Empowering Creators in the Digital Age: Shorooq Partners' New Investment in Virtualness

In an era where digital engagement knows no bounds, the demand for customized experiences, personalized expressions, and innovative commerce solutions continues to surge. At Shorooq Partners, we understand the significance of these trends, and today, we're thrilled to announce our latest investment in a pioneering company leading this digital revolution – Virtualness.

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Virtualness is a mobile-first platform dedicated to simplifying the journey of harnessing the full potential of blockchain technology for creators, brands, sports and media organizations. At its core lies a profound belief in empathy, a value that places creators at the forefront of their efforts. Virtualness strives to democratize AI-led designs, encourage efficient sharing and social interactions, and enable seamless digital commerce. In essence, Virtualness is rewriting the playbook for the future of fan engagement and monetization.

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One of the cornerstones of any successful venture is the quality of its founders. In the case of Virtualness, we're privileged to partner with two individuals who bring a wealth of experience and a proven track record. Kirthiga Reddy, Virtualness' co-founder, was the first employee at Meta (formerly Facebook), India, where she scaled operations from zero to what is now an over $2 billion endeavor. She also served as the first female investment partner at SoftBank, sat on the board of WeWork, chaired Stanford Business School Management Board and has a remarkable history in the tech world. Co-founder Saurabh Doshi held senior leadership roles at Meta for nearly a decade, heading Emerging Markets for Creator Products & Entertainment Experiences on Facebook and Instagram. He was formerly VP at Viacom Group, heading digital initiatives, Chairperson of the Asian Academy Creative Awards & was recognized as 40underForty Winner by India’s Impact Magazine. With this exceptional team, we are confident in Virtualness' ability to thrive.

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Creators as Ultimate Entrepreneurs

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Virtualness is founded on the principle that creators are the ultimate entrepreneurs. With a deep understanding of the online ecosystem and experience in onboarding creators and brands, Virtualness recognizes how technology has fueled the rise of the global creator economy. Now, they're embarking on a journey to amplify this impact further with AI and blockchain towards a Web 3.0 future. Their belief is clear - everything that can transition from a physical form to digital will make that leap, enabling creators and brands to replicate physical experiences in innovative, digital ways. This new economy is being forged, unlocked by branded digital goods delivering unique experiences, capabilities, and value.

For creators, Virtualness becomes a creative sanctuary – a mobile-first platform offering free AI-led creation tools that empower them to design and create branded digital goods and connect them with experiences at the click of a button. With free templates, wizards, and user-friendly advanced editing tools, creators have complete control over what they create, limited only by their imagination.  

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Recognizing the growing demand for personalized experiences, Virtualness harnesses AI and blockchain decentralization to redefine how fans perceive belonging, validation, and ownership. This approach empowers creators to deliver unmatched experiences and unlock fresh avenues for monetization.

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But Virtualness isn't just for creators. For those who find inspiration in creators, it provides a personalized journey. Virtualness offers a personalized feed, an AI-enabled discovery engine, and a seamless purchasing experience, equipping users with free community tools to engage and showcase collections to friends. Easy login via email or social handles, payments by in-app purchases and fiat in local currency, choice of wallets and simplified journey to claim rewards and experiences, are key capabilities that make the user experience on Virtualness seamless. Users can also trade branded digital goods on Virtualness and other marketplaces, on top of joining their favorite creators’ journeys and experiencing a decentralized internet like never before.

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At Shorooq Partners, our blockchain thesis centers on leveraging existing consumer behaviors augmented by crypto and blockchain technologies, with NFTs as a prime example. Virtualness not only shares this vision but amplifies it. They focus on the fundamental shifts introduced by blockchain and NFTs—authenticated digital assets and NFTs as mini-computers enabling business logic integration. This transformation empowers creators to establish direct connections with their fans and monetize in the Web 3.0 world. Beyond being a platform, Virtualness is crafting a crypto-powered super application for creators and fans across all domains.

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Our investment in Virtualness is not merely a financial endeavor; it's a strategic partnership with a company that shares our vision for the future of digital experiences and represents our commitment to driving innovation in the digital age. We see this partnership as an opportunity to accelerate the adoption of blockchain technology and reshape the creator-fan dynamic not only in the Middle East but globally. Together with Virtualness, we are poised to empower creators, cultivate unique fan experiences, and pioneer the future of digital commerce.  

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Stay tuned for more updates as we embark on this exciting journey with Virtualness, making waves in the world of Web 3.0.

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