AltspaceVR

AltspaceVR is a virtual events platform that was founded in 2013 and was acquired by Microsoft in 2017. The company provides a mixed reality environment in which users from all over the world can gather to attend meetings, watch stand-up comedy, take yoga classes, or have any other type of shared experience. Microsoft acquired the platform in order to leverage its powerful immersive technology architecture for its new metaverse offering.

AltspaceVR held three funding rounds between 2013 and 2017, raising a total of $15.7 million in investors. AltspaceVR just announced (in February 2021) a formal interface with the greater Microsoft environment, which is now in Early Access. Users of Minecraft, Xbox Live, or Office 365 will be able to consolidate their logins, making the AltspaceVR experience more secure. This follows a huge summer upgrade last year, in which AltspaceVR launched a host of customisation features that gave users more control over their avatars and facial expressions.

Key Features:

Public event calendar: AltspaceVR, like Facebook or LinkedIn events, will have a large number of events on its calendar at any given time. This includes spiritual gatherings such as religious services or group meditation, as well as learning activities such as cryptocurrencies, general science, creative writing, business networking, and so on. There are stand-up comedy events, happy hours, live music, karaoke, and other activities available in VR.

Content channels: AltspaceVR allows you to follow certain channels based on your interests. Humanism, diversity and inclusiveness, and spirituality, on the one hand, and stand-up comedy, music festivals, and improv on the other. Just like on YouTube, you’d be notified when a channel goes live and invited to participate.

VR Worlds: AltspaceVR includes a pre-built set of VR environments known as worlds. These include ordinary public spaces such as streets and roofs, as well as more imaginative settings such as an enchanted meadow or a fabled library. When organizing a gathering on AltspaceVR, event hosts can choose from these worlds.

Microsoft compatibility: AltspaceVR’s enterprise edition is built on Microsoft Mesh, which means you’ll soon be able to enjoy 3D photorealistic presence and spatial multiplayer experiences. AltspaceVR is thus an ideal software for collaboration, corporate events, and staff engagement gatherings.

What are the benefits of using AltspaceVR?

Because it is powered by Microsoft, AltspaceVR is one of the most dependable social VR systems available. Furthermore, if you stay to the consumer edition, it is completely free to use, with Microsoft driving monetisation solely through hardware and, soon, Mesh. Apart from Oculus Rift, Oculus Quest, Vive, and Windows MR, AltspaceVR can run in 2D if you have an Intel i3-6100 / AMD FX4350 or higher, 8GB+ RAM, and Windows 8 or newer.

What does the metaverse offer?

In AltspaceVR, there’s always something happening. Whatever you want to do, from live comedy shows to support groups, social events, creative and professional workshops, and religious studies, chances are it will happen soon. If it isn’t already, go to My Events and then Create Event to hold your own online event. The ability to create spaces develops along with the user. You can start with templates, but true creators create their own worlds.