**Union Avatars, tools to manage digital identity**
*”Digital identity is becoming a key element of identity in general”*
Union Avatars is a company that offers tools to manage the digital identity of users and companies through avatars, achieving a unique experience within the reach of anyone. Their mission is to help shape the future of digital identity in the metaverse and for this they create solutions through avatars so that any person or entity can have their own digital representation in video games, social networks, virtual reality platforms, augmented or gamification. “The virtual world is nothing more than an extension of realityphysics in which we live, it is up to us to decide when we want to be part of it. That is why we are working so that in the future the virtual world is accessible and available to everyone,” they say from the company.
It was founded by Cai Felip and Jordi Conejero. Jordi and Cai are old friends and have known each other for more than 15 years thanks to music. They have been involved in many projects together over the past few years until they decided to launch one together and create Union Avatars. “We started in 2019 with the ideation of the project until we decided to launch the brand in 2020, and since then, we have been working every day to grow this company,” says Cai.
The startup is one of the companies that has had the support ofGoHub Ventures, Global Omnium’s corporate venturing endowed with 30 million euros for investment in deep tech startups with disruptive solutions. In 2023 GoHub goes to its Fund II, endowed with 60 million euros. GoHub promotes startups with disruptive B2B solutions for the automation of processes applicable to a multitude of industries. Bet on technologies such as IA, IoT, No Code, Big Data, augmented reality, Data Fabric, 5G, edge computing, quantumâ?¦
Its portfolio is made up of 25 startups. Invest in tickets of between 500,000 euros and 3 million in seed phases to Series A. In addition, it has a GoHub Accelerator boutique program that promotes startups in product, technology and sales. The applications areopen all year.
How does your project contribute to digital freedom?
We offer different styles of avatars, such as the realistic style or the voxel style. Thanks to our “style converter” we can adapt the avatar to the style of the platform where the user wants to interact. For these avatars we offer a wide variety of different clothes and accessories that we launch from time to time to keep the user updated.
We also have the Union ID, the first passport to the metaverse. In this “passport” users are the owners of all their information and they will be able to decide where and with whom they want to share it.
By offering these solutions we can see that digital users are beginning to have enough tools for a better digital freedom.
What elements prevent it from developing normally?
Digital identity can be hampered by various elements, including a lack of security in the protection of personal data, mistrust in online identity verification, and a lack of regulation and uniform standards. In addition, a lack of access to digital technologies and skills can also limit the development of a strong and trusted digital identity.
What will be the future of virtual identity?
The future of virtual identity is uncertain, but it is expected to continue to evolve and expand in society. Technology, especially artificial intelligence, will play a crucial role in creating more complex and realistic virtual identities.
How will it relate to physics?
In the future, it is likely that digital identity and physical identity will become more and more closely related. Technology is enabling more and more integration between the online and offline worlds, and digital identity is becoming a key element of identity in general. For example, digital identity is likely to be used to authenticate physical identity in online and offline transactions, and to control access to online and real-world resources and services. At the same time, it is important to keep in mind the privacy and security challenges that arise with the growing importance of digital identity.
How has the technological development of Union Avatars been?
Technological development at Union has progressed a lot since the beginning, especially in the team dedicated to it. Today we already have more than 15 developers and digital designers who make everything we are offering possible.
How do you improve it precisely as the technological possibilities of doing so advance?
We are implementing blockchain technology to offer our users both ownership of their assets and portability between different platforms, which is one of the main challenges facing the metaverse.
Where and how can your avatars be used?
Currently there are more than 100 platforms that are connected to our API or SDK to be able to create avatars directly in their environments. In addition, platforms such as VRChat, Hyperfy, Somium Space or Monaverse allow us to integrate our avatars.
And who do it? Who is this solution for?
Every day more than 200 users register on our website who create about 400 daily avatars. In addition, we have tools such as the SDK for Unity or Unreal and APIs that virtual environment developer platforms can integrate into their solution to facilitate the creation of avatars directly in their virtual experiences.
What state of evolution is the metaverse in today?
The metaverse is in an early state of evolution as of today. Although there are some ambitious projects under development, most are still in the development phase and have not been implemented on a large scale. Additionally, there are many design and technical challenges that must be overcome before the metaverse can become a fully functional reality. That being said, the growing popularity of virtual and augmented reality suggests that the metaverse has great potential to change the way we engage with the virtual world and with other users online.
How did you come to work for and for it?
Long before the use of the metaverse concept became massive, we were already working on solutions to facilitate the conversion from the physical to the virtual world, especially in immersive environments. In fact, our first approach was the creation of a virtual space including the generation of avatars, but after testing this product with different companies, we saw that we could add more value by offering tools to manage user identity in different environments.
What has it meant for you to have the support of GoHub?
It has been essential for us that companies like GoHub trust our product and our team. They have given us the boost we needed to continue developing our idea and start marketing it
Why do you think it is important that these types of initiatives exist?
Entrepreneurship is a crucial means of improving the digital world and life. Technology has enormous power to address our society’s most pressing problems, from poverty to climate change, and business can be a key catalyst in driving innovative solutions. In addition, technology business initiatives can boost economic growth and create high-quality jobs. By offering advanced technology solutions, they can help businesses become more efficient and competitive, which in turn boosts the economy as a whole.
What other support have you had for your development?
We have had the support of Inveready, FiGroup, Inlea or Outlier Ventures, apart from different business angels and programs such as NVIDIA Inception, AWS Activate and SeedRocket. Our advisors have also been key players in making progress in the processes.
What plans does Union Avatars have for 2023 regarding funding, growth and expansion? What can you tell El Referente?
We are currently working on the next round of investment for October 2023 and evaluating the possibility of opening an office in the United States, since the vast majority of our clients are there.
How do you see yourself five years from now? Plans, deaths, illusions…?
We would like to see the metaverse become a reality and the drive towards web3 adoption continues unabated. At the company level, it is difficult to predict where we will find ourselves, but we hope that Union Avatars continues to offer facilities so that users and companies can manage their digital identity with complete freedom and security.
“La identidad digital se está convirtiendo en un elemento clave de la identidad en general”