- Upto US$100 million investment planned for 'D-Labs'
- New initiative to offer Group-wide services including virtual homes, digital property, digital wearables, and digital jewellery.
- All group companies and DAMAC Properties customers to receive priority.
- Part of the Group's organisation-wide digitisation ambitions and goal to become a global digital brand
"In an attempt to mold to the progressive trends of
business, we are expanding our offerings into the metaverse realm to avail of
the many opportunities it presents.
We are keen to pioneer the possibilities that the metaverse
offers in ways which allow us to be more connected and involved with our
customers and their interests," said Hussain Sajwani, Founder of DAMAC.
The Group will be run under the banner, 'D-Labs', and will
be led by Ali Sajwani, Chief Executive Officer of D-Labs and DAMAC General
Manager. The initiative forms part of the company-wide ambitions to move into
digital assets and non-fungible tokens (NFT), and he is tasked in delivering
the organisation's goal to be a leading global digital brand.
The Group plans to invest capital up to US$100 million for
the project.
"Over the past two years we have been aggressively
driving our digitisation efforts, and this new initiative into the metaverse
will only further leverage our digital footprint.
As well as updating our systems, processes and operations
across departments, we have been investing in building a strong team of skilled
and talented experts to help support our ambitions of being a digital leader.
We plan to continue this exercise, and expand our team and know-how,"
explains Ali Sajwani.
Since last year, the Group's real estate arm, DAMAC
Properties has been offering home buyers a 3D virtual experience that utilises
virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) technology. This is a stepping
stone into the metaverse realm, considered to be a digital universe made up of
VR, AR and extended reality (XR) that refers to 'all real-and-virtual combined
environments and human-machine interactions generated by computer technology
and wearables' where users can get the feel of 'living' an experience.
Through this move, the DAMAC Group hopes to branch out its
services to cater to the needs of the entire Group when it comes to digital
assets – ranging from virtual homes, digital property, as well as digital
wearables, and digital jewellery through the company's acquisitions of Swiss
jewellers de Grisogono, and Italian fashion brand Roberto Cavalli,
respectively.
Digital experiences is also part of the offering, where
guests will be able to get a virtual treat of the Mandarin Oriental Resort
Bolidhuffaru, which is part of the Group's hotels, resorts and serviced
apartments portfolio.
Remaining committed to its stakeholders, existing customers
of DAMAC will be prioritised in investing in these digital assets once plans
have rolled out.
The Metaverse in Business
The metaverse is known to benefit businesses and its
employees through enabling collaborations in a stimulating and highly-networked
3D environment that focuses on social connections. Some of the prominent perks
in adapting to the metaverse include increase customer engagement and loyalty,
better connectivity and collaborations with stakeholders, and eventually
increased revenue.
A Market Research Future (MRF) research observed that the
metaverse market was worth $21.91 billion in 2020, which is predicted to grow
at 41.7% by 2030. The report explains that the convergence of the physical and
digital worlds coupled with burgeoning need for metaverse for purchasing
digital assets utilising cryptocurrencies will offer robust opportunities for
the market over the forecast period.
Furthermore, there is a massive demand for real estate in
the metaverse, which is being slated as one of the most popular attractions for
investors in the virtual space.
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