Tallest building in Curitiba is in the metaverse
Through a partnership between GT Building, one of the main real estate developers in the capital of Paraná, with the multinational Electrolux, it is possible to visit virtually one of the 280 square meter apartments at OÁS. This is a unique experience, as by putting on the virtual reality (VR) glasses it will be possible to visit all the rooms in the apartment, enjoy the landscapes through the windows and interact with the 15 installed appliances, such as a television, microwave, air-fryer, refrigerator, among others.
The immersion can be carried out in 11 Electrolux outlets, located in Curitiba and São Paulo, and also in a room available at the headquarters of GT Building, in Curitiba. According to the Director of GT Building, Mauricio Fassina, it is the opportunity to experience, live and get to know the developer's new development. “Some interactions are also offered that the customer does not have in the physical space. The client will be able to have a view of Barigui Park and the entire city from the balcony on the forty-seventh floor”, he explains.
The apartment was modeled in 3D and has the same physical space and finishing characteristics as the units ranging from the 26th to the 47th floor of OÁS, the same as the interior project developed by architect Marcos Bertoldi. “The fact that we are pioneers in experimenting with the metaverse is for us to understand how GT Building will be able to extrapolate the physical world and bring new experiences to this digital world that help improve the customer’s perception of their future apartment”, highlights Mauricio.
Electrolux is the first home appliance brand in Latin America to join the platform to offer an experience in all environments. According to the director of Ownership Solutions and New Business at Electrolux, Nelson Scarpin, one of the factors for the company to invest in the metaverse is the need to be where millions of Brazilians are, in this case, in the hyper-connectivity environment. “Considering that consumers are in the online universe for one to three hours a day, Electrolux sees it as essential to promote an immersive experience, exactly simulating home environments with products they need most”, he says.
The client can experience this experience using VR glasses and a control that allows him to walk around the apartment and get an idea of the distribution of furniture, decoration and the size of the property. Functionalities are also being developed so that he can interact with the apartment, with explanatory videos about the development or some bullets about the differentials. “While walking through the apartment, there will be some bullets on the floor that the customer can click on and then information about the specifications will open, for example, here is underfloor heating”, says Mauricio.
For both GT Building and Electrolux, the most important part of the partnership is to revolutionize customer involvement with the brand and its services and manage to expand this experience in a personalized way to consumers regardless of where they are.
“The expectation is to consolidate this partnership between Electrolux and GT Building, guaranteeing the best immersive experiences for the consumer. With the exhibition of our releases on the platform, we will be able to add value to this client's complete experience, demonstrating how all the environments in his future apartment will be”, guarantees Nelson.
This is still a pilot project, however, as it evolves, new possibilities will be added to improve the customer experience with Electrolux appliances and with the GT Building apartment itself. The immersion is free and will be offered at Electrolux's own outlets, in Curitiba and São Paulo, and in the room at the developer's headquarters, where up to ten people will be able to use the VR glasses and visit the OÁS apartment in the metaverse.
According to the founding partner of AeonVR, the company responsible for creating the apartment in the metaverse, Lucas Gregory Gomes de Almeida, it was an excellent opportunity to develop the project because it fits perfectly in the two products and areas that the company operates, which are virtual showrooms and virtual decorations immersive, both in the metaverse. “We created a custom virtual environment and put it on our platform. Several users can enter the environment at the same time and interact with objects and with other people”, informs Lucas.
In addition to simulating the apartment, the metaverse environment has a showroom of Electrolux appliances from the Home Pro line and which customers can interact with, in addition to having a spatial perception with what is closest to reality today. “The immersion, with the visual simulation, with the possible interactions, the spatial sound and the interaction between users, tricks the brain and makes people believe that they are in a real environment”, emphasizes Lucas.
Lucas also believes that most people already use a metaverse without realizing it, and he exemplifies with those who play online. However, the company's focus is on the immersive use of the metaverse through virtual reality headsets. “I believe that to be massively used by the common user it will take some years, until they become financially viable. However, for corporate use, it is already something totally accessible and low cost”, he guarantees.
