Avinash Kaushik (Founder and CEO of Waka World) shared his knowledge and views regarding the Metaverse, the ways through which it’ll empower the creators, and more.

‘To The Verge’ had an enlightening conversation with Avinash Kaushik, Founder, and CEO of WAKA WORLD, a metaverse where different technologies converge. The platform aims to give its customers/users the best experiences and solutions possible to share their creativity. Read till the end to learn more about their platform and the technology they’re using! 

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Entering the Metaverse

Can anyone enter the metaverse without any prerequisites? Avinash answered the question with a solid yes. He explained that the feel factor of any metaverse would depend on its appearance. For that reason, WAKA WORLD is focusing only on fashion. A fashion metaverse implies the creation of a brand ecosystem where people would be choosing their looks, the avatars they’d like, the skin they’d prefer to wear from amongst legacy brands.

Metaverse is going to be a vast and expansive space. Avinash thinks if it’s opened all at once for everyone, there could be a lot of confusion. Thus, initially, they are keeping it for fashion and will explore other areas in the future. 

“Metaverse is such a big thing we cannot go and create confusion and open it all. So, we are going one step at a time. But, right now, it is fashion. So, we’ll expand in the future.”  

Introduction To The WAKA WORLD 

Avinash has worked at various organizations in diverse roles. In January 2021, after gaining diverse experiences, he dedicated himself to his new venture WAKA WORLD. Their team designs multi-player gaming and 3D spatial experience. Also, they work with decentralization technologies like blockchain and create Web 3.0 solutions stack. They use ERC720 (a standard protocol used on Ethereum blockchain) and ERC1155 (a token standard mainly used for NFTs) to create digital assets. The idea is to decentralize the system and empower the creators. In addition to that, the platform allows live video streaming content and live commerce through AR. 

A Metaverse Dedicated to Fashion 

The metaverse that Avinash and his team are building right now is open for all designers.

They are helping fashion designers and big luxury brands to come and create a fashion ecosystem. Their platform enables the designers to concoct their mini-verse, showcase their collection, and sell it as NFTs. 

Avinash further explained that the value of these designs as NFTs is determined by the market forces of supply and demand. The designers can fix a price that suits them. Then, if the market accepts them, the transaction happens. Otherwise, the buyer negotiates and revalues the assets.     

Blockchain and Crypto in Metaverse

Metaverse is a creator’s economy, which gives them the freedom to create, own, and grow without depending on a governing body. Avinash says every individual participating in the metaverse needs to grow and add their personal touch to the whole virtual world. For this to happen, the control over the exchange of information has to be decentralized. Signing contracts individually with every participant won’t be possible. Therefore, automation of the whole process would be required. Smart Contracts control the entire governance of their metaverse platform. 

A smart contract is a computer program or a transaction protocol that automatically executes, controls, or documents legally relevant events and actions according to the terms of an agreement (Smart Contracts – Google). 

Avinash further explained that blockchain technology executes smart contracts. Therefore, it is essential for the metaverse. He believes that crypto and blockchain will play a significant role in the growth and expansion of the metaverse. 

Need for Regulation to Govern Decentralization? 

Since every individual and creator is allowed to participate in the metaverse, people question whether regulation or any regulatory body should exist or not? Avinash answered these questions by briefly describing Decentralized Autonomous Organizations (DAOs) and Smart Contracts. He explained DAOs are organizations owned by their members, represented by certain rules encrypted as a computer program, and run on a blockchain (DAO – Google). These rules are nothing else but Smart Contracts. With these in place, the metaverse can function well without technical disturbances, allowing all the users to contribute to it in their unique ways.

Initial Challenges and the Future for Bidding Entrepreneurs 

Starting a company and growing is a journey. Avinash said one has to build a team of trustworthy, skilled people who are good in their respective jobs, find strategic partners and collaborators, and establish a professional ecosystem to succeed. It is challenging, but one has to put their words into action. 

His views on business opportunities in the future were insightful. According to him, the coming decade will belong to the creators. The future generation will not grow up to work in a company. Instead, they will create their community and enjoy their work. Therefore, he thinks that the concept of a company might become outdated. 

To conclude, the metaverse will be the creators’ world. Individuals will operate across different metaverses. Setting up a company or organization won’t be required. People may pursue whatever they like, provided they add some value to the ecosystem. 

“It’s a creators world, and everybody has to come and create things. You could be a singer or a real estate broker or anything in the metaverse. But, you add value to the whole ecosystem there.”

Impact of the Technology on Businesses and Future Plans 

Avinash explained that the internet is a tool to make metaverse easily accessible. The metaverse is going to be a blend of different technologies. We access multiple websites and web pages daily for many purposes. Eventually, different metaverses will replace the websites that we use today. Metaverse emphasizes 3D immersive experiences. Hence, in the future, 2D web development will lose its relevance to some extent.

The metaverse will be a self-evolving ecosystem. The content and services that we avail of today through websites can be shifted to the metaverse, implying that the scope of success exists for every business. The key is to identify how to make it happen.   

Conclusion 

Our conversation with Avinash opened our perspective to the endless possibilities metaverse will offer. WAKA WORLD is widening the horizon of the fashion industry as it harnesses the power of Web 3. With the insights of his venture, he also elaborated on the role of crypto and blockchain in the metaverse. In addition, decentralization and regulations will exist in an advanced manner.

The technology can empower the creators immensely and could lead to content overload. Therefore, Avinash persists in moving one step at a time, exploring all opportunities.  

Guest Profile

Avinash Kaushik is an engineer. He completed his B-School from IIM, Bangalore, and has worked at many multinational companies like Verizon (in the US), Pricewaterhouse Coopers (PwC), and one of the TATA Group subsidiaries. He has gathered experience by working across geographies like Brazil, Argentina, the USA, Indonesia, South Africa, China, Singapore, and India. He was the Founder and CEO of a startup called RevvX Accelerator, where he incubated many hardware, IoT, deep tech, and eventually non-tech startups. In January 2021, he fully devoted himself to WAKA Live, his venture in Web 3.0/the Metaverse.