GM, this is Product Lab, your weekly source of fun technology & startup inspiration. Brought to you by your mates at Polyform Studio.

What we have for you this week:

• 🤳 Revolutionizing the Creator Economy with Brian Freeman

• 🤘 Jazz Hands are Coming to the Metaverse!

• 🤖 Ai Experiment: The Egg

• 🎨 MidJourney Tutorial: Getting Consistent Characters

• 🤣 Weekly Dank Meme Dump

PRODUCT LAB PODCAST EPISODE #001

Brian Freeman joins us to chat Creatorland, his 3rd startup serving the creator economy, Gen Z, being a LA tech scene OG, & the future of media. “We're seeing a shift in society. Content creation is woven into the fabric of existence for Americans under 24.” - Brian Freeman

3 MAJOR KEYS FOR FOUNDERS

1/ Embrace the pivots & listen to the market.

Brian speaks about his previous startup going from a dating app, to an email list of influencers, to the #1 micro-influencer X brand platform in the world. Every change was a reflection of the current market conditions and oppourtunities that came with it.

2/ Co-building with your customers is the fastest path to growth.

Creating a community before and during the launch of your product is the FASTEST way to get feedback from the right people. On the podcast Brian talks about building a Discord community that informed many of the product decisions for Creatorland.

3/ Your investors are long term partners; be picky.

Many founders have a "I'll take ANY MONEY" attitude when it comes to raising capital. Brian talks about how that mentality put his previous startup in a precarious position that actually killed its growth in the long run. "Smart money will pay dividends over time. Bad money is a band-aid to a problem that doesn't go away."

LISTEN TO / WATCH THE FULL EPISODE

Hand tracking is the Holy Grail of user input and a total pain in the ass. Thankfully there have been MAJOR innovations in recent months. Here are a few of our favourites:

Meta Quest v50 release & Direct Touch

Are you tired of fumbling around with your Quest controllers or struggling to make the perfect pinch gesture in VR? Well, Meta's got you covered with their latest v50 update! Now, you can get handsy with your headset and touch things like never before - virtual keyboards, menu buttons, you name it! Who needs actual fingers when you can have virtual ones, am I right?

Webcam Motion Capture for VTubers is LIVE

Why spend your hard-earned cash on fancy equipment to become a virtual YouTuber when you can harness the power of AI? With Webcam Motion Capture technology, your trusty computer or smartphone camera can now puppeteer your very own 3D avatar! Say goodbye to expensive gear and hello to looking like a metaverse superstar on a budget!

StretchSense announce Series A • MoCap gloves

StretchSense is leveling up! The company just finished a capital raise of NZ$13.3m, and they've got a major player on their team - Par Equity. With more than +200 gaming and VFX studios already on board with their high-precision motion capture tech, it's safe to say these guys are crushing it.

AI EXPERIMENT OF THE WEEK: THE EGG

Tried something new with Midjourney this week: Storyboarding a Summer Blockbuster.4 hours +2,500 renders 50 finished images 1 heartfelt story.READ THE FULL STORY The EggWATCH THE TUTORIAL Storyboarding a Summer Blockbuster in MJ

SEE THE FULL STORY The EggWATCH THE TUTORIAL Storyboarding a Summer Blockbuster in MJ

DANK MEME DUMP OF THE WEEK

What'd you think of this edition?

• 🤖🤖🤖 Love!

• 🤖🤖 Meh, basic.

• 💩 Did not compute.