Highlights:
- Live events where people gather en masse to be part of a unique moment are a cornerstone of popular culture. Nothing on the internet has been able to replicate this, until now.
- Mass concurrency allows events in virtual worlds to mirror the social dynamics of the real world, making them more meaningful and opening new opportunities for business.
- But achieving mass concurrency is not enough, experiences must be tailor-made with opportunities for creativity and personalisation in the digital realm and beyond utilising AI.
We attend social events for a reason: to gather, to meet like-minded people, and to share a unique moment together.
While social media and streaming platforms have enabled new forms of live community experiences, the level of interaction and engagement is still limited usually to 2D images, videos, and ferociously scrolling text chats all across various platforms – it’s not very conducive to personal connection.
As has already been proven in gaming, the promises of using virtual worlds for social events are manifold. Embodying avatars in a 3D space, users can interact, collaborate, and engage in real-time, mirroring the spontaneity of face-to-face interactions and make their unique mark in the digital environment. This not only amplifies the sense of presence but also opens the door to more authentic and emotionally resonant social experiences online.
The most culturally significant virtual events we’ve seen so far have been on gaming platforms like Roblox and Fortnite. What we mean by successful is that they were social, interactive, surprising and profitable. Both examples stated above were hosted experiences created around big-name musical artists, as well as partnerships with prominent brands, sporting events, and media franchises.
Due to technical limitations, however, these only manage to put up to 100 users into a shared instance of a world. This means that although there could be millions experiencing an event on the platform, they are split into limited-capacity servers and will never meet, communicate, or interact.
We have been driven to do this by a vision of the social and business merits of bringing communities together at scale around virtual experiences that are geared for creativity, community-building, and social interaction – all the while being centralised into a singular platform. Mass concurrency is a crucial part of this. This is a shift towards social virtual platforms that are built from the ground up for experiences that mirror the breadth and depth of social events of the real world, rather than catering primarily to games. Ultimately, it is ushering in a new era of the internet that is spatial, 3D, and immersive.
Focusing on the social value of mass concurrency
What we mean by mass concurrency is essentially, in virtual spaces bringing together a multitude of users into a shared interactive environment, as opposed to sequestering them into limited-capacity servers.
Hosting greater numbers of users in a shared environment fosters more dynamic and vibrant social ecosystems by enabling a higher volume of serendipitous encounters. Implement an AI-interface to create a truly personalised experience, makes it all the more engaging. In other words, users have more chances to meet someone with whom they can share a personal connection – whether temporary or long-term. This allows virtual environments to take on a new level of significance – as fun, interactive, and spontaneous places. It also helps them to mirror the scale and dynamism of the real world, enabling new forms of virtual experiences mapped to events in real life, in real time.
Moreover, through the influx of thousands of people, mass concurrency creates virtual communities that are more inclusive, connected, and diverse. It enables people from different corners of the world to share experiences, breaking down geographical barriers. This diversity can only be achieved by bringing people into shared experiences, encouraging the exchange of ideas, perspectives, and cultural nuances.
Finally, this generates endless opportunities for content created by users to be shared, consumed, and monetised by their communities, particularly as the integration of generative AI removes barriers to interfacing with virtual worlds. Sharing in this collective sense of participation, as well as becoming active shapers of the virtual landscape, not only sparks creativity but also fosters a sense of ownership and community pride.
Community-driven commercial opportunities
This type of large-scale event opens the door to vibrant user-driven virtual economies within social experiences. Firstly, a no-brainer, social events can be monetised through ticket sales or token-gating. The sense of mass participation in a unique event makes the price of entry more justifiable, and therefore more profitable for whoever in the community can put on the best events.
Furthermore, within a virtual environment, community-run businesses can introduce virtual goods, services, and assets around users’ avatars and virtual presence. This bears out in the gaming industry, where the market for avatar skins hit $50 billion as of 2023 in line with greater input from real-world brands and media franchises. Selling virtual goods provides these organisations with new revenue streams and business opportunities, as users are willing to invest in enhancing their virtual experience.
Large-scale virtual experiences also provide a unique platform for brands to engage with their audience in innovative ways. Virtual events, product launches, and branded spaces within these environments can create memorable and impactful brand experiences, fostering a deeper connection with consumers. This is already standard practice with events in the real world, and will be a natural fit for brands to expand their partnership and sponsorship opportunities to global audiences. However, in virtual experiences that harness generative AI, brands will have the added bonus of fostering a flywheel of user-generated content that generates greater levels of engagement, memorability, and organic audience retention.
Finally, the massive influx of users in social virtual spaces generates valuable data and analytics. Businesses can leverage this data to understand user behaviour, preferences, and trends in a way that, thanks to mass concurrency, better reflects the social dynamics of the real world. Through connection to CRMs and backend analytics tools, this information can inform marketing strategies, content creation, and product development, enabling businesses to stay agile and responsive to evolving consumer needs.
