Pioneering spatial computing for an experience-driven metaverse in art, culture, and history

HO CHI MINH CITY, Vietnam, Aug. 30, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Embracing the forefront of extended reality (XR) technology spearheaded by Meta and Apple, Phygital Labs has launched Galerio, the first spatial cultural experience featuring Vietnam's Last Royal Dynasty. This immersive cultural experience is now accessible globally at galerio.io and supports Vision Pro and Quest. 

While the rapid rise of social media has made casual content widely accessible, the depth and richness of art, culture, and history have struggled to reach their full potential, often constrained by the need for advanced technology and sophisticated interaction. Galerio addresses this challenge by using spatial computing to craft immersive, narrative-driven experiences that bring history to life. The pilot chapter of Galerio, dedicated to the Nguyen Dynasty, features nine royal antiques digitally authenticated on the blockchain using Nomion's technology, offering visitors a profound cultural and historical journey before they visit the museum.

In contrast to social-centric metaverses like Meta's Horizon Worlds or Decentraland, which focus on live social interactions in shared virtual spaces, Galerio is centered on discovery and exploration within high-fidelity virtual environments. It provides intuitive, hands-free interactions that guide users through rich layers of historical and cultural narratives that have endured through time.

An Experience-Driven Spatial Metaverse

As VR headsets are projected to reach 100 million units by 2024, the app ecosystem remains underdeveloped, highlighting the pressing need for high-quality applications that fully utilize spatial computing. Galerio meets this demand by offering ultra-realistic 3D visuals, natural interactions, immersive soundscapes, and AI-guided tours. Digital reconstructions show artifacts as they exist today, as they appeared in the past, or as they evolved over time, uncovering hidden meanings along the way. AI guides provide context and answer questions, while soundscapes recreate historical environments. Galerio empowers users to curate immersive museum experiences with customizable templates, much like social apps enable content creation.

"Our vision is to harness the power of cutting-edge spatial technologies to create immersive and interactive experiences that bring art, culture, and history to life in the most vivid and authentic way possible," said Nam Do, Co-founder and Chief Technology Officer of Phygital Labs and a former Google engineer. "By building a spatial metaverse platform that allows creators to seamlessly transform rich content into engaging experiences, we aim to make these stories accessible to global digital audiences that have been largely underserved."

Galerio has also embraced a universal approach by building on a web framework rather than a native app. While this strategy allows for rapid expansion across different XR platforms, it requires meticulous engineering to ensure native-level quality across all devices. This approach has enabled a swift cross-platform rollout, with the platform launching on Quest just two weeks after Vision Pro, and a mobile version soon to follow, significantly extending its reach to users without XR headsets.

The Future of Storytelling Through Spatial Experiences

Following the launch of the experience-driven metaverse with the pilot chapter on the Nguyen Dynasty, remaining chapters will be released in early Q4. Simultaneously, Galerio is expanding its offerings by inviting museums, cultural institutions, and private collectors to showcase their artifacts, art, sculptures, and collectibles. This initiative will transform Galerio into a global cultural hub, enriching it with diverse cultural treasures from around the world and facilitating cross-cultural exchanges that transcend traditional boundaries.

The launch of Galerio marks a significant step in leveraging technology to preserve and promote art, culture, and history, pioneering a new model for the digital economy.

For more information, visit galerio.io.