Digital Village (DV) is a recomposition of social media, gaming, and e-commerce.
As part of their journey on BlockStart’s Acceleration Programme, as a startup developer of blockchain technology, they were looking to further develop their solution and for new opportunities for collaboration with end-user SMEs that could validate and help them improve their “Blockchain of Things Devices” blockchain solution.
We spoke with the founder Evelyn Mora to know more about Digital Village and their participation in BlockStart.
In one paragraph, what is Digital Village?
Digital Village (DV) is a recomposition of social media, gaming, and e-commerce. DV is the first real-time sustainable Multiplayer Metaverse connected to its Social Marketplace, which merges the physical and digital world with its social graph blockchain interface, Village Protocol, and allows real utility of digital assets.
Can you tell us how the idea for your startup began?
As a result of an increased need of fashion going digital, due to both the current global pandemic occurring and the average CO2 emissions that a normal fashion week generates: a new initiative was born. 2020 Helsinki Fashion Week went 100% digital and became the fashion industry’s most sustainable fashion week to date. This was the starting point for Digital Village to evolve and further tackle the challenges to enable mass adoption of Web3 solutions.
What is Digital Village passionate about achieving?
As the world’s first sustainable multiplayer metaverse, and as mentioned above, DV believes that going digital or hybrid is a big need for most companies, for instance, in order to erase CO2 emissions. The idea with DV is to create a new sustainable internet form, focusing on social sustainability where the users are co-creators, co-stakeholders and own their digital footprints and their data. We believe in a collective approach and building a strong community lead world.
Who are the team members and what backgrounds do you have?
Our core team consists of Unreal Engine developers, researchers, engineers and community managers, all with various backgrounds. Together we have a very strong expertise and believe we can bring the DV to life.
Can you tell us about the prototype you have developed with the support of BlockStart Acceleration Programme?
Here are our Key-points Timeline:
- 30 Fashion weeks to take place in the Metaverse, early 2022.
- Launcher will be ready for distribution in Q1, 2022.
- The Chat Lobby system and player identification system will be integrated by February 2022.
- Early concepts for five zones will be implemented in December 2021.
- Mobile access functionality will be ready in late 2022.
What were you most excited about in taking part of BlockStart Acceleration Programme?
It’s always great to follow other ongoing startups and team’s development. Especially as in this crowd, all are focusing on the opportunities of Web3 within their fields and industries.
Which were the major challenges you have faced during the development and market/fit validation of your prototype?
Main obstacles were in convincing the SMEs of their opportunities to use DV to add value to their existing products or services. We managed to overcome the obstacles by showing our product more closely and showing case examples and drawing various different scenarios.
What unique aspects does your company and the prototype you have developed have to offer to the market sectors/type of companies you wish to enter/sell and to the blockchain ecosystem in Europe, as a whole?
Researching the Metaverse and NFT market, Digital Village is a one of its kind in terms of the visual concepts, and the crowdfunding and sustainability aspects as well as tech. We have a strong client base already, which also gives DV a high advantage and lead within the sector.
Is collaboration with SME adopters important for piloting your solution?
As a startup, DV sees a big opportunity in collaborating with SME adopters at this stage. Just like our prototype is about collaboration we believe that’s a beneficial approach for sustainable growth and the adoption of Web3 opportunities.
Where do you see your company in 5 years?
We see DV becoming the next social hub for conscious users who wish to have more agency and individualised online experiences. We see DV creating large impact around tackling climate change and most importantly bringing the consumers, public and private sectors together to collaborate and build a better future utilising blockchain.