Creating engaging virtual experiences needs a human touch
Mass concurrency capability is ushering in a new era of social virtual experiences that are not only immersive and engaging but also laden with potential for businesses to explore innovative avenues.
An obvious starting point for this is a partnership with a big artist, brand partner, or sporting event. But this must be done with care for the virtual context. Rather than attempting to replicate real-world environments, these can be tailored to a 3D virtual setting.
This is best achieved by offering opportunities for personal expression, creativity, and personalisation. Alongside carefully crafted movement and gameplay mechanics, generative AI can enable new ways of interacting with virtual worlds using natural language prompts, helping to sidestep any barriers to entry for those who are not experts in manipulating 3D environments. Check out our blog on AI user interfaces for great examples of how we’ve implemented this.
Finally, beyond big flashpoint events, platforms can offer content to keep users engaged day to day. Here, stakeholders must be mindful of the broader digital context in which virtual events exist. The shift to the spatial internet is enabling virtual experiences to tie ever more closely into real-world locations, events, and experiences. Companies can leverage this to give users opportunities for consistent community interaction, including tie-ins to products, services, and activities that they find meaningful in the real world beyond the screen.
Redefining how we connect
From creating vibrant communities to establishing virtual economies, the value of mass concurrency is both experiential and strategic. For those who harness it, mass concurrency promises to redefine how we connect, collaborate, and conduct business in the years to come.
In the rapidly evolving digital landscape, the push towards human-centric virtual experiences reflects a deeper societal yearning for connection and community in the spaces we increasingly inhabit. Hadean’s technological advancements underscore a critical insight: that the value of digital spaces lies not just in their ability to entertain or inform, but in their power to foster genuine human connections and create a sense of belonging. By making virtual experiences more human-centric, we’re not just expanding the technical capabilities of digital platforms; we’re nurturing the social fabric of the online world. This approach doesn’t just benefit users by providing more meaningful and engaging experiences; it also offers businesses the opportunity to build more loyal, vibrant communities. Ultimately, by prioritizing human-centric technology design, being agnostic to old ways of getting tech done, we’re acknowledging that the future of technology is not just about advancing what is possible, but about deepening our connection to each other, enriching our lives with more authentic interactions, and building a more inclusive digital society.
If you wish to discuss how virtual experiences can unlock the potential of your brand or community, let’s chat.
Highlights:
- Live events where people gather en masse to be part of a unique moment are a cornerstone of popular culture. Nothing on the internet has been able to replicate this, until now.
- Mass concurrency allows events in virtual worlds to mirror the social dynamics of the real world, making them more meaningful and opening new opportunities for business.
- But achieving mass concurrency is not enough, experiences must be tailor-made with opportunities for creativity and personalisation in the digital realm and beyond utilising AI.
We attend social events for a reason: to gather, to meet like-minded people, and to share a unique moment together.
While social media and streaming platforms have enabled new forms of live community experiences, the level of interaction and engagement is still limited usually to 2D images, videos, and ferociously scrolling text chats all across various platforms – it’s not very conducive to personal connection.
As has already been proven in gaming, the promises of using virtual worlds for social events are manifold. Embodying avatars in a 3D space, users can interact, collaborate, and engage in real-time, mirroring the spontaneity of face-to-face interactions and make their unique mark in the digital environment. This not only amplifies the sense of presence but also opens the door to more authentic and emotionally resonant social experiences online.
The most culturally significant virtual events we’ve seen so far have been on gaming platforms like Roblox and Fortnite. What we mean by successful is that they were social, interactive, surprising and profitable. Both examples stated above were hosted experiences created around big-name musical artists, as well as partnerships with prominent brands, sporting events, and media franchises.
Due to technical limitations, however, these only manage to put up to 100 users into a shared instance of a world. This means that although there could be millions experiencing an event on the platform, they are split into limited-capacity servers and will never meet, communicate, or interact.
We have been driven to do this by a vision of the social and business merits of bringing communities together at scale around virtual experiences that are geared for creativity, community-building, and social interaction – all the while being centralised into a singular platform. Mass concurrency is a crucial part of this. This is a shift towards social virtual platforms that are built from the ground up for experiences that mirror the breadth and depth of social events of the real world, rather than catering primarily to games. Ultimately, it is ushering in a new era of the internet that is spatial, 3D, and immersive.
Focusing on the social value of mass concurrency
What we mean by mass concurrency is essentially, in virtual spaces bringing together a multitude of users into a shared interactive environment, as opposed to sequestering them into limited-capacity servers.
