Building Web3 is tough, and it’s even tougher when it comes to metaverses. The past few years have seen the near failure of many purely digital platforms, highlighting the need for projects that serve as bridges between the real world and digital space.
Metropolis, an immersive virtual platform that blends commerce, gaming, social interaction and culture, was born to fill this gap. Founded by Rania Ajami and her brother Rashid Ajami, they were pursuing careers in the entertainment, film and music industries when they began working on the idea of Metropolis.
The siblings recently joined Cointelegraph’s AMA session to tell the story of the company, with Rania saying, “From the beginning, we wanted to create a dynamic and vibrant world for people to connect with. We wanted to evoke emotions through storytelling while bridging physical and digital experiences.”
Joining the conversation, Rashid added: “On the one hand, we have Twitter and Instagram, where most creators spend their time and capital, and on the other hand, there are metaverses that have not yet been adopted. We’re filling the gap between them: you can easily customize, get in and out of our immersive world.”
Immersion and creators are key to Web3 growth [Cointelegraph Acceleration] https://t.co/rzgDB0WN3h
— Cointelegraph (@Cointelegraph) February 7, 2025
Metropolis World features a virtual city with more than 500 unique locations — from jungles, residential homes and party houses to art galleries, exclusive clubs and DJ towers — all with their own lore, characters and storylines. The virtual city allows anyone to host digital events, build and engage communities, stream content and sell artwork in their own customized spaces.
“We are hand-picking amazing creators and artists from fashion, film, music and more,” Rania said. The project boasts over 400 signed partnerships with Yung Gravy, Steve Aoki, Christian Cowan, Blondish, Mike Shinoda and many more.
“Creators and brands can get properties and AI agents that you can train to be your own character and create mini-games and chat groups that are segmented and token-gated. So you have your own world in one place as opposed to a more generic scroll feed that you get with an Instagram profile,” she explained.
After obtaining a passport, gaining full access and choosing an avatar, users can visit Metropolis X — the platform’s gamified marketplace — to explore locations and experiences and create their own places.
“Say you have a DJ mix, and you want it to be exclusive. You can turn it into your NFT in Metropolis X. It can also be used in an environment and further amplify your brand as a DJ or creator,” Rashid added.
The speakers emphasized the project’s focus on removing traditional Web3 barriers. “While we support custodial wallets, you can only use your credit card within our marketplace.” The project also launched a token, CLAY, to complement the project’s vision. As Rania explained, “It’s not the kind of pump-and-dump memecoin or a token for trading, but to facilitate real experiences in the Metropolis world on multiple levels.”
“Yes, it’s very much like an ecosystem token that allows you to access and transact within the ecosystem. CLAY unlocks quests, early access to products, discounts, meeting groups with different creators and brands, leveling up in the games, ways to customize your property and so on,” Rashid added, highlighting that CLAY staking is available to Metropolis users now, with more options and governance features to be added in the future.
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