The Winklevoss Twins Raise $400 Million for a Decentralized Metaverse

The Winklevoss eyes the metaverse with a $400 million bet against archrival Meta and Mark Zuckerberg.

A Different Path 

Gemini, founded by the famed Winklevoss twins, raised $400 million this week as it vowed to build an alternative metaverse experience to Meta, formerly Facebook. The funding round led by Morgan Creek Digital and other investment participation has brought the crypto platform’s valuation to $7.1 billion. 

As former founders, this venture sets the brothers, Tyler and Cameron, on a collision path between themselves and the estranged company.‍

“There’s these two parallel paths, in terms of technology right now. There’s a centralized path, like Facebook or Fortnite, that is one step away from being a metaverse, and that’s totally fine. But there is another path, which is the decentralized metaverse and that’s the metaverse where we believe there’s greater choice, independence and opportunity, and there is technology that protects the rights and dignity of individuals,” Cameron Winklevoss, one of the founders of Gemini, told Michael del Castillo in an interview with Forbes. 

In 2010, the Winklevoss twins were engaged in a long-running legal dispute with Facebook and its CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, which ended with the twins accepting a $65 million settlement. Tyler and Cameron started the crypto platform Gemini in 2015 while becoming leading industry players in the crypto space. 
www.youtube.com/embed/RPA6T3yUzhE

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Going Big on the Metaverse Theme

In the interview with Forbes, Tyler Winklevoss disclosed that Gemini has bought a plot of virtual land to create several locations for its operations. ‍

“Instead of building brick-and-mortar bank branches in meatspace, we’re gonna build a Gemini experience in different metaverses, where you can go into Gemini and trade, but it would be immersive instead of on your phone,” Tyler Winklevoss revealed. 

The virtual world is fast becoming a significant area of interest, not just for crypto enthusiasts but all industries. The metaverse presents itself as an alternate world that exists online and promises many opportunities. 

Gemini has been immersing itself in various projects through its investment arm, Gemini Frontier Fund, with more than half of its portfolio being held in metaverse related ventures. 

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Centralized vs. Decentralized

Gemini has the traction to sell its decentralized vision. The company is licensed under several jurisdictions to operate as a crypto exchange and a financial services provider. On the other hand, Meta, a centralized platform, has faced numerous allegations of unethical practices centered on privacy breaches.

Gemini’s version of the metaverse dream is a more compelling narrative that promises autonomy to its users in a decentralized platform. Only time will tell which version will come out tops. The only thing that is certain now is that the metaverse theme is building a very compelling investment narrative to the investment community by its sheer magnitude and potential. 

Centralized platforms like Meta will find it harder to compete with decentralized platforms, especially when they continue to mismanage and abuse user data. Will that excuse its checkered past of privacy violation? The Winklevoss Twins sure hope so.
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Source : bsc.news