Hosting greater numbers of users in a shared environment fosters more dynamic and vibrant social ecosystems by enabling a higher volume of serendipitous encounters. Implement an AI-interface to create a truly personalised experience, makes it all the more engaging. In other words, users have more chances to meet someone with whom they can share a personal connection – whether temporary or long-term. This allows virtual environments to take on a new level of significance – as fun, interactive, and spontaneous places. It also helps them to mirror the scale and dynamism of the real world, enabling new forms of virtual experiences mapped to events in real life, in real time.
Moreover, through the influx of thousands of people, mass concurrency creates virtual communities that are more inclusive, connected, and diverse. It enables people from different corners of the world to share experiences, breaking down geographical barriers. This diversity can only be achieved by bringing people into shared experiences, encouraging the exchange of ideas, perspectives, and cultural nuances.
Finally, this generates endless opportunities for content created by users to be shared, consumed, and monetised by their communities, particularly as the integration of generative AI removes barriers to interfacing with virtual worlds. Sharing in this collective sense of participation, as well as becoming active shapers of the virtual landscape, not only sparks creativity but also fosters a sense of ownership and community pride.
Community-driven commercial opportunities
This type of large-scale event opens the door to vibrant user-driven virtual economies within social experiences. Firstly, a no-brainer, social events can be monetised through ticket sales or token-gating. The sense of mass participation in a unique event makes the price of entry more justifiable, and therefore more profitable for whoever in the community can put on the best events.
Furthermore, within a virtual environment, community-run businesses can introduce virtual goods, services, and assets around users’ avatars and virtual presence. This bears out in the gaming industry, where the market for avatar skins hit $50 billion as of 2023 in line with greater input from real-world brands and media franchises. Selling virtual goods provides these organisations with new revenue streams and business opportunities, as users are willing to invest in enhancing their virtual experience.
Large-scale virtual experiences also provide a unique platform for brands to engage with their audience in innovative ways. Virtual events, product launches, and branded spaces within these environments can create memorable and impactful brand experiences, fostering a deeper connection with consumers. This is already standard practice with events in the real world, and will be a natural fit for brands to expand their partnership and sponsorship opportunities to global audiences. However, in virtual experiences that harness generative AI, brands will have the added bonus of fostering a flywheel of user-generated content that generates greater levels of engagement, memorability, and organic audience retention.
Finally, the massive influx of users in social virtual spaces generates valuable data and analytics. Businesses can leverage this data to understand user behaviour, preferences, and trends in a way that, thanks to mass concurrency, better reflects the social dynamics of the real world. Through connection to CRMs and backend analytics tools, this information can inform marketing strategies, content creation, and product development, enabling businesses to stay agile and responsive to evolving consumer needs.
Creating engaging virtual experiences needs a human touch
Mass concurrency capability is ushering in a new era of social virtual experiences that are not only immersive and engaging but also laden with potential for businesses to explore innovative avenues.
An obvious starting point for this is a partnership with a big artist, brand partner, or sporting event. But this must be done with care for the virtual context. Rather than attempting to replicate real-world environments, these can be tailored to a 3D virtual setting.
This is best achieved by offering opportunities for personal expression, creativity, and personalisation. Alongside carefully crafted movement and gameplay mechanics, generative AI can enable new ways of interacting with virtual worlds using natural language prompts, helping to sidestep any barriers to entry for those who are not experts in manipulating 3D environments. Check out our blog on AI user interfaces for great examples of how we’ve implemented this.
Finally, beyond big flashpoint events, platforms can offer content to keep users engaged day to day. Here, stakeholders must be mindful of the broader digital context in which virtual events exist. The shift to the spatial internet is enabling virtual experiences to tie ever more closely into real-world locations, events, and experiences. Companies can leverage this to give users opportunities for consistent community interaction, including tie-ins to products, services, and activities that they find meaningful in the real world beyond the screen.
Redefining how we connect
From creating vibrant communities to establishing virtual economies, the value of mass concurrency is both experiential and strategic. For those who harness it, mass concurrency promises to redefine how we connect, collaborate, and conduct business in the years to come.
In the rapidly evolving digital landscape, the push towards human-centric virtual experiences reflects a deeper societal yearning for connection and community in the spaces we increasingly inhabit. Hadean’s technological advancements underscore a critical insight: that the value of digital spaces lies not just in their ability to entertain or inform, but in their power to foster genuine human connections and create a sense of belonging. By making virtual experiences more human-centric, we’re not just expanding the technical capabilities of digital platforms; we’re nurturing the social fabric of the online world. This approach doesn’t just benefit users by providing more meaningful and engaging experiences; it also offers businesses the opportunity to build more loyal, vibrant communities. Ultimately, by prioritizing human-centric technology design, being agnostic to old ways of getting tech done, we’re acknowledging that the future of technology is not just about advancing what is possible, but about deepening our connection to each other, enriching our lives with more authentic interactions, and building a more inclusive digital society.
If you wish to discuss how virtual experiences can unlock the potential of your brand or community, let’s chat.