothing in the episode is legal, financial or investment advice.
Pebble Ventures: https://www.pebbleventures.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/MikeDeNunzioSF
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaeldenunzio/
Email: mike@pebbleventures.com
Lauren Fennema https://www.linkedin.com/in/lauren-fennema-0273994/
Email: lauren@pebbleventures.com
Guest Links: Maura Welch, https://www.linkedin.com/in/maurawelch/
Listening notes
0:00 - 7:50 Introduction - Meet Maura and IMVU
7:50- 13:30 Building community in the metaverse
13:30- 17:40 Science of friendship & authentic connection in digital experiences, why that’s important, and how the metaverse can get social networking right
17:40- 22:30 The creator economy and economic engine at IMVU
22:30- 26:45 Self-expression and the customer journey on IMVU, strategies for brands looking to engage with digital communities in games and virtual worlds
29:45-43:00 NFTs as a mechanism to drive value in creator economies
43:00-46:10 What’s next at IMVU and their recent Oppenheimer report

Show Notes
IMVU x Oppenheimer Report: ​​Digital Avatar
Fireside Chat in the IMVU Metaverse: https://www.twitch.tv/videos/1719206248

Together Labs is redefining social networking by pairing blockchain innovation with technologies that empower users across the globe to connect, create and earn in the metaverse.

In this episode of the Metaverse Matters Podcast, hosts Mike and Lauren are joined by Des Martin, Chief Marketing Officer of Outlier Ventures, a multifaceted Web3 accelerator, venture capital firm, and metaverse resource.
In 2019, Outlier launched the first ever Web3 accelerator, a 3 month intense boot camp for pre-seed start-ups in the Web3 space with a deeper focus on knowledge of tokenomics, token design, community development. Today, Outlier has established itself as the go-to resource for navigating Web3 and the Metaverse.
Des shares his insights on partnerships with metaverse companies such as Boson Protocol, what it takes to bring Web3 to the masses in 2023, how they think about cohorts, and a preview of their Quarterly Web3 Diffusion event.
Featured Quote
"We believe there are going to be some huge transformational companies and projects that are going to be formed now and over the next two to three years and we want to make sure that we provide a platform for those companies to grow and to support them and to make sure they can make it in the industry."
Listening notes
0:00 - 6:40 Introduction - What is Outlier Ventures?
6:40 - 9:00 How does Outlier Ventures visualize project cohorts?
9:00 - 13:29 Outlier Ventures partnership with FarFetch
13:29 - 20:33 What will it take for the Metaverse to go from experimental to integral in 2023?
20:33 - 30:41 Viewing accelerator projects and Web3 trends through a consumer vs producer lens
for the Open Metaverse
30:41 - 33:45 Preview of January 12 Diffusion Event
Nothing in the episode is legal, financial or investment advice.
.
Pebble Ventures: https://www.pebbleventures.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/MikeDeNunzioSF
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaeldenunzio/
Email: mike@pebbleventures.com
Lauren Fennema https://www.linkedin.com/in/lauren-fennema-0273994/
Email: lauren@pebbleventures.com
Guest Links: Des Martin, https://www.linkedin.com/in/desmartin/

Diffusion: https://diffusion.events/
FarFetch cohort: https://outlierventures.io/meet-our-inaugural-cohort-in-collaboration-with-farfetch/
Portfolio companies:
Boson Protocol: https://www.bosonprotocol.io/
Hundo: https://www.hundo.xyz/
Sknups: https://sknups.com/

Mike and Lauren speak with Noah Pompan, Co-Founder of Plex, a no code tool to discover, manage & engage audiences in Web3. Noah provides his insights on building the future of marketing, user data, privacy and how brands can benefit by entering the Web3 space. Hear his views on interesting web3-related topics such as the next iteration of NFTs, self expression through digital wallets and customer privacy. Pebble Ventures recently signed on to participate in their Beta Program and we share our perspectives on how the platform has the potential to help us gather unique Web3 insights for strategic planning and customer engagement.
It was a great episode, we hope you enjoy it. Please support the show by subscribing and feel free to reach out and share feedback and leave a review!
Nothing in the episode is legal, financial or investment advice.
Pebble Ventures: https://www.pebbleventures.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/MikeDeNunzioSF
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaeldenunzio/
Email: mike@pebbleventures.com
Lauren Fennema https://www.linkedin.com/in/lauren-fennema-0273994/
Email: lauren@pebbleventures.com
Guest Links: https://www.linkedin.com/in/noah-pompan-0a6321100/