The Metaverse fund launched by Qualcomm is expected to go into grant programs for developers who have experience in creating XR- focused gaming, wellness, health, media, and entertainment.
Qualcomm Incorporated, a multinational software and microprocessor company, has announced a $100 million Metaverse fund to support firms working in the fields of extended reality (XR), artificial intelligence (AI), and augmented reality (AR).
The extended reality, or XR, refers to the use of smartphones in conjunction with AR and VR headsets and glasses.
The “SnapDragon Metaverse Fund” is named after Qualcomm’s Snapdragon chips, which are designed for a wide range of devices such as smartphones, tablets, computers, smartwatches, and smartbooks.
The funds will also go toward a grant program for developers creating XR-focused gaming, health, wellness, media, and entertainment experiences, according to a March 21 report.
“Through the Snapdragon Metaverse Fund, we hope to enable developers and businesses of all sizes as they push the frontiers of what’s possible as we enter this new era of spatial computing,” said Cristiano Amon, president, and CEO of Qualcomm Incorporated.
The company claims that its 5G, AI, and XR technologies, which it sees as “essential to the Metaverse,” are seeking to be the “ticket to the metaverse.” Qualcomm’s website also claims that in the future, it plans to merge a smartphone, VR headset, and AR glasses into a single XR gadget.
“XR could replace all the other screens in your life, like that big TV in your living room. Mobile XR has the potential to become one of the world’s most ubiquitous and disruptive computing platforms—similar to the smartphone today.”
“Early access to cutting-edge XR platform technology, hardware kits, a global network of investors, and co-marketing and promotion opportunities,” the firm promised.
While crypto has recently taken center stage in the context of the present Russian-Ukraine war, it looks that interest in Metaverse initiatives is beginning to resurface.
Native assets from popular metaverse projects such as Decentraland and The Sandbox have gained 7% and 14%, respectively, over the last seven days.
It could be recalled that Coinscreed also reported on March 18 that Yuga Labs, the founders of the Bored Ape Yacht club, had raised $450 million in a seed fundraising round at a valuation of $4 billion, with a portion of the money going toward the development of the Apecoin-backed Otherside metaverse project.
