Leading Australian digital product company Two Bulls has been chosen to help spearhead the development of the Translucia metaverse, as part of a newly-announced partnership with Thailand’s T&B Media Global.
Translucia represents an ambitious plan by T&B Media Global to bring the metaverse to life by building a virtual world that focuses on well-being, sustainability and community.
The partnership was officially announced at a ceremony in Bangkok. In attendance were representatives from the Australian, Victorian and Thai Governments, and representatives from T&B Media and Two Bulls.
The collaboration will build technical capability in both Australia and Thailand, as future-focused investors look to secure their place in the metaverse; a virtual universe that promises to enhance our existing reality by blending the real and virtual worlds.
With teams straddled across the Australian and US markets, Melbourne’s Two Bulls has developed an unparalleled reputation for developing world-leading digital products, for national and international clients such as Verizon, NBC, Hasbro and Disney.
Two Bulls also have extensive experience in augmented reality, having launched in 2009 with the pioneering AR game The Hidden Park. Over the ensuing years Two Bulls has won the National iAward for ‘Best Consumer Product’ and the ‘Innovation and Technology’ Award at the Victorian Export Awards, featured in past Apple Keynotes and named Apple App of the Day in the US, Australia, Canada, UK and Hong Kong. In 2019 Forbes named a project made by Two Bulls’ family products arm Two Moos as Top Children’s App of the year.
Two Bulls will help to bring Translucia to life as part of T&B Media’s vision for an experience that utilises an emerging suite of digital tools to enhance people’s real-world experiences.
Two Bulls CEO James Kane said his team is excited to be part of a project breaking virtual ground in the metaverse.
“Thirteen years on from our idea to use a smartphone to create an augmented reality experience for kids, it’s great to see so many people buying into the vision,” Kane said.
“Translucia will allow us to grow our team significantly and provide a new platform to show the world that Australian developers are a force to be reckoned with,” he said.
Kane said Translucia has been conceived as an extended reality where participants can play, earn, explore and connect.
“Unlike other similar efforts to build out the metaverse, Translucia places priority on a player’s capabilities to learn, build wealth and maintain both physical and mental fitness, while maintaining a consistent ‘goodness mindset’ throughout the entire world and the partners who are creating it.”
He said this unique approach, which included the securing of high-value partners, would drive Translucia’s ambitions to be a major player in the metaverse.
Evan Davey, Founding Partner at Two Bulls, emphasises the research and development challenges ahead for the team.
“There are so many advances that need to be made to make this a reality. Graphics platform optimisation is a huge challenge, as is backend infrastructure to create a single seamless experience. And finally, we need to consider interoperability across multiple Metaverses,” says Davey.
The project has already secured significant backing, launching in September 2021 with nearly AUD$420 million of investment which T&B Media are confident will deliver at least AUD $4.2 billion of value as more people embrace the metaverse.
“Unlike other metaverses, Translucia focuses on creating happiness not only from external sources, but also internally from one’s mind and body. It is driven by an engine that we envision will exchange goodness into prosperity, wellness and, ultimately, happiness” says Dr. Jwanwat Ahriyavraromp, CEO & Founder, T&B Media Global.