According to Cointelegraph, Yuga Labs CEO Daniel Alegre spoke about the evolution of the metaverse and the divergence of nonfungible tokens (NFTs) at Token 2049 in Singapore. Alegre criticized Meta for giving the metaverse a bad name by claiming it was something brand new, despite existing platforms like World of Warcraft and Fortnite. He also pointed out the low userbase of Meta's Horizon Worlds as a core issue.
Alegre discussed Yuga Labs' upcoming Otherside metaverse, which was developed in response to their NFT community's desire for a digital space to connect. Otherside has been in development since at least March 2022, with no official launch date announced. The platform has been previewed through early access demos and focus groups, with a recent limited experience conducted with core members.
In addition to the metaverse, Alegre also spoke about the divergence of NFTs, with some being valued for their art and history, while others are valued for their community and intellectual property rights. He compared the use cases of CryptoPunks and Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) NFT projects, both owned by Yuga Labs, to illustrate this point. Alegre mentioned that CryptoPunks are being recognized by top museums and collectors, while BAYC holders have created a community with over 900 holders building businesses on top of the Apes.
Alegre likened Yuga Labs' position to YouTube, where its user-generated content model allowed businesses to be built around sharing videos on the platform. He emphasized that NFT ownership, when given to the community, can lead to unexpected developments in both offline and online spaces.