You need real millions when you want to create atmosphere in virtual worlds. While the Web3 sector is in full swing – and carries its share of more or less serious projects -, Kinetix has found the right words to raise 11 million dollars in seed from Adam Ghobarah, The Sandbox & ZEPETO (NAVER Z), Sparkle Ventures, Entrepreneur First and renowned business angels (Xavier Niel, Alexandre Yazdi, etc.).
Founded in 2020 by Yassine Tahi, Henri Mirande and Philip Belhassen, this Parisian start-up has developed a no-code platform that allows individuals to transform 2D videos into 3D animations. To do this, all you have to do is film yourself dancing, doing karate or juggling. Once the file is imported into the platform, Kinetix is able to create an avatar using deep learning algorithms.
Monetization by NFTs
The animated character can then be personalized according to his tastes and desires of the moment, then exported in metaverses, video games, advertising, films, etc. What democratize the creation of this type of content for people who do not have expensive equipment (sensors, motion design software, etc.).
“We are seeing an explosion in the need for animated 3D content, responding to the exceptional growth of virtual worlds. Our conviction is that tomorrow everyone will create their own animated avatars in order to share their stories in the metaverse”, insists Yassine Tahi, who met his co-founder within the framework of the Entrepreneur First program.
Initially, Kinetix relied on a freemium business model. But the company, which claims several thousand users, has changed its approach and now wants to take the Web3 wagon, the promise of a new decentralized Internet, by allowing its users to create NFTs from their 3D avatars. .
The start-up will thus launch a marketplace for this purpose. “This Web3 economic model allows for a fairer sharing of the value of creations. The creators own the property of their creations and we receive a small share for each of the transactions carried out with their NFTs”, decrypts the boss.
Boom of the “creator economy”
Kinetix launched its beta version in 2021 and offers its technology to content creators on Roblox, but also Tiktokeurs, Youtubers, artists, professional dancers, video game developers, animated film creators… “The economy of creators is in full progress and the ease of use of our platform gives many of them the means to set foot in a new universe by creating their first 3D animation”, comments the boss. The Sandbox, which is in the capital of the start-up, should be a natural outlet for these people.
With its resources, the company also wants to improve its platform in order to create avatars in real time – there is currently a few minutes lag between the import of the file and the creation of the 3D character. This would allow, for example, to film a concert and broadcast it live in the metaverse. Everything goes really fast in virtual worlds.
