Quick take:
- Browser-based metaverse Portals wants to create a virtual world that won’t require a VR headset.
- Co-founder Adam Gomez thinks metaverse platforms requiring the use of a VR headset limit accessibility.
- Portals raised $5 million in a seed round on Friday led by Greylock Partners.
Adam Gomez’s Portals raised $5 million in a seed round on Friday led by Greylock Partners. The browser-based metaverse platform wants to eliminate the need for virtual reality (VR) headsets when accessing the immersive 3D world.
According to Gomez, metaverse platforms requiring users to wear a VR headset limit accessibility. Portals wants to scale up the number of users in the metaverse by building a platform that eliminates this obstacle.
The funding round also attracted participants from Multicoin Capital, Solana Ventures, Foundation Capital, Alameda Research, Sino Global Capital, The Chainsmokers’ Mantis VC, Wave7, Cultur3 Capital, SkyVision Capital and MonkeVentures.
The idea of building a 3D space that can be accessed without VR glasses has also been floated around by Disney. The global media conglomerate secured a technology patent for a “Virtual World Simulator” in late December that will allow resort visitors to engage through augmented reality (AR) without the need for a VR headset.
Portals seems to be echoing Disney’s comments in November when it said it was looking to offer technology that connects “the physical and digital worlds even more closely, allowing for storytelling, without boundaries in our own Disney Metaverse.”
However, Portals can be accessed via a web browser like Chrome or Firefox, allowing people to build their own unique spaces in the metaverse.
Although Portals’ idea if it comes to fruition will give the wider community access to the metaverse, experts believe it could limit the experiences compared to other platforms that require users to wear a VR headset.
But Adam Gomez’s technology could also be what the film industry has been waiting for since the movie Avatar came out nearly 14 years ago.
The creator of the Avatar film series James Cameron has been quoted saying he wants his next Avatar movie, Avatar 2 to be viewed in 3D without the need for VR glasses. Therefore, Portals’ imaginative metaverse platform may not be as utopian as it seems.
In a similar thought process, YouTube’s chief product officer, Neal Mohan wrote in a blog post on Thursday that the company wants to make immersive worlds accessible to viewers.
“It’s still early days, but we’re excited to see how we can turn these virtual worlds into a reality for viewers,” adding that the company is working to “bring more interactions to games and make them feel more alive.”
Overall, it seems that Portals attempt to create a metaverse platform that does not require the use of a VR headset has a foundation that is backed by several players in the entertainment industry.
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