A look into the Chinese blockchain-focused business being pursued in China’s metaverse race
Key takeaways:
- Taiyi Group, a blockchain technology startup headquartered in Hong Kong, is gearing up to build a metaverse empire in China.
- The ambition has so far attracted interest from other Chinese tech giants who are also front-runners in China’s metaverse race, namely Tencent, HTC and most recently, Baidu.
- The group debuted China’s first cultural tourism e-commerce metaverse in front of Double 11, with one of China’s busiest demonstration pedestrian streets visited by 120 million each year.
It may not be a household name yet in China, but Taiyi Group, a Hong Kong-based blockchain technology company, has already drawn attention from China’s tech mammoths, according to its official website, including Tencent, JD Tech (JDT), a fintech subsidiary by technology firm JD.com, HTC, a Taiwanese consumer electronics manufacturer, and Tencent – all active players in the production of metaverse in China.
The latest addition to the list is the Chinese technology giant Baidu, which entered into an agreement in late October that collaborates its own metaverse platform Baidu Xirang with equivalent Taiyi Lingjing developed by the partnerto strengthen the metaverse ecosystem.
Taiyi Group became the first domestic company to be authorized by Epic Games in the UE metaverse category.
Preparing to dive into the metaverse
Earlier in April, it was reported that Taiyi Group has officially obtained the Ureal Engine 5.0 (UE5) metaverse license in China. UE5 is the latest version of the software released by American video game developer Epic Games, which provides a multi-tool development environment for games and other 3D content. This also marks Taiyi Group becoming an official partner for UE5 in the metaverse field and the first company at home to be authorized by Epic Games in the UE metaverse category.
After the authorization, the group took another step by acquiring Huoxun (Huobi Chat), an instant messaging social communication tool under the Huobi Group. Formerly a popular cryptocurrency exchange platform in China, they were forced to end their service in China after Beijing’s ban on all cryptocurrency-related transactions in the country in 2021. Huobi Global completed the acquisition in October of About Capital, a Hong Kong fund management firm, and the Huoxun platform will be used to facilitate the optimization and upgrading of Taiyi Group’s virtual system.
Launched in 2018 by Huobi Group, Huobi Chat is reported to have housed millions of monthly active users with accumulated registered users exceeding 7 million as of July 2022. The existing community is believed to be an important asset in achieving Taiyi’s goal of “turns the app into the world’s first social platform dedicated to digital collectibles and the metaverse.”
Metaverse incubator for culture, tourism and more
Taiyi Group has been an active metaverse incubator nurturing several metaverse IPs, so far covering the cultural and tourism industries, which landed in its own metaverse platform Taiyi Lingjing with multiple scenarios ranging from art and music to e-sports and education expected to follow.
Taiyi aims to “make Huobi Chat the world’s first social platform dedicated to digital collectibles and metaverse.”
The latest move was the October 18 launch of Datang Lingjing, China’s first cultural tourism e-commerce metaverse, timely capitalizing on the country’s continued e-commerce sensation ahead of the pre-sale of the much-anticipated Double 11 e-commerce festival. The launch was a joint effort by JDT in cooperation with the local cultural authority in Xi’an.
Datang Everbright City is one of China’s busiest demonstration pedestrian streets curated based on the cultural and architectural aesthetics of the Tang Dynasty and draws in an average of 120 million pedestrians annually. The virtual copy is therefore designed to energize the real economy with a fully immersive digital experience that stimulates consumer demands while showcasing the beauty of the historic neighborhood.
Enabled by JDT’s technical advances, the digital street market also allows a cross-scenario experience, including virtual shopping, socializing or hanging out with friends, watching live streams and performances. On the eve of the official launch of Datang Lingjing, the platform gave an “open-air concert” to celebrate the meta space, which was presented by a youthful band specializing in folk rock music, giving a nod to the contrast between modern technology and the cultural heritage that the featured street embodies .
The first cultural tourism e-commerce metaverse is reported to have drawn in hundreds of brand names, including HTC, Chinese beer maker Tsingtao Brewery and Chinese appliance maker Gree Electric. The virtual experience was spiced up with a point-based discount mechanism, which encourages consumer participation in activities such as raffles, virtual booth rental and product exchange, therefore, allowing a more participatory and playful digital journey.
The collaboration with Baidu Xirang, a front-runner in China’s metaverse race, which has seen collaborations with global brands including Dior and Prada, is expected to bring about a more diverse, open and accessible digital ecosystem, boosting the construction of the metaverse with an enhanced interactive experience while driving the upgrade of China’s industrial digitization.
![Bitcoin [BTC] investors looking for relief may get some after reading this](https://www.cryptoproductivity.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/kanchanara-5z36YztTtM-unsplash-1000x600.jpg "Bitcoin [BTC] investors looking for relief may get some after reading this")