Hi, this is Wan Wei, CEO and Co-Founder of IKIGUIDE Metaverse Collective (IMC). Singapore Management University invited me to do a post specifically on my startup journey, so I am thankful to be able to take the time to reflect and share my journey here!
I am currently also a guest trainer at Singapore Management University Academy and lecturer at Aventis Graduate School, specialising in topics on Web3 and the metaverse.
IMC counts NYSE-listed Nutanix, Philips, Hitachi, DBS, Crypto.com and non-profit alliance ChangemakersXchange as some of the key clients and partners in its portfolio.
As one of the leading media, education and Web3 collective in the Southeast Asian region, we work with corporations and governments to bridge knowledge and resource gaps in Asia’s metaverse industry so that they can integrate these solutions into their processes seamlessly.
Our story
Folks are sometimes curious why we chose to set up IKIGUIDE Metaverse Collective. IKIGUIDE was registered as a business entity since 2014, when I was in Finland doing my Masters in Public Relations, all the way in Finland.
Naturally, at that time, IKIGUIDE was focusing on startup consultancy and publicity. Eventually, we pivoted into metaverse and Web3-related consulting because we spotted a sweet spot we could bridge in the Asian metaverse spaces.
Also Read: Web3 marketing: Building a cult-like community
Today, we focus on providing specialised market intelligence and education to corporations and governments related to the metaverse industry in Asia, which includes China, India, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Malaysia, Singapore, Philippines, Vietnam and Indonesia. We also offer strategic consulting services spanning focus groups, partnership selection, Go-to-Market strategy, and customised data analysis.
We’re fully bootstrapped and incubated by Singapore Management University Business Innovations Generator (BIG) Programme. They are currently accepting applications now, so do remember to apply!
What problem do we solve?
According to JP Morgan, the metaverse industry will present a US$1 trillion industry by 2030. Goldman Sachs predicts that the metaverse has “as much as US$8 trillion opportunity on the revenue and monetisation side”. Morgan Stanley sees US$8 trillion metaverse market in China alone.
Extensive research projects that the global metaverse market will grow from US$61.8 billion in 2022 to US$426.9 billion in 2027, representing a compound annual growth rate of 47.2 per cent. Asia Pacific is expected to be the fastest-growing region for the metaverse market over the next five years, with an average annual growth rate of 49.6 per cent.
Yet, it is important to note that the metaverse discourse is currently very Western-centric. Many of us have heard of Western Big Tech companies like Microsoft doing the US$69 billion of Activision Blizzard, Facebook rebranding to Meta and then doing Horizon Worlds, or Roblox and Fortnight.
Yet, why haven’t we heard of China’s Xirang (by Baidu) or South Korea’s Zepeto’s collaboration with K-pop girl group BLACKPINK, which led to a worldwide social media frenzy? Those are huge! And aren’t the massive populations already highly engaged in esports/gaming worlds in the Asia Pacific, the very people who will lead the mass adoption of other metaverses?
The reason for the relative lack of information and discourse is mainly because the Asian region is still highly fragmented due to language, regulatory and cultural barriers. Having said that, this is also a huge opportunity, so we wanted to do IKIGUIDE as a leading metaverse collective for the region. The three-pronged verticals that build up our collective are:
- Education
- Media
- Consulting
Why a collective?
Our IKIGUIDE metaverse “collective” community, fuelled by the willingness of our progressive and competent community members to support one another, is what we enjoy the most. It also follows the Web3 ethos.
Our collective is in its infancy, and we aim to build it with and to over a hundred engaged firms and excellent founders in Asia. Consider this collective as having the backing of many of the top founders and thought leaders in Asia’s metaverse industry, who are all net-givers in our ecosystem.
In essence, we work hard to establish open access to knowledge and resources that each of us wished existed when we started our Web3 and metaverse journeys, respectively.
A collective is essential in a Web3 space because we are fundamentally all about collaboration, relationships and experiences, which is different from a typical Web2 closed organisation. We’re closer to running a movement over a business, where we work hard to curate members in our collective to ensure that members are community and contribution-minded.
Also Read: More than hype: 3 reasons why NFTs are here to stay
This, however, does not mean that the entity is not bottom-line driven. It does, however, mean that the entity is the antithesis of transactional. True to the Japanese spirit of Omotenashi (表裏なし), we deeply care about the experience of each contributor and client in our collective and serve passionately as net-givers in the ecosystem.
So, a collective means that we all profit, serve each other wholeheartedly, and win together through Web3 tools like NFTs. By our ethos and design, the IKIGUIDE ecosystem is diverse, equitable and inclusive, and our core values are openness, growth mindset, and a sense of having fun together. In addition, community leaders need to have passion for their respective local communities, which is how we scale and embark on decentralisation.
It is also important to clarify that our collective is not a cult. The key difference is that we encourage independent thinking and robust discussion within our IKIGUIDE collective, with succession and decentralisation actively planned within the design. A cult demands obedience to a single leader.
1 + 1 > 2 in a collective due to how we leverage high-quality information and network because together we are very much stronger.
Where do we go from here?
At the moment, we are recruiting Web3 and metaverse evangelists to build our IKIGUIDE Metaverse media arm in the classic omotenashi style. So if you know any suitable candidates, please send them our way!
Personally, I am very excited about our future. If you want to be part of our movement, please feel free to join our LinkedIn Group on “Metaverse in Asia”, and our “Metaverse: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion” Group.
–
Editor’s note: e27 aims to foster thought leadership by publishing views from the community. Share your opinion by submitting an article, video, podcast, or infographic
Join our e27 Telegram group, FB community, or like the e27 Facebook page
Image credit: IKIGUIDE Metaverse Collective
The post From hobby to startup: Here’s my story as IKIGUIDE’s Co-Founder appeared first on e27.